Mental Health Akathisia from Antipsychotics? it's a living hell?

Aripiprazole
I started taking it a week ago and i think it's helping, i am feeling better and more back-to-normal.
Altho it gives me wretched akathisia :/
Benadryl blocks the akathisia but it takes a little bit to kick in which is i horrible 30-45 minutes. then it gives me fatigue and Aphasia for hours afterward, which basically means i can't do anything because i have to sleep and i can't talk very well.
So it's either suffer the inner restlessness itching sensation... or be strung out on benadryl

i've tried prescription meds for akathisia that my pdoc gave me- Cogentin and Artane, neither is effective. Only diphenhydramine.


Anyone have any tips or home remedies for akathisia? I can't be pacing all day in agony, i have stuff to do besides walking in circles to stave off the horrible sensation

Go to the doctor. Akathisia needs to be treated before it can get worse. The usual emergency treatment is a benzo like Lorazepam or Valium often given IV/IM. Some hospitals still use Phenobarbital but that's a rather ancient treatment. If it keeps up i would recommend switching to another anti-psychotic. Abilify get's a bad rep for causing Akathisia as it has very little or no anti-cholinergic or anti-histaminic side effects so it can be activating instead of sedating. Sort of like risperidone that way except not as bad. However more sedating anti-psychotics such as Quetiapine or Olanzapine tend to cause Akathisia much less often so if you haven't tried both of those it may be worth looking into. If it get's unbearable get your ass to the ER ASAP as people have done everything from run out of emergency rooms to jumping out windows when Akathisia get's really bad.

I had a mild case of it once after mixing Cyclobenzaprine with Risperidone. It was awful but some clonazepam and gabapentin killed it pretty fast.

Akathisia is probably one of the worst physiological feelings there is and the closest I have ever come to knowing what true torture is. It's so bad that chronically affected people have been known to kill themselves over it. Just think of the situation you're in: living with the unbearable sensation of microscopic bugs constantly gnawing at your neurons, or be spasticated from soporific anticholinergics. I would suggest discussing a change in type or dose of antipsychotic with your psychiatrist to alleviate the disorder all together, rather than attempting to mask it.

As the above posts say, check in with your doctor and say that the Cogentin and Artane aren't working. Akathisia is pretty miserable. Do you know your dose of Aripiprazole? Reducing it may be an option for now, if the feeling is not entirely unbearable.

My friend got horrible akathisia when the pharmacist filled her script with 10 mg Aripiprazole instead of starting on 2. She used diphenhydramine and chlorpheniramine similarly to you, and I've heard that hydroxyzine can be slightly more tolerable for some in regard to sedation while helping with the restlessness. More 5-HTa action relative to anticholinergic. (I find both really sedating, still.)

Beta-blockers like propranolol can help, but for any of these options, it still really is best to check with your doctor about dose and choice. Only a week in, so best to catch it early.

(I was hospitalized on my second day of Aripiprazole, so I can't say much for longer term use.)

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10647977 Doesn't say much that hasn't been touched on here but a good resource to take to you doctor.

I had that. It went away after a couple months. Taking a shit-ton of artane got me through those months. I was finally able to watch television. I suffer very mildly from it if at all nowadays.

Thank you guys. I just started on aripiprizole as well.... and yeah, needless to say, it's awful. I'm also getting wicked, full body involuntary movements that get worse on opiates, which sucks as I have chronic pain.

Ya, its a shitty feeling. Ignoring it is best. Like people have said benzos can help because they are anticonvulsants, muscle relaxants, cns depressants, and anti-seizure medications.

If it is too unbearable, lower the dosage.

Another really good option is Nerontin (Gabapentin). Among many things, it is also a restless leg treatment, though primarily an anxylotic and nerve pain medication.

Magnesium. Magnesium, magnesium. It's a life-saver for that and you don't get immune to it like benzos.

It's safe to say that one doesn't get "immune" to Mg. Benzos work, but studies suggest that they make you worse off in the end if taken every day. Ha, I should be talking.

Ho-Chi-Minh said:

It's safe to say that one doesn't get "immune" to Mg. Benzos work, but studies suggest that they make you worse off in the end if taken every day. Ha, I should be talking.

Click to expand...

I'm pretty much immune, 20 at a time don't sedate me, and the muscle-relaxing effect is long gone.

