Aripiprazole and Insomnia: What Users Say (Page 4)

• HKa...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 26, 2021

Aripiprazole for Depression "I've been taking this along with Clonidine for a month, and they increased Abilify to 5 mg. Once this happened, after a bit, I've started to get insomnia, restlessness/anxiousness, nausea, appetite change (not hungry). I chose to go off it myself since my psych insisted I stay on, but I couldn't keep torturing myself like this. Hopefully, my body returns to normal when I could sleep and eat without worries."

• Anonymous
• December 9, 2011

Aripiprazole for Bipolar Disorder "I have been on Abilify for three weeks now. I also take Klonopin, Celexa, and Trileptal for bipolar II disorder. The Abilify was added to control my anger and aggression because sometimes I just wanted to SNAP! I feel much better now. So far, I've only lost weight because it makes me feel queasy and kills my appetite in general. However, I give it an 8 because it costs a small fortune to be on this medication ($600 a month since I no longer have insurance). It's made my insomnia worse too. Overall, though, as long as it doesn't make me gain weight, it still rates high on my scale."

• Gap...
• November 22, 2017

Aripiprazole for Schizophrenia "Stop using it! I've been on it for 2 years and feel like I'm dying. I've had hives, diarrhea, racing heartbeat, dilated pupils, etc., hair loss, insomnia, weight loss, and I'm scared for my life. It has worked well up until the last two weeks. I'm aboriginal, and so no cost to me."

• RBa...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 4, 2019

Aripiprazole for Schizoaffective Disorder "Took it for schizoaffective and schizophrenia, so here is the review for schizoaffective: took aripiprazole 22.5 mg for 4 weeks when I was manic, and I was stable the whole time, but I couldn't sleep even with sleep medications. The only solution was to add Kemadrin to the mix (anticholinergic used for Parkinson's disease and side effects of antipsychotics). Unfortunately, I was too immature to continue this regimen, so after 3 months of going cold turkey, mania came back. Shame."

• KAT...
• April 12, 2011

Aripiprazole for Bipolar Disorder "1st day on Abilify seemed like I had energy. 2-3 days later, insomnia set in big time. Even tried taking 2 Lunesta... didn't work. 2 weeks later, I was in the ER from side effects. Tremors, not comfortable in my own skin, slurred speech, couldn't focus or concentrate. Spouse thought I'd had a stroke. They gave me Ativan and Benadryl. I got a new psychiatrist after that. Just starting on Lithium now. We'll see."

• Dal...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 9, 2021

Aripiprazole for Depression "Antipsychotics are awful in my opinion, while aripiprazole helped a little with agitation in some regards, I cannot sleep on even a low 5 mg dose. I have tried every recommended method and was even given zopiclone, still no sleep. Appetite increased unnaturally, and nausea ensued. Also, unbearable restless legs and feeling weak."

• Key...
• October 9, 2021

Aripiprazole for Autism "First 2 days on this, my 27-year-old son is agitated. Doesn’t know what to do with himself. Can’t sleep. Wants to eat all the time. Cries and self-injures if left alone. He is nonverbal, so analyzing by observation, I would say this is the wrong med for him."

• OWE...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 30, 2017

Aripiprazole for Bipolar Disorder "This medication was the worst experience of my life, and I've been through a lot of rubbish. I experienced insomnia, depression, anxiety, and pseudo ME on Abilify. I was on it for 3 months, and I spent my time feeling lobotomized and wanting to give up on life. It took me 3 months to fully get back to my old self, going between depressed and manic. I found a medication that works for me without professional help afterwards."

• Anonymous
• February 13, 2011

Aripiprazole for Bipolar Disorder "The first day when I woke up, I felt like my body had been hit by a Mack truck! But the second day, my body felt fine. It took about 2 weeks for side effects to go away (trouble sleeping, headache, stomach upset). The motivation has been wonderful. I take it with Wellbutrin and Lamictal. I never wanted to try it because of the weight gain, but I have not found that to be true. In my case, motivation = exercise."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 24, 2023

Aripiprazole for Schizophrenia "Abilify, also known as Aripiprazole, is a pretty good med. It helped with my symptoms and, as a plus, it reduced my appetite slightly. But it also caused restlessness and insomnia (as side effects), so I had to switch meds, unfortunately."

