Need help getting off Risperdal Consta or Invega Sustenna

Posted , 31 users are following.

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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  • Posted

    Hi there,

    I am so sorry to hear about your son. My son was injured during sports 5 years ago and his and my life have never been the same. They say he has brain injury and brain cyst but all they do is keep switching medications. IT is interesting tho because every time he has episode he is on medication. , usually an antipsychotic. He as well sleeps lots of his days , he wont leave the house as his anxiety is too high and just has no motivation. He will have nights where he can not sleep at all. He has severe emotional disfuction so when he is upset he sees black and does not remember things. They feel there is apossibility the cyst could be a tumor and finally they are doing an mri with contrast to check this was supposed to be done 3 years ago. He has been charged 3 times and i am totally disgusted with the health care and court system in CANADA. THEY HAVE GIVEN HIM THREE COUNSELLING SESSIONS THROUGH THE COURT THIS IS IT!! NO HELP FROM THEM TO DIRECT US BEEN ON S WAITING LIST FOR THERAPY FOR THREE YEARS AND THEN SOMETHING HAPPENS THROW HIM IN JAIL LIKE A CRIMINAL. I AM DONE WITH THIS SYSTEM. HELP THESE F*****G PEOPLE!!! He has tried risperdol not invega but doctor may be recommmending it. I WOULD ASK ABOUT LATUDA I HEAR THIS IS THE BEST MED FROM THE REVIEWS. HE HAD MORE DELUSIONS AND A PSYCHOTIC EPISODE ON RISPERDOL

  • Edited

    okay, here is some input from my story.

    i was diagnosed underneath short amount notice with schizoaffective depressive when i was 17-18. i am 26 now, they did not do enough establishment and evaluation when i was doagnosed with this so on called disorder. My most recent visit from my psych doctor, stated that i am not schizoaffective depressive, he said sure one time i was depressed anyone can get depression, and at a young age your mind and body is adjusting to kid to adult and no kid is ready for that. he said theres only 0.000008 percent of people in this world with such called disorder. he even stated he was suprised i was on the medicine by itself, the psych doctor stated that he witnessed someone kill someone being on this medicine. he also said that you dont get schizo from your mom,( which in my case my mom is schizo.) my dad is not. so nearly almost ten years of my life ive been played with by big pharmacy and the doctors in the past that would just look at me for 5 minutes and wrote a prescription.

    if you really wanna get him out of this situation. Get down to the root of cause without medicine.

    good luck and God bless you and the family

  • Posted

    Man, I wish I could get follow up on how some of these people are doing. They are experiencing the same symptoms that I did / have.

  • Edited

    Hello! I want to give you some hope and tell you how I'm doing. I took risperidone for a month at dosage 1-4 mg. Here is my progression after withdrawal:

    IMPROVEMENTS

    June 2022

    • canceled risperidone
    • most terrible states gone
    • improved sleep
    • weight loss

    July 2022

    • better appetite
    • returned interest in my affairs

    August 2022

    September 2022

    • easier to breathe
    • Can sleep on my back and side (it was impossible)
    • joined in life
    • deeper sleep and brighter dreams
    • communicate more
    • more kidding
    • study medicine
    • clearer in mind
    • less dizziness
    • easy to think
    • more thoughts
    • easy to read
    • less stupid and stuck
    • it is possible to work at PC
    • earnings appeared back
    • watch movies, listen to music
    • livelier facial expressions
    • sweating gone
    • firmer erection
    • better libido
    • more social activity
    • better vision

    October 2022

    • better appearance
    • take better care of myself
    • lighter in the body
    • more flexibility
    • more vivacity
    • more strength
    • more naturalness and spontaneity
    • higher self-confidence
    • there was an initiative
    • prophetic dreams come back
    • higher concentration
    • sometimes higher neck flexibility
    • Decreased joint pain
    • started running
    • exercise more often
    • less belly rash
    • began to help with the housework
    • sometimes you get to lower your head
    • decreased salivation
    • softer lower back muscles
    • began to make plans and control events
    • decreased muscle twitches
    • planning to write a book
    • Started exercising
    • better mood
    • broader interests
    • much brighter in the eyes
    • there is a flying gait
    • improved vision up to 95%
    • easier mental load and concentration
    • accelerated brain function
    • expanded field of attention

    In the process of improvement

    • psychophysical sluggishness
    • heaviness and discomfort
    • difficulty concentrating
    • slightly reduced motor and mental activity
    • lack of comfort
    • still a little blurry vision
    • stiffness, crunching, squeezing, murmuring in the neck
    • discomfort when swallowing
    • difficulty lowering the head
    • stiffness and pain in the lower back
    • infrequent slight salivation
    • fear, regret, despair
    • average degree of depression
    • Decreased libido and erection strength
    • less clarity of mind
    • no insights and discoveries
    • slight heaviness and slowness of breathing
    • muted emotions
    • tremor in the morning
    • less control over life
    • elevated eosinophils
    • decreased testosterone
    • reduced vitamin D
    • decreased income
    • mired in loans

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