Posted by LostBoyinNC1 on July 27, 2002, at 21:20:21
In reply to Tardive dyskinesia help?!, posted by JonW on July 26, 2002, at 14:12:10
> Hi,
>
> I'm taking Geodon right now and I think I love it (I'm bipolar so it's too soon to tell yet)... anyway, I'm concerned about tardive dyskinesia. What exactly is it like to have symptoms of TD? Every so often a particular muscle group will twitch and cause my legs, arms, hands, or trunk to move. It's nothing major, but I'm concerned because I don't know what TD is... ARE THESE SIDE-EFFECTS ANYTHING I SHOULD WORRY ABOUT?
>
> Thanks,
> Jon
those little twitches are bad news. Make sure you tell your Pdoc about that. Thats from the dopamine blockade your getting from Geodon. Here is what you could do:1) Take high dose natural vitamin E daily as a way to keep your nerves healthy. And when I mean high dose vitamin E, I mean high dose. As in 1500-2000 mg IU a day. There is info here in the tips and tricks on vitamin E for TD prevention.
2) Tell your Pdoc about those little muscle pops and twitches ( do you happen to have a numb tongue from Geodon by any chance) and ask him if an anti-cholinergic (parkinsons) drug taken simultaneously would be a wise idea. Some psychiatrists prescribe a parkinsons med with an anti-psychotic as a form of prophylaxis against EPS and movement disorders. This was a much more common practice in the old days when typical anti-psychotics was all they had. However it can still be done with the newer atypicals like Geodon. Cogentin and Artane are the two most common anti-EPS drugs.
Also, if your dx is bipolar why are you using an anti-psychotic as your main med? Why not a mood stabilizer? Mood stabilizers are much safer neurologically and are the drugs of choice for bipolar. If I was bipolar, Id be on a mood stabilizer not an atypical anti-psychotic, unless I was psychotic.
poster:LostBoyinNC1
thread:113828
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020725/msgs/113966.html