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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 13 of 13. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by alfbarks007 on January 10, 2014, at 7:37:55
I am New here and New to all this antipsychotics. I need someone to hold me hand through this. I am female and 56. I have a history of anxiety since I was 13, I also have a history of outbursts of anger and some mood problems. I've been told I'm bipolar 2 but I don't think I am. Sometimes when I've had outbursts I've literally been hungry but not really hypoglycemic though they seem to be the same,
So I've broke enough cell phones, computers, punched walls, doors and stopped short of people lol.
Ok so I have 4 grandkids I take care of before and or after school, it is stressful for me and raises this mood/anger I get. I have many times wiped the beautiful and precious smiles from their faces and slumped over in tears and frustration from the hurt in their eyes and the confusion I know I've inflicted on them.
This pain has finally caused me to seek help. The Drs .answer was risperidone .25 to start and.1 to end. I literally started at 1/4 of the.25 but finally made it! Also with each dose increase I would have a lot of energy compared to just sitting on my butt which is what I am so use to doing now and I think in part from the beta blocker, I emailed my Dr. today to see what can be done about it, maybe change it, I take it for Tachycardia.
I've seen such a huge and positive difference in my mood control that I marvel that it's even me and so does my husband and daughter!
So though all good I've gotten little relief from anxiety and my Dr encouraged me to go to.50 for anxiety help. My fear: DK, seizures, diabetes, weight gain etc on the side effects...I don't want them and I'm terrified of them!
Posted by Christ_empowered on January 10, 2014, at 8:15:23
In reply to Risperdal/Risperidone Questions, posted by alfbarks007 on January 10, 2014, at 7:38:48
hey! Lower doses of Risperdal are usually well-tolerated. There is the issue of tardive dyskinesia. Its not very common at very low doses, but since you're in a somewhat older age category and female, the risk would be higher than, say, a 30 year old man.
If you have good insurance, I would think a couple mgs Abilify could do the same thing with fewer side effects, maybe a little more antidepressant action. There are other, newer, antipsychotics on the market, too...but I don't know anything about those :-(
Another option would be a very, very low dose of Seroquel, maybe Seroquel xr (again: if you have good insurance). That's more sedating, but it causes less EPS than Risperdal and sometimes has an antidepressant effect.
Then again...if it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? My only advice (I do this myself, since I'm stuck on a high dose of Abillify) would be to take E and C with the risperidone. Like 800-1600 IU E, preferably natural form+mixed tocopherols, plus a couple grams C, preferably time release. Just a suggestion...
....anyway, good luck to you!
Posted by bleauberry on January 10, 2014, at 8:48:39
In reply to Risperdal/Risperidone Questions, posted by alfbarks007 on January 10, 2014, at 7:38:48
Psychiatric drugs treat the symptoms of whatever else is actually wrong. They do not usually fix what the real problem is. They offer a bridge over a roadblock, a path around a pothole, or a detour to manipulate traffic direction.
That said, with that approach, it is almost always a benefit-risk trade-off situation. Sometimes our drugs don't have any side effects, we get a lot of benefit, and no appreciable risk. Sometimes we don't get much benefit but we get tons of side effects and risks. Mileage varies and each person is unique and different in their response to a certain medication. We each have to make our own decisions as to whether the benefits justify tolerating the side effects. For example, let's say 3 months from now you are feeling great but you've gained 20 pounds from risperdal. Risk benefit. To get the benefits you like, weight gain risk came with the package. But, that is something that can be managed and tamed down. Maybe not completely eliminated, but managed well for sure. Is it worth it? Is it not worth it? Only you can answer that.
With a very long psychiatric history myself, I have come to disdain psych drugs as long term remedies, but I think they are awesome for shorter term time frames. Where we go wrong, in organized medicine, in my opinion, is that we stop there. We do not further investigation as to why the symptoms are there in the first place. It's not hard to do those investigations, but doctors are not generally trained to think in that way, and most tests are unreliable or give confusing results. It is the patient's body, the patient's life, and the patient's responsibility. A doctor can only do so much. What they know, especially in psychiatry, is extremely limited when it comes to identifying the cause of symptoms. So instead they focus merely on minimizing the symptoms, and meanwhile the disease continues on, and at some point in the future the med no longer works as good. That is a common outcome called poopout. Not universal, but common.
