Risperdal side effects (psychiatrist, vision, medication, Risperidone)

[Cali_Okie_Girl]

i just started this med (i have a mild form of aspergers) and i have blurred vision and my eyes seem to wonder! is this normal? also as a young teen and going to school being thin is very important to me. i read that weight gain is a side effect. on .025 miligrams is that a chance or no?..please give me info!! thanks so much!!

someone please respond! im really scared..as Kathy said .025 wont do anything but i just want to make sure..so please respond!

[jessiegirl_98]

Originally Posted by Cali_Okie_Girl

i just started this med (i have a mild form of aspergers) and i have blurred vision and my eyes seem to wonder! is this normal? also as a young teen and going to school being thin is very important to me. i read that weight gain is a side effect. on .025 miligrams is that a chance or no?..please give me info!! thanks so much!!

someone please respond! im really scared..as Kathy said .025 wont do anything but i just want to make sure..so please respond!

Please contact your doctor ASAP to check on this. Also, call a pharmacy (like Walgreens or CVS) as they are open 24 hours and can give you advice now on what to do.

[karen_s]

I'm so sorry you are having side effects. Definitely call your pharmacist immediately, they are experts in drugs even more so than physicians. My pharmacist always gives great advice. Then call your doc as soon as office hours start and report that you are having this side effect.

I assume you have been prescribed this for its mood stabilizing effects. My son also has Asperger's and Risperdal was once suggested to him, but he is an athlete and the weight gain is actually what made him decide against trying it. In my son's doc's experience, weight gain occurs in a vast majority of patients who take Risperdal for any length of time. I understand how you would want to avoid any weight gain at this time in your life.

After much trial and error, we found that large doses of Omega 3's stabilize my son's mood more than any prescription medication can do. He sees a DAN! doctor (stands for Defeat Autism Now) and that doc prescribed him a whole bunch of vitamins/supplements instead of prescription meds. Maybe you could see someone like that?

Good luck!

[brokencrayola]

I have 3 son's with Asperger's and 2 of them are on Risperdal. The side affect they have had is some weight gain. Both were very thin, too thin really. One gained more weight than the other, but not too much.

[Pikantari]

Hello Okie Calie Girl. My daughter has Aspergers, very high functioning, and has taken Risperdal in the past. I do think it caused a bit of weight gain on her.

For her, the medication was effective for a good while, then we had to switch to something else. Seems that every few years, in my daughters instance, this is what we are having to do.

I do think that if you stay active, this may not be a problem for you.

Blurred vision is not normal, you need to let a parent know and get some proper medical attention. It could be the medication, could be something else....

Good luck to you!

Robyn

[GLS]

Originally Posted by Cali_Okie_Girl

i just started this med (i have a mild form of aspergers) and i have blurred vision and my eyes seem to wonder! is this normal? also as a young teen and going to school being thin is very important to me. i read that weight gain is a side effect. on .025 miligrams is that a chance or no?..please give me info!! thanks so much!!

someone please respond! im really scared..as Kathy said .025 wont do anything but i just want to make sure..so please respond!

Sharing your experience with BOTH your pharmacist and your physician is essential. I emphasize both because some people tend to gather information from their pharmacist, and make a decision without involving the physician. They may make the excuse that they don't want to "bother" the physician, can't get through because his/her office is too busy, or don't want to spend the money, i.e. the pharmacist's advice is free. The pharmacist can help educate you on potential side effects, and will help you gather data to share with your physician that will include or exclude the medication as the possible cause of your symptoms. Obviously, you and the physician can work together in reviewing this data to come to a decision about a treatment plan.

Here is an example of the first part of the equation in how your pharmacist will assist you:

1. The pharmacist will probably need to clarify the accuracy of your dose.
I suspect your post is incorrect in listing ".025mg" as your dose. You are
probably incorrect by a 10 fold factor in that the most common and
lowest starting dose is .25mg/day, and the manufacturer's lowest dose
tablet is .25mg. The pharmacist will proceed to clarify your dosing
frequency which you didn't specify. Many patients are started on a
twice daily schedule to minimize side effects. Taking .25mg twice daily
generally produces less side effects than .5mg once a day. If you are
only taking .25mg daily this is important information. If you are having
ocular side effects at this very low dose, you are extremely sensitive,
and your physician needs to know you will probably not be able to
tolerate higher doses that are necessary for a therapeutic response.

2. The pharmacist will question you about the timeframe of the appearance
of the blurred vision you describe. Obviously, if the symptoms predate
starting the medication, they are not side effects. This helps the
physician explore potential medical problems vs the drug being the
culprit.

