salaw: help in tapering off Risperidone

[salaw]

Hi I'm new here. I was put on respiradone 1mg in August 2016 for a brief psychotic episode. The drug made me feel robotic so I quit cold turkey in the following sep and I had a relapse. Now, i'm trying to taper off again and it has been 2 days that i'm taking 0.75 instead of 1mg. I wanted to taper slow at 10 percent but i'm having a lot of trouble convincing my pdoc to let me do that. I've spoken to her about switching to liquid respiradone so I could do the tapering of 10 but she refuses. She doesn't seem to think it's necessary to taper that slowly but i'd rather be cautious. Hopefully I can be successful with the current tapering schedule but if that doesn't work what are my options? If anybody can let me know of a doctor who will support the slow tapering process I would be really appreciative. I'm in Canada.

 

Thank you

[scallywag]

salaw -- Welcome to Surviving Antidepressants (SA)

 

It seems you've been lurking and reading before posting your introduction. I'm glad you're thinking about a slower taper than the one your doctor is suggesting.

 

A request: Would you summarize your history in a signature -- drugs, doses, dates, and discontinuations & reinstatements, in the last 12-18 months particularly?

• Any drugs before 18 months ago can be listed with start and stop years.
• You don't need to include symptoms or diagnoses other than the initial condition that led to prescribing the first drug.
• We ask for this information in your signature so that we can see it at a glance. A list is easier to understand than one or multiple paragraphs.
• You can find instructions in this topic: Please put your withdrawal history in signature
• For instructions on creating a signature using a phone or mobile device, please see Post #8 and Post #9

Some links about talking to your doctor:

How do you talk to your doctor about tapering and withdrawal

What to expect from your doctor about withdrawal symptoms

 

Another option for tapering: Compounding pharmacies in US, UK and elsewhere

 

If your doctor is adamant in her ignorance of safe tapering from psychiatric medications and won't prescribe liquid or compounded doses, you can use an electronic jewelers scale to measure tapered doses:

Using a digital scale to measure doses

 

 

For reference

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

Tips for tapering off Risperdal (risperidone)

 

 

 

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 am glad that you found us.

[jmncrr]

salaw,

 

How fast does your DR want you to come off it?

 

I to am tapering risperidone with great success so far, but i am doing it slowly. Good luck and be sure and fill out your drug signature.

 

Thanks

[salaw]

Jmncrr - i'm expected to taper off in 3 weeks at 25 percent reduction every week. I feel that's a bit too fast but she would not budge. She said that's the smallest reduction they can do. So how did you manage to do a 5 percent reduction? Do you think that is what contributed to your success?

[salaw]

scallywag - thank you for the electronic scale suggestion. I read think in regard to that and it talked of deviding up the beads. My pill is not in capsule form but a tablet. Would it be be safe to crush up respiradone and weigh it? Cuz I know some pills should not be crushed.

[scallywag]

The thread called "Tips for tapering Risperdal (risperidone)" has the information about whether the medication can be crushed.

[jmncrr]

Salad,

 

Yeah I've been doing 5 percent a week, but I probably will slow down at some point to 10 percent a month, or 5 percent every two weeks.

 

It's worked out great for me so far.

 

Three weeks is really fast, for you will get withdrawals going that fast.

 

Try and talk to your Dr again, and show your Dr some information about withdrawal.

[salaw]

Hi. I'm on my second days of tapering off 1mg of respiradone. I'm tapering to 0.75mg now. I've found that i'm getting a lot of compulsive/unwanted thoughts. Could I be tapering too fast? If so when should I wait before I increase the dose again and to how much should I increase? I having a lot of trouble getting my doctor on board the 10 percent reduction so i'm thinking of cutting up fragments and weighing it. Are there any major risks associated with doing that?

Edited November 18, 2016 by scallywag
moved from Tapering topic on risperidone

[scallywag]

I've moved your question to your Introduction topic so that more people will see your question. It's best to post questions about your situation here in your intro thread so that all your updates, questions and answers are in one place.

 

We need to know more about your tapering. When was your last dose of 1 mg?

 

Decreasing from 1.0 mg to 0.75 mg is a 25% reduction. Some people can manage this large a reduction; others cannot. You may be in the group that needs to taper with smaller decreases.