• HMA...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 18, 2019

For Schizoaffective Disorder "I've been on aripiprazole for about three months now - the first two were amazing. I was getting loads done at home - despite feeling previously that I struggled because of something like mild dyspraxia on top of my mental health condition. Then my OCD started creeping in and then I stopped sleeping as much. I spoke to my psychiatrist, and she recommended taking the meds an hour before tea (evening meal) - my sleep improved, but my OCD got really, really bad, and my appetite went - so I reduced the meds myself from 15 to 11.25 - now I feel okay again - I am discussing this with my psychiatrist tomorrow. If I could have spoken to her sooner, I would have done. I wish there was a medication that made you more outgoing, though, as I'm still a bit scared of public transport at the moment. I'm in the UK, so don't know if I'm allowed to review - but thought it might be useful to people."

• Cod...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• July 14, 2021

Aripiprazole for Bipolar Disorder "For some people, this medicine makes them worse, but for the handful of people out there that have positive reactions to it, oh my god, the creator of this medicine is a genius. I've been on this medicine off and on since I was 15 years old, I am now 26, and it still is just as effective as it was when it first came out, and I take the generic version of it at that! Vivid dreams? Of course. But it got rid of my insomnia, racing thoughts, mood swings, any mental health problem I had, gone. The only issue I had with it was on the first night, and I was a little agitated. Once your chemical imbalance starts to adjust, things go along smoother. And I never mix this medicine with anything, as nothing good ever comes of it for me. Plus, you have to watch being out in the heat for extended amounts of time. And they have to monitor your blood work every six months, but hey, if it works for you, totally worth it!"

• Sca...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 11, 2021

Aripiprazole for Depression "I was on Abilify for a grand total of two days. I'm sure it's a great drug for some, but I started twitching and having lots of muscle spasms randomly. I was on 2.5 mg and would just twitch so much it drove me crazy. I couldn't sit still and was restless and unable to sleep."

• Anonymous
• March 31, 2010

Aripiprazole for Bipolar Disorder "I have experienced more rapid cycling with this medication, major insomnia, and then sleepiness. Also, I have experienced shortness of breath and higher blood pressure. However, it helps in making oneself quite groggy for half a day."

• Anonymous
• February 11, 2012

Aripiprazole for Bipolar Disorder "Have been taking Abilify for 6 months at 2 mg daily. The first 2 weeks were hard. I couldn't sit still at all, and could not sleep, and my work suffered badly because I couldn't think due to lack of sleep. But I didn't give up because the anger and extreme anxiety I was experiencing disappeared after the first dose! I have gained weight and sometimes cannot control binge eating since I've been on it. Also, it does almost nothing for depression, which still comes and goes, but is easier to deal with since I have much less anxiety symptoms. But I seem to be really paranoid now, and I don't like that. All that being said, I feel way more stable on this than on nothing."

• Lpa...
• March 26, 2017

Aripiprazole for Bipolar Disorder "I took this med for 2 weeks. Within 3 days, I was thrown into a total manic state. I was awake every night by 3 am because I couldn't sleep. I spent quite a significant amount of money in a short amount of time! I also put on 4 pounds in this time. The only positive thing I can say is that it gave me energy. The reason my pdoc tried me on it was depression and lack of energy. I also have bipolar and have been on Lithium for 3 years and have been steady until I took Abilify. Needless to say, I have stopped taking this med."

• Bab...
• February 21, 2017

Aripiprazole for Schizoaffective Disorder "Did nothing for my delusions and hearing voices. It only made me twitchy, unable to sleep, agitated, and gave me extreme tremor. On only 5 mg. I much prefer olanzapine, more effective with milder side effects."

• Yan...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 8, 2020

For Depression "I took this medication, aripiprazole, for about 2 weeks for depression. I saw no improvement with my depression. I stopped taking it due to insomnia, restlessness, and fatigue. It seemed to help with my productivity, though."