I like the doc's choice of meds. Other good ones could include either zyprexa or depakote.
In the natural world, which I have personally found more effective and thorough than the psychiatric world, take a serious look at a plant medicine called Rhodiola Rosea. If you buy some, make sure to talk with me about it before you begin dosing it. It is a magical herb, but tricky at first. It is very specific for your symptoms. In that same category would be Eleuthero or Ashwaganda. Mileage varies. I do much better with Rhodiola than the others, but someone else will not be the same as me. All three should be tried separately at some point so as to know which is best for you personally.
I think it's awesome that risperdal is bringing you some relief so quickly. Antipsychotics can do that. All I really want to add to that is, don't stop there.
This will sound bizarre but it is so true. If you were to treat yourself with herbs as if you had Lyme disease, even if you don't have it, you will cover pretty much all the bases that would cause the symptoms you have. They include hidden infection such as lyme and others, toxin accumulation, adrenal malfunction, or inflammation. They all kind of go together actually. The book Healing Lyme by Stephan Buhner has everything in it you need, but there is also a wealth of information on the net. Focus on the topics I mentioned and you should be able to make good progress.
What all stresses and chronic conditions do is put undue excess strain on our adrenal glands, which are responsible for protecting us from the stress you are feeling. The glands can become overworked and incapable of keeping up with the heavy demand. That's where the rage stuff, the overwhelmed stuff, the mountains-out-of-molehills stuff, comes from. And that's why I mentioned those herbs. They target that stuff.
Rhodiola is well known and studied for depression, anxiety, stress, sleep, energy, and endurance. It can, and is, combined with any of the psychiatric drugs except MAOI antidepressants.
In the meantime, I'm so glad you got some fast relief! What an amazing feeling, huh? Awesome.
Posted by SLS on January 10, 2014, at 9:05:10
In reply to Re: Risperdal/Risperidone Questions, posted by bleauberry on January 10, 2014, at 8:48:39
> Psychiatric drugs treat the symptoms of whatever else is actually wrong.
You don't actually know this.
Neuroscientists don't actually know this.
Whereas is doesn't seem that a full cure without any possibility of relapse is available on the market, that does not mean that a drug doesn't target the origin of the pathology. In other words, hitting a singular target can resolve all of the symptoms at once rather than having the need to target each symptom separately.
- Scott
Posted by Phillipa on January 10, 2014, at 9:31:16
In reply to Risperdal/Risperidone Questions, posted by alfbarks007 on January 10, 2014, at 7:38:48
Welcome to babble. I relate to your problem in some ways. As have had anxiety for many many years and have taken benzos for it for years. Not to say it's eliminated it. But it helps. I see you take a beta blocker for tachycardia. So is your arrhythmia due to a heart condition? If so what type? I understand your concern with adding more medications. Especially antipsychotics. You mention you are 56 years old. Did some of the anger occur at the time of menopause? I do advise you to contact your doctor as if dealing with a cardiac condition also it could be a factor. As for hypoglycemia. Do you have a history of this? I know the guilt you must feel at getting angry at your grand children. I personally at age 67 could never watch 4 children. Your Daughter is so lucky she has you to watch her children. Phillipa
Posted by bleauberry on January 10, 2014, at 12:04:50
In reply to Re: Risperdal/Risperidone Questions » bleauberry, posted by SLS on January 10, 2014, at 9:05:10
Sorry Scott. Forget to write IMO.
I respect yours.
And as I said in another post, there is no such thing as the black-n-white. There are more gray areas than either black or white. So what I said is true, and what you said is true, even though they are different, it depends on the individual case involved.
IMO> > Psychiatric drugs treat the symptoms of whatever else is actually wrong.
>
> You don't actually know this.
>
> Neuroscientists don't actually know this.
>
> Whereas is doesn't seem that a full cure without any possibility of relapse is available on the market, that does not mean that a drug doesn't target the origin of the pathology. In other words, hitting a singular target can resolve all of the symptoms at once rather than having the need to target each symptom separately.
>
>
> - Scott
Posted by alfbarks007 on January 10, 2014, at 12:47:38
In reply to Re: Risperdal/Risperidone Questions, posted by Christ_empowered on January 10, 2014, at 8:15:23
I love your username! Christ_embowered!
