Saphris and Drowsiness: What Users Say (Page 2)

• Ozr...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 5, 2016

For Bipolar Disorder "I started taking this at 5 mg for bipolar disorder. Firstly, the wafer I had to put under my tongue was horrendous! The taste can only be described as the taste of poison. It made my tongue numb. It made me extremely drowsy, but it was hard to sleep because I had almost a painful restlessness in my legs, so I felt I couldn't stop moving, yet I was so tired. It was a very uncomfortable feeling. This drug, an anti-psychotic, MADE me psychotic. It dramatically changed my personality from the moment I took it. I became aggressive and angry at everyone. If I'd had a higher dose, I think I could have become homicidal. This was a terrible drug for me, so I didn't last on it long at all, it was just too dangerous for me."

• Anonymous
• April 23, 2012

For Bipolar Disorder "I was prescribed this for Bipolar I. I am also taking Lexapro. Taking this sublingually is a pain, mainly because it tastes horrible. I am also convinced that this medicine caused the severe panic attacks I was having, which seemed dose-dependent (I was on both 5 and 10 mg of Saphris). Upon first taking the medicine, I would get severe restless legs that would last for about 3 hours. The medicine makes me very drowsy, but it was hard to sleep with severely restless legs. This side effect went away after about a week."

• Anonymous
• June 12, 2010

For Bipolar Disorder "I have only been on this medicine for 3 days. It tastes very bad. Use a Listerine strip if you don't like the taste. It is not that bad for me. I take it twice a day, but I have to drink a pot of coffee in the morning so as not to fall asleep. I feel better, not sure if it is the coffee or the medicine. I do sleep very well with it. Haven't had this much sleep in years."

• Joe...
• October 6, 2013

"I have been taking 20 mg of Saphris a day for two years now. I take it because I stutter. Dopamine-blocking medicines have been known to help with the symptoms of stuttering for years. I used to take Zyprexa, and it helped, but I needed to sleep 12 hours a day, and I gained 30 pounds. Since switching to Saphris, I lost the 30 pounds, and I only need to sleep 10 hours a day. I have pretty severe sedation in the morning, but the improvement in my speech has been pretty dramatic. Saphris has improved my speech fluency by about 80 percent."

• Ano...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 23, 2021

For Bipolar Disorder "Saphris has completely turned my life around and made me feel like myself again, taking away the depression and manic episodes! I literally could tell a difference the morning after I started taking it. No negative side effects with it. It does cause extreme sleepiness within 15 minutes of taking it, but I don’t mind as it allows a good night's sleep and I wake up feeling refreshed and rested. I am so thankful for this medication. It has truly saved me!"

• Anonymous
• April 22, 2012

For Bipolar Disorder "My insurance covers the whole cost of the medicine, thank goodness, otherwise, it would cost over $700 per month. I only rated it an 8 because, even though it works wonderfully to completely wipe away my depression by taking my required dose of 5 mg once at night and once in the morning, I cannot seem to fight off the sleep in the morning, even if I take it right when I wake up. When I can fight off the sleep, I am so tired that I feel sedated for about 6 hours. The taste is awful but bearable. I just don't know what to do about my morning dose. It makes me hungry, but the downside is that if I eat within 4 hours of taking Saphris, it is a little hard to swallow my food, and I do get a tingling, numb tongue for about an hour after taking medicine."

• HSo...
• May 31, 2016

For Bipolar Disorder "Bad drug. I wonder if all the good reviews on the internet were written by the company behind it. First, I took 5 mg x2. The morning dose made me sleepy to the point that I can't stay awake for 5 minutes. Now I take 10 mg at night. It makes me sleep for 12 hours (can't wake up) and gave me flat affect, totally impaired thinking, loss of hope in life, suicidal thoughts, problems in tongue and talking (because it's sublingual). Horrible drug, and don't believe all the good reviews you read!"

• Kai...
• June 10, 2023

For Bipolar Disorder "I had a wonderful time on Saphris the last year and a half. It was my miracle drug after being on Ziprasidone, which was horrible! Saphris is a great drug. I felt normal on it and not all drugged up or zombie-like. I hated the taste, though. Also, it made me sleep 14 hours a night, so my doctor currently lowered my dose from 15 mg to 10 mg. The past two days, I’ve woken up earlier and feel less groggy in the morning. Hoping 10 mg is my sweet spot. Good luck to everyone on your journey, I pray this is the miracle drug for you too!"

• Anonymous
• March 1, 2011

For Schizoaffective Disorder "It's under my tongue right now, and it does taste terrible. This medicine has been the best at controlling the depression and hallucinations for me, and I have tried many different medicines. The side effects I have are involuntary tongue 'flipping,' it makes me extremely sleepy. I have to work really hard to stay awake after I take it in the morning, and sometimes I get a sore under my tongue, or my skin peels in my mouth. I've had some really bad stomach/intestinal problems since I've started taking it, but I'm not sure if that is a coincidence or not. It's also hard to keep a pill under your tongue for ten minutes twice a day, especially if you need to say something. Better than the alternative, though."

• Gil...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• January 7, 2022

For Bipolar Disorder "Gained over 30 kg during a few years on this. The sedation was dreadful. Could never get up before 10:30 a.m. Some weekends I would sleep until 3 p.m. I can’t believe I persisted for so many years. Dreadful drug for me. Effective in preventing mania, in fact, it made me feel mildly depressed the whole time, but that may have been the sheer weight of the sedation. The sedation was also hard for my very supportive family to deal with. Funny taste not a problem. Did have a constantly dry mouth and increased thirst. A little trouble with stiff mouth muscles, which made speaking annoying at times, especially in my second and third languages, which require rolling of the 'r' sound. I found I was choosing to talk less due to the mouth muscle twitchiness. My dose was 5 mg at night only."

• ste...
• May 18, 2011

For Bipolar Disorder "I'm not quite sure as of yet. I have been on 10 mg at night for a week, and I sleep great, a bit drowsy the next day. Hopefully, it will wear off. Woke up last night for a restroom break, and I could barely make it to the bathroom without falling over. Strong medicine. Helps with the mood stabilization, though."

• muc...
• February 23, 2011

For Bipolar Disorder "This is the only thing that has worked for me. No more voices and I don't feel sedated the next day. They do have it in Black Cherry flavor, and it is better than the regular, which is horrible. I know it tastes bad, but it is the best thing I have found."

• bip...
• December 19, 2015

For Bipolar Disorder "I was diagnosed with Bipolar II (with very few manifestations of depression), so mostly problems with mania. I started on 5 mg at night for a week, then went up to morning and night doses of 5 mg. I did that for 2 days, as the daytime doses made me feel restless, uncomfortable, edgy, weird, and sedated. I couldn't stand it and would count down the time before it would wear off. Then I tried taking 10 mg at night, but then I couldn't sleep. I would wake up exhausted for the 4th time in a night. Went back to just 5 mg at night, and this had little to no effect. I worried about weight gain, but I lost weight-helped that I was extra cautious about what I ate. If 'increased appetite' is listed, I take extra measures with exercise and diet to stay healthy."

• she...
• June 3, 2011

For Bipolar Disorder "I've been taking Saphris for four days now, and I'm not sure what I think yet. I'm still having major anxiety at night, and it's not helping that much at all. Also, I feel sedated when I take it in the morning, so it's difficult to care for my two-year-old. Hopefully, this will wear off as my body adjusts to the medication. I have been eating more, which I'm not happy about, since I just lost a lot of weight. I wish my doctor would put me on something for the anxiety, then maybe it wouldn't be so bad."