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SAShKo I need to feel my pain and release my deep suppressed fear but i think Zyprexa and Abilify are my enemies in this?Plese shed some light!


SAShKo

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Posted

Hello, people! I ask you that question in the topic title, so I am pretty sure what exactly is my problem and it is supressed deep fear and aslo not feeling the pain which i am sure is healthy to feel in my situation. But when i try to feel the pain or the fear i can't do it to the point i know i should. I am taking Zyprexa and Abilify for 3 years and for these 3 years i was strugling searching, trying to understand what is going on with me and what exactly is my problem. i read a lot of books and articles. watched a lot af videos and now i finally realized what i needed. But i think Zyprexa and Abilify are blocking my negative emotions. i am not sure this but i think it is true. That is my question. Do these drugs actually supress negative emotions like pain and fear?

 

Thank you in advance!

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

Posted

Hi 'sashko' welcome to SA.Are you thinking of tapering these medications ? 

Sertraline 100mg amytrip 60mg diazepam 4mg (and when needed) since late 90's.Reduced all meds over 6 wks (too short) last doses 13 wks ago.Still having withdrawals.I would have done it differently

5th august 2015 reinstated 5mg amytripiline.increased to 10mg amtrip 9th sept 2015.

Posted

Hi, thank you.Yes i am but i need to be sure that they are actually stopping me to feel my negative stuff. Yes i am thinking about tapering off them!

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

Posted

You will feel more and learn about how to deal with life without the meds.

Sertraline 100mg amytrip 60mg diazepam 4mg (and when needed) since late 90's.Reduced all meds over 6 wks (too short) last doses 13 wks ago.Still having withdrawals.I would have done it differently

5th august 2015 reinstated 5mg amytripiline.increased to 10mg amtrip 9th sept 2015.

Posted

: ) Thank you for that. i really need support, cause my parents are doctors (not psychiatric but still) and they trust these meds, but i don't!

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

Posted

Do your parents understand about proper tapering of these meds like is suggested on this site ?

Sertraline 100mg amytrip 60mg diazepam 4mg (and when needed) since late 90's.Reduced all meds over 6 wks (too short) last doses 13 wks ago.Still having withdrawals.I would have done it differently

5th august 2015 reinstated 5mg amytripiline.increased to 10mg amtrip 9th sept 2015.

Posted

what do you mean? they know these pills have to stopped carefully if that is what you ask.

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

Posted

or you mean this "10% method" ? i actually just read that this is the main thing in this site

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

Posted

they don't really know about it. they will advice me to go to my psychiatrist. but i don't like her. i will read enough to understand everything i know about this 10% method and will most probably start it very soon.

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

Posted

Its not wise to taper all at once.Put your medication history in your signature so anyone who reads your posts can see at a glance what you are doing.Someone will be along a moderator to assist you .

Sertraline 100mg amytrip 60mg diazepam 4mg (and when needed) since late 90's.Reduced all meds over 6 wks (too short) last doses 13 wks ago.Still having withdrawals.I would have done it differently

5th august 2015 reinstated 5mg amytripiline.increased to 10mg amtrip 9th sept 2015.

  • Moderator
Posted

Hi SAShKo--  welcome to the group.  I am sorry to hear that these drugs are causing you such trouble.  The quick answer to your question is YES they do block your feeling negative emotions.  In fact they can stop you from feeling any emotion what so ever, that's how they work.  So what you are or aren't feeling is pretty normal for someone taking them.  They are also very powerful and have to be tapered off of very carefully to avoid a lot of very unpleasant symptoms.  That is why we recommend the 10% taper, it slowly removes the drug and allows your brain to get use to the idea while causing minimal symptoms.  I wouldn't expect much help from your doctor in regards to tapering off, most doctors don't have any idea how it works.  This thread may help;

 

How do you talk to a doctor about tapering and withdrawal?

 

Tips for tapering off olanzapine (Zyprexa)

 

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

Also would you please enter all of your drug history in a signature block, it will really help us to help you.

 

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/893-please-put-your-withdrawal-history-in-your-signature/    

20 years on Paxil starting at 20mg and working up to 40mg. Sept 2011 started 10% every 6 weeks taper (2.5% every week for 4 weeks then hold for 2 additional weeks), currently at 7.9mg. Oct 2011 CTed 15oz vodka a night, to only drinking 2 beers most nights, totally sober Feb 2013.

