gothicangel Posted August 10, 2009 Report Share Posted August 10, 2009 I spoke to the head psych. doctor at my clinic the other day about my sleeping difficulties (finding it difficult to wind down, constantly feeling tired because of poor quality sleep) and the fact that my antidepressants aren't working as well as they used to. She prescribed me a very low dose (25mg) of Quetiapine. I do not know much about antipsychotics and I don't think I have ever been psychotic before, but apparently it's supposed to help with my sleeping and low mood. However I'm absolutely terrified that it will make me put on weight, I am severely fatphobic and would rather take the sleep problems and occasional depression over the weight gain any day. Any weight gain would be guaranteed to make my depression 100 times worse. I'm scared of starting it because I am going away for a month on Thursday and if I have bad side effects I will be thousands of miles away and I've heard the withdrawals are pretty bad too. In a bit a a predicament really, anyone in the know about this particular drug? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
placebo69a Posted August 10, 2009 Report Share Posted August 10, 2009 Weight gain is a very real and common side-effect to the drug in question. If you feel like gaining weight will be worse than not being able to sleep then you should tell your physician you'd rather avoid drugs that cause weight gain. If he insists, tell him you're not going to take a drug that's going to make you gain weight and that's the end of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piuma Posted August 10, 2009 Report Share Posted August 10, 2009 hey hun, lots of people say it inceases weight, but i think it depends onyou, 25mg is very small and it is great for sleep, i know when i do take it i get carb cravings, but i guess its up to you wether you eat or not, so you could ignore the cravings. there are meant to be other anit p's that don have weight issues. will doc not prescrib e short term use of zopiclone or something? just to get back to normal sleep patterns. xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelley Posted August 10, 2009 Report Share Posted August 10, 2009 Yeah, 25mg is a very small dose, I don't think that would have any effect on your weight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roses Posted August 10, 2009 Report Share Posted August 10, 2009 25mg is a small dose but it is still a drug that is notorious for weight gain. Can they not prescribe zopiclone or zolpidem for sleep. They are not addictive like quetiapine and are just for sleep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
placebo69a Posted August 11, 2009 Report Share Posted August 11, 2009 The way it makes you gain weight is it makes you still feel hungry even after you've eaten. So if you're planning on trying it keep that in mind. You'll have to ignore this kind of "hunger after I just ate" to avoid gaining weight. Thought you might like to know in case you go for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benway Posted August 11, 2009 Report Share Posted August 11, 2009 hi gothicangel- if i were you id not touch anything unless you really need it. yes anti-p's do cause weight gain- fact. benadryl is a good antihistamine to help you sleep. I would ask your GP about that. Its an over the counter medication used for allergies and travel sickness. I do reccommend you ask your dr though- and this has no 'side' effect profile - e.g. - next day 'hangover, weight gain, etc. roses- why are you advising gothic angel to go on zopiclone when you just posted on the 'dangers of withdrawls?' "26] Day time withdrawal related anxiety can also occur from chronic nightly nonbenzodiazepine hypnotic usage such as with zopiclone." im not getting at you , i just don't understand your mindset , thats all. zopiclone is just as 'addictive' as any benzodiazapine. i have nothing against benzos - but i do agree you're better off not being addicted to anything. personally i never found quietapine addictive, i didn't enjoy it that much. but anything can become an addiction, from glue to sex to online shopping. just depends on the person. best wishes anne marie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roses Posted August 11, 2009 Report Share Posted August 11, 2009 I tried the over the counter stuff for years and made myself really ill as they did not work but I agree they are worth a shot as a first port of call. I mentioned zopiclone as it works. It is only recommended short term as it is addictive, yes. Zolpiderm is recommended for longe term use but it is habit forming (or addictive if you like). Both of these are MUCH MUCH easier to wean off than benzos and anti-psyches. Sleep is so important in mental stability that it is worth a shot if you are THAT poorly. Hell I'm on lithium and all sorts but I am trying to wean myself off them. The fact is though these drugs SAVED MY LIFE at the time. Addiction to zolpiderm or death - I'll take the zolpiderm please. I only give advice so people go in with their eyes open. I wasn't given this advice at