Rexulti and Fatigue: What Users Say

• Anonymous
• May 16, 2019

For Major Depressive Disorder "Rexulti was very effective in helping pull me out of the dark hole that I was in. However, the weight gain has been detrimental to my self-esteem and caused me extreme frustration. For that reason, and because I feel like this medication has made me very fatigued, I’m coming off it. I have a huge, fat, bloated, flabby stomach now, and no matter how strictly I diet, I cannot budge any of the weight. I have never experienced weight gain from a medication like this. To be clear, I’m being completely honest about my diet. I’m not overeating, I maintain a low-carb, high-protein diet around 1500 calories a day, and I weigh 200 lbs! I was in extremely good shape before, and now I’m just a fat, swollen blob. I get puffiness in my face, and I feel unrecognizable. There is definitely some kind of fat storing and retention of water caused by this drug. I think this is a horrible medication because of this awful side effect. Anyone going through depression certainly doesn’t need to be excessively fat."

• Bir...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 6, 2019

For Major Depressive Disorder "Rexulti is great for treating my major depression, anxiety, and PTSD. However, I am coming off it because I have been suffering from many side effects that I can't cope with. I sleep 15-18 hours a day when I am on 1 mg only, and then I am 50% awake for the rest of the day, too sleepy to do anything. So here is a list of the side effects that I am experiencing: 1. Blurred vision 2. Hypertension 3. High cholesterol 4. Fatigue 5. Oversleeping. No weight gain for me because I only get a chance to eat dinner due to oversleeping."

• Kel...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 1, 2020

For Depression "Ok, so I've been on Rexulti for a few years now for depression. This is the best advice I can give someone thinking about taking this medication. Currently, I am on 2 mg, I take it for major depression. My doctor started me off on 1 mg. It seems like I had side effects from the drug in the beginning: dry mouth, weight gain, irritability, and fatigue. So I started taking it at night. After about 2 weeks, I then switched to morning again. Side effects went away except for me eating :(. Overall, it's a good drug if it helps. I would recommend it. DOWNSIDE: do not just stop taking the drug! You must taper down on the medication. You will have effects if you just stop taking it. For example, moody as heck. Then it takes a few days to build the medicine back up in your body for it to go away."

• MGY...
• August 17, 2016

For Major Depressive Disorder "I started on Rexulti four months ago. I take 1.0 mg Rexulti along with 160 mg of Duloxetine. My first reaction was tremendous energy and a much better mood. The crying episodes have stopped completely. The energy level soon returned to normal, and now I am feeling very tired and fatigued. I generally fall asleep right away but awake at 3:00 a.m., just like clockwork. I stay in bed until 6:00 a.m. Weight gain has not been a problem, although I admit to feeling hungry all the time. The benefits of this drug far outweigh the negative symptoms. I also suffer from anxiety disorder, and Rexulti has helped with that as well. The cost of this drug is very high. Hopefully, as time goes on, it will come down. My doctor provides me with samples for now."

• Dis...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 2, 2017

For Schizophrenia "I am not sure how many months I have been on this medication, but while I have been on it, I have managed to gain almost 10 pounds. I do not feel like I overeat either. The weight just seems to pile on. I feel incredibly sleepy during the day. So much so that on most days, I take a long nap. I have very little energy. My stomach seems to bloat out more. Otherwise, I seem to be doing just fine, both mentally and physically. So if you don't mind being fat, lazy, and lifeless, but not crazy, this might just be the drug for you!"

• Bob...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• December 16, 2020

For Depression "This medication has been a lifesaver for me. Rexulti works really well for my depression. The only side effect that I do not like is feeling fatigued throughout the day, but I’m on stimulants to help combat that. I highly recommend it!"

• Nat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 19, 2018

For Depression "I was put on this medication to help with the fatigue I’ve been experiencing for close to 2 years. I was taking it in conjunction with Cipralex (20 mg), which I’ve been on for 8 years. I was taking 0.5 mg of Rexulti for the past 3 months, and my energy levels were great. Unfortunately, it made me gain 20 pounds in that time. My appetite was out of control... seriously, I was eating out like 4-5 times per week and binging at night. Insane. I just went off of it close to 2 weeks ago, and after 2 days, my appetite went back to normal. I just can’t be on antipsychotics."