Since I wrote this I have continued to decrease my dose by 10% every 6 weeks (2.5% every week for 4 weeks and then hold for an additional 2 weeks). I added in an extra 6 week hold when I hit 10mg to let things settle out even more. When I hit 3mgpw it became hard to split the drop into 4 parts so I switched to dropping 1mgpw (pill weight) every week for 3 weeks and then holding for another 3 weeks.  The 3 + 3 schedule turned out to be too harsh so I cut back to dropping 1mgpw every 4 weeks which is working better.

Final Dose 0.016mg.     Current dose 0.000mg 04-15-2017

 

"It's also important not to become angry, no matter how difficult life is, because you can loose all hope if you can't laugh at yourself and at life in general."  Stephen Hawking

Posted

Thank you brasmonkey for your answer to my question. I put down my history as my singature. After what you told me i am sure that i want to start tappering off my medication by this 10% method.actually i don't know how exactly. I mean, i read some articles in the forum and i got the most important things but regarding to my history what would you advice me?

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

Posted

Здравей, и аз съм от България. Ако искаш може да си пишем на лични съобщения.

I suffer from depression, anxiety, pure-o ocd, and panic attacks since 2004. Been on multiple different psychiatric drugs since 2006. Never had a significant WD problem before, only brain zaps for a month and then I'd be fine...............Been on Cipralex (escitalopram) 15 mg and Fluanxol (flupentixol) 1 mg since Sep 2014. Stopped taking the Cipralex after a fast 20-day taper.Took the last 5 mg Cipralex on Feb 5th, 2015. Then took Seroxat (paroxetine) 10 mg for a week, and stopped it too. Severe WD started suddenly on Feb 16th. RI 5 mg Cipralex on Feb 18th, 2015. RI worked and was relatively stable for a while................April 7 - decreased Fluanxol from 1 mg to 0.5 mg and took it at this dose for a week. - BIG MISTAKE; April 13 - WD starts creeping in; April 14 - RI full dose of Fluanxol 1 mg => severe muscle twitching and jerking when trying to relax and fall asleep, overwhelming sense of doom, dread, terror, and horror, insomnia, hoping to stabilize.
Tried doing a 10% cut off Fluanxol in the end of May for a few days, but quickly updosed to full dose because the twitching returned.
Experiencing waves and windows in the following months.
Unsuccessful brief taper attempt of Fluanxol by 5% on November 1st. Symptoms hit the next day. Too scared to continue tapering, reinstate full dose.
Severe crash in November after stupidly trying a barbiturate on November 9th. Grave mistake. Sense of unshakable inescapable internal torture, like my soul is in hell being tortured, terror/horror/dread/doom (probably akathisia?) that gets especially bad when trying to relax and fall asleep, muscles twitch, jerk and move on their own, shaking, insomnia, can't eat, confusion, disorientation, brain not working normally. Never felt so bad in my entire life. Never experiment with other meds while in WD! Praying to God I stabilize and get back to my baseline.
December - things getting even worse.

January - unbearable suffering

Posted

Zdravo! :)

DRUG HISTORY:

 

November 2013- Zoloft, ( Bad reaction).

January 2014 - March 2014 Seroquel.( Quit Cold Turkey).

January2014- Mirtazapine, I was taking 15mg at one stage, reduced to 7.5mg, Pgad reactions to Mirtazapine. Doctor kept increasing it to 37.5mg, until July 2014. No improvement, experiencing panic attacks, on 37.5 mg. I had enough by October 2014. Began tapering.

October 2014- Started tapering Mirtazapine from 37.5mg.

September 2015- Down to 4mg of Mirtazapine. Crashed.

September 16th- Up dosed to 5mg. Held this dose for almost 5 months. Stabilised.

February 2016- Began tapering again. From 5mg to 4.5mg of Mirtazapine. (Rocking the boat, again)! Lol. :(

  • Moderator Emeritus
Posted

Hi SAShKo,

It looks like you already started reducing abilify from 15mg down to 7mg.  Why did you decide to cut this one first? Did you taper? How have you felt since you made this reduction?

 

Does taking the Zyprexa at night help with sleep?