• Anonymous
• June 19, 2018

For Depression "I started this alongside an antidepressant (duloxetine), partly to prevent another manic/psychotic episode, and partly to treat my chronic depression. The depression had lasted around 3 years with constant suicidal ideation and a general mood so low that I couldn't get happiness from virtually anything. The duloxetine (started about 2 months before aripiprazole) helped the depression by itself very slightly, but after I started this, the world started to fill with light a little again, and I got into a regular morning routine which started at 8 a.m. rather than midday. I am now enjoying socializing and exercise again, and looking forward to starting a new job in a couple of months. It has also helped relieve the obsessional-style thoughts I was having. It's hard to explain my own surprise at not being depressed anymore. At first, on this drug, I wasn't sleeping well, but then my psychiatrist suggested taking it in the morning rather than at night, and since then it has been fine."

• Ann...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 25, 2019

For Schizophrenia "I was having insomnia, and my doctor first prescribed me this aripiprazole. Made my insomnia worse. Switched to quetiapine/Seroquel and made my life so much better with more sleep and less/rare psychotic episodes."

• dou...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 29, 2021

Aripiprazole for Schizoaffective Disorder "Garbage, switched from Invega to Abilify. Major side effects even with 5 mg are fatigue, stiff muscles, restlessness, horrible insomnia, akathisia with higher dosages. What is good about it is that it doesn't induce sexual dysfunction like other AP drugs, and it lowers prolactin, which is a plus. Seems to enhance the anhedonia caused by the Invega in a bad way. The half-life is pretty long, about 3 or 4 days, it can overload your system if you are a poor metabolizer. Seems to lift depression but also seems to induce waves of depression, the drug itself is pretty schizo in that regard. The drug itself isn't that bad, but its metabolite has a lot of negative effects. All antipsychotics are crap in general, but as long as it prints dollars, they will keep getting prescribed. Don't go above 5 mg unless you want akathisia. Disregard comments about it being weight neutral, you will gain weight nevertheless. It's just overall less worse than other APs regarding weight."

• Sta...
• July 21, 2021

Aripiprazole for Schizoaffective Disorder "It made me feel the need to eat 24/7, made me have a weird sleep schedule, and made my brain very slow. It did lessen my suicidal thoughts significantly, and I could think more clearly even though I was slower. But I felt very stupid. When I came off it, my psychosis returned with full force."

• Ale...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 25, 2021

Aripiprazole for Schizophrenia "This drug is terrible. It keeps me up at night, wide awake! I had the depot injection, now it will not let me sleep for a month. I have been on it for 9 days, counting down the days. What can help with sleep? I tried quetiapine. It didn't work. I don't even know if my doctor will stop this injection. Fingers crossed, he will in 21 days. Don't take the injection form if you have a choice. For me, I don't have a choice."

• Suz...
• October 4, 2019

For Bipolar Disorder "Started on the injection 2 years ago, 880 mg every 6 weeks. At first, it made everything wonderful. Increased to 1064 mg every 8 weeks, and my mouth chewing is horrible. I'm gaining weight rapidly, and I have been obsessed with shopping. Also, wake up every hour on the hour. Going to request having the dose lowered."

• ian...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 4, 2022

For Depression "I was hesitant to take this medication. I have ADHD, major depression, and am autistic. I also have some tendencies of OCD and anxiety, but these are probably from my other conditions. This was added to my 150 mg bupropion at 2 mg. I took it before bed, and that night got some of the worst sleep I've had - waking up every hour with night sweats (even with AC on and no covers, which I never do), strange 'fragmented' dreams, and trouble getting back to sleep. The worst insomnia from any medication. I also immediately noticed an increase in my leg twitching, which has been the only side effect of bupropion. My sleep has actually still suffered for 3+ days after that one dose, due to its long half-life. I know it's too short of a time to see any benefit, but both the short-term side effects and long-term risks didn't seem to be worth any benefit I could get from it."