Olanzapine Withdrawal
Posted , 23 users are following.
Hi all,
After reading most of the posts on here, I decided to write my current experience while I realise some of the posts' age on here vary between nine months to three years, but I hope that someone can hear my shout and give me a hand.
I was put on Olanzapine back in June after trying a different medication for my paranoia and after an admission to hospital.
The initial dose was 5 mg then increased to 10 mg as the lower dose did not work on the paranoia.
Towards the end of March this year, 2017, I reduced the dose to 5 mg wrongly, not knowing that I should have done 7.5 first to avoid the horrible withdrawal symptoms.
At first, I thought everything was fine, the for the last two weeks, I started to feel depressed, lost interest in everything, got headaches, diarrhoea, strong vivid memories to when I was patronised, disrespected and put down by people. The worst of all are the violent and suicidal thoughts I have had during all this.
I would like to hear from those who had similar experiences with such symptoms and how long does it last?
Also, it will be helpful to know what is the best withdrawal plan from now on, shall I go for 2.5 gm after few months? Or shall I alternate between 5 mg and 2.5 mg for few weeks then go down to 2.5?
I am desperate to hear from people, so PLEASE help.
3 likes, 86 replies
MtViewCatherine Utopia
Posted
Hi Utopia, my mother wound up hosptalized from diabetic ketoacidosis while on this medication. Note that she was previously NOT diabetic. She was immediately taken off this medication and switched to Latuda. The diabetic ketoacedosis episode nearly killed her and I suspect she'd also had a stroke. My point is she was really a mess, so withdrawal symptoms were undiscernable from everything else.
I finally solved the the problem by taking her for alternative treatments and changing her environment, and tried taking her off the Latuda. Off that, she's had difficulty with her apetite. But with all the changes, she's had no sign of the mental illness, though certainly her brain was pretty fried from the hospital episode. Also, she's not functioning independently at all, so she has near constant help. Things that I feel make her feel safe are moving her to her own apartment with limited help, and no rotating personell, extremely good diet, and some therapy and regular TCM.
Shes had paranoia and mental illness her whole life without successful treatment, and the reason she was taking the psych meds was it was the only way we could keep her in assisted lived bc her paranoid accusations upset other residents.
In in her own apartment, she seems to become very anxious when alone, probably bc she's so used to aging my dad around, who's no longer living.
Also, I've dealt with her many other medical problems with natural and holistic solutions, and this seems to alleviate a lot of the mental disorders. Most recently, I guided her through some counseling to face childhood events and severe trauma, and was surprised by the profound effect this had on her sleeping, as she's never slept well, ever. For the first time, she slept through the night. She is nearing the end if her life at 86 years old.
I guess the point I'm making, is that for her, it was helpful to approach her illnesses holistically. She was so fragile, I feared she couldn't handle the side effects of the meds, and she had so much going on, that if you don't treat the whole body, you get bigger problems.
Sorry I don't have better info on withdrawal. Good luck to you.
Utopia MtViewCatherine
Posted
Than you for the response. It is really informative and detailed. What do you mean by TCM? I am also trying to do what I can with eating and being around people, but with the withdrawal symptoms I described it is not easy at all. I am suspicious of the smallest thing to be connected to my paranoia. I guess that is part of the withdrawal symptoms. I wonder if anyone has managed to come of this medication successduly? Please share the story.
MtViewCatherine Utopia
Posted
TCM= Traditional Chinese Medicine- this includes herbal remedies and acupuncture. Very helpful.
I also had her go to a chiropractor. It was a year before she started to be able to access her long term memory, and I've been working with her on counseling sessions as well. She's been having severe dementia, which as you can understand, makes counseling difficult, hence, when she's up to it, I work with her myself. This week, I noticed she was able to access her long term memory and was more with it. I worked with her on simple ideas along the line of completing business with childhood family members and was flabbergasted that she slept through the night for the first time ever. She's been extremely calm and much more lucid since. I guided her without judgement to take responsibility for her actions and to let go of blame for things that were out of her control, thankfulness, forgiveness, and saying how things done to her by others made her feel and affected her life. The physical results from this were unbelievably remarkable!
