Posted by Elizabeth on September 13, 2001, at 15:19:56
In reply to Re: Remeron vs Zyprexa » SallyR, posted by SalArmy4me on September 13, 2001, at 11:45:50
> --It has none of the anticholinergic effects of SSRIs.
None of the SSRIs has anticholinergic effects.
> --It has gained recognition as a very useful medication from psychiatrists in only four years of FDA approval.
Oh, come on: Prozac was a hit immediately when it came out.
> I myself started Remeron at 60 mg right away and had no side-effects. I had no weight gain or sedation during the day.
Me neither. And I was taking the Remeron in the morning.
> Here are the advantages of Zyprexa, as opposed to most antipsychotics and antidepressants:
>
> --It will calm you down all day; when I took it, I thought it was better than a benzo.I've heard Seroquel hyped as "an antipsychotic that feels like a benzo." Patients who'd taken it based on these glowing reviews did not agree.
> --It has no anticholinergic effects.
It has relatively mild anticholinergic effects compared with other neuroleptics.
> --It will definitely help you sleep.
So will hydroxyzine.
> --It is covered by insurance, generally.
But it's very expensive if you have to pay out-of-pocket.
> --It augments antidepressants.
In *some* patients.
> --Despite what rumors go around, Tardive Dyskenisia on Zyprexa is rare.
That's true, so far anyway. (It's been around for about 5 years.) But extrapyramidal side effects, especially akathisia, do occur.
> I took 10 mg of it at bedtime, and I had no drowsiness in the morning. I didn't have any weight gain either.
I felt zonked through much of the next day if I took it at bedtime.
The two drugs have some side effects in common: sedation and weight gain. Other than that, there aren't many clinically significant similarities.
Remeron is safer and is unlikely to worsen depression, whereas some depressives do feel worse on antipsychotic drugs such as Zyprexa.
Why are you considering taking one of these drugs?
-elizabeth
poster:Elizabeth
thread:78718
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010907/msgs/78728.html