Thank you for the suggestions and I thought of abilify but because I have a seizure history I do not qualify for it and I've seen my niece of Seroquel for years and she has double in size but will ask her what dose she is on. I've not had any problems yet so its not broke and thee only thing broke is my fear and phobia but hey I get that when I take an advil too lol
Posted by SLS on January 10, 2014, at 14:13:45
In reply to Re: Risperdal/Risperidone Questions » SLS, posted by bleauberry on January 10, 2014, at 12:04:50
> And as I said in another post, there is no such thing as the black-n-white.
Of course there is.
> There are more gray areas than either black or white.
What exactly are you referring to?
> So what I said is true, and what you said is true, even though they are different, it depends on the individual case involved.
You can't go wrong with rhetoric that endorses all sides at once.
Okay, let us find a case that demonstrates the paradigm you describe.
In the meantime, I think Alfbarks007 will find words of wisdom upstream. C_E gave some excellent suggestions.
- Scott---------------------------------------------
> > > Psychiatric drugs treat the symptoms of whatever else is actually wrong.> > You don't actually know this.
> >
> > Neuroscientists don't actually know this.
> >
> > Whereas is doesn't seem that a full cure without any possibility of relapse is available on the market, that does not mean that a drug doesn't target the origin of the pathology. In other words, hitting a singular target can resolve all of the symptoms at once rather than having the need to target each symptom separately.
Posted by bleauberry on January 11, 2014, at 7:17:38
In reply to Re: Risperdal/Risperidone Questions » bleauberry, posted by SLS on January 10, 2014, at 14:13:45
Sorry Scott, I'm going to have to bail out of this one. I'm just trying to chime in on risperdal and some personal thoughts. I am really confused with all of your questions which seem like they belong in a different thread and I can't make any sense out of them, so hopefully the author got what they need on risperdal.
I'm not sure you realize it, not sure if it is on purpose or unintended, but I do indeed sense undue antagonism toward me in your writings. I do not appreciate that tone of discussion directed at me because it makes me feel like I am being interrogated for a crime or something, but it's ok. Of course, oversensitivity is a big part of psychiatry and lyme, so maybe it's just me.
I am here to learn, share, educate myself and others, and hopefully help someone.
I would say, if you are truly interested in learning more of what my thinking is, and me about yours, we should be having these discussions, debates, and interrogations on email rather than pbabble.
Posted by SLS on January 11, 2014, at 10:27:36
In reply to Re: Risperdal/Risperidone Questions » SLS, posted by bleauberry on January 11, 2014, at 7:17:38
> I would say, if you are truly interested in learning more of what my thinking is, and me about yours, we should be having these discussions, debates, and interrogations on email rather than pbabble.
No way.
I want everyone in the Psycho-Babble community to have access to any discourse, arguments, debates, and dialectic we may present.
- Scott
Posted by SLS on January 11, 2014, at 10:33:27
In reply to Risperdal/Risperidone Questions, posted by alfbarks007 on January 10, 2014, at 7:37:55
Hi.
I apologize that so many words along this thread have not been attendant to your original questions and needs. Again, I must say that C_E has offered you some great advice. He has been around the block a few time - unfortunately.
- Scott
Posted by johnLA on January 11, 2014, at 19:06:31
In reply to Re: Risperdal/Risperidone Questions » bleauberry, posted by SLS on January 11, 2014, at 10:27:36
>No way.
I want everyone in the Psycho-Babble community to have access to any discourse, arguments, debates, and dialectic we may present.
- Scott<scott, is this really you or your friend rockerchick? i agree w/bleauberry your 'tone' of your posts the last several months has been a bit aggressive. something seems different with you.
i aplogize to the op of this thread for changing the subject.
john
Posted by jono_in_adelaide on January 13, 2014, at 21:23:51
In reply to Risperdal/Risperidone Questions, posted by alfbarks007 on January 10, 2014, at 7:37:55
Hi,
I've taken risperidone 1mg at night for anxiety/panic for over 4 years, and havent had any major side effects. I am 6'4 and 105kg, so for an average woman 0.5mg might be a more appropriate dose.
I'd say try it, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain, and if you find it doesnt agree with you for whatever reason, you can always stop
This is the end of the thread.
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