 

Please read:

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

[salaw]

My last dose at 1mg was November 14th 2016.I'm looking to buy a digital scale to weight fragments. My only concern is whether the active ingriedents are evenly distributed. But I guess it's ok cuz others have used that method in this forum. Maybe i'm overthinking I don't know

[jmncrr]

I shave off the risperidone pill to a point, and just add the shaved part to amount needed. Very tedious work, but it can be done.

 

25% is a big cut

 

You should make a smaller decrease if your having problems

 

One of the staff here can help you with reinstatement.

[scallywag]

In my post above, the one with many links, there is a link to a topic called "Tips on tapering Risperdal." The first post contains details about the medication and suggestions on how to taper it.

[risperdalhater]

Hi I'm new here. I was put on respiradone 1mg in August 2016 for a brief psychotic episode. The drug made me feel robotic so I quit cold turkey in the following sep and I had a relapse. Now, i'm trying to taper off again and it has been 2 days that i'm taking 0.75 instead of 1mg. I wanted to taper slow at 10 percent but i'm having a lot of trouble convincing my pdoc to let me do that. I've spoken to her about switching to liquid respiradone so I could do the tapering of 10 but she refuses. She doesn't seem to think it's necessary to taper that slowly but i'd rather be cautious. Hopefully I can be successful with the current tapering schedule but if that doesn't work what are my options? If anybody can let me know of a doctor who will support the slow tapering process I would be really appreciative. I'm in Canada. Thank you

hello. be careful with risperidone, i sincerely believe that drug is toxic.  ask your doctor to get off of the drug or if he/she is forcing you to use medications, switch to abilify which is less harmful to your prolactin levels. please, read the stories about people who took risperidone that are on this forum. i'm not a doctor, i'm just telling you from experience, get off any anti-psychotic drug as soon as possible please.

[salaw]

Respiralhater - how long was your withdrawal symptoms? After dropping down to 0.75mg i'm having sever anxiety and I haven't been sleeping for 6 days now. The doctor want me to go up back to 1 mg. Did you have ansomnia during your withdrawal?

[scallywag]

salaw, it makes some sense to return to 1 mg and stabilize. While your CNS (central nervous system) is getting settled you can learn about how to taper more gently: reading up on using a digital scale or making a suspension (liquid) from your tablets/capsules; getting the supplies to taper.

[salaw]

My insomnia is getting quite severe. The doctor said sleep deprivation can trigger a psychotic episode. How do I taper off respiradone without getting a psychotic episode since one of the most common withdrawal symptom is insomnia. I don't want to go back to my psychiatrist since she's probably going to put me on another med that I will have taper later. Should I work on my insomnia first before trying to taper again? What if it's the respiradone that is causing all my sleeping issues?

[scallywag]

You will probably need to taper far more slowly than making 25% reductions.

 

When did you start experiencing the insomnia you've mentioned?

[risperdalhater]

Respiralhater - how long was your withdrawal symptoms? After dropping down to 0.75mg i'm having sever anxiety and I haven't been sleeping for 6 days now. The doctor want me to go up back to 1 mg. Did you have ansomnia during your withdrawal?

 

i feel so bad for you right now because i know what you're going through. my withdrawal lasted i believe a little over a week. i didn't have insomnia but i had to get comfortable to get to sleep. one thing that helped was melatonin, it was weird, it actually made me feel somewhat normal for a few minutes and i think it's because risperdal messes with your serotonin levels and melatonin is linked to serotonin.  

 

before bed i used 6mg of melatonin and i also used magnesium, preferably the magnesium in powder form which you can drink because it absorbs much better. both melatonin and magnesium can aid with sleep.  magnesium can also give you a "feel good" feeling.

 

this is the magnesium i like: http://www.iherb.com/Natural-Vitality-Natural-Calm-The-Anti-Stress-Drink-Raspberry-Lemon-Flavor-16-oz-453-g/5124?gclid=CjwKEAiAsMXBBRD71KWOh6fcjRwSJAC5CNE1w0KA_f2gPOt_T7Mbkp-0g6ARdvad_NLW2SGnkwyL_xoCURfw_wcB

[salaw]

I've always had some kind of insomnia even before taking respiradone. But it got worse after going on respiradone. But even then, I was able to get some sleep. For a little while, it was like 2 days of sleep, 2 days of non sleep. I even had a period Where I actually sleep for 4 days straight. On November 15th 2016, I had a little bit of sleep and I didn't sleep again until last night. November 15th was the day I dropped to 0.75mg. Yesterday, things got so bad I was brought to the hospital for attempt suicide.