Also, because she was full diabetic, I had her on an extremely strict diet with no processed foods, no grains, no white sugar, minimal dairy, organic, fresh everything, cooked at home.
Sometimes trying to troubleshoot one problem isn't feasible. Instead, maybe address underlying causes of emotional disruptions and heal the whole body,mspirit and mind.
Well, that's what I did to help my mother. She was mentally ill her entire life and meds were minimally helpful. Maybe it was timing, I don't know. But it's something to consider.
bruce47310 MtViewCatherine
Posted
jeremy16659 Utopia
Edited
Hi utopia I was on olanzapine for nearly 20 years due to having had several psychotic episodes. They stopped of there own accord in 1999 but I stayed on the meds because I found it too difficult to come off them mainly because of the anxiety. I decided just over a year ago I had enough. I had put on weight even though I ate healthily and exercises and was only on 5mg of olanzapine. The worst thing though was a feeling of being detached from friends and family not being able to engage with people properly and feeling flat and emotionless most of the time. I really wouldn't have been bothered if I'd died there and then it would have been an end to the ordeal of life.
Anyway the thing that made me decide to come off it was reading forums like this and realisung that it wasn't the after effects of the illness causing this it was olanzapine.
I bought a pill cutter and reduced it first by a quarter for eight weeks then down to half a tablet for eight weeks and so on. It was tough but I started to feel normal as time went on. While on was reducing the meds I cut out caffeine reduced alcohol as this can make you feel worse and took 5htp which is a herbal anti depressant. Don't take this if you are on other anti depressants though! I really struggled to sleep and felt anxious but stuck with it. I also meditated 3 times a day that helps massively but as time goes on you dont need to do it as much.There's loads of guided meditation online and as you get better at it you can start to do it without being guided. It helps with anxiety and sleep but also helps you to feel a lot more positive.
It is a long process and it isn't easy but now a year later I am honestly the happiest i have ever been and will never be on it again. I hope this helps, any questions feel free to ask good luck and don't give up!
Utopia jeremy16659
Posted
Your message is really helpful and it gives me hope and optimisem. Sadly, I had to go back on 10 mg few days after the first relapse I had due to withdrawal symptoms. The dr decided to put me back on 10 mg to calm things down then to go down to 7.5 mg.
However, and after experiencing the terror withdrawals I decided to follow more careful plan which is to alternate 10 mg one day and 7.5 the following day.
I am yet to reach that stage and I have to wait for the 10 mg to work fully in my system.
May I ask you over how long have you cut down from 5mg to 0 mg? How did you cope with all of that and what have you used to ease things off. I know you mentioned that you take something but any other sources can be useful.
I used to try meditation but I cannot do it now as I am too nervous.
jeremy16659 Utopia
Posted
melvin11 jeremy16659
Posted
So nice to read of your success with all the doom and gloom of this forum.😉
I have twice come off Olanzapine. My mood was very elevated both times but I think this is because the med makes me depressed so coming off it is like letting the genie out of the bottle.
The shrink says I am late developing bi polar but I don't agree with that at all.
i have always been high spirited, quite different from " normal" people I guess.
i have tapered the drug to a minimum but feel I should not go to 0, but in my heart I want for nothing more. These days I am very level headed and can't imagine elated moods. It would be unethical to advise what I should do but did you go your own route?
cheers, Mel
maybefine Utopia
Edited
Hey.
I was on it for 6 years.
I'm coming off olanzapine for 12 months. I'm waiting to make a post on the 31st detailing my "journey". It's impossible to say how the 12 months passed, I was practically comatose. But yeah I read that traditionally you have to be coming off it, gradually over a period as long as how long you've been on it. But no way I was waiting 6 years to come off it, I have a life to live...? Anyway I can answer all your olanzapine related questions. I'm waiting till the end of May because I missed the 1st of May in terms of clearing the medicine, I have my own method. Got a bottle of champaign even for it...
