[7839284023]

I am happy that this works for you, but you can't really compare a Z-Drug with an atypical antipsychotic. That's some dangerous medical advice.

Also (from wikipedia) on Seroquel / Quetiapine: "Despite being widely used as a sleep aid due its sedating effect, the benefits of such use do not appear to generally outweigh the side effects."

https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8812/afd4bc713c03435b68f2bb...

Personally I would only take antipsychotics when absolutley necessary. Nasty stuff.

[tinco]

He's saying prescribed seroquel. That means he would have to consult with his physician beforehand.

This guy drove away his friends, crashed his car and had psychotic episodes. During a 13 year addiction to the zolpidem. That's way past the "there may be some side effects" phase.

[junon]

This is a gross misunderstanding of what Seroquel is used for. It's one of those medications that several different side effects depending on the dosage.

Yes, it can be used as an anti-psychotic. However, in most of the cases I've heard, it's used as a sleep aid.

This was the case for me, too. I was on it for 10 years and ultimately went off because I grew out of my chronic insomnia. Aside from a muted personality and nightmares (the latter controlled by another medication), it was pretty fool proof and had very little consequence in my particular case.

As always, it depends on the person, but the blanket statement you quoted doesn't seem fair.

[DanBC]

Seroquel is quetiapine. People are calling it an anti=psychotic because it is an anti-psychotic. That's its main use, and that's what it's licensed for.

https://bnf.nice.org.uk/drug/quetiapine.html

https://www.nami.org/About-Mental-Illness/Treatments/Mental-...

> Quetiapine is a medication that works in the brain to treat schizophrenia. It is also known as a second generation antipsychotic (SGA) or atypical antipsychotic.

If doctors are prescribing seroquel for sleep problems i) that's pretty scary and ii) it's an off label use.

EDIT: here's the FA information showing that seroquel is an antipsychotic and is not licensed to treat sleep problems. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2013/02...

[jaijaihanuman]

Quetiapine is labaled an anti-psychotic yes, but its pharmacological characteristics are not that straight forward. It has a much higher affinity for H1 (histamine) receptors than for D2 (dopamine) receptors. Meaning that in low doses it acts like an anti-histaminergic drug, having a very limited effect on dopaminergic systems. Around 60% of D2-receptors need to be blocked for a typical anti-psychotic effect, and that is nowhere near what is happening with say 50mg of quetiapine, which is a normal dose for sleeping aid. In those low doses it mainly acts on H1, alpha-1, M3, M1, and some 5HT type receptors. At a minimum of 300mg per day, it pharmacologically starts to act as an anti psychotic.

There is a nice brief summary of this in Stahl's Essential Psychopharmacology.

To be clear, I am very much against prescribing anti-psychotics as sleeping aids. But I don't think there is a strong case for calling quetiapine anti-psychotic in low doses.

[dumpsterdiver]

> Yes, it can be used as an anti-psychotic. However, in most of the cases I've heard, it's used as a sleep aid.

I've never taken anti-psychotics. I've asked my doctor for anti-depressants a few times (usually during relationship issues) and they are not my thing.

You're not a medical doctor, right? Obviously, or you wouldn't be giving out such frivolous advice. Dude... it's an anti-psychotic drug.

[smabie]

And? Do you even know what that means?

[dumpsterdiver]

If you're referring to anti-pyschotic drugs, then no, I don't - at all. I meant no offense, I was just suggesting caution that's all.

Edit: I just wanted to acknowledge that there are probably a lot of beautiful people who find this drug helpful. I didn't mean to get down on you, I struggle too. I'm sorry if I jumped the gun with my statement.

[junon]

Please point to where I gave advice.

[radu_floricica]

Looks like that poster is in a completely different category from the general population. It says so in your quote as well: "does not appear to _generally_ outweigh the side effects".

That's a rather common mistake and I'd guess many doctors do it as well. Treatment risk depends only on alternatives. A pill that gives your a 0.01% chance of sudden death is an absolute no-go for genpop, but may be heaven-sent for a particular patient.

[smabie]

I've taken it for over 10 years and am better than ever. Hasn't suffered any harmful side-effects either. Of course, side-effects differ from person to person. But it's worth a try. Z-drugs and benzos are way worse.

Moreover, if you're severely addicted to Z-drugs like OP, the benefits probably do outweigh the side-effects. Not every person is the same, and the cost benefit analysis differs accordingly.

[winocm]

Antipsychotics ruined my life and gave me tardive dyskinesia.

[smabie]

Could you expound? It's always been in the back of my mind and I take a fairly low does, but would love to hear more about how it started, symptoms, and how it's affected your life.

I'm really sorry, that sucks. There is some new medication that is supposed to treat it (I think I saw an ad on TV for it).

[winocm]

I took olanzapine 5mg for a while, but my doctor kept increasing the dose as I was "non-compliant" up to 10mg, then more to 20mg as I kept getting hospitalized for compulsive suicide attempts because the medication completely axed my judgement.

I gained about 40 pounds on it, developed dyskinesia after about 6-8 months and ended up cold turkeying off of it, but 5 years later, the movement problems still stay... Unfortunately it also destroyed my executive function too; I can barely even string together coherent thoughts and perform programming work without being overly medicated on ADHD drugs.

I know there's valbenazine and other Parkinson's drugs (selegiline works decently enough on a daily dose, but MAOIs can become dangerous in certain circumstances), but they don't solve the root problem.

Now I can barely even control my hands, legs or face and it's mildly disfiguring, but it's not like I care anymore...

[TylerE]

Same. I’ve been on Zolipdem for about 5 years now ya amazing not to take 2 or 3 hours to fall asleep.

I’ve never had any meaningful side effects. No sleep walking, binge eating, or anything.

I am certainly, in the clinical sense, addicted - eg if I miss a dose I certainly notice, and there is some degree of tolerance, but I’m still better off than before I went on it.

[GordonS]

> I am certainly, in the clinical sense, addicted - eg if I miss a dose I certainly notice, and there is some degree of tolerance

I believe the correct term is "dependent".

There is a lot of misinformation and stigma out there, so I think it's really important to distinguish between addiction (e.g. insatiable cravings), medical dependence (e.g. someone taking anti-psychotics because they will otherwise have psychotic episodes, or someone taking antidepressants because they otherwise have manic depressive episodes), and physiological dependence, where your body's receptors have up/down-regulated to adjust to a "new normal", and withdrawal symptoms may occur if treatment is stopped.