Serious warning to people taking anti psychotics

Debate is healthy. It's good to see a post strike this argument.

I think its been a long time coming for some of us---my break was 4 years ago and I was off meds for 9 months but I started getting sick again. I tried nearly everything-----CBT, mindfulness mediation, cognitive remediation, the list goes on. For me when I tell someone to go back on their meds its because I know that meds are like 95% effective for me while CBT and the rest can elicit a 10-15% change. It's not that they don't work, it's that they aren't nearly effective enough. As far as I can tell there is a some hell derived formula where the most effective treatments also have the most potential for harm. Yes there is long term brain damage but you know some of us have chosen to survive today rather than worry about tomorrow because there is no choice if you don't make it past today.

also i never said meditation is stupid. i do all those things i joked about for exactly the reasons ppl suggest them. doesnt reduce symptoms for me

How long have your practiced meditation?

If you have schizophrenia, then yeah you probably should take medication. But for people like me and the OP who don't have a psychotic disorder but are being pushed onto meds it's fundamentally wrong. They're being shovelled down people's throats based on some dudes subjective opinion. Christ, even I thought for a second I needed them because of the psychiatric propaganda being spouted everywhere I go.

They shouldn't be used on the amount of people they're currently being used on.

on and off for a few years, it hasnt stuck as a habit as well as the yoga so i try to blend the two

One thing with meditation... for it to be effective you don't really need to clear your mind. Sometimes counter imagery is enough to fight the bad visions.

I cannot clear my mind. I can do guided imagery to fight off my flashvisions and calm down.

Just something to consider. Many people get stuck on the "my mind needs to be empty and I cannot do that".

I believe medication can help. It shouldn't be the only treatment offered though. Therapy, stress management, social activities, good eating and sleeping along with avoiding drugs and/or alcohol can also help control psychotic illness.

I've personally had good results with Zyprexa and Abilify. I don't take an antipsychotic at the moment but did for months on three separate occasions for psychotic illness. I didn't notice a lobotomy type effect from the drugs, probably because the dose wasn't excessive. They did cause somnolence though, which I found hard to deal with. I dealt with that side effect, because it was better than feeling extremely agitated.

The newer antipsychotics seem to increase one's risk of dying prematurely. The risk is higher if they smoke and are obese. I personally knew three people who died of heart attacks from these drugs.

Whether a person decides to take psychiatric medication or not is a personal decision.

I have schizophrenia, and I've been taking psychiatric medications for many years. Like everything in life there are pros and cons, and for me the pros of taking psychiatric medications far out weigh the cons of not taking psychiatric medications. Every time I have stopped taking my meds I have rapidly spiraled out of control. Again, this is my story.

I used to think that my mind contained angels and demons, and that if I took psychiatric medications I would be banishing both. It has gradually been revealed to me that my angels fled a long time ago.

Like I said, it's a personal decision.

I agree with that last part... I don't agree with off label use. I think it's wrong they are used as an adjunct to antidepressants as often as they are. Sure, if they have tried everything & I mean everything else, then ok but still...

To the first part, no offence but there is a difference between people who don't need meds & people who think they don't.

I mean ****, I've been over-medicated, known the worst side of APs yet I still chose to go back on them short term. Then I chose to come off. As people have said there is an element of choice, but sometimes people don't know when they are ill. That's why psychiatrists often have to push people to go on or stay on meds.

And psychosis is psychosis, it's doesn't matter whether people are diagnosed with schizophrenia or not... it's just a label. They are called anti psychotics not anti-schizophrenics. Yeah?

*edit* - Sorry, not meaning to be too curt there but I just can't stand people who sprout anti-psychiatry nonsense. It can do a lot of harm to impressionable people, who can really need meds to function.

All I have to say is that medication can be good and medication can be bad.

They can help people or do the opposite. Sometimes they don't do anything at all.

Medication is a tool (not a crutch) that can be used to treat mental illness, but it's not the only item in the toolbox. There is no one size fits all treatment option for any mental illness. That would be a perfect world to live in though, wouldn't it be?

Antipsychotics can cause unpleasant side effects, but so can other drugs. People should know the risks before they are given the drug & decide from there if it will be worth it.

How old are you? What you are going through is similar to what I have been forced through. Throw in some direct intervention from the police to enforce the orders given to by the substitute decision maker/psychiatrist. I got off the injection by asking my psychiatrist to put me on pills and then not taking them. It is a horrible experience, complete disillusionment in society. You look everywhere for someone to stand with you, but even your own family doesn't understand. Speak to your parents, don't let them push you around on this issue. I know Invega makes you want to comply, since it is difficult to argue when you are that stupid. Do not accept their reasons, make your own decisions.

You should be afraid of the medication, it is causing you brain damage.
Fear it, the damage it does to your brain builds over time. Higher doses cause even more damage, so as your resistance to the drug build you get dumber and dumber. My personality has been fried completely, nothing I used to enjoy gives me pleasure any more. It is hard to rebuild and then there is the constant threat of being forced back on them again.

Guys guys , its all a bit impractical. If you are psychotic and that psychosis continues indefinitely over the long term , then the only reasonable thing to do is to take an antipsychotic. If you dont then its up to your partner , your family , your doctors , nurses, hospitals, law enforcement , the courts , etc , etc , TO pick up the pieces. Not to talk about what wild binges of psychosis will do to your own health. Its about taking responsibility for yourself and your own recovery. What I think is people should not regress into an infant type role , where other people are deciding whats best for the person

What are you diagnosed with , I missed that?

Schizophrenia or psychotic illness.

thats funny because thats exactly what having an untreated psychotic disorder has done to My personality and My activities and My life. you know what im afraid of? killing myself. my mom losing another child. my dad finding my body. dying in a crusty suburb of oklahoma because i was too chickenshit to get help. or worse, hurting someone else. becoming a violent person. hurting my boyfriend. killing a stranger. im a little more afraid of those things than a few side effects.

So... eh... you're not afraid of psych meds now?

i am deathly afraid of them but im becoming more afraid of the previously listed things.

Those things you listed are all choices you could possibly make. No drug is going to stop you from killing someone. People with psychotic illness aren't more likely to go on a murdering spree than any other section of society. This is all irrational fear pumped by the media, making people think they need drugs or they'll go bats_it insane. Choose not to do those things and you won't! Simples.

If you have a psychotic disorder that you cannot cope with without drug please leave this thread.

This thread is for people who can and have coped with their health without the use of brain shrinking anti psychotic medication.

i am sorry for hurting you, I realize your situation sucks.

It is not mine.

Please leave this thread.

Sorry again

Thanks

Ok but you said you don't have a psychotic disorder. So you are prone to psychosis but you have learned to adapt to symptoms. Right? That's the spin I presume.

So that's your situation and your experience ,don't seek to make your reality a reality for everyone else. There is absolutely mountains of evidence on this subject. The disorder is on a spectrum with varying symptoms, varying prognosis ,etc, etc.

You said "I would love to hear from other people on this subject."

Now you're saying that if people disagree with your opinion they should get out of this thread.

I'm confused.

I don't think psychotic suicide or homicide are choices. I know that when I was psychotic I had no control over what I was doing. APs saved my life and for me they are the lesser of the two evils.

I was un medicated for years, most of my life really. I went along fine with voices and hallucinations here and there. Once I became psychotic the meds were the only choice. I worry about the long term effects but in the short term I know I need them. Perhaps one day I'll be able to come off them but it seems unlikely. I guess for me long term brain shrinkage is better than the alternative.