[xRavenx]

Anyone on Zyprexa for Bipolar? My pdoc brought it up, but the idea scares the crap out of me. I read about the weight gain and many side effects. Has it been worth it for you? I would rather try to work on managing my symptoms than take a medication where the side effects interfere with my quality of life.

I am not severely psychotic right now, and I only get psychotic features on occasion, so I found it interesting that she mentioned it. Depression is my main issue right now and has been for the past few months, although I have a history of mixed/mania. If I happened to be actively psychotic, maybe I would be more open to trying it, if all else failed.

I would like to hear others' experiences. Thanks.

[sarahsweets]

Do not be afraid because she suggested an antipsychotic to you. Many people with bp are on them and they arent always for psychotic episodes. In fact I would bet that most people with bipolar are on them for mood stabilization than psychosis. Some AAP's cause weight gain, some less so. I take Geodon which has been weight neutral for me.

[Victoria'smom]

I gained some weight but stabilized. I was on 20 mg. It's best to try even if you're only on it to stabilize while you find acceptable medications.

[bpcyclist]

I have been on and off Zyprexa for fifteen years. It does make me very hungry, I will admit, but it also works well for mania. Not so well for depression, in my experience, but that's just me.

I have done much better on Abilify, overall, in that category of medications. You might look into it as well.

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by sarahsweets

Do not be afraid because she suggested an antipsychotic to you. Many people with bp are on them and they arent always for psychotic episodes. In fact I would bet that most people with bipolar are on them for mood stabilization than psychosis. Some AAP's cause weight gain, some less so. I take Geodon which has been weight neutral for me.

Hi,
I am on 2 antipsychotics already and have been on another one in the past. Zyprexa sounds like one of the worst with the weight gain and some of the side effects compared to the ones I've been on. Maybe I should ask about Geodon though...unless I just bite the bullet and try the Zyprexa.

[still_crazy]

hi. i take abilify, now at 20mgs. zyprexa was OK till I hit 5mgs or so...akathisia, despite ongoing Klonopin treatment already in place. -eek- Abilify has a higher % of akathisia, in big studies, but its never caused problems for me.

some people take metformin by Rx with zyprexa. given that it can cause metabolic complications even without massive weight gain (this, according to one of many former shrinks, lol), I'd say that might be something worth looking into. for whatever reasons, many psychiatrists will have a family or general practitioner do the metformin, if its a viable option for you.

on the plus side, in the big studies on people with Schizophrenia, Zyprexa -did- outperform the other atypicals and perphenazine on some key measures of mood improvement, positive and negative symptoms, etc. on the downside...weight, metabolic stuff, plus everything that comes with every tranquilizer, ever (EPS, TD, akathisia, dysphoria, etc.) remains a possibility with zyprexa, too.

has your doctor talked about Vryalar or Rexulti? They're the "new Abilify-ies," basically...D2 partial agonists. The only "deal" there is that the D2 partial agonism sometimes=less toxic drug, overall, than most other antipsychotics. just a thought.

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by still_crazy

hi. i take abilify, now at 20mgs. zyprexa was OK till I hit 5mgs or so...akathisia, despite ongoing Klonopin treatment already in place. -eek- Abilify has a higher % of akathisia, in big studies, but its never caused problems for me.

some people take metformin by Rx with zyprexa. given that it can cause metabolic complications even without massive weight gain (this, according to one of many former shrinks, lol), I'd say that might be something worth looking into. for whatever reasons, many psychiatrists will have a family or general practitioner do the metformin, if its a viable option for you.

on the plus side, in the big studies on people with Schizophrenia, Zyprexa -did- outperform the other atypicals and perphenazine on some key measures of mood improvement, positive and negative symptoms, etc. on the downside...weight, metabolic stuff, plus everything that comes with every tranquilizer, ever (EPS, TD, akathisia, dysphoria, etc.) remains a possibility with zyprexa, too.

has your doctor talked about Vryalar or Rexulti? They're the "new Abilify-ies," basically...D2 partial agonists. The only "deal" there is that the D2 partial agonism sometimes=less toxic drug, overall, than most other antipsychotics. just a thought.

