![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 8 of 8. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Tiina on April 15, 2006, at 11:46:49
Hi!I am debating on whether to keep taking Truxal/Taractan or to start taking Thorazine. I would be taking a low dose of Thorazine as I am of Truxal. I need the med to calm my agitation and help with a feeling of falling apart and help me get to sleep at night. Right now I'm taking 10mg of Truxal and I have to increase the dose really slowly because any little increase makes me feel sick and dizzy the next day. It's hard for me to go anywhere if I feel sick and dizzy. I took 25mg of Thorazine one night and it seemed to make me sleep worse. Maybe it was because it also made me feel kind of sick, I don't know.
So how sedating is Thorazine? Does it normally help people sleep better? I also need the med to make me so sleepy I can't stay up anymore to even be able to go to bed. I'm considering starting to take Thorazine because I have to build up my dose of Truxal so slowly and with such a low dose it's not helping with my feeling of falling apart. I don't know if Thorazine would help me get to sleep and calm me down so I'm afraid to try it again. Any advice?
Tiina
Posted by Tiina on April 16, 2006, at 6:30:58
Hi!I posted about this yesterday but I can't find my post. I find this forum very confusing and I don't even know where the new posts show up.
Anyway...I've been taking Truxal/Taractan and I'm considering changing to Thorazine because I have to buil up my dose of Taractan so slowly. I started at 5mg and have gone up by 2,5mg twice and even that small of an increase makes me feel nauseous and dizzy the next day. Being nauseated is a real problem for me because I'm afraid of throwing up so every time I feel sick I get panicked. I still have to be able to go to therapy twice a week and if I'm feeling sick I can't go.
What I want to know is will Thorazine knock you out at night (I need that) and does it help with agitation? Taractan does help knock me out at night along with the Seroquel I'm taking but it doesn't help with my feeling of falling apart with such a low dose. I tried taking Thorazine one night and I was able to take 25mg, a lot more than Taractan. But it seemed to make me sleep even worse. Maybe that was because it made me feel a little bit sick also, I don't know. Either way I'm thinking I could take a bigger dose of Thorazine than Taractan and I was told by a shrink that they're equal in potency.
One more thing...since Thorazine has such a long half-life (30 hours) would I get an accumulative effect of sedation? That wouldn't be a good thing if it makes you a zombie after a while.
Tiina
Posted by med_empowered on April 16, 2006, at 6:52:16
In reply to How sedating is Thorazine? Please reply!, posted by Tiina on April 16, 2006, at 6:30:58
personally, I'd avoid Thorazine and other antipsychotics. If you can, try going for mood-stabilizers--lithium, depakote, tegretol/trileptal, etc. Lithium in particular has shown itself effective in some people for psychotic depression....plus, the doses of antipsychotics that you've been taking are so low that you can easily get that same anti-agitation, calming effect w/o having to use an actual antipsychotic, which means fewer side effects and problems for you. Good luck.
Posted by Tiina on April 16, 2006, at 7:48:14
In reply to Re: How sedating is Thorazine? Please reply!, posted by med_empowered on April 16, 2006, at 6:52:16
Hi "med_empowered"!When I was reading about mood stabilisers the other day I was wondering if they could help me. But I don't know enough about them...
Do they sedate you enough to make you go to sleep at night? I can't go to sleep without being knocked out by my meds. And do they help with the dread of falling apart? No doctor has ever brought up mood stabilisers with me and I always assumed they were only for manic depressive patients.
I don't know if I should ask my doctor (who never answers my questions) about mood stabilisers. I would be afraid to get off the Seroquel cause it has helped me.
I assume that the side-effect you're worried about with anti-psychotics is tardive dyskinesia...or is there something else?
Tiina
Posted by Phillipa on April 16, 2006, at 12:14:14
In reply to Re: How sedating is Thorazine? Please reply!, posted by Tiina on April 16, 2006, at 7:48:14
If you're schizophrenic you probably need an antipsychotic. What is your diagnosis? Fondly, Phillipa
Posted by jay on April 16, 2006, at 20:01:42
In reply to Re: How sedating is Thorazine? Please reply!, posted by Tiina on April 16, 2006, at 7:48:14
Hi Tiina..
