Abilify - A Tranquilizer For Use With PTSD

[Pitt Bull]

I have been on Abilify now for 4 - 5 months and have the stomach pains and some fidgityness. They are looking at increasing the dosage to take away the nightmares and psychotic episodes. I suffer from Complex PTSD from being sexually abused as a youth. I have had psychotic events of carrying a knife around the house and also been disassociative and found myself walking outside in the middle of the night with out realizing where I was. Until recently these things have ceased and I have thought the abilify has helped. Now I am under a lot of stress at work and I have started having flashbacks, nightmares, and woke up in the house holding a knife last night. I was on Seroquel and that did not seem to help this is the first drug that has helped but I did not know all the side effects that this could cause. Thank you to eveyone for their imput and I will talk to my therapist today about what are my options now.

 

[moki]

I'm on Lamictal, which was used to stabilize my extreme anger I was feeling for my husband, which was also accompanied by terrible bouts of very frequent depression (like only a few days of feeling kinda ok, then back to the depression and anger). So far, with therapy and stuff like this forum and researching everything I can find out about PTSD, I haven't been very depressed for at least a month. I do take xanax a couple times a day - but am really resisting ssri's since in the past they made me gain 80 lbs.

Being PTSD however, has caused major weight loss since I can't seem to eat much at all. Food makes me nauseous most of the time and I view it as medicine now and choke it down. Nothing sounds good to eat unless I get really really hungry, then it's usually something unhealthy anyway.

I've lost 30 lbs, but would never, never want to do it this way if I had a choice. It has been a harsh, exhausting way to live in addition to everything else.

 

[hodge]

I thought it might be useful to bring this thread back up since some may find themselves considering these meds. I found this thread because my med nurse put me on Abilify nearly two weeks ago. I'm also on Lamictal (in addition to Remeron and Prozac daily, and clonazepam as needed). It's a lot of medication, but I feel I'm functioning better than I was before them. Well, maybe I'm not functioning a lot better, but I'm more accepting of my limitations, don't beat myself up as much, and am finding it easier to learn to better control my rages.

In spite of my hard work on self-talk, getting myself motivated, and pushing myself (and working on learning when to push myself and when not to do that too much) - the Remeron and Prozac weren't doing much more than helping me get to sleep at night. I remained very depressed and frustrated even though I worked so hard at getting better and resolving my traumas.

He then added Lamictal, which he described as an anti-convulsive that has been shown to be helpful in treating depression and mood stabilization - that's why it's sometimes prescribed for people with PTSD. My husband and I noticed an almost immediate improvement in my mood and I haven't noticed any side effects.

After a couple months, though, the improvement from the Lamictal lessened considerably and he started wanting to put me on Abilify. My depression symptoms and rages began taking over my life again even though I was working on my issues in therapy. He described Abilify, as others have noted, as an anti-psychotic that also had been shown to help depression, hence why it's prescribed for PTSD. So I finally decided to give it a go. My primary reservation about Abilify is that it can increase your risk for diabetes, which I've been genetically at risk for all my life. So I have to get a prescription for test strips (which are wicked expensive) to keep better tabs on my blood sugar. After a lifetime of being borderline, I can usually tell when it's low or high and have kept it under pretty good control, but I don't want to take the chance of not being more aware. So far the only side effect I've noticed from the Abilify is a much decreased tolerance for heat/intense sunlight. I don't know if I'll stay on it. I'll probably give it another two weeks or so while keeping close, objective tabs on my blood sugar, then do another cost/benefit analysis with my nurse.

 

[hodge]

Hmm, the more I think about this, the more I think I'm going to call my med nurse on Monday and tell him I want off the Abilify. It will have been about three weeks, I don't see much improvement, and I am worried about the diabetes. Now I'm thinking it was pretty stupid to give it a go, even though he thought it was a good idea and I've usually been willing to try almost anything.

 

[nie]

I went off of Seroquel, and on Abilify. It is part of a plan for me to get off of Effexor as well, and then eventually off of all medication. I have had no noticeable side effects. I guess perhaps I have gotten too comfortable with my psychiatrist and trust her too much. I didn't know it was such a bad drug.

 

[hodge]

Nie, I didn't mean to imply that it's a bad drug. Every body is different. If you have no predisposition to diabetes, then there's probably not as much reason to watch out for that. Plus not everyone gets the side effects from any drug for that matter. Another thing on the patient info sheet about Abilify is that it could impair the body's ability to sweat, hence the sensitivity to heat. I got that side effect to some extent, but it wasn't extreme heat stroke or anything.

Anyway, I hope it goes well for you.

 

[catjudo]

I personally can't take Abilify even at the smallest dose because I get uncontrollable tremors.

My husband started taking it almost a year ago. He does have problems with his blood sugar and the Abilify definitely made that considerably worse. However, the benefits from the Abilify were so great (where other medications did not seem to help at all) that he decided to stay on the Abilify and just treat his blood sugar more aggressively.

As has been said before, everyone is different and weighing the pros and cons of any medication is a very personal decision.

 

[nie]

I didn't mean to say people are saying things they aren't, I just wasn't aware that it is considered a tranquilizer.

 

[hodge]

I didn't realize it was a tranquilizer either, Nie. But on the bottle, it does say it may cause drowsiness, so I guess that goes along with a tranquilizing drug. I take it in the morning and it doesn't make me drowsy, so I'm glad for that.

 

[blue_eyed_angel]

My boyfriend is currently on Abilify. I am not quite sure how long he has been on it though. But he does complain somedays of getting cramps in his stomach. I didn't realize that it was a tranquilizer though. I wonder if this med could be the cause of this.... :rolleyes:

 

[Lionheart]

Abilify is a neuroleptic drug of the atypical psychotic medications. It is used to treaty schizophrenia, Bi-polar disorder, Major Depressive disorder and is sometimes used in conjunction with other medications to treat PTSD. Abilify can improve concentration, helping you to think more clearly and positively about yourself, feel less nervous, and take a more active part in everyday life. Abilify can treat severe mood swings and prevent or decrease how often mood swings occur. It has also been used to treat agitation and aggression when standard treatments have not been successful.

Although there can be some serious side effects with high-dosages over a long period of time, it is still unlikely that these effects will occur. I am being treated for the aggression and agitation associated with PTSD and my dosage is a low 5 mg. The more common side effects with this dosage are; dizziness, nausea, excessive saliva, and drowsiness that usually go away after a couple of weeks. This medication is a fast-acting drug and I have experienced no unwanted side-effects at all.

Disclaimer: I am a PTSD patient and I am not a licensed psychiatrist, so I highly suggest that you discuss any medication you are taking, or are considering, with a person who is.

 

[Deleted member 1860]

Why take an anti-psychotic for PTSD?

I'm currently taking Geodon, a newer atypical anti-psychotic. One study showed that up to 90% of PTSD study participants were helped by Geodon.

After trying dozens of medications, I was desperate to try anything. Within ONE dose, the medication worked for me. It removed those nasty 'fight or flight' chemicals from my bloodstream. Now I'm a much happier camper =)