the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gothicangel Posted August 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 11, 2009 Thank you for your advice everyone. Think I'm gonna give it a miss for now, maybe see if there's a different option when I get back from holiday :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyan Posted August 15, 2009 Report Share Posted August 15, 2009 Have fun on your holiday! I'd like to add that Quetiapine gives me severe heart palpitations- My heart beats at 200 bpm, then stops for 4 seconds, then starts really fast again. Not pleasant at all, I thought I was having a heart attack. An alternative to quet is risperidone. It works well for me, although does increase my heart rate slightly (my psychiatrist told me "this is a common side effect in young, muscular males" so you may not be affected like this). If it's mostly for sleep though, I'd question why they were giving you antipsychotics (which have sedative qualities but that's not their priority). I've been through a lot of insomnia medication and I've found that the best thing for sleep, without a doubt, is Zolpidem. Knocks you out great and you feel really refreshed the next day (not in the morning though). Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roses Posted August 15, 2009 Report Share Posted August 15, 2009 Hey Kyan, you can take propranolol to counter-attack the palpitations xxxxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyan Posted August 15, 2009 Report Share Posted August 15, 2009 I wasn't aware of that Roses. Thank you! I'm on risperidone now, less palpitations but it makes me exhausted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roses Posted August 15, 2009 Report Share Posted August 15, 2009 I know babe, I used to have to time school runs round meds cos the quetiapine would make me sleep 2/3 hours after morning dose. xxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bpd.princess Posted August 20, 2009 Report Share Posted August 20, 2009 hey i take this medication, its also known as seroquel. ive prob been on it for like 9 months. it works really well for me. im on 600mg at night, 100mg in the morning, 100mg at midday and 100mg at 4pm. and i get NO voices whats so ever, but if i skip it or have it more then 2hrs later i got pyscho. the only down fall to this medication is that within 3 months of the same dosage the voices slowly start to come back, so my medication has to be upped. for the first 4 weeks i get the sedative effect. but it doesnt bother me as long as i dont have the voices, and i also dont mind sleeping for long hours cause i dont have a purpose in life so im just gonna sleep it away. oh and btw i havent gained weight from it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imperial Posted August 26, 2009 Report Share Posted August 26, 2009 Hi,I was just going to start a thread about this med till i seen this. I have just started this med this morning,I have to take 25mg in the morning and 50mg in the evening,One of my fears is gaining weight with this med. It did knock me out today,I slept from 10.am till 5.am. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roses Posted August 26, 2009 Report Share Posted August 26, 2009 It does get better Imperial I was out of it the first week but after that I could work around the 2/3 hour nap after morning dose. The weight gain was noticeable but not too horrendous hun. Just keep as active as you can and stick to a healthy diet and it shouldn't be too bad hun xxxxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jevban Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 hey i take this medication, its also known as seroquel. ive prob been on it for like 9 months. it works really well for me. im on 600mg at night, 100mg in the morning, 100mg at midday and 100mg at 4pm. and i get NO voices whats so ever, but if i skip it or have it more then 2hrs later i got pyscho. the only down fall to this medication is that within 3 months of the same dosage the voices slowly start to come back, so my medication has to be upped. for the first 4 weeks i get the sedative effect. but it doesnt bother me as long as i dont have the voices, and i also dont mind sleeping for long hours cause i dont have a purpose in life so im just gonna sleep it away. oh and btw i havent gained weight from it. Hi Princess my partner has voices, real bad, and she has been started on seroquel, being taken off chlorpromazine and riseridone. She has bad health problems so they are keeping her at 350mgs for now. She's still having real bad voices, depression, withdrawing and being quite hurtful with lots of other problems, most of which she is currently blaming me for and with no real improvement yet. shes desperate for them to up her med to get some relief. Its good to hear you are voice free but sorry that it seems to wear off after a while. We are just desperate for improvement/change.Sorry to sound me me me, but its been a hard 15 years, and a very hard last 5 weeks. Jan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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