• Abb...
• April 28, 2018

For Major Depressive Disorder "I struggle with anxiety, OCD, mood disorder, and depression. I started off on Prozac, which helped enormously with my anxiety and OCD. The depression and mood were something I still struggled with on some days, so the doc put me on Rexulti along with the Prozac. I read about the weight gain and was immediately scared, but I just lost 60 pounds (Prozac helped). I still took it though. Big mistake. I've been on it for 2 months, and I have found myself losing control. Nonstop eating, gaining weight, lost my energy and willingness to be active. I've been lacking motivation. Before any meds, I did not drive because my anxiety was so bad. Prozac changed that, and I have finally been driving! Rexulti has caused a reverse effect. I'm back to being anxious in a car. My family can see a change in a negative way. Spaced out and lacking energy. Not a fan of this medicine."

• Gra...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 5, 2018

For Major Depressive Disorder "I have been on Rexulti for a little over a month now, and it has basically been a godsend. The first week or two, I cried nonstop at almost anything. Happy things. Sad things. Funny things. It was more of a delusional cry than a depressive/sad cry. It was really annoying but went away after about 1-2 weeks. I have not gained any weight, which I’m super thankful for. The only side effect I've really had is the fatigue. I’m so tired every single day that I’ve started taking naps. I never take naps. I’ve also started drinking coffee in the mornings to keep myself awake. I’ve also never been a coffee drinker. These two things are starting to worry me a bit because it’s almost interfering with my schoolwork and daily function. But I love this medication otherwise and don’t want to consider anything else if it’s really helping me."

• My...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 21, 2021

For Major Depressive Disorder "I started Rexulti 0.5 mg for five days, and I can honestly say I noticed an improvement in my depression the first day or so. Once the medication began to get into my system good, I started feeling very heavy with fatigue, excessive eating, swollen tummy, also very nauseous in the mornings, and a busting headache. My conclusion is the slight benefits I received from this drug aren't worth the side effects. This drug can have dangerous side effects and some not so dangerous. It affects blood sugar levels as well. Definitely not worth it, in my opinion, when there are other medications available for depression."

• Anonymous
• July 18, 2024

For Depression "Rexulti is working for me. I feel calm. Seroquel was making me too zombie-like, very sluggish, and Abilify was too strong for me. I had trouble moving my body around. But with Rexulti, my mood is more stable than ever and able to feel much less depressed. Thank you, doctors."

• AJ6...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• December 14, 2021

For Depression "I took Rexulti for almost 2 years for depression. I had tried many different medications, and it was the one medication that I responded to at the time. I started out on 0.5 mg and slowly increased my dosage to 2 mg. It worked for a while, but then stopped working. It also made me feel flat and sedated. My doctor added a stimulant (Adderall) to counteract the sedation, which only helped a little. We tried adding on other antidepressants with not much response. Any time I started a new antidepressant, I would feel more sedated (now I realize it was a drug interaction with the Rexulti). Finally, I decided to wean myself off of Rexulti, and the fog has finally lifted. I realize a lot of my fatigue that I was attributing to my depression was actually the Rexulti. I feel like I lost 2 years of my life! And I feel like I made a lot of poor decisions on this medication. Be careful if you are taking this medication."

• Man...
• October 2, 2017

For Depression "Bad. Feel restless and have anxiety attacks, also gaining weight. Have no energy and have to drink 3-4 cups of coffee every day just to stay awake and not crash my car driving to work. For me, not a good med. Tried Abilify, Seroquel, and Depakote in the past for anger and irritability, and those are as bad, if not worse, than the Rexulti. Been on 20 mg Lexapro for anxiety, depression, and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) for about 10 years, but it's not working very well anymore. Doctor suggested Latuda, going to try that next."