Utopia maybefine
Posted
Thank you for the message. it is great to hear from people with similar experiences.
Can you tell me more about how you did it, as in the plan to taper? Also what withdrawal symptoms did you suffer, mine is psychotic symptoms which bother me the most. Suicide thoughts and thinking life is not worth living anymore.
It will be great to hear from you in detail on the 31st. I look forward to read it and hopefully find comfort in relating it to my experience.
maybefine Utopia
Edited
Yeah.
Well, I started optimistically and asked my mum to give me a year off from studying... But I was hoping to be sleeping well off the meds 2 weeks later. I'll have to do some recollecting and remembering at the end of the month but basically I would construct a 2 week proportional tapering. With a half cutter. At the end of the week I would find that I wasn't sleeping at all without it, I don't want to contradict what I will write later but basically if I did it all again I would get some kind of plan of tapering proportionally for a year. Cause that's how long it took and I don't have a proportional 365 degree cutter. But if someone can figure out how to do that I would go back and not go ballistic. I would take it some days, do endurance sleepless 2-3 days and go back on it again. I was on a regular 10mg dose which I reduced to 2.5 cause that's all I needed to sleep. I heard people can sometimes lick them to get the effect. But sleeplessness is the culprit. I would advice for you to plan at the rate of you're gonna be coming off it for 2*the number of years you've been on it in terms of months. So get drops and do the maths... I did it with just perseverence. If you can't sleep remember to have no plans to get out of bed. You don't need to sleep if you're just in bed, don't force your eyes shut, sometimes you will dose off. If you are luckier then me maybe you can be off the meds in 2 months sleeping 2 hours average a day. I kind of went head first. Also, "don't trust the voices" is something I read on the internet. Life is [ ] though... but the way I figure it, if life is what's bothering you then it's life's fault, I don't have the tendency of hurting myself, so I'm not gonna shoot myself am I... why would I buckle at life, I'd rather fight everyone else.
My symptoms were:
Sleeplessness, Psychosys, Extreme Acuity, Voices, Fear, Insane Dreams - in fact if you go off the meds with the hope of finally being off them and go back on the meds you might have some dreadful nightmares. It's fine though, oh and also body sensations but nothing visible and nothing coherent, I used to get those as a kid... it's cool...
Once off them, for about a week now, I'm sleeping my family wakes me but just the feeling of having done this it's a HUGE favour I've done for myself... tbh I don't think people are meant to come off this med, they don't offer a solution it's a tranquilizer. But if you do it, you're among the 1% that can, pat yourself on the back... GL. Gonna make that post with the champagne.
Emis Moderator comment: I have edited this post due to the swearing. These are open forums so as per the T&Cs please do not use offensive language in posts otherwise they may be deleted.
Utopia maybefine
Posted
Hi Jeremy,
I don't drink alcohol at all. I only have one cup of coffee a day. I am gonna try and take omega3 tablets from now until I go through withdrawals.
Sadly, as I said I had to go back on the 10 mg but I could not take the withdrawal symptoms when reducing to 5 mg.
In regard to withdrawal symptoms, where do I start! At first, I had very few symptoms but six weeks later I started to get very paranoid, that people looking at me. I got psychotic symptoms too, hearing voices, suicidal thoughts, violent thoughts and other awful ideations. I had diarrhoea, sweating, hot and cold flushes. Not much insomnia, but had one night where I could not sleep. The right side of my head felt as if things are moving inside it all the time. I got very angry quickly and snappy. And the list goes on.
After reading accounts on here, I realised that I had reduced too much in one go, that's why symptoms are hitting me the hardest.
Did you have any of these withdrawal symptoms when you reduced yours?
