Cariprazine and Depression: What Users Say

• Ril...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 7, 2020

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "I’ve been feeling pretty depressed on this medication. Intensely bored, nothing is fun for more than a few minutes, all I want to do is sleep the misery away but I can’t sleep well. I’ve been on this medication for two weeks and I’ve never felt depressed like this before."

• Jay...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 10, 2021

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "What I’ve noticed after reading all these reviews is nobody talks about how long the initial side effects last and how long until you can expect to start working. After so many drug trials that I know everyone can relate to, I finally found the Zyprexa and Cymbalta combo to stabilize me for many years until it stopped working and I started numbing myself with alcohol until that stopped working. Started with drug trials again. Latuda made me feel like I was crawling out of my skin for weeks, so I discontinued it. Started Vraylar and started at 1.5 for a week, which at first was awful with numerous side effects including agitation, loss of interest in everything, on and on. So I started tapering every other day and cutting the capsule in half for now. I started feeling better and noticed a decrease in my anxiety within days. Everybody’s chemistry is different, but keep the faith and fighting through the side effects can be worth it. God bless."

• Lea...
• April 12, 2016

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "My daughter has been taking Vraylar for 3 weeks after trying many other meds for BP depression. The others had made no difference in her sadness, only side effects. Three days after starting Vraylar, she is a new person. Happy, sleeping well. She has not needed Xanax since Vraylar. Went from crying every day to doing schoolwork and activities with friends. The only negative is the outrageous cost. Working on that as it is not at all affordable."

• Pin...
• December 21, 2019

Cariprazine "I wrote on here a month or two ago, uncertain if I wanted to start this medication because of the reviews I was seeing, but I tried the medication and took it constantly. And I can honestly say I have seen an improvement. I’m not having as severe paranoia and/or disturbing distorted thoughts. Not saying they are completely gone because they are not, but it’s not as severe and prolonged like it used to be. I used to be 315 lb and started losing weight for my weight loss journey, and I was losing weight before I started this medication and still losing weight with this medication. I still get depressed every so often, but there are days I feel on cloud nine, and I do things I would have never done before! I can honestly say this medication has been very helpful for me."

• Hel...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 10, 2020

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "Awful, terrible med! Seriously! Makes you extremely tired! I was so excited about this med after watching the commercials and how it 'covers all phases' of bipolar. At 1.5 mg, it knocks you out. On the next day, you're still just tired and have no motivation to get to work and be productive! Made my anxiety worse! Exacerbated the stress I was dealing with at the time! Would go to sleep with a knot in my gut. I quit the med, and I had the worst 3 days of depression I’ve had in a while, maybe even the worst ever! I cried in front of my supervisor at work. Be careful with the withdrawals! Depression is the worst!!!"

• Lis...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 8, 2018

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "I was given this medication in place of lithium. I was on it for a month. I experienced many side effects while taking this: restless (pacing around the house), anxiety, chronic dry mouth, depression (crying for days), and TD (uncontrollable muscle movements), mainly in my face and jaw. The doctor gave me samples and never warned me of the potential side effects. Please be warned. I have stopped taking Vraylar for 3 weeks, and the uncontrollable muscle movements have still persisted. I don’t know if they are permanent, the Vraylar website says that they may be permanent. I am scared and don’t recommend Vraylar to anyone."

• Dee...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 2, 2019

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "For the first 3 days, I felt a reduction in anxiety but had a cloudy feeling. Over the next week, I started to get depressed and increasingly groggy. In weeks 2 and 3, I thought I was going to die. I was up all night long shaking and extremely agitated. My heart was thumping. I had a terrible headache and dizziness. I only slept 2-3 hours and only during the day. For anyone who is experiencing these side effects, I hope you find some peace knowing you are not alone. The drug has a long half-life, so it’s going to take me a few days, but I hope I can get back to my regular state."

• mik...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 30, 2025

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "I've been on Vraylar off and on since it came out in 2015. The first time I ever took it, it caused severe akathisia and RLS-like symptoms, and my mood wasn't affected very positively. I've tried pretty much all antipsychotics, new and old. Now, I've been on Vraylar the last four years, and it has remained a backbone of my psychiatric medicine regimen without any side effects. It really stabilizes my moods quite well, keeping me out of the pits of depression while preventing my mood from going too high into hypomania/mania. I was on 3 mg for several years but started feeling a bit 'numb' and unmotivated, so my psychiatrist lowered me to 1.5 mg around December 2024, and after a short adjustment period, it's just right for me now. No weight gain, akathisia, depression, etc. 4.5 mg was way too much, it made me rather depressed. I really think for depressive symptoms that 1.5 mg is just right. Copay coupon reduces the cost a lot, usually down to $0."

