Please don't use olanzapine

[Super CoolTM]

I recently switched doctors, and my psych was appalled to learn I was using Olanzipine. (Zyprexa). He is a well trusted and good doctor and educated me and my dad about this medication.

It's an antipsychotic drug, and even though I have schizo (it is undiagnosed and untreated due to my past doctors not getting me help. They were not good doctors overall) that was prescribed to me FOR ANXIETY. Are you kidding me?

Why is sucks: It causes major weight gain, increases risk of diabetes and other bad illnesses, and causes long term irreversible physical issues, like motor/movement.

I have gained around 60 pounds since using this meds, which caused so many more issues for me, including worse depression, not being able to think straight (worse than before), not being able to stay awake. Not to mention, It didn't even SOLVE my psychotic symptoms OR anxiety! All it did was solve my insomnia.

So my doc prescribed desyrel, which is an anti-depression med. It doesn't really help depressions but it DOES solve my insomnia. Today is my first day without olanz, and I feel clearer, less tired, and over all happier knowing I can lose my weight.

My point is I hope I can help convince you not to fall for this prescription, or at least seek out another doc before starting this, because it's not good for you at all! If you have psychotic symptoms, try to get a better medicine, because it's just not good for you. I know I'm just some person online, but I want to help others.
The only reason this is prescribed is because it's a commercial medicine, and most doctors don't even read the side effects. It's just not worth the pain! Best of luck to all.

 

[EveHarrington]

I think it's important to note that this was your personal experience with this medication.

I'm on an antipsychotic (for anxiety) that has very much the same side effect profile (yeah, they all pretty much have the possibility of causing these same side effects----it's just what antipsychotics do).....and yet I have experienced none of the dreaded antipsychotic side effects.

It's important to note that we are all different and we all have different reactions to medication.

I understand why you want to warn people, but on the flip side you could be scaring someone away from the one medication that could help them.

 

[whiteraven]

Agree here with @EveHarrington. One thing I've learned over many years of taking multiple meds for a variety of conditions (and working in the nursing field) is that there can be many different reactions and responses to the same drug.

I was prescribed Zyprexa (which is an atypical antipsychotic and often used as an adjunct to antidepressants) in conjunction with an antidepressant and it worked quite well for me. I have very good responses with the atypical antipsychotics (Abilify works the best, but until recently, was too expensive for me), but I had to stop the Zyprexa because, as you mentioned, there is a risk of elevated blood sugar. My doc at the time was very thorough about giving me all med info upfront, so I knew the risk; it did cause an elevation in my glucose level, so we stopped it. I was switched to Abilify, but had side effects (and the glucose level never resolved, either), so had to stop that, too.

 

[Super CoolTM]

I think it's important to note that this was your personal experience with this medication.

I'm...

I agree by all means. But Olanzipine does not help patients overall. I trust my doctor very much, he said it himself that it's just not good, and there are other good anti psychotics. I appreciate the concern!

 

[Sideways]

I trust my doctor very much, he said it himself that it's just not good, and there are other good anti psychotics.

And to put this advice in context, your doctor was giving you that advice as a person with a range of serious mental illnesses, which do not include PTSD.

 

[EveHarrington]

I agree by all means. But Olanzipine does not help patients overall. I trust my doctor very much,...

I don't think it's accurate for you to be making blanket statements like this. How can your doctor possibly know the overall success rate of people who have taken this drug worldwide? He can't.

Just remember, what works for one person may not work for another.

 

[Super CoolTM]

Never mind guys. I just wanted to help but I see I was wrong

 

[Snowflakes]

@Super CoolTM Don’t take it personally. What makes this site great is we learn from others. We take what we can use and discard the rest. You’re fine.

 

[Suzetig]

If I remember rightly you're a junior in high school? It would be pretty dangerous for someone to take your advice about medication over the medical advice from their actual doctor. Maybe you could ask for support here for your experience of side effects etc?

 

[Flip flop]

I recently switched doctors, and my psych was appalled to learn I was using Olanzipine. (Zyprexa)....

Glad to hear you are feeling a bit better! So sorry you had that negative experience with that other med. I hope the new med works out much better for you.

 

[Super CoolTM]

Glad to hear you are feeling a bit better! So sorry you had that negative experience with that other...

Thanks!

 

[Cyberluddite]

Never mind guys. I just wanted to help but I see I was wrong

I've successfully been off of olanzapine (the last anti-psychotic medication) since June 9, 2015; it replaced risperidone in March 1997. It was the last drug (of quite a few) that my adoptive mom (an untreated child SA survivor) put me on to help hide her abusive behaviors... because who'd believe a schizo?

It didn't hide the behavioral symptoms of PTSD, which I'd exhibited since I was a toddler, so the doctors kept believing her story that I had developed "full adult-onset chronic paranoid schizophrenia" at the age of 9 years old. My current MHC was able to properly diagnose the PTSD (child abuse/neglect and human trafficking) in May 2016, while confirming that I did not have schizophrenia or dysregulation.

I had the weight gain too, although having PTSD and an ectomorphic body type allowed my metabolism to maintain some control. Triglycerides and cholesterol were always elevated until I weaned myself off of it, now they're both normal. Motor, speech, thought, all were slowed too. I was constantly thirsty, and craved sugary foods and drinks (it's a miracle I don't have diabetes!)

Your story isn't anecdotal, @Super CoolTM , and it's not uncommon for anti-psychotic medications to be prescribed as an anti-anxiety medication or sedative. That's not to say that every single doctor uses olanzapine (or risperidone, or haldol, or Seroquel) for what's called "off-label" purposes, because the reality is that many doctors do read the literature on the medications and they follow the established protocols for diagnosis and treatment.

In my case, I was raised on Social Security Medicare by a sociopath who was exceptional at lying -- ironic, considering she was also one of the best private investigators for Workman's Comp and disability fraud claims. So my doctors couldn't tell they were being lied to... and it unfortunately sounds like yours was one of the few who are prone to Eli Lilly's reward compensation program.

I'm sorry you're having to deal with this, but it's a good sign that your current doctor is realizing something isn't adding up and double-checking the last guy's work. Behavioral symptoms of PTSD can mimic schizophrenia, but there are three ways to tell the difference.

1. PTSD can happen at any age, but schizophrenia always manifests between the ages of 12 and 25.
2. Isolate the patient in a safe area, away from suspected abusers. If the patient becomes stable, and maintains stability for more than a week without needing medication, it's PTSD; schizophrenics completely destabilize within 5 days.
3. PTSD symptoms usually include a constant but variable ringing in the ears (nerve misfire from trauma, not tinnitus); schizophrenics only develop tinnitus, like regular folks without PTSD.

So I know this is going to be tough for you, and it was for me when I first got confirmation (in May 2013) that the diagnosis was wrong, but work with this new doctor. It's better to ask and be wrong, than to not ask and be wrong.

But it's never right to prescribe medications "off-label" out of convenience, rather than for the purpose of proper treatment. These medications are very strong, and they do change your brain's chemistry (which is why the FDA and APA strongly recommend not prescribing them to anyone under the age of 18 years old) in irreversible ways, and like a loaded gun they should be treated with extreme caution as the last option, never the first.

Do they work? I'll leave that question to someone who does have schizophrenia.

P.S. -- You aren't wrong. You aren't crazy. And you aren't the problem, unless the problem is speaking up when something's wrong. This is what I've learned after 28 years of being told to shut up.