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canada99
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09 Nov 2011, 8:01 am

hi

prior to being dx as asperger, i was on zyprexa for issues.
my doctor stopped the zyporexa and started me on 5mg abilify

i still have times every few weeks where i get confused thinking, which is called psychosis, not full blown but requires meds.

the doc gave me zyprexa to use as required.

i see that abilify is an anti-psychotic, but not a SSRI like zyprexa is

is this correct that abilify may not help with all psychosis, and require a ssri like zyprexa ?
i als see that asbilify is not to be used for unipolar depression, which is part of the dx.
the abilify was for anxiety, nothing for depression, ativan, and now zyprexa added back in the mix.


just want to see if this makes sense to other pp
thx



gramirez
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09 Nov 2011, 10:06 am

Zyprexa is NOT an SSRI. It is an atypical antipsychotic.


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cathylynn
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09 Nov 2011, 12:44 pm

zyprexa is the worst drug among the atypical antipsychotics for causing weight gain. abilify, in the same class is not so bad on that front. you are on a very low dose of abilify. if i were you (and i'm not a doctor, this is just what i would advocate for myself with my doc), i'd try to get on more abilify and less zyprexa. if you are depressed, adding an actual antidepressant would seem reasonable.

i am on loxapine, an older antipsychotic which is metabolized into an antidepressant. it does the whole ball of wax for me, including helping me sleep. i couldn't be happier with this drug. as for the side effects docs worry about, i'd rather have tardive dyskinesia (uncontrollable tongue movements) than weight gain and diabetes, which can kill me. the older drugs are also far cheaper and just as effective