[AspiringAuthor]

I am considering taking Abilify, but I must still have Seroquel for sleep. Has anybody combined them? What were the effects?

[Gabyunbound]

I take Abilify and also Seroquel for sleep (I used to take a much higher dose of Seroquel). [I also take Lamictal and Klonopin]. I've never felt any side effects from the Abilify. I think the only side effects I experience is the dry mouth and day after hangover of the Seroquel.

[bizi]

I take 20mg of abilify in the mornings and 200mg of seroquel at night.(and 25mg during the day), lamictal 200mg twice a day. plus .25mg of klonipin at night.
We are on the same meds.
bizi

[*Laurie*]

Yes, I've combined them. Abilify didn't do anything for me, though, so I stopped taking it after a month.

[still_crazy]

hi. i think its now a fairly common combination. kind of like how back in the day, psychiatrists would put people on haldol plus thorazine, stelazine plus thorazine, etc.

if it works, that's great. there are other drugs for sleep. hydroxyzine comes to mind, for instance. that would do the antihistamine thing w/o the risk of td, weight gain, etc., and w/o the potential weirdness from being on 2 tranquilizers.

[eskielover]

I was on 600 mg of Seroquel after I went through a trauma & the nightmares kept me from sleeping. I had lost an extreme amount of weight also. I was so hung over & useless during that time but I definitely slept. I would liik into other meds if it's just sleep that you are being given it for. That is a heavy med just to take for sleep unless you have a definite reason for not being able to sleep & only need it for a rather short period of time.

I quit taking it when the nightmares ended though I still have had a few now & then but living alone in the middle of the country after leaving my H, I couldnt afford to be knocked out like that or hungover living alone.

Hope you can find a better solution for sleep

[AspiringAuthor]

Originally Posted by still_crazy

hi. i think its now a fairly common combination. kind of like how back in the day, psychiatrists would put people on haldol plus thorazine, stelazine plus thorazine, etc.

if it works, that's great. there are other drugs for sleep. hydroxyzine comes to mind, for instance. that would do the antihistamine thing w/o the risk of td, weight gain, etc., and w/o the potential weirdness from being on 2 tranquilizers.

I take Atarax to prevent akathisia from Seroquel. It probably adds sedation, but the reason I take it is to fight akathisia. I now get an occasional knee jerk (no pun intended - literally). In the past I had torture-like full body akathisia. So I am very thankful to Atarax as it allows me to take Seroquel. I cannot take beta blockers for akathisia since my blood pressure drops too low. Also, beta blockers are not effective. Atarax is 99% effective.

Alone Atarax is not enough for me, though, for sleep. Even with Ambien, it was not enough.

[AspiringAuthor]

Originally Posted by eskielover

Hope you can find a better solution for sleep

Thanks Eskie! I am out of solutions - everything has been tried. But for sleep 100 mg of Seroquel is enough for me - I won't be taking 600 mg. I now take 500 mg as a bipolar med (main), but if Abilify starts playing that role, then all I need for sleep is 100 mg of Seroquel. Possibly even 50 mg. thank you!

[still_crazy]

have you tried gabapentin or lyrica, even a benzodiazepine for the akathisia? remeron is used sometimes, but...its very sedating, and you're already on seroquel.

just a random thought.

[AspiringAuthor]

Originally Posted by still_crazy

have you tried gabapentin or lyrica, even a benzodiazepine for the akathisia? remeron is used sometimes, but...its very sedating, and you're already on seroquel.

just a random thought.

I have not tried benzos for akathisia, but I in general do not react to benzos (remeron is one, right?). For anxiety, they do not work, and for sleep, they work for just a short time.

What would be the benefit of using gabapentin in place of atarax for akathisia?

