Donepezil for Alzheimer's Disease User Reviews (Page 2)

• Car...
• May 18, 2016

Donepezil "My mother (74) was prescribed Aricept when she was diagnosed about 5 years ago. She had very few side effects and seemed less anxious. However, there was no noticeable change in cognitive function, which has deteriorated fairly rapidly, especially in the last 2 years. It is hard to say whether the drug had any positive effect as I will never know what my mother would have been like without it. It may or may not have slowed the progression of the Alzheimer's."

• My ...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 8, 2015

Donepezil "My 82-year-old dad went on this med to slow the memory loss. It did seem to help that, but we have had uncharacteristic behavioral issues where he can't keep his hands off the ladies. So much that it is a problem in the assisted living memory care unit he lives in, and now he has to go to a behavioral place to change his medicine. Sheesh!"

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 24, 2021

"My poor mom was up all night with bad nightmares and talking all night in a state of confusion. Today she is like a zombie with no appetite and refuses to get out of bed because she is so tired. I should have looked up the side effects first. I am livid with the doctor that prescribed this."

• dau...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 21, 2015

"My mother was on this and had negative side effects, diarrhea, weakness, changes in behaviors, combative, using foul language, on 10 mg. I complained, and the MD took her off, then put her back on 3 months later, same side effects. I am disgusted at how these meds are prescribed, and the side effects are WORSE than the behaviors. I am an RN, and this is abuse of our elder patients."

• San...
• November 4, 2015

"Mum has first stage Alzheimer's and was put on drug 8 weeks ago. She has gone from someone who was pleasantly confused, is now incontinent, won't eat or drink, sleeping all the time, and is now in hospital because she was found unresponsive! Had been examined by 4 doctors within the 8 weeks who all said she must stay on the drug! Even though it was blatantly obvious to the family, it was the drug causing the symptoms! The drug was stopped 2 days ago and she is alert and talking."

• ber...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 27, 2019

Donepezil "My MD tagged my DL (driver's license) when she prescribed this med. When I asked why, she said, 'We report every prescription of this med to the DMV.' So (age 71), I took the written test and am scheduled for the road test. Proctor said, 'You did VERY well!' on the written test! Not too worried about the driving test (my 40-year-old niece says, 'You drive better than I do!'). So be forewarned. Drug well tolerated, no issues. Is it doing anything good? Who knows?"

• jus...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 21, 2023

Donepezil "The neurologist prescribed Namenda. Too many side effects. Went on Aricept and was more confused, diarrhea, stomach cramps, resting heartbeat 90, couldn't sleep. Excessive crying was frightening. No reason to cry. I came home one night and was planning a suicide attempt, crying and exhausted. I stopped taking it immediately. I have never had a thought about suicide. Very frightening. I'm a 66-year-old woman with dementia. I did not experience anything positive with this medication."

• Tee...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 12, 2020

"My first experience with donepezil 10 mg was nasty. It affected my sleep in a bad way and made my memory, speech, and basic cognitive functions worse, and I was continuously lethargic. After 2 months on the drug, I can honestly say I feel a huge difference (for the better). There is a big improvement in both my memory and speech, and it's really made a difference in my day-to-day life and daily tasks."

• Tah...
• August 24, 2017

Donepezil "At 78, my husband started on Aricept 10 mg for increasing symptoms of Alzheimer's. He did well for a long time. Memory improved. When he started to decline again months later, he was put on Namzaric. Did great again for many months. He now has had an increase in Aricept. Showed improvement. Again. Wishing this would last."

• yog...
• July 16, 2008

Donepezil "After brain surgery, my vocabulary and speech became very bad. A doctor suggested Aricept. I didn't notice any improvement in my speech, but my kids did. Apparently, it works for different things. Because of the surgery, my short-term memory is out. Long-term memory is still there."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 27, 2016

"My 65-year-old husband started the 1/2 pill regimen 5 weeks ago. Big improvement in conversations, no longer accusing people of stealing from him. Then we had to wait 5 days for the prescription to be refilled. That was a decline, back to talking to imaginary people, aggressive behavior, no energy. Now he is on the whole pill. Wow, almost back to being pleasant. He takes his in the morning, so no sleep interrupted. Energy back, never had a side effect as far as loss of appetite, weight loss, diarrhea. Early stage of Alzheimer's/dementia. Glad he is doing better, still a day-to-day."

• Thi...
• September 24, 2015

"Mom is on this stuff just a short time now. Put on 5 mg, then 10, now to 20 mg/day in an 8-week span. Her confusion got much worse, daily nausea set in no matter if taken with a meal or not, her sleep pattern really changed, and her attitude became combative and nasty. I am weaning her down to 10 mg/day, and if no change, I will take her to 5 mg, then stop altogether. This stuff may work for mild cases of Alzheimer's but not for my mom."

