scarlucy:How to taper Risperdal .50 mg and Trazodone 50 mg

[scarlucy]

I want to get pregnant in April 2022 and would like to start tapering from Risperdal .50 mg and Trazodone 50 mg. My psychiatrist sent me a new Risperdal prescription for .25 mg which is the lowest dose. If I start to take this starting January 17 for how long should I take this before I start to take it every other day? and how and when I should stop completely? Please advise. I got a second opinion but would like to know the best approach from someone who have successfully tapered before. I’m a bit nervous about the taper. Thank you

[hayduke]

Hi @scarlucy and welcome to SA.

 

Please start by adding your drug history to your signature.  Each time you started, stopped or changed the dosage of a prescribed drug like the risperidone and trazodone.  This will help us work out what might help you taper.

 

How did you come to be prescribed risperidone?

 

We do not recommend skipping doses (taking every other day, etc) to taper off drugs.  This causes an uneven amount of the drug to be in your system from day to day, and tends to cause significant withdrawal symptoms because it confuses your nervous system.

 

Rather, the common experience is that coming off at around 10% of the previous dose each month is the most helpful guideline for people wanting to come off these drugs.

 

While you are on a fairly low dosage, it's important to understand that your body needs to process the gradual removal of these drugs at its own rate.  It can certainly be frustrating that the process does not follow a calendar, but learning to listen to your body and its feedback on these withdrawals is what ultimately sets a safe pace.

 

Here are some topics for you to review