Posted by SLS on December 29, 2013, at 13:40:24
In reply to Re: Abilify...how low can you go? » Christ_empowered, posted by ed_uk2010 on December 29, 2013, at 10:51:26
> >I was on 30/day. That's the FDA approved max. I also take 1200/trileptal and 20/Prozac and up to 300/Neurontin.
>
> Hi,
>
> If you stop Abilify completely, I think you will relapse pretty soon. Based on your previous response to Abilify, and the fact that you take fluoxetine (which interacts), I do not think you should go below 15mg of Abilify.C_E, I tend to agree with Ed. If you don't like how Abilify affects you cognitively, you might consider a trial of Saphris. Because of the catastrophic nature of your illness, I think that you would be better off bringing Saphris on board before attempting to discontinue the Abilify.
A friend of mine had been on Navane and Seroquel before starting Saphris. Up until this time, she was sedated, cognitively slowed, and suffering from brain-fog and residual depression. Immediately upon starting Saphris, her energy and mental acuity improved along with her mood. Unfortunately, she remained hypersomniac and sedated. I suggested that she ask her doctor about reducing or eliminating the Seroquel. She is now taking half of her original dosage of Seroquel with the intent to discontinue it entirely. The taper process will take several months in order to avoid triggering a rebound relapse and withdrawal insomnia. She feels dramatically better.
As an antipsychotic, Saphris tends to be alerting and can act as an antidepressant. If Saphris monotherapy is insufficient to treat your psychotic symptoms, you might consider a first generation antipsychotic. I like what I see in Navane (thiothixene). Ed_uk would be better than me at characterizing the various typical neuroleptics.
For now, my friend, who suffers from schizoaffective disorder, is in remission. She also takes Wellbutrin and Neurontin. At some point, she might opt to discontinue the Neurontin. One would think that the Neurontin serves no purpose, but you never know. There might be a need for an anticonvulsant mood-stabilizer in her treatment regime that Neurontin fills.
C_E, I would not discontinue Abilify until you have first added another antipsychotic and titrated it to a therapeutic dosage. For now, you might as well stay at a therapeutic dosage of Abilify. I get the impression that the minimum effective dosage for you is no lower than 20 mg/day. Ed_uk might have better insight into your illness so as to recommend 15 mg/day. However, the consequences of your becoming psychotic are substantial.
- ScottSome see things as they are and ask why.
I dream of things that never were and ask why not.- George Bernard Shaw
poster:SLS
thread:1056882
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20131209/msgs/1057136.html