johnw Posted February 13, 2023 Posted February 13, 2023 Hello everyone. I'm trying to taper off risperidone. I've only been on it for about a month. Currently taking .25mg in the morning and at night. I tried to taper as per my APN - stop taking it once a day. It left me nauseous, anxious and gave me tinnitus in my left ear. I have unipolar depression, so no risks associated with tapering off with bipolar. Boy oh boy do I want to get off of this drug. On one hand I want to do it safely, on the other I want to get off of it as soon as possible. 2023/Jan - .25mg Risperidone twice a day, .25mg in the morning, and .25mg again at night. Prozac 20mg 1x day, Lamictal 50mg 1x day. 2023/Feb - Tried tapering off once by taking it once per day under direction of my APN. Left me feeling out of sorts, nauseous and gave me ringing in my left ear. Reinstated dose (morning and night).
Moderator Emeritus Gridley Posted February 13, 2023 Moderator Emeritus Posted February 13, 2023 Welcome to SA, johnw. To give members the best information, we ask them to summarize their medication history in a signature -- drugs, doses, dates, and discontinuations & reinstatements. Include when when you started taking the Risperidone .25mg once a day and which dose you eliminated. Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature. If I understand correctly, you were taking .25mg twice a day and per your APN started taking .25mg only once a day. Is that correct? We recommend tapering no faster than 10% of your current dose every four weeks. Why taper by 10% of my dosage? Eliminating one of your daily .25mg doses was a 50% reduction, 5 times what we recommend, bringing about the withdrawal symptoms you've been experiencing. What is withdrawal syndrome. Brain Remodelling Video: Healing From Antidepressants - Patterns of Recovery Once you've done your drug signature and I can see how long you've been taking the .25mg only once a day, I can make further suggestions about what to do at this point. The following link is specifically about tapering Risperidone, including how to get the nonstandard doses needed for a 10% taper. 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 (glycinate is a good form) 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 -- the place for you to ask questions, record symptoms, share your progress, and connect with other members of the SA community. I hope you’ll find the information in the SA forums helpful for your situation. I'm sorry that you are in the position that you need the information, but I am glad that you found us. Gridley Introduction Lexapro 20 mg since 2004. Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017. End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg Oct. 30, 2020 Jump to zero from 0.025mg. Current dose: 0.000mg 3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete. Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium End 2021 year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper. Taper is 95% complete. Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986. Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper. Current dose as of Dec 28: 2.2mg Taper is 97% complete. Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotic, zinc, melatonin .3mg, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase, L-Glutamine, milk thistle, choline I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice. It is information based on my own experience as well as that of other members who have survived these drugs.
johnw Posted February 13, 2023 Author Posted February 13, 2023 10 minutes ago, Gridley said: summarize their medication history in a signature Updated. 10 minutes ago, Gridley said: If I understand correctly, you were taking .25mg twice a day and per your APN started taking .25mg only once a day. Is that correct? Correct 11 minutes ago, Gridley said: We recommend tapering no faster than 10% of your current dose every four weeks. The minimum pill size is .25mg. I need a doctor in NJ who will prescribe me the liquid so I can taper 10%. How do I find one? 13 minutes ago, Gridley said: Once you've done your drug signature and I can see how long you've been taking the .25mg only once a day, I can make further suggestions about what to do at this point. I only tried this for two days. 14 minutes ago, Gridley said: I'm sorry that you are in the position that you need the information, but I am glad that you found us. Thank you. I'm glad I found you, too. And thank you for the support. Frankly, I'm scared and I need all the help I can get. 2023/Jan - .25mg Risperidone twice a day, .25mg in the morning, and .25mg again at night. Prozac 20mg 1x day, Lamictal 50mg 1x day. 2023/Feb - Tried tapering off once by taking it once per day under direction of my APN. Left me feeling out of sorts, nauseous and gave me ringing in my left ear. Reinstated dose (morning and night).
