Risperdal

[mel239]

today was my second psychiatrists appt.my epi doc had been bugging me for 3 yrs to see one.I did do the psych route for awhile but got tired of talking about all my problems.Anyway-first appt he tries to push antidepress--not interested been there done that.however,its these visual hallucinations ive had for 6mos now.they dont actually bother me,they are so fleeting and i know they arent real.But lately,Ive become so edgy and exhausted trying to figure out for that second if something is real or not.So even though he said an antipsychotic drug would eliminate hallucinations in a normal person,these are not normal hallucinations and he said this med would have no effect on these if they were from electrical like seizures whether simple partials or complex.So i was wondering if anyone had any experience with antipsychotics in their journey to diagnosis and how it did or didnt affect them Thanks

 

[Cint]

My neuropsychiatrist had me on Risperdal along with an SSRI for severe depression, not for hallucinations. I had to change docs and they ran blood test and found that Risperdal brought on diabetes, so I stopped the drug. The diabetes disappeared, but the depression came back, so I went to another dr. and he put me on zyprexa, another anti-psychotic. Within 3 months, I noticed a significant change in my vision and was losing weight. Went to my eye dr. and she was the one who diagnosed the diabetes and asked if I had started any new meds. This time the diabetes didn't go away after I stopped the drug, zyprexa. Now, on top of epilepsy+ depression, I have Type 1 diabetes to deal with also. I have to do insulin injections 5-6 times daily and check my glucose numerous times a day. So my message is anyone with a seizure disorder, beware of those anti-psychotics. Sounds to me like these hallucinations are seizure related. Why isn't the epileptologist taking care of them?

 

[mel239]

I dont know why my meds arent handling these quick hallucinations.They took care of the audio ones and they have pretty much handled my seizures and my constant auras so I have gotten tremendous relief and i really am not bothered by these other than being edgy and irritable after 6mos of this they havent gotten any worse but they havent gotten any less either.i really have never paid too much attention to triggers,i just seem to be all over the place and being alone with these kids so much of the time is such a responsibility that i tend to brush off my own problems. I really try to keep track in a notebook,but things just are so inconsistent and I get so frustrated because nothing seems to follow a pattern or make sense.I guess thats normal for temporal lobe E but I feel so nutty

 

[Endless]

Mel,

Different anti-seizure meds work different ways. Some prevent seizures before they happen, some stop them after they start, some prevent the electrical impulses from spreading (stopping them).

The drugs used to control seizures are called anticonvulsants. How they stop the seizures, change the seizure threshold, or prevent electrical discharges from occurring is not fully known. The neurochemical basis for their action is also unknown. Research has shown that some of the drugs can block the spread of abnormally fast nerve impulses in the brain, while others can increase the flow of chloride ions, which stabilize the nerve cells. Research is still being done in this area.

http://www.hpea.org/aboutepilepsy_treatments.php

You are on Trileptal, right?

Anticonvulsants like Oxcarbazepine are believed to work in part by by enhancing the actions of a natural brain chemical, GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid). GABA is a neurotransmitter, a chemical that carries messages between brain nerve cells. GABA inhibits the transmission of nerve signals, thereby reducing nervous excitation.

http://www.depression-guide.com/bipolar-disorder-trileptal.htm (it's about use for bi-polar, but still good info)

http://www.healthystock.net/category/anticonvulsants.shtml

If you are a serious science junkie:
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1187334-overview#aw2aab6b3
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20091013151309AAowb3x
Book: Principles of Pharmacology...

Since Trileptal stops the spread of seizures, I'm not sure if that means they never really get to the noticable point in the first place, or if the seizure just doesn't spread and progress. If it's the latter, then it makes sense you have a seizure for a second or so.

I'm on Lamictal, and if an aura or seizure is under 10 seconds I don't count it. To me it's the meds doing their job. I bounced that off my epi and he didn't disagree with it (I THINK he heard me!)

It's worth asking your neurologist how Trileptal works on seizures - preventing altogether, or shutting it down after it starts.