• BASIC DRUG
    DISCUSSION
    Welcome to Bluelight!
    Posting Rules Bluelight Rules
    Benzo Chart Opioids Chart
    Drug Terms Need Help??
    Drugs 101 Brain & Addiction
    Tired of your habit? Struggling to cope?
    Want to regain control or get sober?
    Visit our Recovery Support Forums

Tired on Abilify, need some help

C

Crissco

Bluelighter
Joined
Apr 2, 2012
Messages
23
Im taking 2mg abilify for bipolar disorder. Im tired most of the day but i push through it, only time i wake up is at night after a nap. Are there any ways you guys can think of to counteract this?

I did talk to my doctor when i was seeing one, he said its my lifestyle and to push through it.

The medication has worked wonders so far for me and honestly besides being tired i cant complain.
 
Your doctor says it's your lifestyle, so it may help if you told us what your lifestyle was like. Have you tried making changes?
 
Heres a quick recap of the last year.

Was out of a job for a while, slept all day long, stayed up all night.

Got a job working construction, was up when i was lifting all day, the second i stopped got tired.

Couldnt afford abilify so went off for a little while, wasnt groggy at all when i woke up. Only problem was i was angry and manic again.

Went back on abilify then jobless. Same thing, slept all day and was up all night.

Got a job worknig security which im doing up, even though i get good sleep and sit down all day and do basically nothing, i find my self nodding off at times, even when im doing nothing ( Didnt have the problem in the past working security while on no medication)


^^Thats where im at now....

Going to get a job as a real estate agent, telemarket at work and meet up with clients after work.

For the past 7 years ive been working out, been pushing through that and working out as hard as possible while on the meds
 
abilify has a half life of 75 hrs. so it wouldnt matter what time of the day u dosed it as its in ya system just as strong apart from ya first ever dose which peaks at 3-5 hrs. half life is the time it takes for half the drug to leave ya body.

the half life of seroquel is 6 hrs. maybe u should try that instead. heres a comparison table of the common antipsychotics
http://www.psychresidentonline.com/atypical antipsychotics.htm

im thinking of changing from zyprexa back to seroquel. cuz like i said if the half life is longer than 24 hrs than it wouldnt make a difference if u dosed first thing in the morning. that's what a pharmacist told me & I have to sleep for about 12 hrs. I should be 8 hrs

look up seroquel on wikipdia too & be aware that in low doses it;s only an antihistamine so should only really help with sleep
 
antipsychotics are nasty drugs. i advise getting off the abilify pronto. try gabapentin or lyrica for bipolar disorder
 
Never again with Seroquel. Made me VERY tired, and depressed, gained weight and wanted to kill my self.
 
Ive been on Lamictal which acts on the GABA receptors like gabapentin does. Didnt work well for me, I had to go to the hospital because i was alergic
 
If you're having these kinds of problems, get Provigil. I don't see a big deal since you have a clear indication for this.

You need to get some kind of mood stabilizer that works for you bro. Don't rely on antipsychotics; they're shit drugs.

Lithium?
Valproate?

Then if you're still having manic episodes, I'd suggest clonazepam. Honestly bro, if a benzo works for controlling your mania then it is way healthier for you than an antipsychotic.

If you have to use an AP; I suggest Asenapine (Saphris) [or stick with Abilify, if it *really* works; Saphris would (likely) work more but with some increased side effects]

More:

Lithium is very underrated. I suggest it beyond anything else. I'd start you on that and I'd send you out the door with #30 modafinil 200mg. QD, #90 clonazepam 0.5mg TID, and #45 asenapine 5mg. QHS

Geodon would be the most "stimulating" AP after Abilify.
 
Last edited:
That's the thing tho. I'm not getting manic episodes. Only depression from time to time. And its not even severe. My only concern is the tiredness and that's it bro. And I can't do benzos I was addicted to them for a while,they lower my sex drive and they make me depressed sometimes the day after..only when taken occasionaly tho
 
Last edited:
Also depression was my biggest concern. I was always more depressed then manic. Unless something set me off ide be angry, break down doors, hit walls. Go insane. But for the most part it was depression
 
Oh, I see.

Have you tried bupropion (Wellbutrin); that works for some people. More stiumulating too.

Venlafexadine (Effexor XR or Pristiq) would likely be the most efficacious AD for you.. but don't expect that much. I honestly think a mix of tramadol and good ole fluoxetine (Prozac) would do you well; good luck getting the tramadol from a doctor. You're not on a SsNRI already with the Abilify?

