Abilify for Depression User Reviews (Page 5)

• Pickles
• June 23, 2015

"This medicine works great. The price point is high, but you guys don't have to pay it. The manufacturer has a coupon that you take to the pharmacy that you can get online. It reduces the copay to just $5.00."

• Holly
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 4, 2013

"Abilify has been a life saver to me. Initially there were side affects, but I was determined to stick with it and in time, they went away. I've been on a combination of different antidepressants which just didn't seem to be working. It seems that over time, they lose their effectiveness. The depression, anxiety and panic attacks became so bad that I couldn't get out of bed, sleeping all day and staying awake all night. I had no desire or motivation to do anything. I began to become aware of suicidal thoughts which scared me. My doctor decided to add 2 mg. of Abilify to my regimen and it has worked like a miracle. My only concern is that I am still feeling some anxiety, restlessness and occasional panic which may be from the Ability."

• coolmom
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 5, 2013

"Abilify, along with Prozac has worked amazing for me. But there is a downside to using Abilify. WEIGHT GAIN! Once I started it, my appetite increased like crazy and now I've gained about 60 lbs. It's like do I want to quit taking it and go "crazy" but be thin or keep taking it and be fat and happy, literally!"

• LPano
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• September 16, 2019

"I've been on Abilify for about 9 months and take 15mg tabs once a day. I've gone through a few things with this medication, including excessive shopping. I had recently had my blood drawn and my liver and kidney numbers are high, along with my blood pressure being low. I have not seen these side effects on anybody else's review and want to know if anybody else is having these side effects. I've also had really good experiences with this drug- I'm not depressed and I don't feel as angry. The side effects are enough to ask for another type of medication, though."

• Zhona...
• October 14, 2016

"I have been on remeron, lamictal, strattera and for almost a year. I have been diagnosed with major depressive disorder, adult ADHD and ptsd. In August I was present when my best friend of 36 years years passed away from cancer. Needless to say that grief combined with MDD had me in a very bad space in my head. I Went to my doctor and he suggested abilify as an add on to the remeron, I was already on 45mg and he refused to increase. He also prescribed buspar as a prn for my anxiety. With in days the dark pit I was in closed up and I was able to breathe again. Although still grieving it comes in manageable waves now instead of being 24/7. I have had very minimal side effects and take 5mgs in the morning. I would recommend this medication"

• namjoon
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 30, 2020

"I was on this Abilify for a month or so for depression to enhance my anti depressant and I had the worst experience. It made me have the most awful night terrors/nightmares and I starting hallucinating, seeing little tiny people run around my room and I thought they were going to hurt me if I went to sleep. I still don't understand why I was given this as a minor"

• Phil...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• May 12, 2017

"I had very bad depressed thoughts and since taking Abilify my total blackness in my life had been lifted. I had been suffering depression and fits of mood swings. This Abilify actually works. I stoped raging at life and to put a literal perspective on this. Its more or less one of the best that been prescribed to me .I used to yell , convulse and almost had completely collapsed. The only downside is the restlessness but melodramatic sense of unwanted sleepless nights. All I got to say to everyone keep taking what you are prescribed."

• Anonymous
• March 3, 2009

"I really think this drug has been a life saver. But be careful with the dosing-sometimes less is more. I currently take 2.5 mg and that is enough to pop me out of the depression. At 5 mg I was very "flat," anxious, and my joints ached. Everyone is different, but this drug can be very helpful."

• Guest
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 23, 2022

"Abilify destroyed my life. I encourage my husband to go get put on depression medicine because his depression is so bad and his doctor wrote him this first and I totally regret it. Since then his personality completely changed and he decided he wanted a divorce and walked out. He told me this medicine turns his depression into rage and he not only wants to hurt himself but he wants to hurt others now. He blocked me on everything and I have no contact with him so there’s no way to help him. Please don’t let your family members or yourself take this medicine."

• Beck
• March 28, 2013

"I started Abilify on 2mg with Prozac and Klonopin. After just 3 days I felt the energy that was lacking for so many years. Before Abilify I had been on so many different antidepressants I felt there was nothing for me so I chose drinking. Wrong choice but it was the only thing that would make me feel normal. I finally quit with help from my family. I was put on Abilify, Prozac and Klonopin. I have now switched Prozac with Effexor 75 mg and Abilify 8 mg 4 mg in morning and 4mg at night 37.5 of Effexor in morning and night, also 2mg of Klonopin 2 times day or as needed. I do suffer from vivid dreams and have gained a little weight but when I was drinking I wouldn't eat and lost a lot of weight. Overall it is a godsend."

• anony...
• July 8, 2013

"For the past three months I experienced severe anxiety and depression likely due to intense work stress. Feelings and dread and doom were constant and overwhelming. I had a similar episode about 15 years ago and a GP prescribed Luvox. Within weeks, I felt normal and alive. I've been on it ever since. I finally decided to see a psychiatrist. Well, after an hour meeting and 7 pages of notes, she diagnosed me with severe obsessive compulsive disorder and depression and added a small dose of Abilify. The change was immediate and remarkable. The anxiety is greatly reduced. The depression seems gone. The racing thoughts, while not gone, are reduced. I have energy, however, I constantly feel hungry. I hope it continues."

• albis...
• January 26, 2010

"Over the years I have taken a number of different drugs and combinations of drugs for depression. By far the worst side effects I have ever experienced were associated with Abilify. The muscles in my legs became so stiff that walking anywhere was slow and painful. I felt nauseous all the time and several times experienced acid reflux. There was the constant feeling of needing to move and involuntary jerks of arms and legs. Sometimes my legs would shake uncontrollably. It took a while for these side effects to subside after coming off the drug. It's really good to see that this drug has helped so many people but it's not for me!"

