Quetiapine 100mgs going into 3rd night

Hi Lynne, I have bi-polar an am on Quetiapine. A mood stabalizer should of also been prescribed called Lamotrigine. This is essential. This medication must be increased slowly from 50mg up to 100 to 200mg.  Lamotrigine is actually an anti-epilectic drup, but works very well with mood disorders, and thereby compliments Quetiapine. If you are feeling very anxious also ask for something fast acting like Rivotril (Clonazepam, which will take the edge off things until Seroquel kicks in. Seroquel has saved my life on two occations, where other mdeication failed and was very toxic. Good luck Rob

Hi Lynne,

I'm not bipolar, I get schizo-affective disorder and dissociation. I've been on quetiapine for 18 months and take 180mg a day. I find it keeps me very stable and 'normal', and I'm so grateful for it. It does take a couple of weeks to reach its full effect. Now that time has passed, how do you feel on it now? Is it keeping you stable?

Also, I find it knocks me clean out at night and I sleep like a rock. Does it do the same to you?

Hi Lynne, great to hear you doing well.

Weight gain, which can be up to 40% of your normal weight is quiet normal.

I try and keep my weight down by reducing my carbs, no pasta, bread etc, and forcing myself to go for bisk walks, its a real effort to start but it gets easier.

Great that you are on quetiapine and responding well. Yip you will sleep very well. The 12 hours thing lasts for awhile then levels out to +-8, but one feels still a little groggy for the fist few hours say to 10am. If you struggling a place that yuou can have 30mins nap. Im lucky I have my own business so I can just pass out anywhere. 100mg of quetiapine is still pretty low, but the lithium is spot on. I am on 200mg quetiapine. I also found lithium made me put on a bit of weight and I was taken off it and my quetiapine increased. Well done, keep going strong! Rob

Hi Lynne, thanks for the reply, sounds like you comming along nicely. I found just acknowledging the side effect, then move on and dont dwell on it. I have recently been really anxious since I heard the death of Robin Williams, as he was also a suffer of bi-polar. My last sucide attempt ended in one of the roof rafters breaking, as I weigh 140kg (lucky I weigh so mucg) so I been thinking, with all his money and success he still surcumbed to the incredible lows that bi-polar suffers go through. So again I went through my relapse plan to enforce some sort of confidence. 1. Dailey monitor your self, write it down in a dairy, I rate myself from 0 being normal (what is normal lol) to +5 for maina, and -5 for the lowest of the lows. If I find I am either a +2 or a -2 I phone my phyciatrist straight away. I check that I havent been overdoing my work and being pacing myself, and check my nutrision and also make sure I have had enough sleep. Mental illness is a terrible thing to have, and its pain is worse than any phsical pain that I've had. If you have a chance check out a movie called Mr. Jones. This is just like me, except I am not as good looking! Also the most important thning is to take your meds on time, the same time every day, try and almost get it to the hour. Also remove yourself from any stress, easier said than done. I had my mother-in-law staying with me, and I found her too stressfull so I chased her out one night, in the process I fell down the stairs and dislocated my foot...lol...but I feel so much better that shes gone. She was also one of those f..ing fools that believe that you dont need medicine that you can heal yourself. What a joke I told her, its just like diabetise, I mean can youn heal yourself from diabetise....well you have all kinds, and dont expect anyone whom doesnt have a mental illness to understand what you going through. Look after yourself and keep smiling, Rob