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Apathy on tranqualizers -- any personal experience?

redtailedhawk

redtailedhawk

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Aug 30, 2005
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The Old Continent
I've met a dear friend recently who I am very fond of. She told me she had a nervous breakdown a few months ago and she has been on tranquilizers since then.

When talking to her I noticed she looks and feels very apathetic -- Kind of emotionally flat and absent, which saddens me tremendously.

I'm wondering if any of you ever experienced this kind of effect from the (over)use of tranquilizers. If you did, can you share how it feels or felt like? Did you feel any emotion at all? Were you simply tired and sleepy? How did it effect your thinking and feeling?

Thank you <3
 
NeighborhoodThreat said:
^This.

There is a wide range of drugs that could be called "tranquilizers".
Click to expand...

That term has been used to describe everything from meprobamate and benzodiazepines (minor tranquilizers) to anti-psychotics such as chlorpromazine and haloperidol (major tranquilizers). So it doesn't exactly narrow it down much :\

OP: What med is your friend on? We really can't give you any advice unless you know the name or atleast class of the med.
 
I think that irrespective of what she's on, there's a good chance that she needs it to get by. Tranquilisers help block negative emotions, but they do this by blocking - in a sense - all emotions, including the positive ones.

Of course, if she's abusing them without a prescription then she may not be getting any benefit from them. But as to how she's 'feeling' it really depends; if she likes the drug, and it using it for pleasure, she probably feels pretty good. If she's just using it because she's been told to, then likely she just feels a bit 'absent' (like you said) and detached. They are incredibly useful for creating some distance between a person's thoughts and feelings and their ability to act on them or be emotionally affected by them.
 
Thanks guys. It seems she using an anti-psychotic. Unfortunately I do not remember the name of it although she did told me. And yes, I too think she needs it to just get by at this point. On a bright note, I did see her again and she looked much better and was able to communicate with her quite normally. So I guess there were other factors involved when she seemed flat when I first saw her.
 
Anti-psychotics can cause apathy as a side effect even the newer atypicals like seroquel, zyprexa, abilify, geodon/zeldox, etc. The older typical anti-psychotics such as haldol and the older atypical risperdal are notorious for it as well. This side effect does tend to go away once you get used to the drug though. I have been on anti-psychotics many times for bipolar and although i don't get apathy i do get a few side effects depending on which one it is and it generally goes away after i get used to the dose. Plus there are lot's of different anti-psychotics so if you can't tolerate one you can try another. It's all about weighing the benefits of the drug against the side effects really.
 
If it's an anti-psychotic then that's a whole different story to benzos. They are way way way more sedating. It's extremely common for people on anti-psychotics to literally resemble zombies. I know I did when I was on Seroquel.
 
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