 

These are both very similar drugs, so I can't see any clear benefit from tapering one before the other, although it looks like zyprexa has a lot more side effects, including weight gain and you are taking a high dose of it. We recommend only tapering one drug at a time. 

 

Here are our abilify tips:

 

Tips for tapering off aripiprazole (Abilify)

I'm not a doctor.  My comments are not medical advise. These are my opinions based on my own experience and what I've learned. Please discuss your situation with a medical practitioner who has knowledge of tapering and withdrawal...if you are lucky enough to find one.

My Introduction Thread

Full Drug and Withdrawal History

Brief Summary

Several SSRIs for 13 years starting 1997 (for mild to moderate partly situational anxiety) Xanax PRN ~ Various other drugs over the years for side effects

2 month 'taper' off Lexapro 2010

Short acute withdrawal, followed by 2 -3 months of improvement then delayed protracted withdrawal

DX ADHD followed by several years of stimulants and other drugs trying to manage increasing symptoms

Failed reinstatement of Lexapro and trial of Prozac (became suicidal)

May 2013 Found SA, learned about withdrawal, stopped taking drugs...healing begins.

Protracted withdrawal, with a very sensitized nervous system, slowly recovering as time passes

Supplements which have helped: Vitamin C, Magnesium, Taurine

Bad reactions: Many supplements but mostly fish oil and Vitamin D

June 2016 - Started daily juicing, mostly vegetables and lots of greens.

Aug 2016 - Oct 2016 Best window ever, felt almost completely recovered

Oct 2016 -Symptoms returned - bad days and less bad days.

April 2018 - No windows, but significant improvement, it feels like permanent full recovery is close.

VIDEO: Where did the chemical imbalance theory come from?



VIDEO: How are psychiatric diagnoses made?



VIDEO: Why do psychiatric drugs have withdrawal syndromes?



VIDEO: Can psychiatric drugs cause long-lasting negative effects?

VIDEO: Dr. Claire Weekes

 

 

 

Posted

Hi SAShKo,

It looks like you already started reducing abilify from 15mg down to 7mg.  Why did you decide to cut this one first? Did you taper? How have you felt since you made this reduction?

 

Does taking the Zyprexa at night help with sleep?

 

These are both very similar drugs, so I can't see any clear benefit from tapering one before the other, although it looks like zyprexa has a lot more side effects, including weight gain and you are taking a high dose of it. We recommend only tapering one drug at a time. 

 

Here are our abilify tips:

 

Tips for tapering off aripiprazole (Abilify)

I decided to reduce Abilify because i noticed that in the morning after i take it i feel like i am sedated very badly. so i told my psychiatrist and she reduced it to half a dose.this problem passed.i feel normally i guess . when i sometimes forget to take zyprexa in the evening i ám having trouble falling asleep.   so you think it will be safe to start tapering them both at the same time? how do i start? 

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

Posted

Zdravo! :)

Zdravo! Are you Serbian? : -)

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

Posted

 

Hi SAShKo,

It looks like you already started reducing abilify from 15mg down to 7mg.  Why did you decide to cut this one first? Did you taper? How have you felt since you made this reduction?

 

Does taking the Zyprexa at night help with sleep?

 

These are both very similar drugs, so I can't see any clear benefit from tapering one before the other, although it looks like zyprexa has a lot more side effects, including weight gain and you are taking a high dose of it. We recommend only tapering one drug at a time. 

 

Here are our abilify tips:

 

Tips for tapering off aripiprazole (Abilify)

I decided to reduce Abilify because i noticed that in the morning after i take it i feel like i am sedated very badly. so i told my psychiatrist and she reduced it to half a dose.this problem passed.i feel normally i guess . when i sometimes forget to take zyprexa in the evening i ám having trouble falling asleep.   so you think it will be safe to start tapering them both at the same time? how do i start?

Oh, i just saw that you wrote you are not a doctor. thanks anyway for your reply. i will probably search for a doctor here in the link in your singnature.

Thank you!

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

  • Moderator
Posted

There are no Doctors here.  That is why we can't give medical advice.  We do, however, have the experience of helping thousands of people safely get off of these drugs which we are very happy to share.  All the members of the moderation staff have learned what WD is all about by going through it themselves  and our leader, Alto, is one of the worlds foremost authorities on the WD process.  You're in very good hands here.

