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Need help getting off Risperdal Consta or Invega Sustenna

Posted , 31 users are following.

play2day
play2day

My son is 23.  He was attending college, working part time and working out daily at the gym.  He had a stressful period, and did a lot of drinking and smoking stuff that he shouldn't have been. He naturally desended into a psychotic episode. He was hospitalized briefly but recovered from it.  

He went back to live with his roommates in his shared apartment.  But they were afraid of him, and wanted him out, so they called the police, and claimed that he was hallucinating and had a weapon (none of which was true).  The police broke into his room, handcuffed him and took him to a hospital where he received a 234mg shot of Invega Sustenna on Dec 12th 2015.  It has rendered him a emotionless and physical wreck. He now sleeps at least 18 hours a day, sometimes getting up in time for dinner, sometimes not. He can bearly hold a simple conversation while he's up.

For the first couple of months he was suicidal.  He kept telling me that he just wanted to die.  He had and still has a severe case of anhedonia.  He feels no emotion at all, other than anxiety.  He doesn't like or dislike anything.  He gets no pleasure from eating or seeing the sunshine, or watching something really funny on TV.  He feels no satisfaction about anything and didn't look forward to anything.  He's worried that he may have permanent brain damage.  

We're tried seeing a different psychiatrist. But that one doesn't believe my son and thinks he needs to be on a "mood stabilizer".  I think that would definitely kill him at this point.

My smart, good-looking, athletic and motivated young son now wouldn't even make a decent zombie.

Has anyone had a similar experience or have a success story about getting off the long acting Invega or Risperdal?

5 likes, 116 replies

116 Replies

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  • louise79427
    louise79427 play2day

    Posted

    Hi, it does get better I was the same after having psychosis. I switched from risperdone to aripiprazole and find it less sedating . I am back at work now after two years of going through the same thing. Hang in there and all the best x
  • deannie
    deannie play2day

    Posted

    My son is forced on Resperidal Consta because he is on court supervision and was added as part of his supervision. He is not violent and is no threat to himself or others. He had a few emotional problems when he was seventeen and was charged with aggravated assault. He was drunk at the time and emotionally charged situation. That was ten years ago. But they go by complete criminal and mental history. He already paid for his crime. If he stops taking it he will not be in compliance. His court supervision is for ten years. He is Voluntary not Nonvoluntary. This is so wrong since there is no science behind psychiatry. It is a lie, look it up. His crime was accidental download of eight images of child porn. He served four years in prison. His life is gone and now all the sex offender guidelines. I would appreciate any feedback on this.
    • play2day
      play2day deannie

      Posted

      If I were you I would obtain a medical power of attorney for your son, get some advice from a good clinical psychologist on effective alternative treatments for your son, and come up with a comprehensive health care plan for him. Have lots of clinical studies in hand to back up your points.

      Then become a very labor intensive advocate for your son. Become a real "pain in the butt" (in a polite but relentless way). Petition the court for another hearing, Contact his probation officer, contact his doctors, contact your elected political representatives, and any anyone else who might be able to get involved.

      They may eventually see the wisdom of going along with your plan. They may figure out that they will be able to get you to leave them alone if they cooperate with your plan. "The squeaky wheel gets the grease".

  • NooNooHead1981
    NooNooHead1981 play2day

    Posted

    Hi there

    I'm so sorry to hear of your som's awful suffering and sad situation. He is very fortunate to have such wonderful support and he will need it to get through this and try to come out the other side.

    I truly believe antipsychotic drugs are the scourge of society and it's a travesty they are given to patients. I know they can and do help others but there are so many studies that show side effects, permanent damage and suffering from them, that it is hard to believe they do any good at all really. I suffer from tardive dyskinesia after just one week on a low dose of typical antipsychotic Pericyazine and am always anxious, restless and fidgety and have no motivation at all. I also feel like I need to 'make' myself move as I don't sometimes feel my body wants to go anywhere - a kind of Parkinsonism I guess, but it is getting better after nearly 10 months of having such a ghastly condition.

    It has been an awful struggle and the social stigma of these movement disorders doesn't help my mental state. I hate psychiatry with a passion, and have gone from being a high functioning intellectually able copywriter to an anxious person who lives with TD every day, fidgeting and fighting tics and involuntary facial movements.

    Coupled with some post concussion syndrome symptoms after a head injury, life is throwing at me all it's got at the moment...!

    Anyway... I digress. Your son will get though this and he has youth and love on his side. The brain is a fantastic organ and it's neuroplasticity is still a marvellous thing. Keep the faith and stay strong.

    • play2day
      play2day NooNooHead1981

      Posted

      Nikki, thank you and the others here for your support.  I am so sorry to hear about what happened to you.  You and my son are prime examples of the horrors of psychiatric care and especially forced mental health care. I feel the same way that you do about psychiatry. More and more research is exposing psychotropic drugs for the damage they cause, and their ineffectiveness as a treatment for mental health problems.  

