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My wife was prescribed Zyprexa since the Fall of 2001, and in combination with Prozac. She also takes Klonopin to help her sleep (leg kicking). She has taken antidepressants for thirty years, and has been on prozac, zoloft, wellbutrin, buspar, and others. Recently I read Dr. Glenmullen's (Harvard Psychiatry) book, Prozac Backlash. I'm afraid I already see my wife's symptoms: tremor of the lips, trembling of the hands, and lack of energy, focus, a sort of lethargy, which we thought was the depression intensifying. I'm begining to believe she has neurological damage, and recently took her to a neurologist. I'm hoping to be able to get her off these drugs to checkout whether the depression would come back without them, but the last thing her present doctor did was to refer her to an ECT specialist because she (the psychiatrist) has diagnosed my wife as "refractive" to antidepressants (nothing seems to help very much).

I'm afraid she no longer suffers from depression but from medication cocktail side effects and neurological problems.

If anybody has similar experiences, please let us know.

Thank you,

Nick

Hi, i just found this board. i apoligize in advance for any misspellings, or gramatical errors. im a 27 year old male. ive been on zyprexa for 2 years now, along with zoloft. im seeing a pychritrist for depression, panic attacks, obessive thinking, the works. with these meds, people would never even know my problems. when my doctor put me on these meds, call me stupid...........but i was under the impression that there were NO harmful side effect, short or long term. when the meds kicked in, my appetite kicked back in, i started eating more. im healthy, been going to the gy,m for over 6 years now. i was at 165 pounds. withing 6 months, i ballooned up to my top of 207. oh, im 5'8 sorry. 40 pounds in 6 months!! thats when my doctor informed me that zyprexa causes weight gain, that your metabolism slows down. now, i wont lie, it has been extremely effectice with me. but at what cost i am now asking myself. i just learned the other day, my blood glucose has evaveted. in 2 years, from 89 to now 136. i have all but stopped taking zyprexa (on my own, i do feel i will need it in the future) ive managed to get back down to about 170 pounds. now im getting really scared to be honest. reading about people with diabetes, dying from taking it. and my doc last fri, informed me just now it may cause diabetes. wow, was i shocked. long story short. im seeing my family doctor wednsday april 23. i have alot of questions. and im going to really eveluate my medication intake. i thought these meds were supposed to help. im not sure of that now. ive learned alot in the past few days, and hope someone else can learn from my experience with zyprexa. in my opinion, you have to weigh it out. i feel "normal" now. my thinking is clear, i get through the day like everyone else. i just hope that i have not done any irreversable damage to my body from taking this drug for the past 2 years. oh, by the way. ive been on zyprexa for 2 years. ive been taking 15 mgs a day. i tried risperdal, but it didnt work for me. so im back on zyprexa. i only take a fraction of what im presricred now, like i said before, at my own desrection. and wow, i feel the effects. take 10 mgs at night, im out. have trouble driving in the morning to work. 2 weeks ago, i actaully pulled into a parking lot, and went to sleep. i felt unsafe to drive. and i have an extremly high tolerance to drugs. hope this helsp someone. thanks. sean

Hello,

I just found this site.  I was taking Zyprexa, besides the weight gain I had other unsuaul side effects.  That is why I stopped taking Zyprexa on my own.  My Shrink put me on Geodon, (a low dose).  I gained about thirty pounds taking Zypreza.  I stopped taking it and the weight came off.  Besides the side effects this stuff is expensive.

Gobllin

I had a Phsycotic episode about 5 years ago. My Phsyc put me on Zyrexa. I gained weight right away and you think I can shake it! I developed stomach aches over the last few years and it appears that I am now becoming (or always have been and didn't know), Gluten intolerant.

I have been reading about Autism and Gluten. Seems as though there is some sort of a connection here. My doctor told me that it was a small cyst in my brain that caused the episode. However I am thinking that the Gluten may have caused it.

Any comments from other users?

I hate this medication it makes me so lazy. However I still am continuing to take it in small doses.

However I will have to change this message. I have found out since making this message. I am definetly allergic to Gluten and after being off the Gluten for a period of time. I feel abslolutely wonderful! It wasn't the Zyprexa that was causing the problems I don't think. I have a new outlook on life. I recommend to anyone taking this drug that they ask their doctor about a Gluten free diet.

I just can't believe the difference. I feel 20 years younger! I have also talked to my doctor and he says that I need to take the Zyprexa to sleep, because I feel so much better that I find I don't need as much.

I am from Russia. Zyprexa helps my dauther. She takes it 5 months.
How many $ Zyprexa costs in your country? Send me nick_60_h@pochta.ru.