For me...the worst thing antipsychotics did was cause some weight gain and mess up my blood sugar. But, with dosage management, switching antipsychotics, and/or adding a med for your blood sugar, they work good. I never found relief with the old ones i.e. Thorazine. zilch.
Right now, 200mg's of Seroquel are great for me...and as far as weight gain and mood-stabilizers, the m.s.'s caused me just as much weight gain AS WELL, and they did not work well for sleep. I had to take close to a toxic dose of an m.s. in order for it to "knock me out" to sleep. With antipsychotics like Seroquel, a still fairly small dose does wonders. When times get *really* stressful, my doc adds a small dose of Zyprexa temporarily, increases my benzo dose and my Prozac dose. When I am through it, we taper down a bit, and off the Zyprexa.Best wishes,
Jay
Posted by Tiina on April 17, 2006, at 10:24:39
In reply to Re: How sedating is Thorazine? Please reply! » Tiina, posted by jay on April 16, 2006, at 20:01:42
> Hi Tiina..
>
> For me...the worst thing antipsychotics did was cause some weight gain and mess up my blood sugar. But, with dosage management, switching antipsychotics, and/or adding a med for your blood sugar, they work good. I never found relief with the old ones i.e. Thorazine. zilch.
> Right now, 200mg's of Seroquel are great for me...and as far as weight gain and mood-stabilizers, the m.s.'s caused me just as much weight gain AS WELL, and they did not work well for sleep. I had to take close to a toxic dose of an m.s. in order for it to "knock me out" to sleep. With antipsychotics like Seroquel, a still fairly small dose does wonders. When times get *really* stressful, my doc adds a small dose of Zyprexa temporarily, increases my benzo dose and my Prozac dose. When I am through it, we taper down a bit, and off the Zyprexa.
>
> Best wishes,
> Jay
Thanks for your response Jay. Did you get weight gain and blood sugar problems from the old antipsychotics or the new ones? I haven't had those problems with Seroquel and naturally I wanna stay away from something that causes that if I can. I may not even stay on the Taractan because I've been reading about tardive dyskinesia and reading all that stuff has me kind of freaked out about it. If I got it then the only thing that is normal about me (my body) wouldn't be normal anymore either. I could not stand to look dysfigured because I already feel like I am dysfigured (mentally) and that people can see that. Apparently the old ones cause it a lot more often so that's why I'm more worried about the Taractan than Seroquel.I don't know what to do. I tried going up on Seroquel before I tried the old meds but it made me feel horrible mentally...like somehow imprisoned. I guess I'll just have to figure something out. Thanks Jay
Tiina
Posted by maxime on April 18, 2006, at 12:39:46
In reply to how sedating is Thorazine?, posted by Tiina on April 15, 2006, at 11:46:49
it's not overly sedating. it's better for relaxing you so you can sleep. i take 25 mg every once in a while and i like it very much.
maxime
> Hi!
>
> I am debating on whether to keep taking Truxal/Taractan or to start taking Thorazine. I would be taking a low dose of Thorazine as I am of Truxal. I need the med to calm my agitation and help with a feeling of falling apart and help me get to sleep at night. Right now I'm taking 10mg of Truxal and I have to increase the dose really slowly because any little increase makes me feel sick and dizzy the next day. It's hard for me to go anywhere if I feel sick and dizzy. I took 25mg of Thorazine one night and it seemed to make me sleep worse. Maybe it was because it also made me feel kind of sick, I don't know.
>
> So how sedating is Thorazine? Does it normally help people sleep better? I also need the med to make me so sleepy I can't stay up anymore to even be able to go to bed. I'm considering starting to take Thorazine because I have to build up my dose of Truxal so slowly and with such a low dose it's not helping with my feeling of falling apart. I don't know if Thorazine would help me get to sleep and calm me down so I'm afraid to try it again. Any advice?
>
> Tiina
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.