[scallywag]

I'm sorry to read that you felt as desparate as you did last night. What did the docs at the hospital do with your medication -- add new ones, change dose, change medication, nothing?

[salaw]

He wanted me to go back to 1mg but I don't think that will help. About a month ago I started getting obsessive thoughts that I never got before I started the medication I think it's the respiradone itself that cause me to have these obessive thoughts. I just want to get off this medication. The doctor also want me to get seroquil to help with my sleep. I'm starting auditory hallucination again so for sure a drop of 25 percent is way too much. I wish I had not listen to my doctor. But after I stabalizw at 0.75mg i'm going to taper much slower

[scallywag]

It's good to read that you are going to give yourself lots of time to stabilize. In all probability, you will need to taper gently down from 0.75 mg risperidone.

Please read/watch the information at these links:
How your brain responds to psychiatric drugs - aka "Brain remodeling"
Youtube video, 4 minutes: Healing from antidepressants

 

If you'd never experienced obsessive thoughts before taking risperidone (Risperdal), then they are almost certainly adverse effects of the medication. We have discussion topics with ideas to cope with different symptoms:

Change the channel - dealing with cognitive symptoms may have things you can use with the obsessive thoughts
OCD: obsessive thoughts, compulsive behaviours - may be helpful even though you don't have the compulsive behaviour
Non-drug techniques to cope with emotional symptoms also work for cognitive and physical symptoms
 

[salaw]

So I'm back in the hospital. I was having a lot of trouble sleeping and somehow develop thoughts that if I continue not sleeping everybody is going to die. I had several family members taking care of me and my not sleeping is starting to affect their sleeps. I was afraid I was going to end hurting someone or myself so I admit myself back to the hospital.

 

My doctor switched me over to Seroquel to help with sleep. I asked her if it was addictive and she said no. How could that be? She doesnt seem to think anything is addictive. I don't really have much faith in her but i don't know what else to do. She want to stay on Seroquel for a year but i don't want to stay on it that long. How long should I wait for starting to taper off? 

 

Also a couple days ago, something happened that was really scary. I was lying down trying to calm down my anxiety when I found I couldn't open my eyes. I went downstairs then realized I couldn't get up from my chairs or speak. Could that be an adverse affect of going back up to 1mg of respiradone or just from taking respiradone itself? Is the medicine already causing brain demage? Or could it be just sever anxiety? That's what the paramedic said. They couldn't find anything wrong with me physically. 

Edited November 25, 2016 by scallywag
add white space + emphasis on medication switch

[risperdalhater]

So I'm back in the hospital. I was having a lot of trouble sleeping and somehow develop thoughts that if I continue not sleeping everybody is going to die. I had several family members taking care of me and my not sleeping is starting to affect their sleeps. I was afraid I was going to end hurting someone or myself so I admit myself back to the hospital. My doctor switched me over to Seroquel to help with sleep. I asked her if it was addictive and she said no. How could that be? She doesnt seem to think anything is addictive. I don't really have much faith in her but i don't know what else to do. She want to stay on Seroquel for a year but i don't want to stay on it that long. How long should I wait for starting to taper off? 

Also a couple days ago, something happened that was really scary. I was lying down trying to calm down my anxiety when I found I couldn't open my eyes. I went downstairs then realized I couldn't get up from my chairs or speak. Could that be an adverse affect of going back up to 1mg of respiradone or just from taking respiradone itself? Is the medicine already causing brain demage? Or could it be just sever anxiety? That's what the paramedic said. They couldn't find anything wrong with me physically. 

 

i'm sorry you had side effects like that.  i was talking to a guy on this forum who was taking AP's and he said he couldn't even speak for a while. i won't be taking any anti-psychotics or anti-depressants ever again and i suggest you don't too.

 

these drugs do weird things that are scary. i was given something while i was in the psych ward(i forgot the name) that made my neck tense and my head look up and i couldn't look down until they gave me the antidote.  

