5 ms·

Anti-psychotic medication isn't like taking Tylenol. It can completely change a person's personality, and people have likened it to living in a fog.

by debacle 14y ago

chris_wot 14y ago
Agreed - I cannot find any fault in any of your arguments. My brother in law has schizophrenia and takes anti-psychotics. He sleeps all the time, finds it hard to concentrate and lives in a permanent fog. He needs these medications. But it has definitely changed him.
deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
car 14y ago
What is your point? Schizophrenia already horribly changed the patients personality, medication just helps them deal with the symptoms. Before we had these drugs, schizophrenic patients were basically tortured (e.g. Lobotomy) because there was no way to help them.
- macey 14y ago
  The point is that it's an imperfect solution, and maybe if we fund research in this area a bit more, we can find a better one. Also, this is a bit tangential, but I don't really perceive schizophrenia as changing one's personality. I have a close friend who is schizophrenic, and when she has episodes, hardly a bit of her real self remains. It's not a personality shift, it's more like a personality stroke/seizure.
- jetti 14y ago
  > Before we had these drugs, schizophrenic patients were basically tortured (e.g. Lobotomy) because there was no way to help them. The drugs are no better. I have done a couple stints in a private mental health (inpatient and outpatient) facilities when dealing with what was diagnosed as Schizo-affective disorder (which is basically the presence of schizophrenia and a mood disorder) and there was a teen there who was schizophrenic. He was a large dose of Risperdal (one of the major anti-psychotics) to treat the schizophrenia. I don't think I will ever forget the few weeks the doctor took him off his Risperdal. He was completely different. When on the drug, he was slow and almost catatonic at times. After been weened off, he actually had personality.
- protomyth 14y ago
  Wasn't MDMA (ecstasy) once considered for schizophrenic patients? It was supposed to not affect the patient as much. I never head the results.
  - tankbot 14y ago
    MDMA is currently being tested (in sessions combined with therapy) for treating PTSD. I've heard nothing about its consideration for schizophrenia but it wouldn't be surprising.
    - protomyth 14y ago
      Looked it up and this article mentions PTSD, schizophrenia, and Autism. There are some scholarly reference out there too. Seems mixed, but they want further studies. http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/12/17/drug-‘ecstasy’-may-help-individuals-with-schizophrenia-autism/21876.html http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/12/17/drug-‘ecstasy’-may-h...
- lostlogin 14y ago
  Given that those suffering from the illness so often hate the medication (I say this based on having 2 or 3 people tell me this, which is hardly data), doesn't that indicate how bad the medication is? If the disease is felt to be better (by some) than the treatment then we aren't doing very well.
- D3 14y ago
  I'm probably one of the few people here who's actually tried an atypical anti-psychotic (mistakenly, might I add, I'm not schizophrenic). It was an absolutely horrible experience which I would not wish on anyone. Everything is blunted, you're tired and there are no good emotions or bad ones. It's bland, flat and not a life worth living. The irony is that we do have the tools to treat these types of illnesses. We've had them for a long time. Unfortunately, politics dictate that these tools are not an option.
btilly 14y ago
I am fully aware of this. My phrasing might have a shot was meant to indicate that he would face an uphill battle and success was still a somewhat unlikely proposition. However when he's left to drift around homeless and without medication, his odds of success are currently 0. "Somewhat unlikely" is a significant improvement on that present reality.

Anti-psychotic medication isn't like taking Tylenol. It can completely change a person's personality, and people have likened it to living in a fog.

by debacle 14y ago

Anti-psychotic medication isn't like taking Tylenol. It can completely change a person's personality, and people have likened it to living in a fog.

chris_wot 14y ago

Agreed - I cannot find any fault in any of your arguments. My brother in law has schizophrenia and takes anti-psychotics. He sleeps all the time, finds it hard to concentrate and lives in a permanent fog. He needs these medications. But it has definitely changed him.

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

car 14y ago

What is your point? Schizophrenia already horribly changed the patients personality, medication just helps them deal with the symptoms. Before we had these drugs, schizophrenic patients were basically tortured (e.g. Lobotomy) because there was no way to help them.

macey 14y ago
The point is that it's an imperfect solution, and maybe if we fund research in this area a bit more, we can find a better one. Also, this is a bit tangential, but I don't really perceive schizophrenia as changing one's personality. I have a close friend who is schizophrenic, and when she has episodes, hardly a bit of her real self remains. It's not a personality shift, it's more like a personality stroke/seizure.
jetti 14y ago
> Before we had these drugs, schizophrenic patients were basically tortured (e.g. Lobotomy) because there was no way to help them. The drugs are no better. I have done a couple stints in a private mental health (inpatient and outpatient) facilities when dealing with what was diagnosed as Schizo-affective disorder (which is basically the presence of schizophrenia and a mood disorder) and there was a teen there who was schizophrenic. He was a large dose of Risperdal (one of the major anti-psychotics) to treat the schizophrenia. I don't think I will ever forget the few weeks the doctor took him off his Risperdal. He was completely different. When on the drug, he was slow and almost catatonic at times. After been weened off, he actually had personality.
protomyth 14y ago
Wasn't MDMA (ecstasy) once considered for schizophrenic patients? It was supposed to not affect the patient as much. I never head the results.
- tankbot 14y ago
  MDMA is currently being tested (in sessions combined with therapy) for treating PTSD. I've heard nothing about its consideration for schizophrenia but it wouldn't be surprising.
  - protomyth 14y ago
    Looked it up and this article mentions PTSD, schizophrenia, and Autism. There are some scholarly reference out there too. Seems mixed, but they want further studies. http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/12/17/drug-‘ecstasy’-may-help-individuals-with-schizophrenia-autism/21876.html http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/12/17/drug-‘ecstasy’-may-h...
lostlogin 14y ago
Given that those suffering from the illness so often hate the medication (I say this based on having 2 or 3 people tell me this, which is hardly data), doesn't that indicate how bad the medication is? If the disease is felt to be better (by some) than the treatment then we aren't doing very well.
D3 14y ago
I'm probably one of the few people here who's actually tried an atypical anti-psychotic (mistakenly, might I add, I'm not schizophrenic). It was an absolutely horrible experience which I would not wish on anyone. Everything is blunted, you're tired and there are no good emotions or bad ones. It's bland, flat and not a life worth living. The irony is that we do have the tools to treat these types of illnesses. We've had them for a long time. Unfortunately, politics dictate that these tools are not an option.

btilly 14y ago

I am fully aware of this. My phrasing might have a shot was meant to indicate that he would face an uphill battle and success was still a somewhat unlikely proposition. However when he's left to drift around homeless and without medication, his odds of success are currently 0. "Somewhat unlikely" is a significant improvement on that present reality.