seroquel side effects - Mental Health Message Board

valerielynn · 03-31-2003, 05:33 PM

i am on a very high dose of seroquel and i don't want to be any more. i am on 600 - 900 milligrams per evening to help sleep. i have been on this dose for about 6 months. it definitely helps me sleep, more like state of 'non'conscious. My digestion has been all screwed up. i have gained weight. i also act physically violent in my sleep -punching and kicking. i want something else to help me sleep. i have tried going off the seroquel 'cold turkey' but it just doesn't seem to work. i end up being wide awake and give up and take the 900 mgs. i think it helps me to be in a calmer mood during the day as well -not so irritated and edgy. i would rather take something in a whole different class of drug but nothing in another class that would be effective is not addictive. And it seems that my providers do not want me on 'something that is habit-forming'. i understand the basic principle that doctors do not want people to turn into drug addicts because of treatment of a mental illness. But sometimes there should be more exceptions. For example, if my friend sometimes suffers from paralyzing anxiety does that mean she should not be able to take .5 mg of xanax to help her. is that really such a bad thing? so i'm wondering 1. if anyone out there is or has been on such a high dose of seroquel? and 2. is there a better alternative?
i also forgot to mention that i used to be on zyprexa which worked fine. but after a while i had strange hormonal problems. there was a high amount of prolactin in my system. when my shrink heard this he thought that that was a side effect of the zyprexa. he then switched me to the seroquel claiming that that was better. of course, later i have learned that seroquel has the same side effects. then when my shrink learned that i had a tumor in my petuitary gland he said it had nothing to do with my medicine afterall.
sorry this is so longwinded. i guess i have a lot on my mind today.

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val

john2john · 04-12-2003, 09:01 PM

hi, do you sleep a long periods of time when on the drug? do you get weak and lose ballance? do you have a big or small appetite? just carious and i would like to know... thanks...

valerielynn · 04-13-2003, 08:07 AM

i go into a deep sleep when on the drug but i do not sleep for abnormally long periods of time, it seems that i have a larger appetite on the drug, but since i wrote that statement i have decreased to 300mg/ night on my own, it also turns out that i am pregnant, my shrink says that the 600-900mg dose is fine during pregnancy but i have my doubts, i am also on 300mg/ wellbutrin per day and 80/mg prozac per day; i have cut those doses in half as well; so now i take 40mg prozac and 150mg wellbutrin in the morning and i take 300mg seroquel to help me sleep, i still have trouble sleeping and often take benadryl or unisom to add to the effectiveness, my diagnosis is bi-polar and ocd, any information or thoughts that you may have is greatly appreciated, p.s. it has been approved by my medical providers that these meds are OK during pregnancy, well i should explain: my midwife told me that wellbutrin is in class b (so that's ok) but the seroquel and prozac are in class c and that maybe i should seek alternatives for those two, since then, i contacted my shrink and he assured me that everything i am on is ok to be on while preganant -i am pretty confused and worried

rsg · 05-12-2003, 05:06 PM

100mg makes me sleep like the dead, go to their site and it should have the prescribing info about being pregnant. good luck with your new little one

pillpopper · 05-14-2003, 11:49 AM

i didn t think i sleep from seroquel but now, when i m thinking about it, i stopped taking it, i took 400mg a night, i didn't feel well after i stopped my eyes were troubled misty view now i begun taking them again last week and indeed i slept very well and long (about 10-11 hours)