20 years on Paxil starting at 20mg and working up to 40mg. Sept 2011 started 10% every 6 weeks taper (2.5% every week for 4 weeks then hold for 2 additional weeks), currently at 7.9mg. Oct 2011 CTed 15oz vodka a night, to only drinking 2 beers most nights, totally sober Feb 2013.

Since I wrote this I have continued to decrease my dose by 10% every 6 weeks (2.5% every week for 4 weeks and then hold for an additional 2 weeks). I added in an extra 6 week hold when I hit 10mg to let things settle out even more. When I hit 3mgpw it became hard to split the drop into 4 parts so I switched to dropping 1mgpw (pill weight) every week for 3 weeks and then holding for another 3 weeks.  The 3 + 3 schedule turned out to be too harsh so I cut back to dropping 1mgpw every 4 weeks which is working better.

Final Dose 0.016mg.     Current dose 0.000mg 04-15-2017

 

"It's also important not to become angry, no matter how difficult life is, because you can loose all hope if you can't laugh at yourself and at life in general."  Stephen Hawking

Posted

Doctors don't know anything. If you listen to them you'll keep getting worse and worse. 

I suffer from depression, anxiety, pure-o ocd, and panic attacks since 2004. Been on multiple different psychiatric drugs since 2006. Never had a significant WD problem before, only brain zaps for a month and then I'd be fine...............Been on Cipralex (escitalopram) 15 mg and Fluanxol (flupentixol) 1 mg since Sep 2014. Stopped taking the Cipralex after a fast 20-day taper.Took the last 5 mg Cipralex on Feb 5th, 2015. Then took Seroxat (paroxetine) 10 mg for a week, and stopped it too. Severe WD started suddenly on Feb 16th. RI 5 mg Cipralex on Feb 18th, 2015. RI worked and was relatively stable for a while................April 7 - decreased Fluanxol from 1 mg to 0.5 mg and took it at this dose for a week. - BIG MISTAKE; April 13 - WD starts creeping in; April 14 - RI full dose of Fluanxol 1 mg => severe muscle twitching and jerking when trying to relax and fall asleep, overwhelming sense of doom, dread, terror, and horror, insomnia, hoping to stabilize.
Tried doing a 10% cut off Fluanxol in the end of May for a few days, but quickly updosed to full dose because the twitching returned.
Experiencing waves and windows in the following months.
Unsuccessful brief taper attempt of Fluanxol by 5% on November 1st. Symptoms hit the next day. Too scared to continue tapering, reinstate full dose.
Severe crash in November after stupidly trying a barbiturate on November 9th. Grave mistake. Sense of unshakable inescapable internal torture, like my soul is in hell being tortured, terror/horror/dread/doom (probably akathisia?) that gets especially bad when trying to relax and fall asleep, muscles twitch, jerk and move on their own, shaking, insomnia, can't eat, confusion, disorientation, brain not working normally. Never felt so bad in my entire life. Never experiment with other meds while in WD! Praying to God I stabilize and get back to my baseline.
December - things getting even worse.

January - unbearable suffering

Posted

There are no Doctors here.  That is why we can't give medical advice.  We do, however, have the experience of helping thousands of people safely get off of these drugs which we are very happy to share.  All the members of the moderation staff have learned what WD is all about by going through it themselves  and our leader, Alto, is one of the worlds foremost authorities on the WD process.  You're in very good hands here.

That is very very i don't know the word. very calming to hear! Okay i trust you. i don't like my psychiatrist too, so what is your advice about me tapering off abilify and zyprexa. i am ready to start even form tomorrow morning. 

i am taking medication for 10 years.. i've been on Seroquel and Depakine....   From 3 years i am on Abilify 15mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg( in the evening) from 1st July 2015 i take  Abilify7mg (in the morning) and Zyprexa 20mg (in the evening)

  • Moderator
Posted

I'm so glad I could give you give you some reassurance.  This is a pretty scary business and learning that you can't trust the people you have been taught to trust is very unsettling.  If you look back through the posts below there are several threads listed that have very good information about how to taper off of these meds.  Read through those, then we can workout a tapering plan.

