Olanzapine for Paranoid Disorder User Reviews

• Ant...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 18, 2020

"I think olanzapine should be the drug of last resort for people who are a danger to others. The side effects are huge and catastrophic. Muscle atrophy, trouble walking, cognitive decline, pacing, additional depression, weight gain, higher cholesterol. Since psychiatrists live on prescribing drugs, they won’t take you off them."

• Anonymous
• August 2, 2009

Olanzapine "I had a paranoid stint and was getting no sleep. My doctor gave me Zyprexa, and it pulled me out of that state very quickly. I like to refer to it as pulling out the big guns. It had no side effects for me, and I was on it a short while."

• Eve...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• June 12, 2023

"In 2020, I suffered terrible mold symptoms (pains, asthma attacks, fever, anxiety) and was headed to the hospital. I was misdiagnosed with paranoid disorder and treated in the hospital with olanzapine 10 mg. My doctor didn’t tell me anything about its adverse side effects. The drug relieved my anxiety, but I gained 18 kg in 12 months without any changes in appetite or diet. The drug had no effect on my somatic symptoms or “delusions.” After using the drug for well over a year, I wanted to stop using it because of its risks (brain shrinkage, diabetes, etc.). My doctor was against the withdrawal, so he was not at all helpful with it. I took 5 mg for a month, then 2.5 mg for a month. After that, I experienced a terrible psychosis. I was so suicidal that I ended up causing myself a severe anoxic brain injury. Before taking the medicine, I never had any psychosis or suicidal ideation."

• Bar...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• February 25, 2017

"Olanzapine is very good for extreme paranoia. I was in multiple fights and at times was looking to fight. After the second day, it felt like I went through puberty again, but in a day this time. Balanced my mood, lowered agitation, eliminates paranoia, great for sedating as well. The only side effect I have is weight gain. Highly recommended if you think you can benefit."

• Pet...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 16, 2020

"Olanzapine worked well for the first few months, but after that, I turned into a zombie. I stare at the wall for 8 hours a day with a blank, expressionless gaze. People ask me what's wrong, and they steer clear of me because I look and act like a psycho. I gained 30 pounds, and I'm lazy, I sweat a lot, I eat a lot, and I have no sense of humor. I am distant from people, and people are distant from me. It made me lose my job because I couldn't concentrate, and I ended up homeless."

• You...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 15, 2023

"This poison, even after stopping it for 4 months, made me quieter and less energetic, caused a loss of penile sensitivity, changed my personality for the worse, and made me exhibit abnormal behaviors. It made me feel suicidal, depressed, irritable, dumber, socially immature, impulsive, and appear like I have special educational needs. It also caused delayed response time, made me appear autistic, and exhibit autistic behavior. These are permanent side effects. I used to be smart, bright, have a personality, be confident, and want to live. My girl used to like me, people enjoyed talking to me, I used to have social intelligence, and I was never suicidal. I was forced to take it at 30 mg for 13 days, which was enough to ruin my life forever. Even if I took it for longer, the psych ward threatened to and wanted to inject me with it too! Never take this drug. It is harmful, and the side effects include becoming dumber, suicidal, asexual, depressed, and hating life."

• Geo...
• November 28, 2019

"I have suffered from delusions since 2014 (5 years). This medication, olanzapine, for sure helps with psychosis better than risperidone and aripiprazole. So if you're looking for a sure fix to problems, then this medication is very useful. However, the side effects of this medication are long. In a year and a half, I have gained a bit of weight. I spent 9 months low on mood, suffering from persistent anhedonia and persistent nagging anxiety about the same things. This led me to dread the day when waking up. However, all was relieved with sertraline, other than the weight gain. The anxiety still comes, but it goes fast and changes the anxiety’s subject so it doesn’t just drone on. This medication, from my experience, is a very good baseline for psychotic disorders, it gets the job done and does so with some not-so-terrible side effects. I’m currently searching for a new antipsychotic as I’m tired of the same old side effects. I want something different for the next year or so. It does its job!!"

• Anonymous
• December 12, 2020

"Olanzapine has been, so far, very rewarding. I’ve been on it for 5 weeks after restarting it again after stopping briefly, and it helps with intrusive thoughts and incessant thinking. It calms the mind and allows for an outside thought approach to problems, like watching as an outsider instead of being in the problem. If anyone has been suggested to try it, I would recommend they do. I haven’t put on much weight and take 10 mg a day at night. It helps ease anxiety."

• Anonymous
• June 11, 2012

Olanzapine "Zyprexa worked really well in terms of removing the paranoia and the suspiciousness. Made me normal within a period of 2-3 weeks. The only problem I feel with regard to this medicine is the weight gain issue. I think this medicine, in combination with mirtazapine, has made me put on weight in a few weeks. Yes, and also my prolactin level was well above the normal range. In the starting, this made me tired, and I had problems waking up on time. Apart from these few side effects, it is a really good antipsychotic."

• Pur...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 5, 2019

"My in-home doctor prescribed me Lexapro and Zyprexa, both were 10 mg. It gave me increased fear and anxiety. I had increased memory loss and uncontrollable bowel movements. It also gave me derealization effects, which was scary and lasted a week. Keep away."