      There are so many scientific studies which show that more benign and supportive treatments (rather than drug treatments) are more effective in the long run for mental health problems.

    • Stormrage
      Stormrage play2day

      Posted

      Hey there play2day,

      Im sorry to hear about your son.

      How is he ?

      It's been 11 months now since your first post.

  • qmoonlight39
    qmoonlight39 play2day

    Posted

    Hi, thanks for the info. my sister is diagnosed as bipolar. Her psychiatrist recommended invega sustenna as she is now in manic episode. Please enlighten if this can help her as they assured us that this has a good effect to patients they know. Thanks. 
    • adrianna09360
      adrianna09360 qmoonlight39

      Posted

      My husband has been on invega injection for a yr now and he's been doing great. Next month they are giving him a trial period off his meds and I am quite nervous about what the outcome is going to do to him. He had his last shot may 11 th.

  • prolactin_49799
    prolactin_49799 play2day

    Posted

    Same experience here. All my strength is gone. I am not getting sore from workouts. I have severe anexity. Cognitive ability is awful.
  • dilma44979
    dilma44979 play2day

    Posted

    I am very sorry to hear that. You need to make few exams to check what is unbalance: amino cids exam, neurotransmitters exam, adrenal glands exam. Start now taking vitamin 6 plus the complete vitamines B, complete minerals, proteins and probiotics. The following link is the a great guide I found after research for 2 years what to do with the damage invega did to my son.  Do not take ANY psychiatric medication because will make the situation worse.

    Moderator comment: I have removed the link(s) directing to site(s) unsuitable for inclusion in the forums. If users want this information please use the Private Message service to request the details.

    http://patient.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/398316-adding-links-to-posts

    http://patient.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/398331-private-messages

  • valentina44548
    valentina44548 play2day

    Posted

    I also have a 31 year old son who was also given a shot (starter and then another) of Invega 156mg by force in a psych ward. The first month when he got out of the hospital he could barely walk, had episodes of feeling like he is suffocating (many ER visits), panic attacks, extreme fatigue and weakness, inability to concentrate and think clearly, stiffness of hands/arms, nausea, insomnia. It's been 4 months now since the injection and he has extreme fatigue and weakness, he always feels like laying down and sitting, does not want to get out of bed, puts in a lot of effort to go for walks outside. He used to be a runner and he cannot run anymore. He is literally in pain when he runs. He used to run for 1 hour almost everyday and now it is painful for him to do 15 minutes on an exercise bike. He is college educated and he cannot read and comprehend like before. It's painful to read and think. He cannot think as clearly as before and feels like there is always some impediment in his brain that is clouding everything. He cannot feel joy from anything. He is concerned about his long term heart health because he cannot do cardio like before. His blood pressure is higher than before and he feels like his heart is weaker. His sex drive is 0. He wakes up often early in the morning and cannot fall back asleep. The psychiatrist says that he cannot do anything. 

    Does anyone have any recommendations and advice?

    • josiah04946
      josiah04946 valentina44548

      Posted

      What's the progress of your son now that he's been off the injection?

      I'm 5 weeks out from 234mg and 156mg shots from late November 17'.

      I am noticing improvement already. I've been taking a multi-vitamin, fish oil, and ashwagandha. I got a bottle of macuna L-Dopa in route. I do two cups of coffee in the morning to stimulate seratonin and a green tea in the afternoon for cleansing.

    • play2day
      play2day valentina44548

      Posted

      If your son's reaction is anything like my son's it will be over a year before he has the motivation to exercise again. That stuff takes a long time get eliminated from the body. Please consider reporti ng your experience to the FDA. Nothing will happen without feedback and public pressure.

    • dilma44979
      dilma44979 play2day

      Posted

      Very true Valentina. I am waiting to recover for the severe stress I got and my hralth was really damage. i also intent to report to the poisoning US department. i saw that several people did. My son stayed under invega sustenna side effects for almost 2 years. i lost the hope that he would be recovered but thanks God, he did. It was lots of work, research, lonliness feeling and health damage for me. Warm Regards.

      Dilma

    • e52855
      e52855 valentina44548

      Posted

      Hi Valentina, I am in a similar position now where it is difficult to think and read after two shots of Invega (234 mg and 156 mg). How is your son now, 2 years later? I hope he is well. Thank you

    • john82343
      john82343 e52855

      Posted

      Hey, just wondering how you are feeling now? I'm going through the same situation which is both scary and sad for me.

    • john82343
      john82343 play2day

      Posted

      @play2day - how is your son now? I am going through the same thing right now. My symptoms have been horrible. I'm taking it one day at a time.

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