boudicaa: tapering off risperidone

[boudicaa]

I am seeking advice about tapering off of Risperidone. I am a medical doctor (the irony), and my doctor informed me I can go straight from 1mg Risperidone to 0 mg but my experience of coming straight off was that I still had difficulties with withdrawal effects for weeks afterwards, mostly tingling in my legs and head and insomnia. After about 4-5 weeks the agitation was so bad that I resumed the Risperidone (I did not know that it would be worth resuming at a lower dose, again the guidance was not there). I would appreciate some advice about how to go about this when my medical team do not believe in tapering. I am seeking out an alternative provider to try to get some support generally but wanted to discuss here too.

 

I have taken Zopiclone and Lorazepam occasionally as adjuncts but was always concerned about their addictive qualities so have not included below as they were quickly stopped.

My history is as follows:

- 10mg Aripiprazole 3 weeks March 20 2020 - April 17 2020
- 15mg Aripiprazole 1 week April 17 2020 - April 24 2020 (had bad akathisia so was switched)
- 2mg Risperidone April 24 2020 - July 3 2020
- 1.5mg Risperidone July 3 2020 - July 17 2020
- 1mg Risperidone July 17 2020 - August 7 2020
- 0 mg Risperidone August 7 2020 - September 10 2020 (under the advice of my doctor)
- 1mg Risperidone September 10 2020 - Present

Edited October 11, 2020 by Gridley

[Gridley]

Welcome to SA, Boudicca.

 

To give members the best information, we ask them to summarize their medication history in a signature -- drugs, doses, dates, and discontinuations & reinstatements, in the last 12-24 months particularly.  You can just pick up the history that's in your post, click on the link below,  paste, then press "save."  The history will then appear beneath all your posts.

 

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We recommend going much lower than 1mg before jumping to zero, as your experience validates, somewhere in the area of 0.05mg or lower.  

 

As a basic tapering protocol, we recommend tapering by no more than 10% of your current dose every four weeks.  

 

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

The following link is specifically about tapering Risperidone, including how to get the very small doses you'll need as you decrease from 1mg.  Is liquid Risperidone available in the U.K.?  That would be the easiest way to taper down from 1mg.  If you switch to the liquid, you'll need to do a crossover from tablet to liquid before starting the taper, such as half tablet and half liquid for a week or longer to allow your system to become accustomed to the liquid.

A small caveat: while most people do fine on the liquid, some do not.  If the liquid isn't available (or you don;'t do well on it), there are other methods, described in the link, to taper down from 1mg, including using a compouding pharmacy to make your doses and using a digital scale to weigh powder made by crushing your tablet.

 

Tips for tapering off risperidone (Risperdal)

 

We don't recommend a lot of supplements on SA, as many members report being sensitive to them due to our over-reactive nervous systems, but two supplements that we do recommend are magnesium and omega 3 (fish oil). Many people find these to be calming to the nervous system. 

 

Magnesium, nature's calcium channel blocker 

 

Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) 

 

Add in one at a time and at a low dose in case you do experience problems.

 

This is your Introduction topic, where you can ask complete your drug signature, ask questions and connect with other members.  We're glad you found your way here.

 

 

 

 

Edited October 11, 2020 by Gridley