What can I do to help with the side effects of Abilify?
I have been experiencing awful akathisia from this medication, along with insomnia and a bit of anxiety. It seems I always have to be moving, pacing, swaying, flexing my muscles or something to satisfy this sense of inner restlessness. It is torture. Help!
To clarify (sorry I didn’t think to do this before), I am on Abilify in order to amplify the results of the Lexapro I am also on. I am currently taking 10 mg of Lexapro and 2 mg of Abilify daily to aid with depression and anxiety. I have been on Lexapro since the beginning of September and Abilify for about a month now.
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Unfortunately the side effects that you are experiencing are pretty common with the drug, aripiprazole (Name Brand-Abilify). Some people are able to adjust to the medication after a period of time and will see a reduction in these side effects, enough so that they are able to continue with the drug regimen. However, just like with all drugs, there are some groups of people that cannot adjust to the medication or are just simply intolerant to the drug, and will therefore have to be taken off of the drug and switched to something else.
I would first want to know what you condition that you have in which you are being treated with Abilify? For example is it for Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia or an amplifier to anti-depressant medications that you are taking? Also it would be helpful to know how long you have been on the drug and at what dosages are you taking the drug in and how frequently. Also, if you take any other medications or drugs (legal or illegal, including alcohol and tobacco), then that would be helpful to know as well.
Can you fill in some of those blanks? Without that info, it is difficult to point you in the correct direction. All I could tell you to do is to discuss it with the prescribing doctor or you could call your pharmacist to see if he or she could recommend something OTC which will not interfere with any medications you are currently taking, or any other substances you may take.
EDIT: Ok, so you really not have been on either drug for a great deal of time, especially the Abilify. Again, I do not know your medical history, age, physical condition, etc. so all I can do is generalize here. One would want to believe that your doctor did weigh the benefits of you being on both of these medications against the possible cons, and still thought that it was the right combination for you to try. Now, with that being said, we all know that many doctors do not have the luxury afforded to them these days to spend with each of their patients to really study their specific case and go over it in great detail before an appointment (not like several decades ago). It is just the way it is. So, it is possible that these are just your doctor’s standard drug combo treatment that he starts all of his or her patients on whom present with depression.
I would suggest giving your pharmacist a call tomorrow of sometime this week if you can and discussing the symptoms you are experiencing with them, as they are going to have more time to devote to you and in most cases they are going to have a borader knowledge base when it comes to pharmacological issues. My other suggestion (and this is with the blessing of your pharmacist, because again, I do not have your medical charts to reference here) is to stick with the combo for another few months. It can take a good three months of being on these anti-depressant drugs before you get some goof therapeutic effects and before you are able to adjust to not be so bothered by the side effects. If after a few more months you are still having these issues and they have remained unchanged, then it is time to meet back up with your doctor and discuss some other options. Also, if you find that your symptoms worsen as time goes on, then you should go ahead and get in with your doctor as soon as possible, because it may be that you are intolerant to one or both of these drugs, and if that is the case then your symptoms may worsen as time passes instead of lessen.
I wish I could offer you more help or insight, but when it comes to depression and many disorders in the pysch world, it is just so much trial and error. It can take so much time to arrive at the right combination of drugs and at the right doses which are effective at helping someone who suffers from depression, bipolar disorder, etc. This is why so many patients get discouraged and want to just throw in the towel and say to hell with it all-nothing is going to help me. Just try to hang in there, and remember when you go to your doctor, you are the customer-you are paying for a service, so do not be afraid to speak up and voice your concerns and ask about other medications.
Good Luck to you
February 27th, 2010 at 7:01 pm