olanzapine

[trina1723]

sorry for yet another thread.

i have been put on olanzapine, and was just wondering if anyone who has been on it could share their experience of it with me =]
like how long does it take to work?
what side effects did you get? im especially interested in weight gain as this is something i dont think i could cope with/
so yeah just generally did you get on well with it?

thanks =]
xxx

[sherlock holmes]

I'm on olanzapine and I havent gained any weight.

I dont know if it's working or not really because I'm not on it for psychosis.

I would imagine it takes around a month.

[shellz1986]

I have been on olanzapine for about three years. i take 20mg a day for my manic episodes. It took about a month before i saw any improvement.

it works well for me but there has been downsides. One is that when i first started it it made me very sleepy...which was solved by taking it at night. The other is as you mentioned, the weight gain. I have gained about 1 and a half stone on it whaich has been something i have had to face up to as i also suffer from bulimia. In the end i just told myself that if it helps then i shouldnt worry.

Anyway thats my experience of it , i hope you get as much help from it as i have.

Shelley

[Rhea-Billie-Tate]

I actually noticed a difference pretty much straight away with olanzapine but I wasn't prescribed it for psychosis. I got on with it pretty well, it was quite sedating, but no where near as much as quetiapine.
I had huge concerns about weight gain and I did gain weight more rapidly than normally expected whilst on it, but I was on an eating disorders unit on a prescribed weight gain diet so it's difficult to say how much was down to the medication. There were other people on the ward who were prescribed it to good effect who didn't find that it had any effect on their weight. It effects everyone differently.
It did really help to reduce the symptoms it was prescribed for, and apart from the drowsiness, I didn't ever experience any other day-to-day side-effects.

[trina1723]

thanks =]
xx

[carla1983]

i was on it 10mg but i couldnt cope with weight gain on it so pysc changed me to 300mg quitapine i find this a much better drug really helps with my pyscois

[lovelybones]

I was on 15 mg and I gained a tonnn of weight. Like, 20 pounds. but i was underweight anyway so it made me normal :)

I had to quit taking it because it made me very volatile and easily triggered, although I never had any mood swings. It was also $600 a month (no insurance coverage..).

But overall, I've heard both good AND bad, so hopefully it goes well for you :)

[l'il esky]

how are you getting on with the tablets?you getting into a better routine of taking them?

xx

[consequential]

i got very fat within a week but it made me hyper and very chatty and happy and very creative .its a great drug but who wants to be fat.in saying that i got fat on my other drugs too so......

[trina1723]

thanks =]
im so scared its gunna make me put on weight =|.
xxx

[Rhea-Billie-Tate]

The side-effects are different for everyone, I do know people who did put on a lot of weight on it but then I know just as many people for whom it wasn't a problem at all. Your doctor can always change it if you do experience side effects, but it can be a very effective and useful drug for a lot of people so it's worth giving it a chance.

[Steel Maiden]

I was initially on 10mg for schizophrenia which kept me stable for a while. I did feel an increased appetite although I didn't gain any weight because I have a fast metabolism, exercise a lot and I can ignore my hunger quite well. But I did feel tired on it and had to sleep a full 8-9 hours a night, which was annoying.

But then my mental health deteriorated and I was raised to 15mg. The side-effects were lost. I just stopped having all side-effects at 15mg. And then my mental health deteriorated. Went to 20mg and then to 25mg. Had zero side-effects and actually lost weight. Then I relapsed and ended up in hospital and got put on a new med.

But olanzapine did keep me relatively stable and hospital-free for a year.

[trina1723]

thanks for sharing your experiences.
i havent put any weight on yet, and i havent had any side effects, except being more shaky than normal.
i havent had anything change either but i know that takes time.
xxx

[Steel Maiden]

Well if you watch your eating and try and eat healthily then you may not put on weight or put on little.

[trina1723]

yeah thats the plan =] i just need to get my binging under control =|

[Steel Maiden]

I don't binge and I can't possibly imagine how terrible it must be but once recently I ate a ton of food in one day. It was Easter. Barbecue. Had a friend around. Dessert as well. I ate a lot in that day and I can tell you I felt pretty awful afterwards in terms of guilt. Hugs.

[trina1723]

yeah it makes me feel so guilty. but im determined to stop it because i know how bad it is for me.
thanks for the support =]
xxxx

[Steel Maiden]

I hope that you find the inner strength to stop. Are you getting help for your bingeing? Perhaps you should start bingeing on healthier foods and then concentrate on reducing the volume you eat in one go?

[trina1723]

im not having any help for the binging, im too embarrassed to admit i do it.
thats a really good idea eating healthier foods, i hadn't thought of that, i will be asking mum to buy lots of healthy stuff this week in the shopping lol.
xxx

[Steel Maiden]

Yes sometimes if I want to eat between meals, I just eat vegetables, fruit or pickles. But don't overeat pickles because the acid is bad for you.
You should tell a professional about it. They have dealt with it before, they won't think you're stupid.