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I agree with Marcia. This kind of drug needs to be prescribed by someone with long-term experience in mental health issues and the patient should be closely monitored.
When done correctly they can be a blessing. I think there are newer, less problematic ones available for your issues, however.
We have a lot of MDs prescribing antipsychotics these days. Perhaps they hope to fill the gap in adequate mental health care but the results, with the insufficient follow-up, can be less than healthful.
And remember - nobody ever died from lack of sleep. Your body can be retrained.
In my experience they prescribe them and other meds they have no business prescribing because:
1. The patient refuses to go to a psychiatrist or neurologist
2. The patient is not capable of maintaining their shrink visits required for renewing the RX (i.e.dementia)
3. They think they know it all or are doing the family a favor
Even my son's pediatrician wanted to prescribe Ritalin for him and we already had a psychiatrist in place from when we got a medical diagnosis for his IEP BACK IN 1988.
We declined. Especially since my kid didn't even like taking it.
I know several somewhat well to do people with insurance who are getting scripts from their GP. ONE of them started after her psychiatrist committed suicide and nobody could find her records LOL. So the GP picked up where the shrink left off. She didn't trust anyone "new".
Ironic, her mental health issues got progressively WORSE using the suicidal shrink, not better. But the family couldn't reason with her after a lifetime of various diagnosis and being a recovering alcoholic. Then dementia kicked in. Living in an ALF.
THEN they eventually thought they were doing the right thing, changed GPs to some guy who was supposed to be an expert in geriatrics, and HE prescribed Seroquel and then she died. (Disclosure - he DID find suspicions of other life threatening rule-ins like leukemia...he WAS good at solving health mysteries...BUT that wasn't what killed her...other than being debilitated from her overall poor health. He prescribed the Seroquel because IMO - ego. He knew a little about it but no long experience TRACKING longstanding patients like a shrink would - as you say. It's even on the PACKAGE INSERT: CONTRAINDICATED FOR DEMENTIA SENIORS).
Last edited by runswithscissors; 12-06-2017 at 09:05 AM..
Why is it we are supposed to say no to street drugs but the ones pushed by pharma are our friends?
Competition is the reason.
If patients were allowed to grow high CBD dominant strains of cannabis for insomnia, there would be no need for their pills.
Almost every pharmaceutical is extracted from a parent plant, valium from valerian root sold in health food stores as a sleep aid.
Hi, I spent 28 days in treatment for alcoholism and drug addiction. I was taking Ambien, Lorazapam and achohol. I was given Seroquel there every night at bed check. I don't think it helped too much, I figured I got maybe 3 or 4 nights of decent sleep in 28 days. That was 4 months ago. I already do use Cannabis in the evening. I'm going to focus on that going forward. I may continue to use ambient from time to time, but I am SO done with Seroquel!
I'm amazed at how many posters pronounce X, Y, or Z drug dangerous when they have no experience with it. My doctor and myself are qualified to speak about Seroquel along others with direct knowledge about it. Those people who merely Googled the list of side effects but haven't ever taken it themselves aren't.
One place that my dad was in this year - a physical rehab hospital of sorts - kept giving him Seroquel. I picked up that they like it because it placates and calms patients so they just go along with everything, don't rock the boat, and are submissive as a lamb. That's not good when you give it to someone mentally strong and sharp. It made my Dad a tearful, whimpering wreck; definitely not him! I had them stop administering it, but it resumed later, beyond our knowledge.
He also told me of bizarre dreams that he had while on it. Again, not something normal that he deals with. Bad stuff!
Seroquel might help in some cases - probably with edgy and emotionally unstable types - but I've seen the bad and unhealthy side to it. It's a mind-altering drug, a modern synthetic and potentially faulty one, and should be seen as such.
P.S. - Since the brain controls most of the body, any tampering with its functioning could potentially affect functioning of other parts of the body. As with many medicines, you're rolling the dice when you use it.
Last edited by Thoreau424; 12-06-2017 at 11:44 AM..
I'm amazed at how many posters pronounce X, Y, or Z drug dangerous when they have no experience with it. My doctor and myself are qualified to speak about Seroquel along others with direct knowledge about it. Those people who merely Googled the list of side effects but haven't ever taken it themselves aren't.
Most people never need to have any experience with it. It, and drugs like it, are made for specific conditions and if you have one and it helps you, then it can be a lifesaver and a life changer. If you are not the target patient, it's dangerous as hell to give it for other reasons, and to have it prescribed by drs with no background in its proper usage. And I don't single out Seroquel, probably half the pharmacopeia is being handed out like candy to people who don't need it or "might" benefit from it so slightly that the risks aren't worth it.
I'm amazed at how many posters pronounce X, Y, or Z drug dangerous when they have no experience with it. My doctor and myself are qualified to speak about Seroquel along others with direct knowledge about it. Those people who merely Googled the list of side effects but haven't ever taken it themselves aren't.
Why are you dismissing other people's opinions as merely Googling?
I agree that you are extremely qualified to discuss Seroquel's effects on your particular illness and you.
I even said so in my post about going to the "horse's mouth" so to speak.
Likewise, family members and caregivers are also qualified to share the experiences of their loved ones with Seroquel or other anti-psychotics.
For example, I'm pretty sure my Memory Care's RN director is VERY familiar with the applications especially since she has a vast background including being in charge in the prison system. I would venture to say she has much more experience than you or any other patient even if she never took it/them. Not to mention she actually KNOWS the patients intimately on a day to day basis and sometimes if not USUALLY, the doctors don't.
So if those subjects don't share your particular illness, Bi-Polar, but something else, that sort of makes your opinon invalid discussing THEIR illness, right?
If you're not a drug addict how would you know if these anti-psychotics "work" in that population other than reading and anecdotal evidence?
Just like someone probably shouldn't be talking about Bi-Polar just because they read about it.
What I'm saying is you're not a 76 year old psychosis lady with advanced dementia and would have no idea how it may affect her.
When I say "you" I'm talking about patients in general who feel they are the only ones qualified to talk about drugs.
We don't have to be taking Seroquel to understand package inserts, FDA warnings, and studies. OR to question it's off-label use. OR to read about the millions of people getting the scripts and either abusing them or getting them for the wrong reasons.
I'm pretty sure they put the warnings on the label and commercials on TV to EDUCATE people for a good reason.
Antipsychotic prescriptions were rendered for 21.3 percent of patients who sought psychiatric care for an anxiety disorder in 2007 — a 10.6 percent increase since 1996, per The New York Times.
Last edited by runswithscissors; 12-06-2017 at 04:05 PM..
Actually you may want to do an internet search to get a baseline for how controversial this entire topic is.
INCLUDING with the FDA and medical providers, detox people and mental health providers. AND the pharmaceutical company themselves.
The OP didn't just pull the question out of her ear.
You want me to do a "internet search to get a baseline??? Are you nuts?
I have spent 50 years as a clinical specialist pharmacist.
It's people with googe who are driving doctors and pharmacists nuts with pseudo-knowledge
My point is to not use an anonymous forum for serious medical advise!
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