[Cdnstargazer]

So my dr thinks I'm still a bit manic. He increased my seroquel by adding some in during the day and more at night. Now I'm left feeling a bit dopey at work.

Is there any way to combat this sleepy feeling asides from not taking it? I want to try to follow my drs guidelines and see if the seroquel helps with my impulsivity and rage attacks.

Tips?

[xRavenx]

I can relate. I work and take Seroquel, and this is a med that can make you feel kind of dopey and sedated. My Seroquel gets adjusted based on how manic I am. It can really help with the impulsivity, mania, etc. My pdoc first suggested taking some during day and more at night. Some people can handle that, but personally, I can't...especially since I drive, and it makes me dizzy. My pdoc switched it to night time only.

Taking a high dose all at once before bed has been helpful.....although it's still quite sedating. During the day, I will take my anti-anxiety meds to calm some of the secondary symptoms that go along with mania (the anger, irritability, etc). That plan personally has helped me, but I highly recommend that you talk to your pdoc and ask him if maybe adjusting the time of day you take your Seroquel would make a difference, since it is affecting you at work.

[bioChE]

In my experience there's no way to counteract the sedation that happens with Seroquel. Even taking a stimulant just takes the edge of sleepiness off. Best of luck in your search for the right combo.

[Gabyunbound]

I don't know if this is helpful, but when I was taking Seroquel in the morning (and a lot of it), I drank a lot of coffee and that helped a bit. If you suffer from anxiety, though, I wouldn't recommend too much coffee as it can make that worse (or at least it does with me). Best of luck with this. I know how challenging it is to take Seroquel during the day. Great to stave on mania, but SO sedating...

[Iman]

Originally Posted by Cdnstargazer

So my dr thinks I'm still a bit manic. He increased my seroquel by adding some in during the day and more at night. Now I'm left feeling a bit dopey at work.

Is there any way to combat this sleepy feeling asides from not taking it? I want to try to follow my drs guidelines and see if the seroquel helps with my impulsivity and rage attacks.

Tips?

I don't know anybody that can say the dopey feeling goes away entirely. The higher the dose sometimes it helps.

[19J82]

I'm one of the odd ones that didn't really get sleepy on Seroquel. It punished me for that by giving me a couple of blood clots in my leg. It was a shame as I found it fairly effective.
As I understand it the lower doses make you feel more dopey for some reason.

[bioChE]

Yes, Seroquel dosing is weird. The lower doses are more sedating than the higher doses. I found I started to perk up at 300mg+. Still felt dopey, though.

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by Iman

I don't know anybody that can say the dopey feeling goes away entirely. The higher the dose sometimes it helps.

Oddly for me, high dosing doesn't feel any less sedating than the low dosing. I wish that were the case for me!

[Cdnstargazer]

Thanks for all your replies. I find myself drinking more caffeine to combat the dopey feeling and sluggish thinking. I'm glad I don't feel as angry though. That's a relief all on its own. Bipolar rage is awful.