Realistically, Effexor XR and Provigil and Prozac if you don't have something like that already.

If that doesn't work, I'd try a less sedating tricyclic AD like desipramine (also works on NE like Effexor)

If none of that shit works you can go to the Emsam patch, selegiline, and you can use it with the Abilify. Supposedly stimulating and its metabolites are amphetamines (sadly, not active) You don't have to worry about your diet so much. Prolly expensive so you might want to get low dose generic selegiline which won't be near about as good.

If you're still fucked, you might need Parnate. That's the top of the chain as far as psych drugs for AD... See if you can figure out a way to get Suboxone (buprenorphine) You could pull that off... You can definitely pull off Kratom.
 
Ive tried, zolft, lexapro and effxor in the past solo, all of them made me manic. I need a mood stablizer in the mix or else to much dopamine gets me manic. I talked to my doc months ago about wellbutrin he didnt want to put me on it for some reason. Maybe bc it can cause some people to become manic? Not sure.

Thanks for the help bro
 
Sounds like you suffer from type II bi-polar with more depressive episodes.

I suffer from type one and experience more mania/hypomania.

I'm currently managing with Pregabalin for mood stability, and flunitrazepam for sleep.

I cut out the APs due to it exacerbating my RLS and TD.

Crissco said:
Ive tried, zolft, lexapro and effxor in the past solo, all of them made me manic. I need a mood stablizer in the mix or else to much dopamine gets me manic. I talked to my doc months ago about wellbutrin he didnt want to put me on it for some reason. Maybe bc it can cause some people to become manic? Not sure.

Thanks for the help bro
Click to expand...

SSRIs and SNRIs will not work for you. In bi-polar patients they can have a very paradoxical effect and induce mania.

I know venlafaxine fucked me up like an amphetamine.
 
Exactly trip. I was diagnosed both Bipolar 2, and BP NOS(Not otherwise specified) from two different doctors..Trip, In your opinion what do you think is my best bet here? Lifestyle change? New medication? "Tweak" my current meds....
 
I would recommend lithium or Neurontin for mood stability and depression, but seriously the big issue is lifestyle changes.

You need to get into a routine: Bed at the same time, meals at the same time, try and get a bit of exercise. Being healthy in general will help your mental state immeasurably.

How does caffeine effect you? Or have you explored the possibility of Vyvanse? You'd need to be on a mood stabilizer on it to prevent mania but it would solve your tiredness. Vyvanse is also very mild.
 
I get up everyday at 6. Except weekends when i get up at 9. Work untill 430, then the gym 5x a week, then nap..

The only time caffeine really works is in the morning...I think its because of my job. I work security and i sit down all day and read.

Ive tried vyvanse before because my friend is prescribed them. Didnt do much, just made me a bit shaky and wired, thats it.

Thanks dude
 
SSRIs and SNRIs will not work for you. In bi-polar patients they can have a very paradoxical effect and induce mania.

I know venlafaxine fucked me up like an amphetamine.
Click to expand...

Meh, I was trying to figure out a way to get him some more energy and out of depression. My first post definitely IMPOUNDED that he needs a mood stabilizer; you're right, Trip.

However, if you're stable -- these meds may or may not be applicable. Mixed results.

Given the information about the mood stabilizer... I suggest gabapentin (different from lamotrigine) as well. Pregabalin would be better imo, it gives a nice mood lift as well. Lithium is the number one thing. (see my first post)

But yeah, once you're stable -- my second post should still apply. Vyvanse would be more likely to induce mania than a SNRI.

I'm Bipolar II myself. I'm currently stable on:

300mg. Lamictal Xl
300mg. Aplenzin (Wellbutrin)
50mg. Zoloft
#90 Adderall 10mg.
#90 Klonopin 0.5mg.

I'm very satisfied with my treatment.
 
Glad to hear ur doing well Geaux. As of the past year ive been extremely stable on Abilify, like i said its a wonder drug for me.

And as of right now im not even seeing a doctor for my meds, im getting them through a cardiologist who just calls them in..
To be honest, im scared to go on anything else since my whole lamictal scare that ended me in the hospital. Thats why ive pushed through this so long.


So its either I see my doctor who prescribes meds. Or try different things from my cardiologist(Wellbutrin, efexor..etc) To see what works.
 
TBPH.

You need frequent psychiatric/psychological help. You need to at least be regularly seeing a doctor to oversee your med use

EDIT:

Whoops thought this was the other depression thread
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top