20 years on Paxil starting at 20mg and working up to 40mg. Sept 2011 started 10% every 6 weeks taper (2.5% every week for 4 weeks then hold for 2 additional weeks), currently at 7.9mg. Oct 2011 CTed 15oz vodka a night, to only drinking 2 beers most nights, totally sober Feb 2013.

Since I wrote this I have continued to decrease my dose by 10% every 6 weeks (2.5% every week for 4 weeks and then hold for an additional 2 weeks). I added in an extra 6 week hold when I hit 10mg to let things settle out even more. When I hit 3mgpw it became hard to split the drop into 4 parts so I switched to dropping 1mgpw (pill weight) every week for 3 weeks and then holding for another 3 weeks.  The 3 + 3 schedule turned out to be too harsh so I cut back to dropping 1mgpw every 4 weeks which is working better.

Final Dose 0.016mg.     Current dose 0.000mg 04-15-2017

 

"It's also important not to become angry, no matter how difficult life is, because you can loose all hope if you can't laugh at yourself and at life in general."  Stephen Hawking

  • Administrator
Posted

Welcome, SASh.

 

Do not taper two drugs at once. I agree with Petunia, since you've started reducing Abilify, why not continue? Also, it seems you are dependent on Zyprexa for sleep.

 

Please read the links Petunia and brassmonkey posted for you.

 

If you've ever had symptoms of psychosis, such as hallucinations or hearing voices, you will need to be very careful in your tapering not to trigger them again. If this happens and you go to a hospital, they will give you more drugs to stop them.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

  • 3 weeks later...
Posted

Another person hooked on Zyprexa for sleep.  What a shocker.  

 

As brassmonkey mentioned, yes, antipsychotics really zap you, both good and bad feelings.  

 

As Altostrata said, If you want to go off the meds follow the tapering advice on this board as not to trigger a psychotic episode, severe anxiety and mood swings from hell - these symptoms will hit you like a freight train if you suddenly discontinue 20mg Zyprexa.  

 

Having said that, even if you do taper properly and manage to bypass the above-mentioned hell, there is a good chance you will still be left with more broad physiological issues such as not being able to fall asleep normally, stay asleep for more than a few hours, feel exhausted all the time and not be able to eat, just to mention a few.  These problems persist for, as of now, an unknown length of time, and are worse than they sound.  

 

I wish you luck.  

2001-2014 Various drugs including fluoxetine, paroxetine, Citalopram, bupropion, imipramine, trazodone, venlafaxine, methylphenidate, biphentin, Dexedrine, lisdexamfetamine, duloxetine all CT

2014-Citalopram, olanzapine, 

2014 olanzapine 5mg CT

2014-2021 Citalopram 20mg

2021 olanzapine 5mg soon switched to quetiapine 100mg, Citalopram 20mg, gabapentin 300mg

2021-2024 Citalopram 20mg, quetiapine 100mg

2024-Citalopram 20mg, olanzapine 5mg, zopiclone 15mg 

2024- CT olanzapine and zopiclone, just taking 20mg Citalopram, .5mg clonazepam 

  • Administrator
Posted

No, not everyone has post-discontinuation syndrome.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

Posted

You're right, not everyone does.  I for example find it weird that many people have to taper their antidepressants, as I've always gone cold turkey with them and generally after a few weeks even the really bad ones (snri's) cease to give me any problems.  However, I've never seen anyone on the internet or otherwise say they've been on Olanzapine for a significant amount of time and gone off it without some sort of serious long term effect or without relying on some other medication to help with sleep/appetite.  

 

Have you, Altostrata? Because if you have, please provide the links, and I'll gladly stop telling people that Olanzapine will **** them up.  

 

 

Blackstar

2001-2014 Various drugs including fluoxetine, paroxetine, Citalopram, bupropion, imipramine, trazodone, venlafaxine, methylphenidate, biphentin, Dexedrine, lisdexamfetamine, duloxetine all CT

2014-Citalopram, olanzapine, 

2014 olanzapine 5mg CT

2014-2021 Citalopram 20mg

2021 olanzapine 5mg soon switched to quetiapine 100mg, Citalopram 20mg, gabapentin 300mg

2021-2024 Citalopram 20mg, quetiapine 100mg

2024-Citalopram 20mg, olanzapine 5mg, zopiclone 15mg 

2024- CT olanzapine and zopiclone, just taking 20mg Citalopram, .5mg clonazepam 

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