[scallywag]

Your doctor's suggestion of staying on the medication at a particular dose is a good one, especially after the symptoms you had from the dose reduction of risperdal and after switching to a new medication, Seroquel (quetiapine).  Get stable on the Seroquel doses. Stable means either that you have no symptoms or that the intensity of your symptoms is not wildly changing within a day or from day-to-day.

Please keep notes on paper of your symptoms and the times of your dose(s). This post has a useful format for a daily log:
Take notes of doses and symptoms
 
Your doctor is using a traditional narrow view of addictive.  From that perspective, neither risperidone nor quetiapine (Seroquel) are addictive. However, they both have the potential of causing withdrawal symptoms. 

These neuroleptic or "anti-psychotic" medications have an effect on your CNS (central nervous system). When the medication is introduced and continued, your CNS responds to the presence of the drug by making changes to maintain an equilibrium. A more science-y way of saying this is that your CNS downregulates or upregulates neurotransmitter cells & processes to maintain homeostasis.
 
These CNS changes do not occur quickly. When a drug is discontinued or the dose is reduced, the CNS un-changes itself, undoing some or all of the changes it has made since the drug was introduced. Again, these changes or "un-changes" do not occur overnight and may take many weeks or months for some people. This "un-changing" done by the CNS to restore itself to a drug-free state is almost certainly the cause of symptoms while tapering and/or after discontinuing a medication.

 

Please take a few minutes to look at the information at these links:
How your brain responds to psychiatric drugs - aka "Brain remodeling"
Youtube video, 4 minutes: Healing from antidepressants

[salaw]

Respitadalhater -. How long was your withdrawal after u quit cold turkey?

[salaw]

I was reading on seroquel and some of the adverse health consequences are really freaking me out. And I figure it is going to take me at least 2 years to taper off it. Was wondering if is should ask my doctor to switch to a different drug. I've been on seroquel 200mg for 15 days day now and was increased to 300mg 3 days ago. I was on respiradone previously for 3 months. I've been sleeping better since being on seroquel but that is just going. To make it harder get off it. Should I stick with seroquel or ask to switch to another drug like olanzapine? I tried it once when I was on olanzapine and was able to sleep with it. Would it be easier to taper off olanzapine? I heard seroquel is one of the top three drug to come off.

[scallywag]

Please remember that as the dose lowers, the risk of adverse effects, both short- and long-term, decrease.

 

Most if not all drugs in the same class as Seroquel have similar adverse effect profiles or worse. For many people, it's best to stay with the same medication because switching can bring on or intensify withdrawal symptoms.

[salaw]

My heart just started beating fast out of no where. I feel lightheaded and dizzy.

[scallywag]

Heart palpitations and lightheadedness are symptoms that arise for some people in withdrawal.

 

Irregular heartbeats, palpitations, etc.

Lightheadedness

 

You may find it helpful to download and review a list of common symptoms. It's not a complete list but covers a lot of ground:

Glenmullen’s withdrawal symptom list

[salaw]

Thanks for the info scallywag. I managed to find a new psychiatrist that is helping me to taper slowly from the drug. He said tapering from a high dose (300 to 200) to a lower dose doesn't have withdrawal affect but he said if I want to go slowly I can. So today I started to go down from 300 to 275 for this week. Next week I will be down to 250. That's a .9 percent each drop. What do you think about this schedule. Should I go slower base on my history?

[scallywag]

As you may know, we suggest reducing by no more than 10% per month. The plan your doctor has advised, 25 mg per week, is much faster than that. I "kinda-sorta" get where the doc is coming from saying that the drop from 300 to 200 is less likely to cause symptoms. 

 

Given your history, tapering more slowly makes sense.  Withdrawal effects from neuroleptic ("anti-psychotic") medications seem to take longer to appear than with other medications. It's best to take things slowly until you learn how your CNS (central nervous system) reacts to dose reductions.

[salaw]

Hi,

 

The doctor told me they are concerned about the long term affect on my brain if I continue to go on and off my medication. been trying to taper off seroquel for over a year and always end up back in the hospital. I think staying on the medication is probably just as bad for the brain. Has anyone have any experience with multiple failed attempts and manage to come out of it ok in the end?

 

[Madeleine]

How have you been tapering?  how much were you on

to start with? For how long? How long did it take you to taper? and how big were the cuts you made? And why were you put on the seroquel in the first place? 

[ChessieCat]

Please see:  Success stories: Recovery from withdrawal