Thank you for the help.
jeremy16659 Utopia
Posted
I recovered from the psychosis many years ago so never have that side of it anymore. Maybe you should consider going onto some other meds to get you over this period if you are having those symptoms. The main thing is to get you off olanzapine because there are so many negative aspects to it and the longer you are on it here harder it is to get off it. So even of you end up on something else for a while it doesn't matter. The anger diarrhoea sweating and weird feelings in your head are normal. The withdrawals really are awful bit they will pass. The hardest thing for me was the insomnia and anxiety which lasted quite a while bit everyone is different. You just have to stick with it and keep going just cut down very slowly. If you don't succeed one time try again later on but just reduce it more slowly. There is no one way of reducing it some people manage to do it more quickly than others but just don't give up all together.
jeremy16659
Posted
Utopia jeremy16659
Posted
This is really helpful. As I failed in my first attempt to come off them, I am now waiting for things to calm down on 10 mg and I will try again but with very very slow taper plan. I will start doing that around the beginning of June as the dr advised me to stay on 10 mg for two for things to calm down first.
You have done a really great job to manage to come off them after 20 years. Also, it is great news that your psychosis has gone away, though many say this thing does not go away and stays for life.
jeremy16659 Utopia
Posted
Yeah I was very lucky I've had no symptoms for 18 years and they show no sign of coming back. It is very possible to recover from psychosis but the doctors don't like to tell you that in case you come off your meds.
ann55375 jeremy16659
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jeremy16659 ann55375
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Hi Ann sorry for the late reply. Please do yourself a favour don't go on olanzapine! It may stop your anxiety for a while but it numbs all your emotions and eventually erodes your personality till your scred to socialise with people because you gave nothing to say and you end up preferring your own company. Also if you try to come off it it's almost impossible because the anxiety comes back a hundred times worse along with mood swings, terrible insomnia, stomach cramps and diahorrea. The withdrawals are so bad you end up back on it until you have the guts to try again. I was on it for 20 years but my psychosis disappeared after 3 years. I spent the next 17 years stuck on it unable to really move forward with my life until last year I finally did it. I've found out since and you're going to think this a bit weird but a lot of my problems with anxiety and depression were caused by bad diet. The main change I made was giving up gluten. I now feel so much happier and don't have any anxiety. If I have it the anxiety comes back and I start to feel rough. Maybe try going to get tested to see if there's anything in your diet that could be causing your problems that you're intolerant to. Sounds strange but it's quite a common thing, Google it! Let me know how you get on and don't take olanzapine!
MtViewCatherine jeremy16659
Posted
Hi Jeremy, thanks for sharing your story. My mom went through a horrible diabetes hospitalization and effects from this. But was immediately pulled off this horrible drug because of the diabetic side effects.
Because of her existing thyroid condition and the diabetes, she's been on a gluten free, paleo diet since the episode, and has not experienced psychotic episodes since going off the meds. Not sure if this is due to getting the thyroid meds right and the diet, or due to the brain damage from the
Hospital event, or the change in living conditions.
She's very damaged from the hospital episode, as she is in her late 80s. I do feel she suffers from anxiety, and she's never slept well. I'm just trying to figure out how much of this is related to withdrawing from the medication and how much is due to her other medical conditions.
How long did the withdrawal symptoms of anxiety and lack of sleep last for you? Both of these can be hypothyroid symptoms as well.
jeremy16659 MtViewCatherine
Posted
They both lasted a few months quite severe for that time. The anxiety didn't go till I changed my diet and then the change was literally within a few days. I didn't believe it myself until I researched online and found it's a really common thing for gluten to cause anxiety and depression something I've suffered with from a young age. I just wish I'd realised years ago my life could have been so different but I'm also thankful that I'm now finally happy energetic and positive!
DrNoIdea007 Utopia
Posted
Hi, my son had to be re-medicated too. Of course Doctors didn't even recognise withdrawal symptoms - they just said he's relapsed (even thought he'd never had a psychotic episode before meds).
How long did it take you to get to normal back on 10mg? My son was put back on 7.5mg and now they've upped it to 20mg?! Unbelievable. He's still not back to 'normal' and it's been a few weeks.
bruce47310 DrNoIdea007
Posted
But just as you need to taper off gradually, you also need to increase the dose gradually.
Otherwise there WILL be problems.
Hope this helps.
bruce47310 jeremy16659
Posted