Quetiapine for Schizoaffective Disorder User Reviews (Page 2)

• Anonymous
• April 26, 2009

Quetiapine "I was put on Celexa, Depakote, and Seroquel when I was a month into being 13 years old. I was fine for a week, then the voices returned with a vengeance, much worse and far more taunting and tormenting than ever before (or since). I became a zombie, unable to communicate the problems to my doctor or family. In addition, when I described problems to my doctor, he insisted Seroquel didn't cause those effects. Drowsiness, craving sugar, problems with walking and balance, and becoming a far more ill person than I was when I began the medication. I gained 60 lbs in three months. When I stopped Seroquel, I returned to 'base sanity.' My weight returned to normal."

• Red...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• March 14, 2020

Quetiapine "I have been taking Seroquel XR for just over a year now, started with a 25 mg dose, now up to a 200 mg dose. I found that my thoughts are controllable, relatively a good sleeping aid. Just be careful not to eat after an hour or so of taking certain brands of this medication. Seroquel XR blue/white pack 100 mg makes anything hard to swallow, even water. Best to go straight to bed. Would like to try managing my own emotions and thoughts one day without medication. I hope for everyone who struggles. Thank you and good luck!"

• dyn...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 20, 2017

Quetiapine "Seroquel did not work for me (this is NOT to say it may work for you, because everyone's biochemistry is different). It caused me to sleep 16 hours a day or more on an extremely low dose (75 mg), and over 2 weeks caused me to auditory hallucinate and creepy or hellish nightmares (worse than my normal ones). Over time, it actually caused anxiety instead of reducing it. Hope you have a better time with Seroquel than me!"

• Eil...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• March 17, 2020

"I have been taking Seroquel for about 10 years. I have gone through doses from 25 mg to 500 mg. I am now on 350 mg for about 2 years. 500 mg made me sleep a 9-hour night plus about 3 hours of naps every day. Also, as I got into my 40s, 500 mg started giving me heart palpitations, scary enough that one time I thought I was going to die and had my adult son sit on my bed and hold my hand because I got scared I was going to die. I went down to 350 mg and it doesn’t give me that effect. Part of schizoaffective is the inability to have relationships. The Seroquel doesn’t seem to help with this, or the inability to care about much. But it does help with paranoid delusions and depression. I basically go around emotionally flat. But if you spent all of your pre-medication life crying, scared, and suicidal, feeling flat is a relief. I am Canadian and disabled (only working part-time at minimum wage), so my meds are $0."

• Ray...
• December 31, 2015

Quetiapine "I have a complicated relationship with this drug. On one hand, I've been on everything for depression (specifically), and nothing helped. I'm talking like 20 medications here, so it's been a rollercoaster. Most antidepressants were useless for me, and the time period for effectiveness is usually over 1 month. Seroquel usually takes 2 weeks to start having an effect. It works for my depression - but I'm sedated and have to sleep a lot. Being a student can make this challenging. Shift work and the like would be hard too. It's my last bet for now because I literally start to crumble to psychosis without it. However, it is debilitating and feels restrictive. Beats the psych ward, I guess. Good luck and keep trying, sometimes it takes a while."

• Anonymous
• August 18, 2013

Quetiapine "I take this medication for its side effects primarily. It works great if you have severe insomnia. This medicine makes you very hungry when you take it. It also helps to relieve anxious feelings and help calm feelings of stress. Again, my doctor prescribed this medicine due to weight loss, insomnia, and anxiety. This is not what the medicine is exactly made for, but I have tried dozens of medicines, and this is the only one that has helped with my problems."

• TJG...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 4, 2018

Quetiapine "Unfortunately, I have no idea what is wrong with me, but what I know is that Seroquel works great for me. I suffer from severe mood swings, mild psychosis, generalized anxiety, and have experienced mild religious auditory hallucinations. I switch dosages pretty often due to my mood swings because if I am manic, I need more, and if I am depressed, I need less because Seroquel works as a major sedative to kick mania, and when I am depressed, sedation is a con because it makes me more depressed. In general, it does work, but I am really sad that I have to take prescription medication in order to be normal."

• Anonymous
• May 30, 2009

Quetiapine "This drug is good for controlling symptoms. You can lead a normal life on this drug. It is sedating at first and on higher doses. I find that the only troublesome side effect has been weight gain (around 2 and a half stones). Overall, a good drug."

• tir...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 11, 2014

Quetiapine "Unfortunately, this medication does not suit me, as I get a lot of the undesirable side effects. Slurred speech, terrible confusion, drowsiness but not able to sleep, cravings for sugary foods, a sort of spaced-out feeling, and restless leg. Apart from that, it's great! :) Wish I could continue taking it, but it's not worth the side effects in my case."

