[stickdude]

don't read if you're very anxious with meds:

my friend was talking to me about her one friend that was taking zoloft for 2 years, then one day, the person just snapped and went violent. he was then taken to a hospital and i think she said he became schizophrenic. i asked her how this could happen and she said it was an adverse reaction.

now my anxiety has been really bad the past month and i don't know anything else to do. i feel like reality is slipping and i have very little time to do anything about it. i've been waiting it out for 5+ months and my ocd thinking and worrying is still killing me, and so i want this to go away. i have remeron (anti-depressant) and risperdal (anti-psychotic). i'm thinking of trying the remeron for a month, and if i see no improvement, start taking risperdal.

my question is, are adverse reactions like that above normal? and how long does it take for medicine to expire? my risperdal is from august 26, 04.

 

[Guest]

I don't know how normal the extreme adverse reactions are, such as that person going psychotic. I actually think those are pretty rare. You know what they say though, if it could happen to them then it could happen to you. I think just normal adverse reactions such as unwanted side effects are fairly normal on these pills. I think alot of people who encounter these adverse reactions have no idea that they are caused by the pills. Now that is scary! I know that when I took paxil I had horrible unwanted side effects for 9 months and had no idea it was the pills.

The decision is up to you regarding the pills. At least you know that adverse reactions are possible and you'll know if one occurs. When I say you'll know, trust me, you will. If that happens then the solution is simple, stop taking the pills. The chances of you going psychotic on the pills is very unlikely IMO. That is unless you take a benzo and become addicted. You'll definetly be psychotic after that.

 

[stickdude]

yeah i'm trying to stay away from the benzos after reading about the horrors from you guys.

 

[Guest]

Benzos helped me out a lot. I just refused to take them every day because even after just one day of use, you get some withdrawel effects.

 

[gimpy34]

if the guy became schizophrenic, he was genetically predisposed to schizophrenia. Some medications can cause hallucinations and maybe even trigger latent schizophrenia. But, if the guy had been on Zoloft for two years without any symptoms of schizohrenia present, I highly doubt it was the Zoloft. It was just a matter of time before the shizophrenia surfaced. People with mental illness are more inclined to other mental illnesses than people without psychiatric problems.

I wouldn't let that scare you.

 

[dakotajo]

Drug can not only induce, they can also CAUSE long lasting mental disturbances. The purpose of psychiatric drugs is to change the way the brain works and HOPEFULLy get postive results. It doesnt always work that way and when you come off the brain has to change back and there is no set time line.

I know a man personally who was initially put on Klonopin(for a sports inury). Due to addiction and intolerable withdrawal symptoms he ended up on it for over 5 years. When he finally withdraw he had severe anxiety,insomnia and spent the next four years chronically depersonalized. Every doctor told him he must have had an anxiety disorder that surfaced after his withdrawal. He had the sense to not listen to the quacks and get involved with benzo support groups who told him the withdrawal syndrome from benzos can last years in some people. After 4 years of hell he was busy doing something late one evening and the dp just left and hes been fully recovered ever since. hes felt normal now for over 3 years. He dedicates alot of time to his legal fight against his doctor who got him addicted to klonopin and ruined 9 years of his life.

 

[Guest]

My very well-educated guess is this: the person is not schizophrenic, but bi-polar. In very rare cases, a person with a moderate case of bi-polar disorder MIGHT upon their first experience with an ssri invoke a manic state - this can LOOK like psychosis, and it's one of the real dangers in giving an ssri to someone unless the psychiatrist really has a good "handle" on the person's psyche before prescribing.

There is NO drug, legal or not, that can CAUSE schizophrenia. Some drugs can induce an amphetamine psychosis, but that is totally temporary and only a small handful of such drugs can do it anyway.

Anything can bring out schizophrenic traits if they're there - a glass of wine or a glass of orange juice. NO chemical causes schizophrenia.

You are thinking about madness WAY too much and if you keep it up, you still won't ever drive yourself insane but you sure will drive your anxiety into depths you will deeply regret.

 

[Guest]

yes, my current doc told me all about the adverse effects. Like I told him while taking one, i was feeling angry for no reason and he told me thats an adverse effect.

 

[[rula]]

This is what I understand about SSRI's, and why I'll never touch 'em.... "reuptake inhibitor" means it prevents Serotonin from going into resting (reuptake) mode. Resting Serotonin is extremely important for the production of melotonin (now you're an insomniac, you need something to knock you out) but most importantly the production of 5-HIAA. After long term use, depleted 5-HIAA can lead to suicide, severe insomina, violant behavior and addictions. maybe your friend is just having one of those reactions, but not schizophrenia?

my GP wanted me on zoloft for no longer than 6 months. -rula