Zyprexa for Bipolar Disorder User Reviews (Page 5)

• Anonymous
• March 17, 2011

"Zyprexa was prescribed to me in my early 20s after a manic episode. I took it for a year and was a complete zombie. I remember noting from that period apart from sleeping all day and raiding the cupboard at night. I gained 30% of my body weight or 6Olbs and it took me two years to lose it. "

• Anonymous
• July 16, 2009

"I was confirmed with Bipolar disorder in late 2008. My father is a severe case of bi-polar and is medication resistant to the point where E.C.T doesn't do anything. So my doctors (considering my family history) put me on Zyprexa. I had no benefits, only side effects, the worst being recurring hallucinations. I didn't gain weight (it would be good for me, I weigh about a 100 lbs). It's not the miracle drug for me."

• Kiera
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 29, 2021

"I got my prescription for this drug a few days ago along with my Ativan, Zoloft and trileptal. Ativan doesn’t have the same effects of this and neither does trileptal. I took this yesterday around 11 in the morning for paranoia and anxiety and within 30 minutes I started feeling like a zombie, I felt super restless and more anxious than I was before so I slept from noon yesterday until 5 this morning, on and off. Even though I drank 2 big cups of coffee, I still feel sleepy and dazed, this also caused me to have odd and extremely vivid dreams last night and I feel angrier than usual! I woke up this morning screaming at everyone in the house for not taking out the trash, I punched the air conditioner because it was turned up too high, I cussed my boyfriend out for taking too long to say something when he called me on the phone, etc. I thought zyprexa would be a good medication for me at FIRST but it made everything worse! I’m not taking this ever again"

• Shark
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 6, 2019

"This medication, Zyprexa has helped me out a lot for my bipolar. The biggest downside is being tired a lot but sleep is very important. Once I take it I can’t do anything at all and force myself to stay in bed. I can sleep for a long time and feel very groggy in the morning. I did not gain any weight whatsoever on Zyprexa. I suggest that people listen to their doctor and give it a try. I’ve been on it for a little over 2 years and staying on 2.5MG for “maintenance”. I am in remission now. Unfortunately, it doesn’t do much for anxiety so you will absolutely have to continue seeking treatment for that if you have any anxiety issues."

• aimeekj
• January 13, 2011

"I have been on Zyprexa for over a month and feel wonderful. It has helped my depression, sleep and paranoia. The only thing I hate is the weight gain. I have gained 20-30 pounds already and is a huge battle. Already was 160 after having first child. Definitely would recommend though."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 18, 2016

"Was on Zyprexa for a week 10mgs originally prescribed for sleep and coming off of Geodon. Gordon caused anxiety eventually. Zyprexa calmed me down but it was still hard to fall asleep without Ambien. I feel tired slow and hungry all the time the next day. But it did calm my nerves the next day so it may be worth it to give it a try."

• Sofia
• April 23, 2019

"I've put on 19kgs taking Zyprexa It's helped a little with my mood disorder and outbursts however my weight problem is out of control, hence this has caused me more stress seeing myself go from 60kgs to 79kgs in 6 months."

• Bpdre...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• January 16, 2022

"This literally stole an entire year of my life. The absolute worst medication and experience I’ve ever had. It completely took away my personality. It took away every joy in my life. I was borderline suicidal. I have never been so depressed in my entire life. I would take a manic episode over the feeling I had taking this medication any day- and I loath and am terrified of being manic. Thank goodness I finally advocated for myself and got off of it. Run away from this med unless it’s an absolute last resort. Even then I’d choose no meds over this. I would rate -100 if i could."

• Matty
• May 12, 2017

"Avoid at all costs - Weight gain is insane. Hungry all of the time, can't stop eating even when full, and that awful feeling afterwards. BE AWARE - coming off of this is hell, too. Be very careful, and come off of this very slowly."

• Alex_...
• July 17, 2009

"I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when I was 8, and I'm 17 now. I got off Zyprexa about 6 years ago, and I'm still having issues with my eating habits. When I started taking this pill I easily gained 110 lbs. in the first year."

• taylorr
• September 7, 2010

"I take Lamictal 300 mg, Ambien 10 mg and Zyprexa 7.5 mg daily. Until the Zyprexa was added I still experienced bipolar breakthroughs, insomnia, and extreme anxiety and OCD on a daily basis, which exhausted me. So far Zyprexa manages my symptoms, although I haven't been on it very long. I also have food cravings, however no significant side effects. I'm very sensitive to medications, can only take very small doses. What works for me might be too little to help others. My doctor was very surprised to find out that a mere 15 mg Zyprexa for emergency breakthroughs would work for me. Now I don't need to carry Zyprexa with me everywhere, because the nightly dose of 7.5 mg is enough."

• Anonymous
• March 26, 2018

"I have a love hate relationship with Zyprexa. I was initially put on it when I had a breakdown, it was the worst I ever felt mentally in my life. Before going on it I hadn’t slept soundly for 10 years. Taking Zyprexa was a last resort drug, and it worked great for getting me through that tough time. When I started to take it, I could finally get a good nights sleep, I can’t even explain how good that felt after going so long with out it. I also feel like it saved my marriage. Now the downsides: I gained about 40 lbs since I’ve started taking it 12 years ago. It makes me feel hungry constantly and crave sweets. Another thing is I am so unmotivated, it’s so frustrating! Anytime I try to reduce it I find I get irritable and not able to sleep, so then I go back up again. I definitely think this drug is not good for everyone, I would only recommend it as a last resort."

• MWH
• July 28, 2010

"I have been on Zyprexa for over 2 months now. I take 7.5mg daily and also take Paxil and Ativan. All I can say is I'm much better than I was 2 months ago and have learned that I will have to be on medicines for the rest of my life. Small price to pay for piece of mind. I have gained 30lbs and need to exercise more to try and combat the weight gain. My doctor says we may go down in mgs here soon. But overall I have to say it helped pull me out of a major depression."

