MisterCastle: I''m trying to reduce Geodon dose

[MisterCastle]

Hi all!

 

I was diagnosed with schizophrenia since April, 2011.

 

I'm trying to stop my medications.
I'm taking Geodon (80mg x2) and Klonopin (2mg x1).

 

Today I started reducing Geodon with the morning dose.
I reduced from 80 mg (capsule) to 75ml (liquid form).

 

I don't know if I could reduce the night dose together.

Help me please.

 

The mental health system that I go to my appointments

wants me to take Risperdal, Akineton and Periciazine also,

and I'm not taking it, because I feel like a zombie and I

start to have palpitations.

[Gridley]

Hi, Mr. Castle, and welcome to SA,

 

I'm really pleased that you have found SA at the very beginning of your taper

 

 A request: Would you summarize your history in a signature - ALL drugs, doses, dates, and discontinuations & reinstatements, in the last 12-24 months particularly?

• Please leave out symptoms and diagnoses.
• A list is easier to understand than one or multiple paragraphs. 

• Any drugs prior to 24 months ago can just be listed with start and stop years.
• Please use actual dates or approximate dates (mid-June, Late October) rather than relative time frames (last week, 3 months ago)
• Spell out months, e.g. "October" or "Oct."; 9/1/2016 can be interpreted as Jan. 9, 2016 or Sept. 1, 2016.
• Link to Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature.

 

Generally SA recommends a slow taper of no more than 10% of the previous dose with a hold of about 4 weeks to allow the brain to adapt to not getting as much of the drug.  The idea of doing a slow taper is to keep withdrawal symptoms to a minimum.  We advise people to throw out the calendar and listen to their body.  If you aren't feeling stable after 4 weeks after making a reduction in your dose, you hold for a bit longer.

 

I'll provide you with some links to check out.

 

Before you begin tapering what you need to know

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?
 

Tips for tapering off ziprasidone (Geodon, Zeldox)

 

This is your own Introduction topic where you can ask questions and journal your progress.

 

 

[ChessieCat]

Hi MisterCastle and welcome from me too.

 

It is a good idea when members are taking more than one drug, and especially when new drugs are suggested for them to put them into the Drug Interactions Checker

 

Periciazine cannot be checked because it isn't available in the USA.  For the information of the mods and members.  This is from wiki:

 

Periciazine, also known as pericyazine or propericiazine, is a drug that belongs to the phenothiazine class of typical antipsychotics. Pericyazine is not approved for sale in the United States.

 

You might find these topics helpful:

 

Brain Remodelling

Video:  Healing From Antidepressants - Patterns of Recovery

 

Dr Joseph Glenmullen's WD Symptoms Checklist

 

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

What should I expect from my doctor about withdrawal symptoms?

[MisterCastle]

I took one sertraline 50mg tablet in the morning and one 50mg 2 hours ago. I had stopped this medicine about 10 days ago. But I took it again today after several days having palpitations. And today I had almost no palpitation. I keep thinking that the interaction between Ziprasidone and Risperidone was causing these palpitations, which I think may be cardiac arrhythmias. Because my family has a history of heart disease.

 

Edited October 29, 2017 by ChessieCat
deleted quote

[MisterCastle]

- Ziprasidone (80mg x2) = 1 year and 6 months.

 

And I did not take Ziprasidone yet tonight, but I took it in the morning without removing out the capsule.

 

- Risperidone (2mg x1) = Almost 1 year.

 

I was taking Risperidone for a few months and started trying to stop taking it several times, always having abstinence. Now I went back to take it 4 days ago, but I do not want to take it today because of the interaction with Ziprasidone. I took it before 6mg daily in 2014.

 

- Sertraline (50mg x2) = Almost 2 months. 

 

Stopped 10 days ago and started it again today due yesterday having palpitations. But I don't want to continue it.

 

- Akineton (2mg x1) = Almost 1 year. Stopped taking it 2 months ago.

 

Periciazine = Almost didnt took it. Due some days with palpitations.

 

Clonazepam (2mg x1) = 6 years and 6 months.

[MisterCastle]

What should I do right now?

 

I don't want to take risperdal and sertraline.

 

I wan't to start reducing geodon and klonopin.

[Gridley]

Mister Castle,

 

I'm unclear about which medications you are taking regularly.  It appears from your posts that you are sometimes taking and sometimes not taking Sertraline, Ziprasidone, Respiradone and Periciazine.  Since you say you want to discontinue klonopin, it appears you are also taking this drug.

 

In order to help you and give you advice about which medication to taper first, it's important that you complete a drug Signature, as we requested earlier. Some of the required information is in your two earlier posts, but it needs to be put in a Signature so that it appears in each of your posts.  This makes it easier for the moderators to tell your drug history at a glance without having to search through your previous posts.   For your convenience, here again are the instructions.

 

Would you summarize your history in a signature - ALL drugs, doses, dates, and discontinuations & reinstatements, in the last 12-24 months particularly?  

• Please leave out symptoms and diagnoses.
• A list is easier to understand than one or multiple paragraphs. 

• Any drugs prior to 24 months ago can just be listed with start and stop years.  Please includes dosages.
• Please use actual dates or approximate dates (mid-June, Late October) rather than relative time frames (last week, 3 months ago)
• Spell out months, e.g. "October" or "Oct."; 9/1/2016 can be interpreted as Jan. 9, 2016 or Sept. 1, 2016
• Link to Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature.

Click on the link to create your signature.  Please include the information about drugs you are sometimes taking and sometimes not taking.

Edited October 30, 2017 by Gridley
typographical error

[scallywag]

MisterCastle,  any suggestions we make are only as good as the information we have.

 

Your symptoms may be the result of making several changes in medication over a short period of time. One thing that we strongly urge people to consider -- make only one change at a time. A change is a dose change (up or down) or a formulation change (tablet to liquid, one generic manufacturer to another generic manufacturer of the same drug). And of course, one change at a time means changing only one medication, so starting, stopping or changing the dose.

 

Here's what we need to know

What medications did you take today? What time of day (e.g. 7:00 am) did you take each medication and what was the dose (e.g. 2 mg)?

 

For your history, this may help give you a sense of the information we're requesting.

Geodon

- started taking on _________________ (month & year);

- now taking  75 mg as liquid (morning), 80 mg as capsule (evening)

 

Sertraline

- started taking on _________________ (month & year); starting dose __________

- stopped taking on _________________(day if possible, month & year); last dose ______________

(please put the same information if you've started and stopped it more than once)

 

Ziprasidone

- started taking on _____________ (month & year);

- stopped taking on ______________ (month & year); last dose amount _______ mg

 

Risperidone (last time you took it continuously)

- started taking on _____________ (month & year); starting dose amount _____ mg

- stopped taking on ______________ (month & year); last dose amount _______ mg

 

Akineton

started taking in September 2016; dose = 2 mg/day

stopped taking it in August 2017;.

 

Periciazine = Almost didnt took it. Due some days with palpitations.

- started taking on _____________ (month & year); starting dose amount _____ mg

- stopped taking on ______________ (month & year); last dose amount _______ mg

 

Clonazepam

started taking it in April 2011, 2 mg once per day

stopped taking it? still taking it?

 

Looking forward to hearing back from you.

 

Edited October 31, 2017 by scallywag