muddlemummy Posted July 14, 2010 Report Share Posted July 14, 2010 First post - been reading for a while and have gained loads from the site. I am currently taking 650mg quetiapine a day along with 40mg citalopram and 300mg pregabalin. I'm still experiencing very low mood and constant voices along with paranoid thoughts and visual disturbances. My psych wants me to try clozapine if my increased dose of quetiapine is ineffective. I have looked it up on the web and wished I hadn't. Seems like a very risky drug. He said it also involves a hospital stay until the dose is stabilised. I've never been hospitalised and this really worries me. Has anyone taken Clozapine? If you have whats your diagnosis? From what I've read on the web it is only licensed for treatment resistant schizophrenia. I have a diagnosis of severe depression with psychotic features. I'm wondering if that is about to change to schizophrenia if I start on Clozapine. Sorry about the long first post - thanks for reading and your input would be greatly appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dani Posted July 14, 2010 Report Share Posted July 14, 2010 i ahevnt taken it before but just wanted to welcome u to the site :-) xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roxy222 Posted July 14, 2010 Report Share Posted July 14, 2010 First post - been reading for a while and have gained loads from the site. I am currently taking 650mg quetiapine a day along with 40mg citalopram and 300mg pregabalin. I'm still experiencing very low mood and constant voices along with paranoid thoughts and visual disturbances. My psych wants me to try clozapine if my increased dose of quetiapine is ineffective. I have looked it up on the web and wished I hadn't. Seems like a very risky drug. He said it also involves a hospital stay until the dose is stabilised. I've never been hospitalised and this really worries me. Has anyone taken Clozapine? If you have whats your diagnosis? From what I've read on the web it is only licensed for treatment resistant schizophrenia. I have a diagnosis of severe depression with psychotic features. I'm wondering if that is about to change to schizophrenia if I start on Clozapine. Sorry about the long first post - thanks for reading and your input would be greatly appreciated! have you been on alanzapine before? olanzapine is the nearest anti p to clozapine without the extreem and risky side effects. you cd ask to try that first. they actually dont have to have you in hospital to start clozapine, but they need blood pressure checked daily and bloods checked weekly to start, if not more. maybe you cd fight to have this done at home? clozapine is very successful at managing symptoms, it is sucessfful for atleats 95% of people who take it in that they will not have a relapse while taking it, they may still have symptoms. it is very risky though, which is why it is so clsely monitored, and there are a huge number of side effects that can have a big effect on peoples life. if you go on it bear in mind that the optimal doesage is the does that best reduces the symptoms with the least amount of side effects. sometimes the professionals encourgae higher doeses when for the person some pyschotic symtpoms with lesser side effcest may be better. there are also pyschological therapies that can help with managing these symptoms. depedning on your diagnosis you might want to check out the nice guidlines, i think the guidelines for schizophrenia says that all should be given cbt if they want (clozapine is generally used for scizophrenia, im not meaning to make assumptions). you might also want to check out the hearing voices network, intervoice and rufas may's website for info on managing symtopms. best of luck with everything ps quietiapine and prgabilin can both be taken at higher does so you might want to ask about that first Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muddlemummy Posted July 15, 2010 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2010 Thanks for your replies. I have been on olanzapine before along with risperidone and abilify. That's why they want to try clozapine next as the others haven't worked. They are effective up to a point as in they help in a crisis situation but I still end up with chronic symptoms. They are still increasing the quetiapine to see if that will work first and then I have an appointment next month to discuss options. Thsnks for the links - I will check them out. Anyone got any experience of actually taking clozapine? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mugsy Posted July 31, 2010 Report Share Posted July 31, 2010 hi . I took clozaril for years after nothing else worked and found it to work really well and except for to much saliva and a sleepyness (which wore off) I didnt get any side effects and it really helped me -so much. I went from completely unable to do anything to being able to do all kinds of things I didnt get any voices or bad thoughts. after years of being drugged up and and having side effects from drugs that didnt really help it transformed things for me. If i remember though it did take a while to work properly.I am considering restarting taking it again as things are not so good again. apparantly in some areas you can start it in the community if there are the services but it might not be available. hope you find something that helps you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lily-Bee Posted August 1, 2010 Report Share Posted August 1, 2010 Seriously doubt taking it would mean your diagnoses will change to schizophrenia. A lot of these kind of drugs are registered for a certain use but used for other symptoms as well,its called off label prescribing. For me for instance I take anti psychotics but have never been psychotic,they help with my obessive worrying. Lilly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roxy222 Posted August 3, 2010 Report Share Posted August 3, 2010 lots of antipsychs are used for many things, clozapine is not though, not in the way others are. i wasnt suggesting anyboyd dx would be changed though, you must have miss read Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.