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schizophrenia side efects. Anyone had these symptoms

Posted , 2 users are following.

blackberry7
blackberry7

My first attack was back in the year 2000. then again in 2004, Since then i have been very very lucky and stayed stable on my medication (olanzapine). I have been taking a low does for some years now. Anway around twice a years i get this terrible headache that the best i can discribe is, As if my brain is loose inside my skull and banging against my skull, it also seems to produce a clear fluid noise discharge. Its not a simple headache or cold as i know my own body as we all do and it realy is a side effect of the attacts i used to have. A few times i have mentioned this to my doctors  and the mental health team and they seem to have never herd of it before so tell me i have a virus, Well once again this week the doctors told me the same and i fell like they are treating me as though im stupid so i have posted on here to see if any suffers have ever had the same effect. Ho when this happens one side of my face can drop a little and my eye a bit like Bell's palsy. This has happened for 15 years now, why can the doctors not understand im not getting the same virus 2 times a years for 15 years.Same old story, people with mental health problems are so alone.

0 likes, 3 replies

3 Replies

  • lily65668
    lily65668 blackberry7

    Posted

    Blackberry, have you tried going to A&E (ER if you're in the US) while you're actually having one of these attacks that involve facial paralysis? I think they might take you seriously if they saw the evidence.

    Your post isn't very clear, so I'm struggling to work out whether you feel these attacks are a side-effect of your medication (which is entirely possible - olanzapine is potentially nasty stuff) or of the original condition for which it was prescribed. If it's the latter, then it's doubly important that you get yourself to a hospital while an attack is in progress. There's a small possibility that you've been suffering from a neurological condition all alone, which was producing symptoms of schizophrenia. (That being said, it's highly unlikely you have a brain tumour as you almost certainly wouldn't have lasted 15 years.)

    If you're in the UK, you do actually have a right to insist that your GP refer you to a specialist - a neurologist in your case - though many GPs try to wriggle out of this one to keep costs down and meet their targets. But again, doctors in general are very wedded to the scientific method, which can mean that if they don't see a symptom with their own eyes they won't believe the patient. (I'm a former neuro-trained NHS nurse, btw.)

    I still think the best course of action is to wait until you get another attack that involves visible physical weakness, then go straight to A&E, even if it's the middle of the night.

    • blackberry7
      blackberry7 lily65668

      Posted

      Thank you for your reply and how clearly you have made it. I belive the symptoms to be part of the schizophrenia problem. On my first attack while i was in hospital for 3 months with the condition i was seen by theneurological department who said it was not neurological although i do have a open mind. Sorry i am uk based. I would love to think they got it all wrong but i realy was a classical case  with all the thoughts and fears. when this happens to me i can not be in groups of people as group talking clouds my mind as if they are muttering and i can not hear them properly.
    • lily65668
      lily65668 blackberry7

      Posted

      Hmm... I'm still wondering whether a doctor of any kind has actually seen you while you were having an attack of facial weakness. In my experience, that would always be taken seriously. I didn't train as a psychiatric nurse but I've never heard of schizophrenia producing neurological symptoms like this. I have, however, cared for a number of patients whose neurological lesions - particularly when located in the temporal lobes - produced what appeared to be classic schizophrenia.

      I'm also wondering whether you've tried specific schizophrenia forums, not just on this site. People who suffer from any chronic condition - whether physical or mental - often know a lot more about it than the doctors! In the meantime, I still don't think it would do any harm to get yourself to A&E next time you get this facial weakness.

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