Posted by obsessivechris on March 15, 2002, at 18:54:02
Hi, i have ocd and i need some advice from you.
I am currently taking zyprexa (5 mg) and have been for close to 4 years. I want to get off of it because i have gained 100 pounds while on the drug, i weighed 140 when i started it, now i weigh 240 and i gained the weight really fast too, like 30 pounds a month. I tried exercising, walking 3 miles a day and i can't lose any weight, only gain. My docs have tried to get me off it a few times, which left the ssri's that i was taking at the time as my only med (luvox,celexa and prozac). And each time after a week of being off the zyprexa, my ocd got real bad. Let me explain to you as to what i mean by real bad:
I am the pure obsessive type, i don't have rituals for relief(i wish i did, i used to and it was not even close to this bad, i wouldget relief from the rituals, when i am not on the zyprexa, i got no relief, its just pure torture).I have obsessions with body parts, like having a heart attack, swallowing my tongue, going blind, deaf, ect. And while off the zyprexa, thats all i would think about during my waking hours and eventually it would get so bad to where i couldn't sleep and i had to start the zyprexa again. I would get psycho somatic pains in the areas i was obsessing on- the chest, throat,eyes, some in the head too. Then i would obsess on the imaginary pain that wasn't there and that made the anxiety even worse, unbearable would be the better word. I could barely talk on the phone and could not use the computer, let alone get out of the house, as i was so anxious. I don't even know if the term anxious would do justice in terms of describing what i was going through.
So my question to you is, why is zyprexa the only drug that has worked for me even though i am not psychotic? Furthermore, since the ssri's do not help, do you have any other drugs you would recommend that i ask my doctor about? I really don't want to keep taking zyprexa or any anti psychotics for that matter (i tried risperdal it didn't help, tried geodon and it helped somewhat but the weight gain was still there) because of the weight gain and sleepiness i get, i can sleep for 10 hours and still be tired. What urks me also is that taking the zyprexa seems like the only option because of the symptoms i get while being off it, its like i am trapped. *It should be noted that i experienced these same symptoms before i first started taking zyprexa. plse help.
sry for the essay...... i need help.... i am at my whits end... i feel so low and depressed especially with all the weight gain.. i cant lose it... :(
poster:obsessivechris
thread:98208
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020313/msgs/98208.html