• Dou...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 4, 2021

Quetiapine "If you are forced to pick an antipsychotic, then take this one. You can sleep through the hospital or jail time when you take Seroquel extended release. Avoid aripiprazole, Haldol, paliperidone, and all the other ones. Seroquel is the least worst of all antipsychotics, it doesn't block dopamine as much as all the others. Sedation is pretty heavy, so take it at nighttime."

• Neu...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 12, 2018

Quetiapine "All began well, and I was on a small dose for a while. Then I had a relapse, and we upped the dosage. Then I started awful side effects every night after taking it! Then my mum came to stay and said, 'It's the medication.' So I called my shrink and asked to go off it, and he said, 'OK - no more side effects!'"

• JRa...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 18, 2020

"I got switched to this med after having extrapyramidal side effects on Saphris. My motivation, especially in the morning, is VERY low. I can't hold a job that starts early in the morning. Oftentimes throughout the day, I don't know what to do with myself or what I should be striving for. I have much less output most days in terms of activity, speech, and overall communication, probably tied to not knowing what the hell I want. I upped my dose to 200 mg from 150 mg, and the following nights, I woke up with a delusional thought, which was pretty scary. It's as hard as being psychotic to make up my mind on 150 mg. I haven't experienced weight gain, but I also eat 800-1,200 cals/day."

• Lou...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• July 13, 2021

Quetiapine "I had a nervous breakdown in February 2020. I had to do 20 days inpatient. They gave me Invega, which did not work at all. After I was released, I still wasn't right at all. I ended up even getting arrested for criminal trespassing. I started doing therapy and met with a medical provider. I asked to be put on Seroquel because I could not sleep at all. I take 200 mg a day, and it's very effective in stopping racing thoughts. You have to really watch what you eat on it. I have worked very hard to have gained zero weight. I also continue to take Doxepin, which I was previously prescribed."

• Eli...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• May 13, 2018

Quetiapine "I am a male, and I have been using Seroquel for 17 years. I started with 25 mg Seroquel per day and then got up to Seroquel XR 800 mg per day. I have gained 10 lbs or less in 17 years. I have experienced side effects and developed true gynecomastia that can only be removed through surgery that isn't covered by insurance. My prescribing doctor says I am too skinny and need to gain weight. My other doctor says I have gynecomastia that is noticeable when I take off my shirt. My doctor recommended that I get tested for male breast cancer, and insurance covered the ultrasound and mammogram, but because the gynecomastia isn't cancerous, it's not covered by insurance. I don't recommend it because I developed breast growth and breast pain while on it. I can't wear T-shirts because people noticed my breast growth and feel the need to mention it in front of me."

• Ano...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• June 6, 2022

Quetiapine "Seroquel has worked wonders for me. I had been on Abilify for 9 months, but it eventually stopped working. I asked my psychiatrist if I could try out Seroquel, and we started at 50 mg. It worked wonders within a matter of days. My paranoia had completely gone away, and so did the delusions. I’ve been on this medication for about 7 months, and all of my psychotic symptoms went away. It also has helped my anxiety so much (in addition to being on Zoloft and Propranolol) and mood swings. I feel more at ease since being on Seroquel and highly recommend this medication. Do be aware of its weight gain effects, though - my doctor added metformin to help control that."

• Bun...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• January 19, 2021

Quetiapine "I started Seroquel when I was 13 after 7 years of talking to people who weren't there. I'm 18 now. I heard it's not possible to need this at that age, but here I am. I think at first I was kinda empty, didn't talk, kinda a vegetable. Took about a while to get used to, maybe a week. Then I remember completely losing it and attacking my brother and also feeling suicidal, but I didn't stop taking it when I was put in inpatient. Then everything got better. Now I still hear and see things, but only specific things, and I talk to people more even though I have social anxiety. So it didn't really work for my hallucinations, just maybe depression and anxiety."

• Lia...
• September 6, 2015

Quetiapine "English is not my main language, so if something is not understood, know why. From the age 16 to 17, I had depression and I had social anxiety, then I tried to kill myself and went into a mental hospital. The trauma I had there made me do the same thing again. They tried every single medication on me, and then they decided Seroquel XR is the best med for me. It really made me be balanced, but also made me apathetic and not connected to my feelings and thoughts. My memory was terrible, and I barely talked. I stopped taking it for one day and went into a manic-psychotic mood, and I'm writing it from another mental hospital. I'm happy that I stopped taking this, I want to feel alive, not like a zombie."

• Tom...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• October 5, 2021

"I've taken quetiapine for 4 years now. Since taking it, I have schizoaffective disorder, type 1 diabetes, and a lot of ECGs since the heart palpitations, giving me a lot of chest pains. Quetiapine was the cause of my type 1 diabetes, confirmed with doctors, and chest pains too. I believe my diagnosis, as well as soon as I took quetiapine, I had intrusive thoughts 24 hours a day, constantly with that and the severe anxiety it gives me. I have OCD now. It's been so hard for me to live with. I would advise people to take quetiapine with caution. Most attempts of coming off this drug made me ill. I would give this drug a 1 and it doesn't even deserve that."