• Ale...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 23, 2022

For Major Depressive Disorder "This drug was a nightmare for me. My doctor initially prescribed 0.5 mg Rexulti as a monotherapy for depression and anxiety. The first month, I didn't feel much-except sedation after taking the drug. The second month, I actually started feeling better. I had more energy, motivation; sleep was better; sex drive improved. Then my doc increased the dose to 1 mg, and the horror began. First, I started feeling really tired. Sedation became much more pronounced. Then my depression came back-but now three times worse than it was before. My sleep became bad. My libido disappeared entirely. Fatigue became overwhelming. I lost any motivation to do anything. Worse, I lost any ability to do intellectual types of work. I'm a software engineer, and this is just horrible-when you feel yourself incredibly dumb. And when I try to force myself to work, I start feeling intense headaches and nausea. I stopped taking Rexulti two weeks ago. I am slowly, very slowly improving. Hope to recover from it soon."

• Van...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 11, 2022

For Depression "Within a few days, I started having thoughts of self-harm (wrists) - completely unheard of for me, being interested in committing crimes/anti-social behavior (once again, completely unheard of for me), and it upped my intrusive thoughts about feces. I had to stop after 5 days. That was 2 days too long. I wanted to wait it out. I have a tendency/history of trying to be fair and waiting things out. This med or class of med isn't for me. I'm trying to get off Latuda by switching to something similar, as Latuda gives me panic/anxiety. For reference, I'm long-term on Pristiq 150mg/day for depression and intrusive thoughts, and about 1/3 of the year on 750mg Divalproex to be more positive about things and not so 'downer.' I'm a mid-30s middle-class perfect-life-on-paper woman who can't work very much due to extreme fatigue and now recently medication mischief while my psychiatrist tries to find an antipsychotic med for my Bipolar type 2."

• Alw...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 27, 2021

For Depression "Rexulti is the 6th AD that I had taken over 13 years. It's also the first one to work. Hands down, 10/10. The first 5 ADs provided minimal help and maximum side effects (fatigue, weight gain, insomnia, long-term IBS, etc.). In general, they moved serious depression and anxiety to moderate, but at an unsustainable cost. Rexulti is entirely different. Within 1 day, I noticed a big difference, in 3 days, I was me. For the first time in 13 years. My depression is in remission, my anxiety is around 20% of what it was. Huge win, and more to come. I think I need time for pathways and habits to rewire. Side effects: weight gain, but not a lot. Perhaps some sleep issues. Bonus: this is the time of year that I struggle the most. I had really bad Seasonal Affective Disorder, even as a kid. It's gone now, although the weight and sleep side effects may be SAD, not the drug."

• Nav...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 4, 2021

For Depression "I have been taking 40 mg of Prozac, but somehow it was not doing as good as it used to be for me. Plus, some fatigue, more stress, low motivation, and low mood. I always start medication with the lowest dose, so after checking with my doctor, who advised adding Rexulti 0.25 mg, initially, I had a headache that continued for 3 days, but slowly the medication got adjusted and I am now feeling much better, more energy, more motivation, and even libido is improving. So, folks, don’t lose hope and best of luck in your journey against this depression."

• ano...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• March 19, 2025

For Major Depressive Disorder "I'm female and in my mid-thirties. I've been on Rexulti for 5 years. I started on 0.5 mg, and my doctor upped it to 1 mg a year and a half ago to help manage my co-occurring anxiety. I'm also on Trintellix (20 mg) for my depression and Concerta (18 mg) for my ADHD. An added bonus of this medication is that it helps with the irritability and psychomotor agitation I experience as an autistic person. I have noticed weight gain (it kind of snuck up on me, lol) and fatigue, as well as a feeling of sedation, and my dreams have been vivid and strange. But I'll take these side effects over a consistently low mood, an inability to experience joy, and complete dysfunction in all areas of my life. Since taking Rexulti, I've been able to work, take a course, study for a continuing education exam, socialize more, and feel better overall. While I don't love the side effects, this drug has been helpful overall."