3. If you noticed vision changes soon after starting the medication, the
pharmacist may inquire if you noticed any other changes. For example,
did you notice any dizziness or fast heart beats, especially after you
have been lying down or sitting and get up quickly. This is referred to as
orthostatic hypotension, and is a much more common side effect of
risperidone than ocular side effects which only occur in 2 to 3% of
patients.

Another question may be, have you noticed any muscle twitching or
stiffness. Involuntary muscle movements or EPS is again more common
than ocular side effects. You can see that having more than one
symptom of vision change may help your physician determine if
risperidone is the problem.

4. The Pharmacist will proceed to look at your medication records to see if
there are other medications that could be causing the side effects or
if a combination of medications is the problem. For example, many
patients first started on risperidone complain of neck or muscle stiffness.
Some physicians, instead of discontinuing the risperidone add a second
drug such as Cogentin. Drugs in this category help with the stiffness,
but more commonly cause vision side effects. The pharmacist can help
you identify if a second drug is the cause, even though the risperidone
may not be the direct cause. This is valuable information to share with
your physician.

I could give you other specific examples, but this post is already too long.
The general point is to rely upon your pharmacist as educator and to help you gather clinically significant information. You will now be a more informed
partner in working with your physician to develop a treatment plan best suited to you.

[Roselvr]

Originally Posted by Cali_Okie_Girl

i just started this med (i have a mild form of aspergers) and i have blurred vision and my eyes seem to wonder! is this normal? also as a young teen and going to school being thin is very important to me. i read that weight gain is a side effect. on .025 miligrams is that a chance or no?..please give me info!! thanks so much!!

someone please respond! im really scared..as Kathy said .025 wont do anything but i just want to make sure..so please respond!

You need to speak to your doctor, or have your parent do it. Have you said something to your parent?

Not everyone gains weight with risperdal, my daughter didn't. It actually worked pretty good for her for a year or so, but stopped because it was hurting her stomach.

If you were my daughter I would not give you the meds until I spoke to the doctor. Stopping it was no big deal, it was not something you have to be weaned from..

If you are reading the pharmacy inserts, please stop.
You have to remember that they put things there that may only apply to certain people, say where weight is already an issue in the family, there are genetics for it.

If I read the inserts for meds I am on, I am sure I never would have taken them to begin with, but when you have a medical illness, you have to try the meds to see if they work for the specific problem you have. If while taking it, your body changes (stomach problems when you didn't have any, or blurred vision like you say you have) then you tell your parent, and they read the side effects.

I am on one med that I now notice my eye focus is not like it used to when I look someone in the eye to talk to them, but I am not going to stop taking it because the other benefits are worth it.

When was the last time you had your eyes checked?
Next, it is possible they put you on too high of a dose? How many times per day are you taking it?

[kiggerbabe]

Originally Posted by Cali_Okie_Girl

i just started this med (i have a mild form of aspergers) and i have blurred vision and my eyes seem to wonder! is this normal? also as a young teen and going to school being thin is very important to me. i read that weight gain is a side effect. on .025 miligrams is that a chance or no?..please give me info!! thanks so much!!

someone please respond! im really scared..as Kathy said .025 wont do anything but i just want to make sure..so please respond!

ok im in highschool and ive been taking resperdal for two years and i weighed 115 and was 5'6 ok now im 5'6 and weigh 130 ive recentely
stopped taking resperdal and ive lost all the weight.still eating the same
But i was on 2mm so that might be a little different. But when i got on the drug my physichion told me there were no side effects so i didnt know
i gained weight cause of the drug.But your only on .025 so that might be diffrent for you.But i suggest to get off.

[GLS]

Originally Posted by kiggerbabe

ok im in highschool and ive been taking resperdal for two years and i weighed 115 and was 5'6 ok now im 5'6 and weigh 130 ive recentely
stopped taking resperdal and ive lost all the weight.still eating the same
But i was on 2mm so that might be a little different. But when i got on the drug my physichion told me there were no side effects so i didnt know
i gained weight cause of the drug.But your only on .025 so that might be diffrent for you.But i suggest to get off.

Having numerous patients on Risperdal, I empathize with your situation. However, I SINCERELY hope that your prescribing physician did not tell you
"there were no side effects".

More importantly, if you stopped taking the drug without medical supervision, I hope you will seek out a child psychiatrist or practitioner with expertise in treating Asperger's. Medication therapy can be helpful if properly supervised and closely monitored. Good luck.