• Jimmy
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 30, 2023

"It works amazingly well for depression. Persevere with the initial side effects, or adjust the dose accordingly. I started at 10 mg but had to reduce the dose to 5 mg due to akathisia. I am grateful that my psychiatrist strongly suggested that I stick with Abilify because it truly is changing my life after a decade of treatment-resistant depression."

• in my...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 19, 2013

"I have taken abilify for one year. It was prescribed as an add on to Cymbalta after a suicide attempt. I feel it boosts my mood. BUT I have gained 35 pounds. I can't imagine continuing on a medication with this side effect. It is not worth it to switch my angst over life circumstances to feeling depressed over a continual weight gain."

• shonest
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 27, 2015

"Taking Abilify greatly improved my mood, anxiety and depression. However approximately 2 months into treatment I started having severe headaches, face and lips swelled also breast tenderness and warm to touch. Today I decided to discontinue the medication. Over all it's a very good medication, I just can't take it."

• tabby...
• January 27, 2013

"I have suffered long term post trauma depression. Recently I ended up in a hospital for mental health. My psychologist decided to add Abilify 5 mg a day, I also take Lustral 100mg. Abilify started to work within 5 weeks. Brilliant. Before this medicine I was on the verge of suicide. Long may this good feeling last."

• James
• April 3, 2008

"I was withdrawn since my last psychotic break and this medication seems to be what fixed that. There was no weight gain. There was some trouble sleeping for the first two weeks. Over all I'd say this is the best antipsychotic I have tried."

• Kwood
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 8, 2019

"Life changer for me. I am using 2mg of Generic Abilify with 450mg Wellbuterin and 40mg Prozac. I suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) 12 years ago and my thought process has a major improvement sine being on these. I gained 8lbs but could be from increasing of Prozac from 20mg to 40mg given same time as Abilify."

• optio...
• July 10, 2009

"At a tiny 1 mg dose this drug was wonderful for about a month. Instead of having a crazy sleep-till-noon schedule, I started to wake up in the morning on my own. I wasn't as tired, and I got a lot of things done. Which alone helped my depression. I was also able to start exercising and eating right without crazy cravings - so I lost about 10 lbs. The doctor increased me to 2.5mg/day and things really went downhill. I can only sleep for 4-6 hours at a time, so I have to nap twice during the day and as soon as I take the medicines I'm so tired I'm basically incapable of driving. I'm cutting back down by half today hoping it was a dosing issues."

• Darby
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• July 4, 2021

"My husband is 76 years old and has suffered with depression for several years. He was prescribed Abilify a few years ago, 10 mg daily. A few months ago he presented with Parkinsons like symptoms (shuffling gait, stone facial expression, stooped, slow walk and just an overall slowness with movement and speech, also intermittent dizziness. Psychiatrist stopped abilify immediately 1 month ago. I have noticed some improvement. We have been told these symptoms may or may not go away. His liver and kidney function are normal. Tremors are also evident intermittently. Abilify administration needs careful monitoring by a trained professional. I just wanted this information to be available, it is not for everyone and can have severe, life changing side effects. Be aware and educated on all meds you are prescribed."

• Sam
• July 13, 2019

"I was only on Abilify for a short amount of time, but my symptoms only seemed to worsen as I continued. I was constantly exhausted, like falling asleep in class level of exhausted, and I was experiencing a fair amount of emotional numbness. I don't know why my doctor put me on this medication but I just couldn't handle it."

• Drs
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 8, 2019

"This was great for a week , then my OCD got worse I’m now back to wearing gloves , made me crave cigs I haven’t smoked in 4 years but bought a pack and smoked 4. I was spending money I didn’t have . Racked a 2000 cc on nonsense. And while driving I felt like I wasn’t in my body and was trying to talk to myself to get basically back in. I would never ever recommend this drug. It literally cause me to into mains thank you lord I knew the signs . I stopped immediately and told my psych."

• lugub...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 28, 2015

"Well I was on Wellbutrin, Ciprolex, and Carbamazapine to start with, but was still having issues with some symptoms hanging around, such as lack of motivation and aches and pains.. When my psychiatrist put me on the Abilify, he warned me that I might LOSE weight. I laughed at this because usually these types of meds have the opposite effect.. and according to a lot of the reviews, that seems to be the case. But sure enough, within a couple weeks I had started noticing that my clothes were getting looser and my family started commenting their concern (I was already a healthy weight before).. I ended up going off of the Abilify because 1 and a half months later I had lost over 20lbs and literally underweight. Scary stuff! Great otherwise.."

• Tyler
• March 21, 2014

"Within the first week of treatment, I experienced an odd tightness in my neck. My muscles seemed unusually tense. My doctor assured me that this would, in time, pass, so I continued taking Abilify. Keep in mind, I was on the lowest dose. After two weeks, the muscle tensity dramatically worsened. My head was forcibly pulled to the left by the muscle tightness. I could not look forward or to the right without using my hands to maneuver my head, fighting my own muscles. I was so scared. After two days of enduring the extreme muscle tension, I discontinued Abilify under the instruction of my doctor. Didn't improve depression either."

• alr
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 19, 2014

"By the third day that I have started this medication; I have now began to experience severe dizziness and horrible headaches. Blurred vision and nausea occurs when the dizziness and headaches are at it's peaking point. The side affects are hard to deal with, and do not seem to be going away at all, but in fact seem to intensify."