Moderator FireflyFyte Posted February 13, 2023 Moderator Posted February 13, 2023 Sadly, a lot of psychiatrists don't seem to know how difficult it is to taper off of medication, especially antipsychotics and think making 50% drops are fine when they can cause severe withdrawal. I would stabilize on your current dose and then begin a slow taper off no more than 10% per month. I am cutting 5% every two weeks which has been working for me thus far. Am glad you found this community. You will find a lot of invaluable resources and an abundance of support. Pre- October 2022: Wellbutrin, Escitalopram, Citalopram, Sertraline, Adderall IR, Vyvanse, Propranolol, Buspar, Ativan, and Latuda Oct 13, 2022 - Oct 24, 2022 and Oct 31, 2022 - Present: Zyprexa (2.5 mg). Jan 29, 2023 = 2.375mg -> Jan 22, 2024 = 0.97mg -> Jan 14, 2025 = 0.25mg Oct 14, 2022 - Present: Prozac (40mg) upped from 20mg on Nov 1, 2022. Oct 31, 2022 - Present: Gabapentin (300mg 3x day) -> May 3, 2023 = 300mg 2x day -> Jan 7, 2024 = 400mg
Mentor littlebird Posted February 13, 2023 Mentor Posted February 13, 2023 1 minute ago, FireflyFyte said: Sadly, a lot of psychiatrists don't seem to know how difficult it is to taper off of medication, especially antipsychotics and think making 50% drops are fine when they can cause severe withdrawal. Seriously! I've had doctor after doctor tell me, "People stop this cold turkey and are fine," and "You're on too low of a dose to be feeling anything you're telling me you're feeling." 3 minutes ago, FireflyFyte said: glad you found this community. You will find a lot of invaluable resources and an abundance of support. Seconded, welcome! Glad you're here. Pronouns: they/them/theirs Started on Prozac in early 2000s to treat cPTSD, been on various cocktails ever since. 2002-2004, 2017-2022: Buspar, tapered down to 0 2016-present: 100mg Seroquel for sleep -> May 2023: 90mg -> June 2023: 81mg -> September 2023: 72mg -> switched to brand name, much too strong, down to 60mg -> October 2023: 54mg -> November 2023: 50mg -> January 2024: 45mg -> April 2024: 40.5mg -> May 2024: 41mg -> June 2024: 35mg -> July 2024: 31mg -> August 2024: 28mg -> September 2024: 25mg 2016-Present: 100mg Wellbutrin SR -> January 2023: 75mg IR (37.5mg 2x a day, a mistake, don't replicate) -> February 2023 (33.75mg 2x a day) -> July 2023 (30.37mg 2x a day) -> August 2023: 25mg 2x a day -> October 2024: 22mg 2x a day 2018-present: 25mg Pristiq 2015-present: 600mg Gabapentin (200mg 3x a day) -> December 2022: 300mg Gabapentin (100mg 3x a day) per GP's recommendation after side effects -> March 2023: 90mg 3x a day (switched to liquid suspension) -> April 2023: 81mg 3x a day -> September 2023: bad generic, switched back to homemade liquid; too strong after bad generic, down to 70mg 3x a day, still bad. Adjusted slowly till at 60mg 3x a day, much better. Long hold till -> December 2023: 54mg, still feels too high after November Seroquel switch from brand name to generic, doc recommended 50mg which feels better -> January 2024: When Wellbutrin went down, Gabapentin started putting me to sleep, went down to 45mg, then 41mg to stay awake, so far so good -> February 2024: 36mg, still too high, 34mg -> March 2024: 31mg, STILL too high, 30mg down to 25mg Supplements: Multivitamin w/magnesium, probiotics, digestive enzymes, anti-viral nitric oxide nose spray as needed
johnw Posted February 13, 2023 Author Posted February 13, 2023 Can anyone recommend a doctor that will work with me on a slow taper? 2023/Jan - .25mg Risperidone twice a day, .25mg in the morning, and .25mg again at night. Prozac 20mg 1x day, Lamictal 50mg 1x day. 2023/Feb - Tried tapering off once by taking it once per day under direction of my APN. Left me feeling out of sorts, nauseous and gave me ringing in my left ear. Reinstated dose (morning and night).
Moderator Emeritus Gridley Posted February 14, 2023 Moderator Emeritus Posted February 14, 2023 (edited) 22 hours ago, johnw said: I only tried this for two days. If you only dropped the dose of Risperidone for two days, I suggest you resume taking the Risperidone twice a day as before, if you haven't already. Dropping an entire dose was/is a bad idea. If you've already resumed taking the dose twice daily, how are you feeling? I wouldn't start tapering until you've stabilized from previous dose change. One way to taper using the 10%/4 week method with two daily doses is to taper 5% off your morning dose and 5% off your night dose, giving you a 10% taper. 22 hours ago, johnw said: The minimum pill size is .25mg. I need a doctor in NJ who will prescribe me the liquid so I can taper 10%. How do I find one? The liquid would be a very good method. The following is from the link about tapering Risperidone that I gave you earlier and recommends a combination of tablet and liquid. "Titrating using a liquid is very good for very small measured decreases in dosage, allowing more precise measurements. While bioequivalent to the tablets, the liquid may be absorbed faster. This might cause odd symptoms. To make a change from tablets to liquid, we recommend taking part of the dose in tablet and part in liquid form if possible, then gradually convert to all-liquid, if that is desired." Regarding finding a doctor, here's our thread on recommended doctors. Unfortunately, it hasn't been updated recently. Read through it and see if there's any help. Recommended doctors, therapists, and clinics - Tapering There's a clinic mentioned in the thread called Free Range Psychiatry, with doctors said to be knowledgeable about tapering. I have no knowledge of them. You could contact them. Free Range Psychiatry If might well come down to just trying local doctors until you find one who's willing to help. Any M.D. can prescribe psychiatric drugs, not just psychiatrists Edited February 14, 2023 by Gridley 1 Gridley Introduction Lexapro 20 mg since 2004. Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017. End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg Oct. 30, 2020 Jump to zero from 0.025mg. Current dose: 0.000mg 3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete. Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium End 2021 year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper. Taper is 95% complete. Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986. Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper. Current dose as of Dec 28: 2.2mg Taper is 97% complete. Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotic, zinc, melatonin .3mg, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase, L-Glutamine, milk thistle, choline I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice. It is information based on my own experience as well as that of other members who have survived these drugs.
johnw Posted February 15, 2023 Author Posted February 15, 2023 I found a great APN. BETH TEAL, APN, PMHNP-BC https://bethtealapn.com/ 2023/Jan - .25mg Risperidone twice a day, .25mg in the morning, and .25mg again at night. Prozac 20mg 1x day, Lamictal 50mg 1x day. 2023/Feb - Tried tapering off once by taking it once per day under direction of my APN. Left me feeling out of sorts, nauseous and gave me ringing in my left ear. Reinstated dose (morning and night).
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