I did not know that about metformin being used, That;s interesting. For some reason my pdoc said she won't do Rexulti. She doesn't think it will do enough for me, so I guess that's out. I never tried Vrylar. I wonder how she would feel about that.

[still_crazy]

my pdoc said vrylar is stronger anti-manic.

[Nammu]

Have you tried Latuda? It's specifically for bipolar depression

[BipolaRNurse]

I've been on Zyprexa for the past six years, and I have to say that it's the glue that holds me together. I did gain weight on it, and then some more when my dosage was increased. But it's worth it to me. No more severe manic episodes, much less depression...it really stabilized me and keeps me stable. I'll put up with a few side effects if it continues to serve me well.

[~Christina]

I’d try Latuda or Invega as they are more weight friendly.

I gained 20 lbs in 5 weeks on Zyprexa , I was very underweight so my Pdoc was happy, but a no go for me. but I was freezing tubs of cake frosting and eating them and I often looked at my couch wondering if it would taste good.

But I know people who have zero weight gain on Z and it’s a miracle for them.

[bpcyclist]

I used to have daydreams of eating entire cakes while I was exercising on Zyprexas.

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by Nammu

Have you tried Latuda? It's specifically for bipolar depression

Yup. I'm on Latuda now, and my pdoc doesn't really think it's doing enough, but she is willing to have me try it one more month in combination with going to therapy to see if that makes a difference.

Initially, Latuda was helping for about a month. But then things became increasingly stressful. She bumped my Latuda up from 40 mg to 60 mg. At 60, I felt kind of "numb" and had involuntary movements, so we went back down to 40 mg. I don't think 60 mg made such a drastic difference in helping with my mood... maybe just a bit. The side effects went away once I went back down to 40 mg. So it is difficult for me to determine how much it is actually helping me.

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by ~Christina

I’d try Latuda or Invega as they are more weight friendly.

I gained 20 lbs in 5 weeks on Zyprexa , I was very underweight so my Pdoc was happy, but a no go for me. but I was freezing tubs of cake frosting and eating them and I often looked at my couch wondering if it would taste good.

But I know people who have zero weight gain on Z and it’s a miracle for them.

Wow, that's really intense! Interesting how some gain so much weight and others don't gain any. I heard it is really sedating though, so I would imagine it would make someone more lethargic? Unless I am wrong about the sedation?

I have never tried Invega. Maybe I should bring it up to my pdoc.

[~Christina]

Originally Posted by xRavenx

Wow, that's really intense! Interesting how some gain so much weight and others don't gain any. I heard it is really sedating though, so I would imagine it would make someone more lethargic? Unless I am wrong about the sedation?


I have never tried Invega. Maybe I should bring it up to my pdoc.

Virtually nothing causes me sedation. My doctor had me on 450 trazadone, 2mg a night and seroquel 800 or 850XR once and I didnt even have an extended blink.

My Pdoc always says I need a Med used to knock out elephants lol

The kinda best think about Invega I had zero problems with dry mouth. Such a nice surprise since most cause terrible dry mouth.

I actually stated drooling while sleeping I’d lay a towel over my pillow.

[Moose72]

I was on Zyprexa for a long time- about 2 years, I think. I gained 70 pounds! I'm down 25 now but still! I went from athletic to obese. For that reason, I'd never take Zyprexa again. I don't care how well it works.

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by Moose72

I was on Zyprexa for a long time- about 2 years, I think. I gained 70 pounds! I'm down 25 now but still! I went from athletic to obese. For that reason, I'd never take Zyprexa again. I don't care how well it works.

Oh my goodness! This is a major reason why I'd like to stay away from it.

