Hello PCers,

Here is my review and experience with Latuda.

Overall: 3.5 out of 4 stars

Pros: Helped me w BP Depression and Brain Fog; Low Long Term Side Effects

Cons: Cost; Helluva Titration/Initial Onset Side Effects; Limited Pharmacy Availability

Background: I am Bipolar 2 with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. I lean to the more often depressed than hypomanic side of our world. Other AAPs that I have tried: Abilify, Risperdol, Seroquel. After about a year on Abilify 10mg w Prozac and Lamictal, I was still suffering some depression and brain fog, finding concentration difficult and struggling with focus at work. I have a very detailed technical type job.

Last Spring (April, 2014)I checked with my pdoc about Latuda. His initial response was "It's worth trying" as he has had success with it in other patients. His initial concern was cost, but I was already coming out of pocket some for the Abilify, which had just had a price increase, so I was not worried too much about it. He started me off on 20mg w some samples and after a week an increase to 40mg while tapering the Abilify. At first I did not start the Lautda as directed. I wanted to see what my brain would be like without the Abilify. I emailed him about this strategy, and he was very concerned and advised me to start the Latuda immediately as he did not want me off of AAPs for any period of time. Rarely do I deviate from full compliance, but I was really tired of the Brain Fog. He set me straight.

It was the middle of my annual bout with seasonal allergies to pollen, which is very strong in the south for a few weeks. Benadryl is the most effective OTC for it, sometimes Zyrtec - less drowsiness but not as effective. So I was a bit sleepy from the OCT allergy meds, during the start of Latuda.

The Latuda was the hardest AAP to titrate and start of any med I've ever tried. I had crazy restless legs at night and akathisia/pacing in the daytime. It felt like I needed to shiver or was on the edge of a shiver, but unable to quite shake it out for relief. I was very close to throwing in the towel after a couple of weeks of this, but I hung in there on my pdoc's advice that it would get better. I found that blood sugar and protein boosting was somewhat effective for relief. I would go to the fridge at midnight and scarf some turkey and chocolate milk. After about 5 weeks of this, it settled in and these effects went away.

Since starting Lautda, my brain fog and depression have lifted and my thoughts are as clear as they have ever been since my last hospitalization (Sept 2012) and I am balanced and focused better than ever. I know have very minimal side effects. I take the 40mg at night about an hour before bedtime after a meal, and I don't really notice any effect at administration. Just overall much relief from intrusive negative thoughts like other AAPs without too much clouding. Abilify and Risperdol were not terrible, but Latuda has been the ticket for me.

As far as cost goes, this is the real adventure. My insurance, a national strong PPO plan, has a 40% copay for non-preferred Rx. After shopping around for the lowest price - Wal-Mart was the winner at about $29 a pill. This puts my out of pocket for a month of 40mgs at around $280. I also found a $75 discount coupon on the Latuda website that stacked with your insurance. Taking me to $211 for a month. Still pretty pricey. I did some more research, and the 80mg tabs are only $1 more each - crazy. Anyway, I explained all this to my pdoc, who is a saint, and he agreed to write me 80mg w a daily 1/2 to 1 instruction. This brings my cost down to $211 for a 60 day supply instead of a 30 day supply. Which is doable.

I have shopped around online, and I could order from Canada for about $6 a pill, but they do not take insurance. I am also not so keen on screwing around with med quality, so I avoid it. I also have to order a few days ahead from Wal-Mart as they don't regularly stock Latuda 80mgs, since I suspect they don't want to have $900 bottles of meds just laying around in inventory. One time I was close to running out that they called around and found some on hand at another location about 20 minutes away. In general, I was worried about bad service from Wal-Mart pharmacy, but one of their techs is super super nice to me.

Ok PCers, this is my first review. I'll do more later. Thanks and PM/Reply if you need more information about my experience with Latuda. More than giving advice, I like to share experiences. If you choose to try Latuda, your results will vary. Thanks,

moogs