want to go off Zyprexa

Yes it works but im still gaining. I went off depakote an on to lithim because of weight gain and after two years on zyprexa im even fatter. Im sick of it. Ive tried so many atypicals and they had bad side effects. Never tried halol o the like. Dunno what my new pdoc would have to say.

Just keep in mind in the past when you have cut down or gone off Zyprexa you wind up Inpatient rather quickly . Talk to your Pdoc before doing anything on your own .

I just get so tired of being bipolar. I want off. Id take haldol over zyprexa

Did/Have you talked to your Pdoc about Haldol before ?

My old pdoc yes but not my new one.

What did your old Pdoc say?

She said ive gone through all the atypicals. Never tried any typicals.

Ask your current Pdoc.. . Its "suppost" to be weight neutral. Since it is an "old school" its comes with some possible very harsh side effects .Akathisa for one, Dystonia and other lovely side effects .. Haldol is still used Inpatient at times as a way to bring someone down very fast.

For you I would imagine you would be taking daily since your on Zyprexa daily. Most people have to take indural and cogentin to help with side effects ..

Or you could get very lucky and have no side effects .. Wouldnt know unless you try it.

I used it as a prn a few years ago when I was in a very bad spot .. Having to take 2 meds just to be able to take Haldol was a deal breaker for me.

Thanks Christina. I wont know until i ask my pdoc. I dont see her for a while but i hope i can call and leave a message.

Double post

Im feeling impatient or anxious right now. I have cut way back on ativan these days as in almost never but i wonder if that would help.

I just changed from Abilify to Haldol and I'm doing very well on it. I am experiencing chronic constipation as a side effect, but nothing else, and I don't need to take a second drug. I am on 5 mg. which is a lower dose. Haldol's a potent drug though.

I definitely encourage you to discuss it with your pdoc. I'm not bipolar, but I can definitely sympathize with your Zyprexa weight gain. I had it back in the 90s when I took it, and I just finished a year and a half on Geodon then Abilify. Gained 89 pounds before I said "enough."

There are options. Your pdoc should be able to help you. Just don't change doses on your own. I cut my 20 mg Abilify tablets in half and it took me only four days to go fully psychotic again. Your pdoc will manage the change over properly to whatever drug you both decide to try. Good luck.

Have you ever tried geodon? It does wonders for me and it doesn't make you gain weight. It actually suppresses yr appetite and lots of people lose weight on it...just a thought. I wish you luck and don't try and come off of zyprexa without having a replacement first.

I have tried it yes. It made me feel like id eaten an atomic bomb

Oh **** that's not good. Im.sorry you've gained weight on zyprexa. I tried that med a few years ago and it did wonders for me. The only reason I got off of it was because of the weight gain..I.really hope you find something to help you soon.

Someone took my weight when I first went on zyprexa but now Im at a different office. Before I was bipolar, just for an example, I was 117 pounds. Now I'm 189. You do the math. Depakote is a lot to blame for that, its true. So say Depakote can be blamed for half just to be fair. I really don't know the exact numbers. (Who charts their med-induced weight gain?) The thing is with zyprexa my weight is only going up and up. It has changed my brain chemistry. I want to eat more and the wrong kinds of foods. Its not just will power. Its hard to describe. At the same time, I could eat like this before and not gain. I was into judo though so that was keeping me thin. Now I can't do judo because I'm on blood thinners. So its just me and the treadmill feeling hungry against the zyprexa. And friends just say "Do you want to be in the hospital again?" Well no, not really, but I'd rather be there than in the 1/2-way house place they sent me last time! It sucked big time. And that's where they'd send me- not the hospital. They'd route me through their system. My old pdoc was okay with my going to psych ER. Technically, I still could go there, but that's not what this new place prefers and I could get sent to this other non-hospital place again anyway. "Crisis residential services' I think its called. I hated it there. My friend thinks they did wonders for me but I think I was just in a better mood simply because I was OUT! So yeah. I'm up late. I'll take my 10 mg pill of zyprexa along with all the rest tonight. *sigh*

I know what you mean about the weight thing. I have long had a love/hate relationship with Zyprexa for the very same reason. I'm obese and diabetic to begin with, and then you add "Vitamin Z" to the mix and you have a mess. Or not---I've been on Zyprexa for five months this time and have gained only about 12 lbs, and my blood sugars have been OK. The first time I was on it, I gained 25 lbs in four weeks and my sugars went out of control.

Don't know why I'm tolerating Zyprexa better this time, but I'm glad of it because it's the only drug that really works. The others I'm on are good, but I was still having lots of breakthrough episodes that have largely gone away since I've been back on the Z. The problem with me is that ALL meds work, for awhile.....then I have to increase the dosage or start taking something else, and nothing ever gets subtracted because it takes all of it to keep me steady. But I'll put up with the "extra" extra weight if it means being sane most of the time. BTW I wish I weighed 189 lbs., that would be cause for celebration!

So youre saying be glad zyprexa works and dont worry about getting fatter and fatter? Maybe they could switch me to another med in the hospital just in case? Something impoasible in a crisis residential unit. They know nothing about meds and there are no doctors on staff.

But I'll put up with the "extra" extra weight if it means being sane most of the time. BTW I wish I weighed 189 lbs., that would be cause for

I think being sane is highly underrated by some.

BTW I should weight 210 but instead weigh 245 on Vitamin Z. But now I am doing better than I have in years. I will not mess with success. No way, no how! But this is just me.

Its 1 am and im still up. Usually asleep by 11

I just think there could be other avenues

Still up... guess its just gonna be a late night

Still up.

I agree. But I think success is a very good place to start. Heck, many here do not get this far with their meds. But I will not be in any hurry to get off of Vitamin Z.

BTW why is it called Vitamin Z?

I dont know who started that. Z is for zyprexa though.