[pjwilly]

Looking for positive info here. For those of you that have taken or are currently taking Seroquel and have been helped by it ... how much do you take and what symptoms has it helped?

[pjwilly]

I should have shared that for me it has helped mania and psychosis quite well. Hoping it can also help anxiety and ptsd. My usual does is 300 or 450, but may be increasing to 600.

I have taken regular instant release Seroquel in the past of doses ranging from 50 mg to 800 mg. It was helpful at times. I sort of forget exactly my experience with that or why I was taken off of it. That was about 10, 11, or 12 years ago. However, I have taken the extended release Seroquel XR now for about 8 years straight, which I started at maybe 150 mg and have long since taken doses between 350 to 600 mg. I'm currently on 600 mg of Seroquel XR and have been since the end of May and was at other times, too. Sometimes my dose is decreased, and then increased depending on my mood and energy situation.

I think that Seroquel XR has been more weight friendly than I remember the regular Seroquel being. Seroquel in general (especially the extended release) has not been as weight unfriendly as some other meds for me. In fact, for me, doses of 350 mg or lower of the XR were mostly weight neutral. I did gain some weight as my doses went up, but some of it could be lifestyle. I've been my current weight 17 years ago before bipolar meds.

Seroquel XR is very helpful for almost all aspects of my illness (mania, depression, mixed episodes, anxiety, sleep), though it can be a bit more sedating than I'd like at times, though the major sedation did ease over time. Patience may be required. The time of day I take it and when I go to sleep can help reduce or eliminate "Seroquel hangover" which many people can experience. I rarely have that anymore unless I forget to take it at my usual time or stay up too late. I now usually get 8 hours of sleep and wake up normally.

Seroquel XR is a significant medication in my mix. In fact, of my meds, it is the only one manipulated when I have breakthrough episodes. I have managed to avoid hospitalization all of the years I have been on my current mix.

So far in my history of taking Seroquel (of any kind), it has never given me any EPS (akathisia, dystonia, TD), nor has it given me hyperprolactinemia. I can't say that about any other antipsychotic I've taken, though akathisia on Geodon didn't start until 5 years in, and I only took perphanazine (Trilafon) for a month, so that didn't yet cause any, though some did almost immediately.

[wildflowerchild25]

I took Seroquel XR for a short time a few years ago and it pulled me out of a deep dark depression. It was like magic. I wish I could have stayed on it but it made me too tired. I didn’t fully wake up in the mornings until noon, after half my work day was over. I didn’t know at the time that regular release seroquel doesn’t have as much of a hangover in the morning or I would have asked to switch. I will definitely consider regular release seroquel if I ever get into a severe depression again and nothing else works.

[Katme]

I used to take 100mg instant before sleep. And only that. While ip.
After dismissal thankfully my pdoc realised that was NOT helping as it only combated the manias.
Now I take 25mg when Im feeling anxious and sleepless like i might be at the start of a hypo or mania. And it helps sometimes, though sometimes i need 50mg. But I could never take it alone without either an antidepressant or mood stabiliser

[Polibeth]

I take 600 mg of Seroquel. It's great except it makes me hungry! It's helped both depression and manic symptoms (it especially helps regulate my sleep).

[*Laurie*]

Do you want only positive experiences? (I'm not being snarky, my question is serious.)

[Guiness187055]

It might make you eat your couch.

[Blueberrybook]

I take regular Seroquel, 400 mg at night though I have 25 mg regular Seroquel to help in long panic attack situations. The low dose does help with panic though I have to take it only at home or when I don't have to drive. Sometimes it makes me sleepy and sometimes not.

I have had a positive experience with regular Seroquel but a negative experience with the extended release version. The XR Seroquel made me so tired, all I wanted to do was sleep all day, every day.

I take 400 mg of the regualar release Seroquel at night. It has helped curb mania for me. And it definitely knocks me out for sleep at night. Seroquel is the best med I've had for sleep that feels natural falling asleep. For me, it has not effected my weight at all. But I do exercise a lot and regularly. Though there were periods of time when I was on the higher dose and didn't exercise regularly such as most of last December, and when I did exercise then, it tended to be walking. December is just very busy for me. I did exercise in January, maybe I lost a couple pounds, I wasn't keeping track. I was just trying to tone my legs and core. Then, I definitely couldn't exercise while I was in the hospital (ulcer surgery) or 6 weeks during recovery. I lost weight, but that is normal with the surgery I had. I have kept losing weight on it, but at some point, I went from normal exercise to manic exercise, or maybe just the eating disorder.

I do know my old pdoc had me on 300 mg first until December. I can't remember how long I took it. Again, it was weight neutral, and if I was on that dosage for several months, it didn't affect my weight and did curb mania until I got manic again and the dosage was upped to 400 mg. For me, it is a lifesaver, especially for my problems with falling asleep.

Originally Posted by *Laurie*

Do you want only positive experiences? (I'm not being snarky, my question is serious.)

Yeah. I had the worst experience of my life on Seroquel (literally, no exaggeration).

But I don't want to discourage anyone from using the med. Everyone is different and Seroquel may be very helpful to some.

I'm just an example of someone who got the worst possible mental side effects.

[pjwilly]

Originally Posted by *Laurie*

Do you want only positive experiences? (I'm not being snarky, my question is serious.)

That was my hope ... stay on the positive benefits of Seroquel.

[hopeless2015]

Its been a godsend for me