Both akathisia and Tardive Dyskinesia are horrible EPSs, but I would likely rather suffer from akathisia than TD. Though perhaps some people's TD isn't as bad as others', I have seen a woman with severe TD and it is tragic, in my opinion. As rough as akathisia is, it isn't "disfiguring" to the same degree, plus I think akathisia is surely something that can be alleviated easier.

I have had akathisia on Zyprexa, Abilify and Geodon. I developed it right away from the first two. It only started about 5 years into taking Geodon. I happened to take Propranolol (a med they use sometimes for akathisia), but it helped little. I tried Cogentin, but had such severe constipation from it that it was no longer an option. I ended up having to take a benzo for it, which is less than ideal. It helped, but when the benzo wore off I'd have to take more. There was always at least an hour to three when I suffered again.

Eventually my psychiatrist did take me off Geodon, but it was a hard and long process. Geodon has terrible withdrawals for some people when taken for many years. I also had to have another antipsychotic (Seroquel XR) doubled in dose because of mood instability. But I'm happy. I like Seroquel XR, and it gives me minimal side effects, even at 600 mg.