Hello, I just found this site and a am so glad. I have only been taking zyprexa for 3 or 4 month now and i was searching the net to find out how to lose weight from this drug. I have gained 35lbs since and i cant get it off. If anybody can help i would appreciate it. Also my hands anf feet feel like they will burst from the swelling. Right now my hands a so swollan i can hardly close them into a fist. I am also worried about diabetes since i have read some of your post. The zeprexa has really helped me though i am also taking wellbutrin and efexor as well. I was told i have bi-polor and common depression. When my doc. put me on this he didnt tell me for about 2 weeks it would make me gain weight and when i seen him last month and he seen how much ive gained he said get it off cause im afraid it may cause you to  get diabetes. He left it at that. I am constantly eating sweets now is that a sign  of diabetes? Sorry for talking so long! Vanessa

Here is my husband's story.

in 2001my husband had been having problems with work which seemed to flare up his depression, which he was diagnosed as having a few years before.(depression and obsessive compulsive disorder)  He was rediagnosed as being manic depressive.  For the next few months he was changing different drug therapies and then found one that seemed to work.  Then after his visit with his psych in I think mid July or early August of 2001 he added Zyprexa.  I asked my husband why he was getting this drug in addition to what he was taking and he said the doc said it would make him feel even better.  I looked up the drug and read that it was used for schizophrenia.  Well I thought the dr. was nuts because I knew my husband wasn't schizophrenic.   At that time I did not read about any side effects of Zyprexa nor were we told about any.  In any case, very soon after taking the new drug, my husband started sleepwalking.  I thought this had something to do with the new drug (Zyprexa) hew was taking. He told his counselor and the doc about it, and they said it wasn't because of the Zyprexa.  Then he started complaining about being thirsty and we realized that was why he was sleepwalking.  He was getting up to drink and then had to go to the bathroom.  I was really worried because my husband would be so disoriented when these episodes happen and would wander all around the house looking for the bathroom, I was afraid he might wander outside. Still the dr said the drug had nothing to do with this.  His hands also started to tremble so much it was hard to hold silverware to eat.

Then in September, my husband was able to finally go back to work after nine months of being off.  He was drinking more and more and wasn't really eating, because all he wanted to do was drink something.  On Tuesday, his 2nd day of work he came home and said he just did not feel good at all.  Wednesday, his 3rd day of work, when I came home I found him laying on the couch because he was feeling so bad.  We had called his dr, but the dr did not call back.  My husband was very reluctant to miss work the next day because he just started the job, so he went back in.  The next day was the same thing and we went to see the dr that afternoon.  There is my husband sitting in the dr. office drinking out of a 2 liter bottle filled with water because he couldn't get enough of it, and the dr. still had no clue what the problem was.  Fortunately my husband had just had some bloodwork done (because when you take certain drugs, they want to know the level) and the dr called the hospital to get the results.  Then he tells us that we should go to the emergency room and they will flush out his system and he will probably feel better.  He said not to be alarmed, it wasn't an emergency or anything.  Well when we left the dr office, we actually had a discussion about not going to emergency that nite, to wait for the weekend, because my husband didn't want to miss work, and after all, according to the dr. it wasn't an emergency.  I convinced him to go and see what they would be doing to him and we could decide from there.  Well that is when we found out his sugar level was over 1000.  Still, not knowing anything about diabetes, my husband asked if he could just go home and come back the next nite, so he didn't have to miss work.  That is when the er dr quietly explained that well, sure we could go home, but my husband's sugar level was so high he could have a heart attack, or go into a coma.  So he decided he should stay. 

We had no clue about diabetes.  There is no one in his family that had it.  I was always convinced the drug Zyprexa was the reason why he became diabetic.  Now three years later, he is still having trouble keeping his sugar level down.  He is on two different pills and also injecting with insulin.  His doctor says he has some kidney damage from the diabetes. 

The psych he was seeing, still didn't think there was any connection and wouldn't take him off the drug.  Finally my husband went to another psych who said he was being over medicated (he was taking 4 meds for his depression)and started him with the essential drugs that he needed.  He is now down to two med for the depression and is still doing fine with it.  Well, damage already done with Zyprexa.  I am so glad that something is being done about it.  Zyprexa may help people, but they should be monitored and warned about the side effects and damage that could occur.

My son is bipolar and took this drug for a little over a year.He was on  a high dose of 15 mg per day.When the doctor wanted to put him on this drug, I asked about the side effects.I was told that he had less than a one in a million chance of developing a movement disorder.I read recently it could be as high as 1 in 20 for this class of drug.I kept telling his doctor that he was too sedated and that he was doing odd things such as constantly having to tap things.It didn't matter if it was with his foot,his hand,whatever,he just had to do it.He had problems writing to the point he completely stopped altogether.He would not read as he complained about his eyes.He slept at least 12 hours a night.He was rocking back and forth alot too.When we switched doctors,my son was to the point that no one could understand what he was saying at all and he had started to drool at times.He was there only in body, not in mind.The new doctor cut his dose in half for 7 days and then we were not to give it to him anymore.My son had severe withdrawals...or what we thought were withdrawls.He couldn't sit still.That was almost 3 months ago.The doctor told us last week that the former doctor got 'carried" away with my sons dosage and that now he has a movement disorder.This new doctor will not treat him until after a workup from a neurologist,so my child is not on any medicines now as this new doctor took him off his depakote also.The medicines they gave him to stop the movement have not worked.The 1st appointment the neurologist has is in June 2005.So thanks to this "wonder drug" my son now has to drink from sports bottles or sippy type cups because he cannot hold a drink without spilling it everywhere.We have to be right beside him everywhere he goes as he runs into everything from the movement.Since he has come off this drug though, he reads and tries to write and he is playing video games and can sit and watch movies.These are things he had not done since he went on the medicine.
Please please be careful with this drug.

I can recommend a reputable pharmacy (Zyprexa) - www.24tabs.org I received the order and it was on time and the pills work great.