Geodon - Weight Loss, Mania Anyone? __________________________...

I have been on geodon for just under a week and have already lost 5 lbs! I was on seroquel, which I loved and depended on for over a year, but could no longer stand by and watch the needle on the scale get higher and higher... 50 lbs total. Talk about depression. The seroquel was previously the only thing that worked to halt my mania and put me to bed. Since the switch from (50 mg) seroquel to (20 mg) geodon I feel all around better than I have in years! I felt an improvement in mood almost immediately. I am clear headed, awake, smiling and laughing, have energy, and my previously (insatiable!) appetite is clearly suppressed. I have a natural nervous/anxious/self-conscious disposition which I attribute to my personality- in addition to the BP, all of my life which limited my eating, but in a healthy way- I was not underweight/overweight. (The seroquel turned me into a lazy, careless cookie monster to say the least.) I have gone from sleeping 12 hrs a night (and still feeling exhausted) to sleeping 6 hrs a night and waking up feeling well rested, refreshed, and actually wanting to wake up! (That says a lot, I havn't felt like I wanted to wake up since I was a kid and I'm almost 30...) The not-so-fun part- I am exremely nauseous with diarrhea. I have called out of work the last 2 days because of the constant trips to the bathroom and vomiting. I really hope this part ends soon because I want to be able to tolerate this drug and not have to go back to the seroquel. I was in such a fog w/ the seroquel that I did not see the true zombie effect it has had on me for over a year. I completely stopped doing the things that I loved and enjoyed- including using my creativity and intelligence. I feel 'alive' again on Geodon. I have felt myself when triggered, mind racing into mania which does have me on guard. I stayed awake in bed the first 2 nights til' at least 3am unable to stop the thought train/obsessing about something stupid my husband did 6 years ago :-) This is the part however, I want to learn to control on my own without meds which I why I am aggressively seeking therapy. Though, when my mind is racing/obsessing the geodon does seem to give me that strong sense of reality/insight that what I am doing is not normal or healthy, whereas before, I'd just be extremely angry and blame my husband or whoever 'wronged me' for my obsessing/anger/rage. Now I have a clear sense that I am (or should be) in control of myself/thoughts and feelings. I need to work on that missing link between obsessing about something I can not control or change, and reality- what is healthy for me. A med can not do this for you.
Hope this makes sense! Good Luck :-)

I forgot to mention this site:
http://www.askapatient.com/viewrating.asp?drug=20825&name=GEODON

You can read patient reviews on this or any drug and submit your own. I must admit, the page on geodon is quite scary, but since my experiences have been mostly all good, I am staying extremely hopeful :-)

My son was put on Geodon while in the hospital. Previously he had been on Abilify and Topamax which were not very effective for his paranoid schizophrenia. before that he was on Depakote and Zyprexa which were fairly effective but he gained 60 lbs. But with the Geodon, he has been very manic which was never a symptom before. He is almost in a state of delirium sometimes. And he is having troube sleeping, never a problem before. I think he will have to come off of this because of the manic state. But i was wondering if others of you have used it in combination with other meds to prevent Mania. Jim

My pdoc told me that if you are on too little of the Geodon that it can "activate" you and can cause more problems than it can actually solve. So, if it is causing insomnia and manic behaviors then perhaps your dosage needs to be increased rather than decreased as you are thinking. I just saw my doctor today and she is starting me on 80mg Geodon (so this information is fresh for me) because she doesn't want me to to experience this activation. She also said that I must take it with a meal that is at least a minimum of 500 calories, otherwise it's metabolized immediately in the bloodstream and isn't released properly. I know I might be telling you things that you already know, but I'm just trying to be helpful. I plan on changing my meds schedule to lunch or dinner instead of bedtime. I'm currently on 75mg Topamax and 1500mg Depakote for Bipolar Spectrum Disorder.

I've been on geodon for four weeks now and lost 13#, but I also take Melatonin 3 grain at night for sleep. It's in the vitamin section of drug stores. I take 2 every night and it works and if needed I can take more, it's all natural. I hope this works out for you.

I have found that Geodon makes me lose weight. I'm on it for my Bipolar, and it works best for me unlike the Abilify which makes me want to walk and walk and walk, lol, even with Cogentin to curb the side effects. But all in all Geodon has been the very best medication for me. I lost 20# in 30 days initially on Geodon.

thx so much for your replies. i'm now stabilized on 80 mg geodon, 4 mg risperdal,.5 mg cogentin (to counteract the risperdal side effects), 1 mg ativan & 10 mg ambien (as needed). the mania has gone away & i'm back to my normal weight. no more depression.