I'm currently on Abilify & had been suffering some Akathisia - my p-doc is considering prescribing me propranolol to help with it. I notice you hadn't tried that so if it's still an issue you could always mention that. I've been told by others it can be quite effective for treating it.

Ho-Chi-Minh said:

I had that. It went away after a couple months. Taking a shit-ton of artane got me through those months. I was finally able to watch television. I suffer very mildly from it if at all nowadays.

Click to expand...

There are more then a few studies that say that treating Akathisia and other movement disorders caused by anti-psychotics with Artane and other anti-cholinergics such as Diphenhydramine can make it worse in the end. So i certainly wouldn't go with that treatment as your just covering it up in the short term. It would be better to go with a anti-psychotic less prone to causing it such as Quetiapine, Olanzapine or even some of the older more sedating typicals such as Chlorpromazine or Loxapine.

Yes, akathisia from antipsychotics is a living hell and is a good reason not to take them on a regular basis.

I've noticed that sometimes (I'm on arapiprazole), I'll just sit still as a statue for like an hour, and other times the akasthisia is awful.
I am also on benzotropine and propranolol for the movements/akasthisia. Does anyone else get this?

paranoid android said:

There are more then a few studies that say that treating Akathisia and other movement disorders caused by anti-psychotics with Artane and other anti-cholinergics such as Diphenhydramine can make it worse in the end. So i certainly wouldn't go with that treatment as your just covering it up in the short term. It would be better to go with a anti-psychotic less prone to causing it such as Quetiapine, Olanzapine or even some of the older more sedating typicals such as Chlorpromazine or Loxapine.

Click to expand...

As a short-term treatment it worked for me. And mg isn't supposed o make you feel anything, ninae, especially if you have a gabaergic addiction.

Psychosis isn't something to treat, anymore than art or spirituality are also mental illnesses.

That's why these drugs will never work.

PsychedelicWizard said:

Psychosis isn't something to treat, anymore than art or spirituality are also mental illnesses.

That's why these drugs will never work.

Click to expand...

May I ask what would be a better option than these drugs?

Why were you prescribed Abilify in the first place? I've found that for the most part it's being prescribed for everything else other than schizophrenia / schizoaffective disorder diagnoses. I was prescribed it for sleep when an inpatient shrink pulled me off of 2 mg of Ativan cold turkey like an idiot because of his claim that benzos are dangerous and antipsychotics are safe. I experienced akathisia as well. However, the worst side effect was that my vision was becoming blurred and that is why I was pulled off the medication. There's still an onslaught of deceiving commercials saying that Abilify should be prescribed along with an anti-depressant as well. If you need it for schizophrenia / severe bipolar mania, I would recommend trying some the other atypical antipsychotics with the exception of Invega / Invega Sustenna. Avoid ER / XR versions in case you experience negative effects from those drugs and need to withdraw safely.

CfZrx said:

May I ask what would be a better option than these drugs?

Click to expand...

There's a lot of weird stuff that can treat it with no side effects like copper, taurine, zinc, or glucosamine. Not saying any of those thing specifically treat it, but if you look around, you'll find that there are supplements which fix the problem without any side effects. I think the reason these drugs don't work is every person has a different reason for having something like psychosis. Someone might be psychotic from too much speed, another from not enough sleep, another still from severe trauma, another might have a legitimate paranormal/spiritual experience and doubt it as psychosis, yet another might have a deficiency in some obscure vitamin or mineral, and many other possibilities.

Hence why it depends on the person so very much. But I'd try looking around obscure supplements and fringe studies. The truth usually lies there, and it never gets out to the masses because the people making anti-psychotics make too much money and so they basically buy off the medical industry and FDA. I know that sounds like psychotic thinking, but in this case, it isn't a conspiracy, just simple fact. Imagine someone just has a simple deficiency in something like niacin and they take a pill and they are cured with no side effects, a pill that costs a fraction of the drug you are selling. Would you want them to know about it? Wouldn't you do everything in your power to scare people into using your product and not the competitors?

Sadly the medical profession is nothing but a big business, and whatever makes money is what is promoted, NOT what effectively helps people. Once you realize that sociopaths who only care about their own gain (and who are mentally ill because of their lack of empathy) rule these industries, it suddenly makes a lot of sense. And for proof? I've met numerous people with severe mental illness who have found they can completely treat it with simple supplements, who would have thought? And for the record I'm not some hippy advocating natural medicine over chemical medicine, I'm saying trying the obscure things because usually they work, hence why they are either illegal or obscure.