• Lei...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 10, 2018

"My 82-year-old mum was diagnosed last year with Alzheimer's disease. We really noticed her decreased language skills. She couldn't remember words for things. Could only chat with me for 10 minutes before she had enough. Also tired and not interested in much. Her writing was terrible. She started on 5 mg and is now on 10 mg. She saw people in her room (that weren't there) when she first started, but taking the tablet in the morning helped that. Her language has improved immensely. Chats to me on the phone for an hour with hardly a stumble. Is interested in things again and wrote a list of questions to ask her doctor without a problem. She even renewed her passport and is going on a cruise to New Zealand in November with her friend! Don't know how long it will last, but we will take what we can get! The only thing I've noticed is she gets a bit cross with her partner, especially if he doesn't let her do things herself. She is aware of this."

• Bir...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 26, 2018

Donepezil "I was taking Aricept to help preserve my memory, due to the fact that I am 46 years old. I had brain surgery in 2009 to prevent seizures, and now my memory is very bad. I took this medicine for about 2 months, but the vivid dreams and leg cramps were just too much to handle. I am trying a new Alzheimer's medicine now. I believe every medicine has side effects, we just have to pick and choose!"

• KMP...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 2, 2022

Donepezil "My dad was diagnosed with dementia and was prescribed Aricept. His demeanor changed to extremely agitated and almost violent. I had to stop giving it to him. It did nothing to help with his memory. I saw only negative impact on him from taking this drug."

• Mar...
• August 31, 2016

"My mother-in-law was on this drug for 2 months. While her short-term memory continued to fail, she also seemed more confused. We took her off, and she has started to seem less confused-this is week 3 without. She has also experienced diarrhea and has lost weight. I am not sure there is a reliable study that can tell how well this drug might work for some because everyone's disease is different. We can't go back and see how they would have done without the drug. We will not be putting her back on."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 12, 2012

"Our mother has been on this medicine for some time now and I'm not sure if it's helping or not. She gets angry all the time and sees things and people. She wants to go home even when she is home and doesn't understand why she can't see her family. She seems to be stuck at this stage and isn't moving forward (not getting better, not getting worse). She is losing weight, not sleeping, and falling a lot. I don't know what to do: take her off or leave her on it."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 4, 2017

"I took my father off this medicine. Really awful side effects, he had a hard time controlling his bowel, and it wreaked havoc on his extremities. The drug caused all his hands and fingers to lock up, and he also experienced really painful cramps in his legs and feet."

• NCd...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 27, 2017

"My dad has been on it for about five months, and he has mild dementia. Normally slow to anger and hates confrontation. He is in his nineties, and after taking the medicine, says he needs to be 'locked up' because he is afraid he will do something terrible. Bad nightmares, irritability, and some muscle pain. Told him to throw the stuff out, and we will see if there is improvement."

• jka...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 23, 2018

"My husband was put on donepezil about 5 years ago. He was started on 10 mgs, but he started to be unsteady and fell a few times. He was then put on to 5 mgs and has been on this nearly the whole time. However, he was diagnosed with asthma and then COPD. He was extremely unwell for over a year, and I thought he was going to die. I consulted with his doctor, and we agreed we could try stopping the donepezil. That was nearly a year ago. Although he still takes medication once a day for the COPD, it has never come back. His memory is poor, but he is still active, and thankfully, no recurrence of the breathing problems."

• Lyn...
• July 15, 2017

"My mum has been on donepezil for 2 years. Over the past 6 months, her appetite had deteriorated, she's losing weight, getting aggressive, and she was falling a lot. I have recently discovered she wasn't taking her pills and hiding them in her gums and pretending to swallow, then, when I moved away, she was taking them out of her mouth and putting them in the bin. She's 82. I have changed the routine of nighttime meds to morning, as this seems easier. Without this pill, 10 mg a day, she deteriorates badly. There is a massive difference in her vocabulary and attitude more than anything else. For those bad comments talking about the drug when it hasn't been taken for at least 12 weeks, please ignore. This needs to be given time to work."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 21, 2025

Donepezil "I have been recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, and Aricept has been very helpful, and I have easily tolerated this medication. I’m grateful. I am not yet on the larger daily dose, but I am looking forward to that."

• Cap...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• May 11, 2016

"Very good results for my mom with vascular dementia. Figure it gave 3-4 more years with her still cognitive. Some can take with results, some not so much. We were able to travel better after this medication, for sure."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• December 21, 2015

"My wife has taken Donepezil (first 5 mg, then after a year 10 mg) for some three years. Initially, her Folstein MMS score was 28/30 and is now 17/30. She has no apparent side effects. I cannot tell what my wife would be like without it - now her forgetfulness is almost instantaneous, and she is now incapable of independent living."

• Son...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 22, 2022

"Don’t use this. Immediate negative side effects for my 87-year-old mom. No appetite led to weight loss. Also, she had depression, constant crying, and anger. Stopping donepezil saw immediate improvement."