• Ren...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• October 2, 2023

Quetiapine "Honestly, it's a godsend for me. I've been taking Seroquel/quetiapine 300 mg for 7 years. It controls my symptoms of paranoia, auditory hallucinations, and inability to sleep due to racing thoughts. I take it just before bedtime, and it knocks me out within an hour. I'm not thinking about anything, which is great because lack of sleep triggers manic episodes for me. I also take Lamictal/lamotrigine for mood swings. My only complaint about the Seroquel is the late-night hunger and weight gain. I've gained about 5 lbs or more every year and have also developed cataracts, which can be a side effect of the medication."

• Ill...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 23, 2019

"Well, this time I am technically using Seroquel 50 mg for sleep issues, though it does help with my schizoaffective as well. When I first tried this years ago, I slept for 23 hours after one 50 mg pill, then felt like a zombie for 2 days after. This time I slept for about 12 hours, and now I just feel really relaxed, like I took a muscle relaxer, and I don't feel stressed out anymore about the road workers ripping up our road outside - the reason I have had trouble sleeping for the last 3 weeks. Finally, got some good sleep. I also want to say for all the people using this and saying it makes them hungry, I actually ate dinner before taking the pill, and so I didn't have the issue of feeling hungry after taking it. So try to eat something that is filling before taking the pill, and it might help to deal with the hunger issue. Just a suggestion, I know everyone is different on medication."

• Bra...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• January 29, 2022

"I've taken this drug at low doses and at high dosages, and I believe it to be very safe if taken only as prescribed. I only took the high doses at the start of a psychotic break where my symptoms were at an all-time high, about 250 mg, and it made the situation manageable. The only side effects I can report on the high dosages are that it caused my vision in my right eye to get noticeably blurry, which caused some alarm but was gone when I awoke and never caused any sort of long-term damage. You shouldn't drive a car in this state. Mainly, I took 50 mg, one tab a day for a month or so, and then 25 mg tabs for the remainder of the time, and it treated all my symptoms, helped me sleep and eat, and be better socially. I no longer take any medication, and if I ever had to, it’d be quetiapine. It works slow, but it gets the job done. You will notice a huge improvement after month one. Pricing? Get the off-brand, it works just as well."

• sin...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 23, 2016

Quetiapine "I'm taking Seroquel XR 400 mg. It all started last winter with my psychotic episode. I went a bit manic, anxiety, depression. Won't get into details. I went into the mental hospital for 2 months, there is where I started taking Seroquel. To be honest, the first 2 weeks I have been vomiting every single night, had dizziness so hard that I had to hold walls while walking down the hallway. It's fine because at that point I didn't know if it's just a bad dream or reality. After a period of let's say 2 months, I got much better. Still, I was feeling like my emotions, vocabulary, thoughts were really in bad condition. As time passes, I got used to it (I'm using it for 10 months now). DON'T DO COLD TURKEY!!!"

• mha...
• June 4, 2017

Quetiapine "My family member has been on the brand name Seroquel XR since 2009. When Accord Healthcare came out with their generic version in Nov 2016, she had to get the generic in Jan. 2017 until she could get approved for the AZ & Me PAP. I can tell you that the generic does not have the same efficacy as the brand name as she started experiencing symptoms on Accord's generic. Now we find out that AstraZeneca will no longer have the PAP after Dec. 2017. They did a good job of marketing their product, and it has helped many patients manage their symptoms. However, if the generic versions don't have the same efficacy, thousands of patients risk decompensation and symptoms. Accord even has the nerve to charge over 1300 per month for their med."

• Joh...
• August 16, 2017

Quetiapine "I have been taking Seroquel XR 800mg for almost 11 years. Before this, I was taking a low dose of regular Seroquel for many years. It really helps me manage my schizoaffective disorder. I am also taking a doctor's prescribed antihistamine, hydroxyzine 50mg, because I get hives while on Seroquel XR. I have noticed male breast growth and hard glandular breast tissue build-up under my breast during this year. I am also experiencing breast pain. I am on a calorie-restricted diet and have been exercising and lifting weights regularly for the past 10 years and have gained 5lbs to 10lbs in weight. I have low body fat and can do 70 push-ups in a row easily, so it's not body fat."

• JoS...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• November 16, 2018

"Been taking Seroquel XR for about 8 years for severe insomnia and schizoaffective disorder. It's great for sleep, but I've put on about 50 lbs. since starting. Currently trying to titrate off of it, and I'm down to 50 mg. I do work out 3 times a week, so I'm not gaining, but I'm not losing weight either. I'm not a fitness god, but I've been pretty active all my life and skinny, so being 50 lbs. overweight is a dealbreaker for me. I want to have my knees and hips functioning in old age, can't do that when I'm lugging extra weight around that's crushing my knees. There's just too many negative physical symptoms that my pdoc doesn't care to address that affect quality of life."