Posted by jjj on May 17, 2005, at 23:16:53 [reposted on May 17, 2005, at 23:44:59 | original URL]
In reply to Re: risperdal withdrawl causing more symptoms, posted by Phillipa on May 17, 2005, at 18:19:20
Actually, it was my idea to lower dosage, not my pdoc's. He believes that the symptoms will reduce over time at the lower dosage (basically that short term withdrawl of risperdal leads to a short term increase of psychotic symptoms, even in previously non-psychotic patients)
I'm having problems with side effects and wanted to see how well I'd do without the medication. I've also been in therapy and feel that I can deal with the symptoms better than I was able to in the past.
I was previously taking lots of medication and I've been successful at removing all of it except for the risperdal.
Previously I was convinced that what was happening was completely real. (i.e. there really was somebody in the next room screaming at me at 4:00 am, etc...) Now I understand that what I'm hearing are projections of my own thoughts and not some external entity.
Overall, I feel that I've been able to cope with my psychotic symptoms, at least lately. When they first started it was very alarming and definitely affected my functioning. Now I'm aware of what is happening and treat it as a annoyance. The symptoms happen, they can be pretty hurtful and definitely bring up emotions that I'd prefer not to deal with, but I can manage with it.
Lowering the dosage gradually has helped with that. at .5 mg for example, the symptoms returned occasionally, but were more of a minor annoyance. I think the effective dose depends on what your expectations are for the medication and vary depending on the person taking the medicine. If I wanted to completely remove all traces of the symptoms, then 2 mg does the trick. .5 mg is quite livable for me.
So, basically, I'm curious. My life was basically stable, so I decided to ask the question: Do I really need this medicine to manage my day to day life? Is it worth the health risk of taking it (obesity, possibility of diabetes, etc...)? I would like to have a choice in the matter about what I injest. I've become quite physically dependant on risperdal, can't sleep without it,etc... and that worries me a little bit. Perhaps it was a mistake, if things become unbearable I can always start up with it again.
I'm a little bit hopeful, I guess. Hopeful that somehow I have changed through therapy and other treatment. If all the symptoms come back when I stop the medication, then I really haven't made any progress, except for taking a pill every night.
Anyways, sorry for the long response, just trying to explain my position. Please, if a medicine is working for you, it is probably a good idea to stick with it. Don't let me dissuade anyone from treatment and definitely don't stop treatment without a doctor's supervision.
jjj
poster:jjj
thread:499279
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/wdrawl/20050424/msgs/499283.html