• Jen...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 7, 2022

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "I am on day 2 of Vraylar at 1.5 mg for manic depression and bipolar. I feel really weird. I feel cloudy. Like a zombie. As if someone has their finger on top of my head holding me down so I don’t get up. My face feels heavy. I want to talk but feel as if I can’t. Does that make sense? I will not be taking this med again. I feel really out of it. No emotions. You cannot tell me that in clinical studies none of these side effects came up. Messing with my brain, that’s for sure. I am tired and feel like I am about to have a MAJOR panic attack. I can’t wait for this feeling to go away. It’s scaring me. I feel unsteady, as if I could easily fall. No way I could drive. Things are really slowed down in movement. Weirdest I’ve felt since taking lithium. Vraylar is going to be a huge NO for me."

• Kym...
• August 3, 2019

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "I am on my third week of Vraylar, and the first two weeks were horrible. I was feeling like I was manic and depressed at the same time, like I would cry for no reason and then all of a sudden get manic and be cussing and mad at people. I just got out of the hospital recently and just got put on this medication. It seems like now those side effects are slowing down, but the only problem is I'm thinking I should take it during the day instead of at night because I wake up every hour on the hour, and by 4 a.m. I just give up sleep, and my anxiety level has increased."

• Jim...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 31, 2018

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "This medicine took away my motivation. I had a general feeling of discontent and unhappiness. This medicine made little tasks seem daunting. I have been off of it for three days and am starting to feel like my old self. I was on it for 30 days."

• Jim...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 31, 2018

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "This medicine took away my motivation. I had a general feeling of discontent and unhappiness. This medicine made little tasks seem daunting. I have been off of it for three days and am starting to feel like my old self. I was on it for 30 days."

• Sco...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 4, 2018

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "I was put on Vraylar because of a manic episode. I was told it would be gentle and would NOT hit hard. Within half an hour of taking the first dose, I had a full psychotic break that lasted two days. On the second day, I took another dose and was highly agitated afterwards. We reduced the dosage to every other day (1.5 mg). Two weeks after starting it, the Vraylar hit me like a truck and I went from somewhat manic all the way down. After four days of deep dark depression, I stopped taking it. I feel much better now, but I am left with genital numbness, exacerbating an existing problem that had actually gone away, but came crashing back even worse than before. I'm on different, much better meds now, older meds, but the genital numbness persists despite my having no problems with desire."

• Cat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 10, 2016

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "It seems now to not be working as well with my depression as it did 2 1/2 months ago. My psych upped the dose from 3 mg to 6 about 8 days ago, and I still feel depressed. Has anyone else experienced Vraylar pooping out on them?"

• Bip...
• June 19, 2018

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "I know everyone has different brain chemistry, so what works for some may not for others. Vraylar was horrible for me. I had terrible brain fog, akathisia, and sadness for the month that I took it. My performance at work was going downhill, and I was constantly ready to snap at someone. Finally off this stuff and back to my Seroquel XR. Doc added some Rexulti to help the Seroquel. It’s been 3 days since I’ve stopped Vraylar, and I feel much more like my old self already. Thank goodness my doc gave me free samples for the Vraylar, so I never had to pay for it."

• Amy...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 5, 2023

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "It helped at first, seemed like. Lower dose. But as the dose continued I began to feel grumpy all the time. Exhausted, skin sores, bumps, depression, angry, and physically aggressive. I no longer take the medicine."

• Ern...
• September 10, 2016

Cariprazine for Bipolar Disorder "I started to take Vraylar 1.5 mg about two weeks ago, and at first, I noticed right away I just felt better, my mood was up, I had a sense of humor again. But about a week ago, I started to have problems with my binge eating again, and even though I feel okay, I can't seem to stop eating. This makes me feel very out of control and sad. The last three days, I haven't been able to sleep, I can't focus my thoughts, and I don't feel good anymore. I'm hoping to go off Vraylar today or tomorrow after I talk to my doctor."

• JTW...
• June 9, 2018

Cariprazine for Schizophrenia "I believe Vraylar has saved my life. However, I take the following medications as well: Zoloft, Seroquel, Lithium, Ativan, Restoril, and Ritalin. My biggest complaint is emotional numbness. Don't get me wrong, it's better than crying constantly and having severe paranoia, but it's a hard way to live. I cannot feel emotions. There's a numbness, I CANNOT cry. It's like I'm detached from my own brain. With that said, I still feel the upside outweighs the downside as I am still breathing."

• Sea...
• May 11, 2019

For Bipolar Disorder "I’ve been on Vraylar (1.5 dose) for only about 4 days, and I’ve never felt worse. I was rushed to the E.R. today because my anxiety has only gotten worse from this drug. I can’t stop moving my legs as I’m so worked up. I would feel my heart rate increase as well as my breathing being affected. I’ve been restless ever since starting this and refuse to take it starting tomorrow. It left me feeling so hopeless, I didn’t know what to do with myself. May work for some people, but certainly not for me."

• Med...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 18, 2025

Cariprazine for Major Depressive Disorder "I had a terrible experience with Vraylar. This medication made me feel extremely lethargic and drained of energy. It gave me very disturbing intrusive thoughts and some of the worst nightmares I’ve ever had. Instead of helping, it caused severe insomnia and left me feeling more depressed and anxious than before. I had to stop taking it immediately because the side effects were unbearable. Definitely not the right medication for me."