• Cabin...
• June 6, 2017

"I've had mostly positive experience with the exception of a lot of weight gain. Definitely stopped the depression/manic cycles. Does make me sleepy but my doctor prescribed provigil which really helped. I give this med a positive grade especially for bipolar with psychotic episodes."

• VC8
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 22, 2017

"What an awful medication! I took olanzapine for a 6 months and I’ll give it credit that it completely got rid of mania, racing thoughts and impulsivity. However I became severely depressed and I was also a walking zombie. I could stare at the wall or ceiling for hours and be okay with that. I also gained 50 pounds in 6 months. Finally got off olanzapine last winter and taking Seroquel XR- also 40 pounds of the weight that I gained on Zyorexa. Stay away from this med- There are SO many other options!!"

• mialee
• July 29, 2010

"I lost my appetite and yet gained between 7 to 10 pounds a week until my psychiatrist took me off of it 5 weeks later, stuck with the weight. Not only did it not improve my mood, my image depressed me even more."

• Wright
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 21, 2021

"This drug was absolutely horrible. I was prescribed it for treatment of supposed bipolar disorder. Within one hour of taking the first dose, I began feeling that I could not sit down or stand up. Down on the chair, stand up, down on the chair, stand up, on and on. It was one of the worst feelings I’ve ever had. Thank God that my niece was with me, and she called my psychiatrist on duty on a Sunday. He told her to go and get me a prescription for Ativan that he would call in to my pharmacy and to take 2 mg as soon as possible. Within 30 minutes of taking the Ativan, the horrific feeling went away. I can only say that just mentioning the word Zyprexa makes me sick."

• Lena
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 10, 2022

"I had this a few days ago in the hospital for extreme mood swings and anger due to bipolar. I took half a pill that dissolves under your tongue and it made me feel MUCH WORSE!!!! Within 20 minutes of taking this garbage I became insanely sleepy, dazed, I was slobbering and slurring when I was talking, it made me even more angrier and anxious, I had intense restless legs and arms and facial tics, my legs would randomly kick and jerk up in the air, I had awful dreams and couldn’t stay asleep at night, I couldn’t stop stuffing my face and I gained 4 lbs since the day I took it which was on Monday. I took a Xanax yesterday because I had another episode where I was irate all because I dropped something. I took this particular medication once in 2018 and for the first time in 2013 and it always made me irrationally angry, hungry and anxious and unreasonable. Never again."

• daBip...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 8, 2024

"Zyprexa has been an amazing drug. I have bipolar and psychosis, and it has worked miracles for my mental health. I have left what I thought was a mothership and have a good life here on earth. Seriously, it's a great drug and sometimes you need that little bit of help."

• Patrick
• Taken for 10 years or more
• March 3, 2018

"I've been taking Zyprexa since 2002. At first I was on 10 mg, and I've been on 20 mg for the last 15 years. It worked great at first, but now it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. I take it because I have bipolar 2 disorder. I need it to calm down my mind when I go to sleep. I want to know if there is anything else I can take, or does Zyprexa come in a stronger dose than 20 mg ?"

• Kate
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 31, 2023

"After a suicide attempt on Vraylar, I was admitted and put on Prozac and Zyprexa as I was told it only works for bipolar in combination with Zyprexa. Which was not the case. All was fine until I started having severe panic attacks like never before, with a restless energy I couldn’t shake even though I was depressed and had no motivation to do anything. My new doctor said to stop the Prozac immediately and raised my Zyprexa dosage to 10mg. Within two days of stopping Prozac and increasing Zyprexa, I felt like a weight was lifted from my shoulders and I could think straight. It’s been about 2 weeks and for the first time, I feel stable and not swinging from one extreme to the other. The only side effects I have noticed are a dry mouth and increased hunger. If you’ve tried everything else with no luck, this may be the one medication worth asking your doctor about. I wish I would have been on it long ago and avoided the trial and error with other meds."

• seanc
• August 30, 2009

"I've been taking this for about week and I already feel the side effects. I can't make any major choices because I'm so far from the 4 week point but I wont give it a bad name because we suffer from depression and bi-polar and if we expect the worst we will get the worst."

• kelly...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 27, 2022

"Hi. I'm on a relatively low dose and it's only been a few weeks, but I am starting to see benefit from this drug. My only negative comment is the fact that I do have a bit of an appetite increase... haven't gained weight yet though (granted I am already a bit overweight from all the other psych meds I take). I was discharged from the hospital after a manic/mixed episode and suicide attempt, I have to say that I am feeling a lot better on Zyprexa when in combo with my other meds (Note: I take several meds for various psych issues-- Depakote ER [bipolar], Requip [restless legs], Concerta [ADHD], Effexor XR [depression, anxiety, OCD, PTSD], Clonidine [Anxiety, ADHD]). Here's to hoping I don't gain weight and that I can stay stable on a low dosage in combo with my other meds!"

• William
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 5, 2018

"This medication would receive a negative review if possible. The primary reason I hate this medication is because the weight gain, diabetes and withdrawal symptoms. You see I started taking this thinking "well...if I gain to much weight I can always stop." Think again. I literally wouldn't sleep for days."

• Ruined...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 10, 2021

"This medication took away my mania but it also took away the essence of my personality, what made me myself, my soul. I lost 2 years of my life to this medication. I stopped caring about anything. Stopped doing things I enjoyed. Stopped leaving the house. Could barely get out bed. Also gained 60 pounds. Medications all affect people differently. But this medication ruined me. I’ve been off it for a month and a half and I feel like I just woke up from a coma. Also no matter how little id eat on this medication id still never lose any weight."