• grr...
• June 6, 2016

Olanzapine "I was prescribed a 2.5 mg dose. This medication has been excellent in reducing my hyper-vigilance. It has allowed me to sleep normally again. One side effect is it made my sleep apnea far worse. This caused reduced functionality in areas such as work. Overall, a positive experience. Just be aware of the potential for compounding sleep apnea."

• KJD...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 30, 2021

"It's been an absolute miracle drug for me, 15 mg OD. I can now hear birds sing, I am not crippled by intrusive thoughts telling me to harm myself or others. I can't stress how much this drug has saved me."

• mar...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• March 9, 2021

"Dr. put me on olanzapine because I was anorexic and struggled with sleep. I never told her about other symptoms that I had (psychosis, auditory hallucinations) because I was afraid. After only a month of taking it (only 2.5 mg in the evening), my hallucinations stopped. I also felt like a lot of negative thoughts were gone. I realized that I was actually paranoid and delusional, because two months after taking it, my thoughts were... well... better. I gained a lot of weight also (around 20 kg) in 1 year."

• Som...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 5, 2022

"Don't listen to these negative comments. Of course, you'll gain weight if you eat more. Lol, you have to watch what you eat. Olanzapine took away most of my hallucinations, panic attacks, and other things. It does help with sleep and mood changes. I've been on it for years. The only downfall is if you want to get off of it, the withdrawal will land you in the hospital. Been there, done that."

• Har...
• July 24, 2019

"I was diagnosed with serious paranoid schizophrenia nine years ago and have been taking Zyprexa 5 mg twice a day for that duration, including a 100 ml Clopixol (depot) injection once a fortnight, and generally have never had the symptoms again, or when they reappear, do not last for very long. I regard my condition to be genetic and therefore amenable to treatment, but not cure, and therefore am always committed to following my health care professional's advice. Whilst I have problems with constipation (for which I take two teaspoons of Normacol) and itchy groin (for which I apply 0.5% cream), I still consider the benefits of the medication to outweigh the disadvantages and remain committed to it, and have an active programme of social and educational engagement to complement it."

• Jim...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 15, 2015

Olanzapine "Helped in the beginning of the first few weeks, but later my mood became more paranoid. I'm not saying this medicine will make you paranoid, but it doesn't work for me. Plus, it does make you gain weight, like 40 lbs. in 8 weeks."

• IPA...
• July 25, 2016

"This is a pretty cool drug for me. I have used it for about 7 years. It has helped me with anger, mood swings, rapid thinking, and to focus on things I'm doing. I've only gained something like 30 lbs over these years. Lots of other reviews I've read said they have gained lots of weight, not true in my case. I was already overweight before I started taking it. I was like 215 before I started taking this, now about 245. I even think it helped me become a better person. I enjoy gambling, and I have won quite a bit on this drug. I'm more focused and have become smarter. I stopped for about three months just to see what happens, and I was usually mad and angry. So I'm back on it, and I'm a happier and more effective person. 2.5 milligrams works best."

• Cla...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 10, 2015

Olanzapine "It was OK. I gained a lot of weight on it. I went from 210 to 255 pounds in four months. Didn't help my suspicious behavior. I think Seroquel XR was a better drug for me, but I had to take a very high dose of Seroquel XR. I'm considering asking the doctor to put me on an old psychotic med like Prolixin. I have had some good results, but I stopped the meds early because I was afraid of all the side effects, especially tardive dyskinesia."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 15, 2022

"My side effect from olanzapine is a pain in the eye. The feeling of high pressure in my eyes, which I suspect to be glaucoma caused by the medicine. Also, another side effect is the urge to stick my tongue out! Which is kind of bizarre. It helps me with calming and sleeping, however, it doesn’t entirely remove paranoia and hallucinations. I hope side effects will ease over time and the medicine shall have a better impact."

• hol...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 7, 2023

"I started Zyprexa at 2.5 mg for something to take the edge off anxiety since I have done well on atypical antipsychotics before. I had been through the wringer in terms of stressful life events and was willing to try anything. It did help with disordered thinking, some intrusive thoughts, and visual disturbances, but after a few days, it increased my anxiety every time I took it (within half an hour). I was having a hard time distinguishing whether that was from me or the med until I realized the pattern. The brain fog you read about is REAL, and I became even more dissociated on this than before I started. This is a heavy antipsychotic, so it will work that fast on symptoms, but remember it is an antipsychotic first! You can research for yourself just how many receptors this works on -- like, all of them -- it is a chemical lobotomy, to put it nicely. I would have liked it if not for the extra anxiety and dissociating, too much."

• Anonymous
• July 13, 2012

Olanzapine "I was misdiagnosed, and wrongly put on this medicine. It causes psychosis in individuals inappropriately put on it. It took me ten years to find doctors who could say this was a possibility."

• mig...
• April 19, 2011

Olanzapine "In just six weeks, Zyprexa has me balanced. My mood swings are virtually nonexistent, and I can do the things that I enjoy, and thoughts were gone forever."

• Fra...
• September 30, 2016

"I'm the caregiver of my son, and this medicine works like magic for him. He is 24 years old."

• Ish...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 19, 2018

"This medication is somewhat helpful for paranoia. Just makes you feel really lazy and tired. Hungry too. I still have paranoid states here and there."

• Caz...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 22, 2020

"My son has been on olanzapine for a month, 5 mg for paranoia. Depression is helping. 15-pound weight, but he needed the weight. Also, sleeping a lot better."