Risperdal encouragement

[dixon99]

hello. I'm new here. actually I used this site years ago to successfully get off oxycodone and then suboxone. I was on suboxone for about a year and had zero trouble coming off it.

I'm here today regarding risperdal. about a year ago i was put on this med for anxiety. since then a real doctor discovered that risperdal is actually causing my anxiety and depression. I began tapering off 1.5mg in October. going extremely slow...tapering 0.125mg per week or every 2 weeks. I got down to 0.25mg with pretty much zero problem or withdrawal. 2 days ago I dropped to 0.125mg and I'm doing ok, though I had some anxiety and trouble sleeping last night. I read a lot that many people do not have trouble coming off this. and I have had no trouble over the last few months. I'm in my head a bit now trying to finish off it. anyone that's been successful, it would be great to hear from. just need some encouragement to finish up. I'm also taking propranolol for an unrelated issue. that's the only prescription im on.

sorry I'm just looking for some encouragement to finish and get off this drug. I want off it badly

moved here based on suggestion.

 

[herbavore]

Hi Dixon. Isn't that crazy that one doctor put you on Risperdal to treat anxiety when in fact it was exacerbating it or even causing more? At any rate congratulations on taking a proactive role in your health. Whatever you are going through now is just a temporary adjustment to clearing the chemicals from your brain but in the long term you will still have to get very proactive about anxiety. Anxiety is a part of life--even the calmest people will experience it at some time. For those of us who are prone to it however, it can become such a habitual way of thinking that we perceive it as normal. It does not have to be. I have found mindfulness practice and conscious breathing to be the best strategies for me to short circuit my own spiraling anxieties. I started trying to learn about mindfulness in the middle of a crisis which had me experiencing panic attacks regularly so I was very motivated--desperate actually--to find some way out of my own thought patterns. Check out the stickied Mindfulness resources thread above and see if you can find resources that you naturally respond to. Good luck and keep going forward.

 

[dixon99]

Thank you Herbavore! I agree anxiety is a part of life. Last winter I had atrial fibrilliation. Freaked me out. Badly. Prior to that I had anxiety but it was very managed naturally. I never had an issue with it and really kinda lived fearless and worryless. I didnt need to be put on a med like risperdal. Since then Ive wanted to get off the drug, it was giving me anxiety, screwed up my sleep schedule (which I never had sleep issues in my life, I'm 39, prior to this). I'm on a baby dose of risperdal now...0.125mg is not much and should be easy to stop. I have a vague understanding of half life of drugs. My doctor has been great (she didnt put me on the drug, she told me I should be off it).

As far as anxiety, I have proactively been working on these last several months. I see a talk therapist. Ive learned a lot of breathing techniques. I take things for my anxiety but all natural - ashwagandha, n-acetyl cysteine, magnesium. I take melatonin and valerian root/passion flower to sleep most nights. I have benadyl that I use maybe 2 or 3 times a month and Restoril when I get desperate (I've only taken 5 in 3 months - 15mg). I dont want to get addicted to anything else. My anxiety feels managed again and in a better place - and will fully be there once I'm done with this drug (and the worry of it) and get my sleep back on schedule.