I’m being put on the stuff in addition to Geodon. Advice and personal stories about the drug please. I start it tonight
I always felt a mild depression when I was on Zyprexa. I slept a lot, and I craved sugar. It can cause diabetes. That said, it was effective against my symptoms. I would watch out for the diabetes, though. If your sugar consumption suddenly skyrockets I would get off it.
I like it. Creativity enhancer. I’ve been on it for 20 or 30 years. Not as sedating as some. Developed diabetes. You should have regular blood tests. Gained 100 lbs. I have some debilitating side effects. Not sure how much of that is from the 1mg of Risperdal I take. I get the continuous eating syndrome without it. I much preferred Geodon.
I gained 45 pounds on it in 45 days while trying to watch what I eat in the beginning. I was taken off it, would have gained way more otherwise. I was so hungry that I ate until my stomach hurt badly and I was still as hungry as when I didn’t eat all day without the med. I know you train a lot and take care of your body. You will absolutely gain weight while on it, the question is how much. I used to be obsessed with my physique so I was devastated when I gained so much weight so fast. I was also very tired on it which made training harder. I think Olanzapine is probably the worst antipsychotic if you want to be lean.
when i first started taking it i was tired as hell from it. so dividing the dosage and weighing it more heavily at night, or entirely at night is ideal. at this point i’m used to it though, so it doesn’t have that effect so much.
i also am on haldol injections (have been on other injections in addition to the zyprexa, but haldol is the current one). my injection dosage got increased and my zyprexa was decreased a little more recently, so i’m down to fifteen per day.
everyone i know who’s taken zyprexa has experienced weight gain…except me. i have no idea why this is. i swear i’m being med compliant with it, and it did make me a more normal weight range (i tend toward being overthin a lot…without it i’d be a good fifteen to twenty underweight), but it didn’t keep making me gain weight. it more stabilized it. it is harder to skip meals, but maybe in my case it’s altogether too ease TO skip meals without it.
i saw someone once say it’s been used for anorexia, and, just to be clear, i’m not and not diagnosed anorexic, i just don’t think about eating and have concerns about food contamination. but it does make me less concerned and hungrier. i can’t say that my weight response is typical though. i agree with another who said you need to get regular blood draws (not clozaril style regular, but every few months) to check for diabetes. it can develop even if you don’t gain considerable weight, i’ve been told. so i have them. i think every three months? i’m unsure though. could be more/less. i feel like it’s about that though.
hope that helps and also hope it helps. take care
This was the first med my son took. He was sleepy at first, but then he got used to it. He did gain weight…but didn`t stay on it long enough. When he started it-within 48 hours he was back to his old self.
it made me gain 28 pounds but it stopped around there. if anything, i needed it as i was too skinny. it also made me sleep well but not too sedating during the day. it did nothing for voices though. good luck on it mouse x
10mgs - really eased the ‘war zone’ in my head but hard to take ,when looking after wife with dementia, as made me feel very tired.
2.5mgs- no side effects but not much help therapeutically
5mgs - best balance re side effects and creating sense of calmness.
Main problem was taking the meds regularly due to forgetting but when I took them 5mgs was the best dose for me. Yours and others experience will be/has been different.
If I could have managed to remember to take the meds on a daily basis would have preferred to stay on Zyprexa.
I didn’t do too well on Zyprexa - it made me feel numb and dead and so I stopped taking it and went to hospital where they switched my meds to clozapine. I used to cut myself because I felt so dead. Hope this doesn’t discourage you - it is different for everyone!
I was on it for almost a year but I gained a lot of weight. My psychiatrist says it’s a good drug that works fast. She wanted to put me back on it when I had a relapse in February but instead she upped my Abilify. Apart from the weight gain I’d say its a good medicine.
I am watching what I eat on it, but I have noticed that my sense of hunger and fullness are pretty messed up. I keep a mental note of what I ingest every day though, and today was on point for maintaining my physique. I slept too damn much. Like over ten hours and didn’t want to get out of bed. I managed to get out of bed and drink my coffee and I came back from the dead. I really am not a fan on the satiation mechanism being broken and somnolence. I was in bed for a solid thirteen hours last night, went to sleep after a couple hours of lying there and took an hour to get out of bed. Like damn. Drank a lot of coffee, strong ass coffee and had an energy drink today to keep going.
I am supposed to be on it for just two weeks to contain the episode I am having. Then I am done with this ■■■■ and not going to get fat or diabetes or sleep so much. I already slept like nine hours a night.
I’m actually pretty surprised that your pdoc put you on this drug - I’m assuming he knows that you are physically active and a weight lifter. First off Zyprexa is a very sedating drug and could interfere with your workouts and training.
Second - Zypexa is a very big weight gaining med and has the propensity to raise blood sugar levels to the point of diabetes. Dont get me wrong - it is a very effective medication usually, but be very careful while on it.
Its one thing to lift weights on a sometimes pretty activating - weight neutral drug like Geodon - Zyprexa or Olanzapine is a completely different animal - best of luck with it
Oh ok - just read this - missed it the first time. I think you will be ok Mortimer if taking it is on a temporary basis -
my apologies
Yeah its just to control an episode, he made it clear that he does not want me on it for more than a couple of weeks. I needed it, I was out of control when I was in the waiting room and before it put me to sleep that night. It is sedating and I am drinking coffee like every two hours while at school.
My preworkout made me feel like I was gonna die yesterday so I can’t take it while Im on this ■■■■. I felt it kick in way harder than usual, like it felt like I had OD’d on the stuff, my skin crawled and burned all over, which happens to a lesser degree under normal circumstances.
I just want to get through the next week and by halloween I should be ready to come off the ■■■■. I can’t say this is good. Energy drinks instead of preworkout, twice as much caffeine as usual, terrible time getting out of bed, vivid dreams, ugh.
You know your meds, @Wave. Thanks for the input. You’re like an honorary shrink
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Thanks Mortimer - No, I think its a smart move by your doctor - Zyprexa makes a great emergency med - you will be ok buddy, its an effective tried and true drug - good luck!
I take it 2 hours before I want to go to sleep and according to when I need to get up in the morning.