[Greenfish77]

Been on 2mg of Risperdal daily for 14 days now. Am experiencing weight gain and still feel moderately depressed. I can't really feel emotions or think clearly. Is this in fact moderate depression? I've heard that Risperdal can cause you to feel like a zombie. Do I just need to wait longer? Comments from people who have been on this med are much appreciated.

[still_crazy]

i was prescribed 4mgs/day, along with depakote. not good. i do better on abilify.

[99fairies]

I was on it for about a year. It totally numbed me and I felt like a zombie. I also had a raging appetite and gained 20 pounds on it. I also had high prolactin levels on it. I was glad to get off that drug.

I was on 8mg for several weeks along with Latuda. I swelled and gained weight rapidly on it. So much bloating!!! I had minimal sedation if any at all....I was extremely manic though and very delusional so I guess that takes some time to come down from. I developed a horrible rash from head to toe along with vomiting so I stopped taking it and won't take it again. My friend took a small dose of 1/2 a milligrams and was so sedated she was drooling and couldn't speak. It's very interesting how differently we all react to meds.

[Greenfish77]

Abilify worked perfectly for me. The only problem was that I got life threatening akisesia. It is very interesting how we react so differently.

[still_crazy]

hi. im sorry about that. Abilify...and I would think the other D2 partial agonists, too...are great for some people, but then...well, for a lot of people, they've been a real let down.

there are other tranquilizers, both old ("conventional") and new(er) ("atypical"). 2mgs/risperidone isn't a whole lot, but...I also found the stuff mind-numbing. A bigger concern for me was prolactin elevation...and all the metabolic stuff.

some of the older tranquilizers help, as long as the dose is kept low(ish). perphenazine is often well-tolerated, as is loxapine. I had an acquaintance who did surprisingly well on Navane, but..honestly, I don't know if that stuff is even still on the market.

zyprexa is somewhat more effective in Schizophrenia than risperidone, in big studies. that comes at a big price, in terms of metabolic problems. some doctors prescribe metformin, a drug used for diabetes type II, w/ zyprexa (and sometimes other tranquilizers, too) to reduce weight gain and reduce the other risks associated with treatment. i just thought id mention that because zyprexa doesn't cause eps or td as often as risperidone, and a lot of people report benefits in mood, anxiety, overall mental state.

amoxapine is a tca antidepressant that does double duty as a tranquilizer. its chemically related to loxapine. i saw a small study, done in mexico back when all the 'atypicals' were too expensive for many nations, that compared amoxapine (high dose) to standard dose risperidone, in schizophrenia. the amoxapine was just as well-tolerated, with more pronounced benefits in mood, anxiety, and I think sleep, too.

if you have good insurance, there's 2 new D2 partial agonists out there that may or may not be helpful for you. wish i could provide more helpful info., but...these drugs are very new. some people who didn't do so well on abilify seem to do well on the newer D2 partial agonists, for some reason.

hope this helps.