[still_crazy]

hi. gabapentin affects GABA, sorta like the poor man's valium. long term usage at higher doses sometimes requires a slow(ish) taper.

atarax is one brand name for hydroxyzine, which is an old school antihistamine that also acts as a tranquilizer, then a sedative at higher doses.

its your life, your body, but...seroquel is also a -very- sedating antihistamine, in addition to its neuroleptic effects, which generally require (I think...) a couple 100mgs to take effect.

i was just thinking that instead of loading up on sedating antihistamines, maybe the doctor could try gabapentin or another GABA drug. its basically...still a sedative, obviously, but it acts on a different part of the brain. also...personally...i despise hydroxyzine. gabapentin isn't loads of fun or whatever, but i do take some now and then to lull me to sleep.

remeron is an antidepressant. its also--wait for it, wait for it--a densely sedating antihistamine, at low to moderate doses. for whatever reason(s), remeron was/is more popular in Europe than in the US, and European shrinks tend to use higher doses than US doctors.

remeron has been used to soothe people w/ neuroleptic induced akathisia. as an antidepressant, its used more for agitated depressive states, and also to "boost" underperforming antidepressants (the combination of Effexor and Remeron, for instance, is nicknamed "California Rocket Fuel," and it seems effective in some people w/ "treatment-resistant depression").

i was just thinking out loud. ive personally found that gabapentin, benzodiazepines, and now "mood stabilizers" (read: anti-eplileptic drugs), taken w/ a tranquilizer help me "get more mileage" out of the tranquilizer. I've even be able to reduce my dosage of Abilify a bit.

my other concern ((I'm not writing this to scare you, btw)) would be developing chronic or tardive akathisia. i think its more common w/ the older drugs, especially at the old school, high doses that were so popular for a long time, but...its a risk w/ any tranquilizer, and long-term akathisia is not very well-studied, and there aren't a whole lot of good options.

again, im -not- trying to scare you. i take an 'atypical,' these are things i think about now and then.

hope this helps a bit.

[WildcatVet]

Originally Posted by AspiringAuthor

I have not tried benzos for akathisia, but I in general do not react to benzos (remeron is one, right?). For anxiety, they do not work, and for sleep, they work for just a short time.

What would be the benefit of using gabapentin in place of atarax for akathisia?

Remeron is an atypical antidepressant...very sedating and most often prescribed as a sleep med.

[AspiringAuthor]

Originally Posted by still_crazy

my other concern ((I'm not writing this to scare you, btw)) would be developing chronic or tardive akathisia. i think its more common w/ the older drugs, especially at the old school, high doses that were so popular for a long time, but...its a risk w/ any tranquilizer, and long-term akathisia is not very well-studied, and there aren't a whole lot of good options.

again, im -not- trying to scare you. i take an 'atypical,' these are things i think about now and then.

hope this helps a bit.

Thank you very much. I am morbidly afraid of tardive side effects from the EPS. I am prone to Parkinsonism. I had an acute dyskinesia episode from combining Geodon with cannabis - I stopped using Geodon out of fright. Tongue stuck out involuntarily - went to the bathroom to look in the mirror. A very scary experience.
But nothing helps me sleep better than Seroquel, presently.

I just ran out of Atarax and tomorrow is Sunday. I get Atarax from escripts - would not be able to refill it.

Regrettably, Gabapentin did not counteract akathisia from Seroquel. When I started taking Seroquel, I was on 900 mg Gabapentin at bedtime. I had knee jerks.

But now that you have mentioned it...

Years ago, when I took Seroquel without anything, I had full body akathisia that felt like torture.

On 900 Gabapentin, I had knee jerks. Not a full body experience and not torture-like. Sure, I could not fall back asleep or could not fall asleep in the first place (usually, I'd wake up with knee jerks after a couple hours of sleeping), but it was NOT TORTURE-like. So Gabapentin must have been doing something!

I wonder if I take 1200 mg or 1500 mg - would I be able to sleep through the night? Gabapentin can be given at much higher doses and does not interact with other meds, so it is probably safe - I will email the dr though. Thanks!