Hello @Headspark
Long time 
Just curious how you are getting on these days. Has natural sleep improved? Still need the benzo for sleep?
I’m working on a attempt to swich from zyprexa to seroquel. My doctor wont give me benzos, so gotta try with whats on the table. Might be able to try gabapentin though.
Hey @Mr_Hope
There has been big improvements on the sleeping front.
When I quit Olanzapine I could not sleep at all. I tried a variety of medications but only 1.5mg of clonazepam worked. It was rough going for like a year. I’m still taking it, but now I am able to fall asleep naturally and sleep for 4-5 hours without any sleeping aids so my brain is very very very slowly healing from whatever olanzapine did to it.
I’m hoping in another year my brain will have fully recovered, I’ll be able to sleep 7-8 hours without a benzo.
But then comes the long process of reducing my benzo dose slowly and going through those withdrawals.
Sounds good. Happy for you! I guess if you can quit zyprexa you can get off anything, although benzo withdrawal is no joke either.
I guess I’ll keep trying too.
Actually I recovered a lot when I switched from generic zyprexa to original. I had very bad sleep, even on 10mg generic zyprexa, on the original it turns out I get acceptable sleep. The last 6 months I used to regain my constitution from about 8 years on generic. It has been a necessary stepping stone.
Will do some experimenting soon and try to taper down from 7.5mg zyprexa while initiating seroquel. But sleep is imperative. If I can’t sleep it won’t work. I learned that the hard way. So gotta find a way to taper down while sleeping decent. Remembering your story I guess you measured sucsess in sleep too. I can handle most everything, but not total insomnia.
Insomnia is brutal, the first 8 months off olanzapine I could not sleep AT ALL without clonazepam, and my sleep with that was not ideal… Then one night I was watching TV and fell asleep on my own, I only slept an hour, but that was huge. Then over many months I’m up to about 4-5 hours.
I also find clonazepam to be very tranquilizing, even though its classifed as a “minor” tranquilizer, the first couple hours I’m almost non functional I’m so tranquilized. I just drink coffee and watch TV until I get with it. Even my whole day I can feel its effects, but I have no choice, I need to sleep. After noon though I can manage pretty well.
I’m also on my AP which is a major tranquilizer.
And I’m on trazodone for akathisia, and trazodone is often prescribed for sleep.
It’s a wonder I can function at all with these meds. 
Yeah, I know what you mean. It’s like the zyprexa wearing off in the evening just before the next dose. 
I guess we should give ourselves cred for not giving up. If I wasn’t a patient, calm and cool individual I probably wouldn’t be here anymore. I have a feeling it’s the same with you.
But hey, gotta keep fighting. I guess it helps to put things in perspective. After all things could be a heluva lot worse.
@Headspark I’m on Olanzapine and I fear I might have to be on it the rest of my life. The insomnia withdrawal stories scare the sh-it out of me.
I’m on olanzapine and apart from sweet tooth it is working fine. I have no desire to come off it. My sleep is good especially after I largely stopped drinking. If I do have a few beers I notice the difference. What’s so bad about being on a drug for the rest of your life if it is keeping you out the hospital? Insomnia stories are true but I had that on other antipsychotics.
I was instantly switched to seroquel no tapering and had no problems
Its’ brutal @TheCanuk but I’m proof you can get better, but it takes a very very very long time and you will need powerful sleep aids.
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