LACK OF MOTIVATION/NEGATIVE SYMPTOM/AVOLITION ANTIPSYCHTOICS

THERE IS A STUDY I CAN GIVE YOU THE LINK TO THAT PROVES THE ANITPSYCHTOICS CAN CAUSE NEGATIVE SYMPTOMS OF SZ. I THINK A LOT OF PPL WITH SZ THINK THEY ARE EXPERIENCING THIS FROM THEIR ILLNESS WHEN IT COULD BE CAUSED, OR MADE WORSE BY THE AP'S.
I am bipolar, and the only type of drug that stops my depression, mania/psychosis is the antipsychtoics. Since I have been on them I have no initiative. I can't shower, clean, and can hardly cook. Shower once every week or so if I force myself. THis drug is causing it ..I never had any of this before these drugs. I have tried Zyperxa, Respiridal, Seroqiul, Abilify, and I am on Invega. Can anybody help? They seem to block the dopemine that makes motivation!! I also can hardly leave the house.

Actually I have this experience 2 months after stopping taking them. I cannot feel any emotions, I don't feel anything. I don't want to do anything. It's terrible but it is not a depression because I can go to work. If I continue to feel like this I don't see the point. What if my emotions don't come back. I'm sure this has been caused by the medication as I never had this problem before. I didn't even take that much of it.

If you have concerns about your meds you should talk to your Dr and see if they can find a more appropriate mix for you. I understand that it is frustrating as I have been there but you can get the balance.

Cracked

The emptiness, the numbness... the thought of it terrifies me more than anything else. I am not yet taking anti-psychotic medication for my schizophrenia yet I am already beginning to feel nothing... the idea that this could be enhanced or that I could be permanently made this way scares me.

I would rather feel anything than to feel nothing... is this a common side effect? I need to learn more, before I decide to take anything.

Koopa wrote:is this a common side effect?

It depends on the medication and upon the person. I have been on some medications that have enhanced this "emptiness" feeling. My current medication regime does not do this at all.

I can confirm that the anti-psychotic is causing or making the negative symptom worse for schizophrenia. I have been on and off the medication for the last 5 years. Whenever I come off and recover from the effect I feel my life has a drive or purpose, my mind becomes very sharp, and things become easier and not much of a hassle, I could take care of myself, and my brain becomes very efficient in solving problems and performing tasks. I have tried risperidone, abilify, solian, invega before coming off. Now that I got started with risperidone several months ago I start to notice my negative symptom coming back and worse, my memory was bad, I lost fluency in my speech (they take it as the illness and not the med), keep forgetting things in mid-sentence, my mind was a fog, I couldn't understand what anybody was saying to me as well as nothing sinks in when I turn on the tally, I couldn't concentrate for any longer than 10 minutes. For these months I didn't have a life and was constantly asleep in the day, feeling like crap, lousy even, I slept for more than 13 hours and still feels tired and no energy. Not to mention the physical side effect apart from the cognitive side effect such as my body's temperature control goes haywire, uncomfortable constipation for a month, muscle cramps, gained weight (fat/water weight), body feels weak etc. I can honestly say that the treatment is worst than the illness, and it made my life more difficult and unbearable at times. I can't imagine anyone having to take the med for years and years and years, but unfortunately, according to the psychiatric profession people have to take it for that long or for life in the misguided notion that people with schizophrenia have a high chance of relapse and that this is an incurable disease that needs you to keep taking medication to act as prevention from it. I have heard that the brain can adjust to it but you could never become brilliant while on anti-psychotics.

angelbeatz wrote:I can confirm that the anti-psychotic is causing or making the negative symptom worse for schizophrenia. I have been on and off the medication for the last 5 years. Whenever I come off and recover from the effect I feel my life has a drive or purpose, my mind becomes very sharp, and things become easier and not much of a hassle, I could take care of myself, and my brain becomes very efficient in solving problems and performing tasks. I have tried risperidone, abilify, solian, invega before coming off. Now that I got started with risperidone several months ago I start to notice my negative symptom coming back and worse, my memory was bad, I lost fluency in my speech (they take it as the illness and not the med), keep forgetting things in mid-sentence, my mind was a fog, I couldn't understand what anybody was saying to me as well as nothing sinks in when I turn on the tally, I couldn't concentrate for any longer than 10 minutes. For these months I didn't have a life and was constantly asleep in the day, feeling like crap, lousy even, I slept for more than 13 hours and still feels tired and no energy. Not to mention the physical side effect apart from the cognitive side effect such as my body's temperature control goes haywire, uncomfortable constipation for a month, muscle cramps, gained weight (fat/water weight), body feels weak etc. I can honestly say that the treatment is worst than the illness, and it made my life more difficult and unbearable at times. I can't imagine anyone having to take the med for years and years and years, but unfortunately, according to the psychiatric profession people have to take it for that long or for life in the misguided notion that people with schizophrenia have a high chance of relapse and that this is an incurable disease that needs you to keep taking medication to act as prevention from it. I have heard that the brain can adjust to it but you could never become brilliant while on anti-psychotics.

I can relate to a lot of this and I am not even on medication yet (aside from physical symptoms). This is very concerning, thank you for taking the time to let me know about this. This is going to require a lot more thought -- especially since I hate anything that effects my mind.

angelbeatz wrote:I can confirm that the anti-psychotic is causing or making the negative symptom worse for schizophrenia.

Each person's body is different there is no way to confirm that this is the case. Only the person who can determine this is the individual taking the medication

angelbeatz wrote:according to the psychiatric profession people have to take it for that long or for life in the misguided notion that people with schizophrenia have a high chance of relapse and that this is an incurable disease that needs you to keep taking medication to act as prevention from it.

.
Schizophrenia is not an incurable disease. Approximately 25-30% of people diagnosed with schizophrenia fully recover. There are several peer reviewed articles that you can look up which state this. Not all people diagnosed with schizophrenia need to take medications for the rest of their lives.