[still_crazy]

if you're Bipolar I leans more towards the Schizoaffective category, I could maybe see taking the risks (?), mainly because the available info on zyprexa -does- indicate -some- benefits in Schizophrenia. at the time of the...I think it was called the CATIE study, maybe...zyprexa came in 2nd to clozapine, for those with a diagnosis of Schizophrenia.

bipolar I, bipolar II? I dunno. The zyprexa+prozac combo pill, symbyax (I think all strengths are generic now, in the US) has been studied for Bipolar I depression and for "treatment-resistant depression" (" " because...I find the term subjective...), with good results. -If- an antidepressant+"atypical" is going to be on the menu, then I would consider symbyax or adding generic zyprexa to generic prozac, simply because the data is there, which is not so much the case for other antidepressant+"atypical" combinations. but...

weight gain, metabolic complications...sedation, a certain 'flatness'...these are all fairly common with zyprexa. to be fair, the 'atypicals,' as a class, mix a reduced risk of -some- of the problems from the old drugs (flatness, apathy, anhedonia, lethargy, tardive dyskinesia, Parkinsonism, acute EPS) with their own fabulous set of "issues," usually involving weight and/or metabolic complications, so...

zyprexa is notorious, as well it should be, but its not the only 'offender' in the 'atypical' category.

my personal major concern is that you're on 2+ neuroleptics, in addition to other treatments. not to keep on nit picking, but what little data is available on 2+ neuroleptics over the long haul is mostly for people with long-term and/or severe Schizophrenia. I'm a PubMed geek, so I've reviewed a couple small meta-analyses, and...most of the data deals with clozapine in the mix, too, so...like so, so many of us, you're entering an evidence-free zone, in terms of risks vs benefits. blah. psychiatry :-(

ok. hope this helps a bit, maybe. :-)

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by still_crazy

if you're Bipolar I leans more towards the Schizoaffective category, I could maybe see taking the risks (?), mainly because the available info on zyprexa -does- indicate -some- benefits in Schizophrenia. at the time of the...I think it was called the CATIE study, maybe...zyprexa came in 2nd to clozapine, for those with a diagnosis of Schizophrenia.

bipolar I, bipolar II? I dunno. The zyprexa+prozac combo pill, symbyax (I think all strengths are generic now, in the US) has been studied for Bipolar I depression and for "treatment-resistant depression" (" " because...I find the term subjective...), with good results. -If- an antidepressant+"atypical" is going to be on the menu, then I would consider symbyax or adding generic zyprexa to generic prozac, simply because the data is there, which is not so much the case for other antidepressant+"atypical" combinations. but...

weight gain, metabolic complications...sedation, a certain 'flatness'...these are all fairly common with zyprexa. to be fair, the 'atypicals,' as a class, mix a reduced risk of -some- of the problems from the old drugs (flatness, apathy, anhedonia, lethargy, tardive dyskinesia, Parkinsonism, acute EPS) with their own fabulous set of "issues," usually involving weight and/or metabolic complications, so...

zyprexa is notorious, as well it should be, but its not the only 'offender' in the 'atypical' category.

my personal major concern is that you're on 2+ neuroleptics, in addition to other treatments. not to keep on nit picking, but what little data is available on 2+ neuroleptics over the long haul is mostly for people with long-term and/or severe Schizophrenia. I'm a PubMed geek, so I've reviewed a couple small meta-analyses, and...most of the data deals with clozapine in the mix, too, so...like so, so many of us, you're entering an evidence-free zone, in terms of risks vs benefits. blah. psychiatry :-(

ok. hope this helps a bit, maybe. :-)

Thanks for all the info. It is helpful. With my BP, I occasionally get psychotic features, but it isn't on a regular basis. I don't think I've had any psychotic symptoms recently, unless I happen to lack insight and my pdoc thinks so? Not sure. I guess I'll have to revisit this when I see her in a few weeks.

[NOS-NOS]

Been on Zyprexa for 7 years. for me it has a multi-faceted effect, it lowers my anxiety, stabilizes my mood, and squashes psychotic symptoms. On the minus side, it makes me very hungry sometimes, lowers energy and motivation. I have to take the good with the bad though, so I made that choice. It is super-effective for me