Invega and Insomnia: What Users Say

• Gra...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 23, 2018

For Schizoaffective Disorder "My son started Invega, and the drug made his symptoms worse. He couldn't sleep and became very agitated. He had hospital admissions after hospital admissions. I am sorry to say he killed himself about three months after starting this drug. Please don't let anyone you love start this drug, it is a very bad drug."

• Dea...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 5, 2019

For Schizophrenia "I got diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar in the hospital. I was taking risperidone which was helping me a lot, but then I started taking Invega. This medicine has ruined me. All of the things that I've loved doing now suck. I was on it for 4 months, but I've been off of it for 3 months now and I'm still dealing with side effects. I can't sit still or lay still. I'm always tired, my tongue is always numb, my speech is off. I can't have a simple conversation, I can't sleep at night. I hate waking up in the morning, my thoughts are all confusing, and I feel weak. My body is really sensitive...I just miss the old me."

• Any...
• February 1, 2020

For Schizoaffective Disorder "I’m currently writing with trembles in my hands and muscle stiffness. I had a nervous breakdown and classified bipolar NIGHTMARE BEGAN. I have extreme paranoia, lost my job because Invega destroyed my hand coordination, TD (I believe I have permanent brain damage), sexual dysfunction, muscle stiffness, tremors in my whole body, hands shaking, face twitching, curling fingers. I can’t hold down food, severe anxiety, depression, suicidal, antisocial, no emotions, removed from relationships, no periods, infertile at this point, no sleep in 3 months, pacing, blurry vision, absolute chemical lobotomy - fear of body deteriorating. 39 years old, hard to find the energy just to stay alive. Everything in my body is dry. I’m a nervous wreck. Detoxing: I was trying to restart my body - No change in 2 months. Instead, have early signs of Parkinson’s."

• Dad...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 30, 2019

For Schizophrenia "I started taking this medication for 3 months after I was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and it has ruined my life. I now have trouble speaking, I'm always anxious, I can barely concentrate on anything, I'm depressed and sleeping a lot, and I no longer get erections and have trouble producing semen. I have been off of it for 2 months, and I'm still dealing with the side effects. This is the worst thing I have ever been on, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone."

• Mom...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 3, 2018

For Schizophrenia "My son (23-year-old) got the Invega shot. It's the worst thing ever. It's making him cripple, still hearing voices, shuffling when he walks, insomnia. This drug needs to be taken off the market. I am going to write to the FDA. It's very expensive and does nothing to help. Where are our tax money going? Why isn't there a cure? The insurance companies are bloodsuckers. The poor mental health patients cannot get any help. I am so sick and tired of this disease right now, I just want my child back."

• Nse...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 28, 2018

For Schizoaffective Disorder "I was forced to take Invega after a spiritual emergence was diagnosed as schizophrenia, bipolar, and schizoaffective disorder. I had the initial dose of 256mg, I believe, then 150mg for four months. My last shot was in August 2018. By the second shot, my thoughts had stopped. I could no longer think. It shut off my consciousness. My memory and retaining information have been affected. I developed anhedonia. I can no longer feel any emotion. I have no libido or menstrual cycles. I haven't had an appetite in 4 months. I have no desire to eat or get pleasure from it. I have insomnia. I believe this medicine has caused brain damage. Other drugs have reduced or no effectiveness such as cannabis, nicotine, caffeine, alcohol, and sleep medication. This drug has a half-life of 25-49 days. So it's going to take at least a year before it is completely out of my system."

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

For Schizoaffective Disorder "This is a terrible drug. In four days, I've had heart palpitations, wheezing, shakes, insomnia, aggression, restlessness. Horrible drug for schizophrenics. I interacted more with my voices due to insomnia and headaches. I had to call the suicide crisis line because I had a panic attack so severe on night 4 of taking this poison."

• all...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• May 6, 2016

For Schizoaffective Disorder "I think this is the only antipsychotic that has worked for me. I was on Risperdal previously, and it didn't work that well, except that I made good friends and was nice usually. But I was always really paranoid or psychotic when I'd do all-nighters for school and thought there was a serial killer outside the window. Invega is much better, though, and I don't get that paranoia anymore or the really scary type of paranoia anymore. Although I get scared sometimes, it doesn't stop me from doing things. I'm on 12 mg of Invega and 300 mg of Lamictal. I'm not doing the best because the Lamictal should be at 400 mg to be optimal. I wasn't able to tolerate too high of a dose of Invega at first because it made me really tired and sleep all day, but I can now."

• som...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 24, 2023

For Schizophrenia "It made me feel akathisia along with insomnia, erectile dysfunction, and anhedonia. It was useful for the positive symptoms like paranoia, delusions, and racing thoughts, but at huge costs. You are basically trading a huge portion of your own happiness and energy for controlling your symptoms and likely never becoming psychotic again. I am not saying it is totally bad, but it can work for some people. This is your decision to make, with Invega, you will suffer some serious side effects in return for never becoming psychotic again."

• Nat...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 13, 2023

For Schizoaffective Disorder "I love this drug. It saved my life. The only bad side effect is I can't sleep and have no sex drive, but this drug took the voices away and no paranoia anymore. I love it, it made my life a million times better. I would probably be dead by now if I had stayed on the other meds I was on. I go out all the time, and I have totally learned to take care of myself. I don't feel like my brain is foggy like the other drugs I've been on. I was really depressed for years and tried killing myself four times on the other drugs I have been on. Invega has totally taken my depression away. I am happy for the longest period of my life. I had a mental illness for 29 years and was depressed for 25 of the years, but since I have been on the Invega, no depression at all. Invega is the best thing that has ever happened in my life."

• Ram...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 5, 2021

For Schizoaffective Disorder "Our adopted son was born with prenatal alcohol exposure and has permanent brain damage. He was diagnosed with FAE and various other disorders associated with it. He has suffered from sleep issues, explosive rages, and psychosis. He has been prescribed over 40 different drugs with some disturbing side effects. He just started Invega Sustenna in March, and there was an immediate change in his mood and overall behaviors and is stable. He has now moved up to Trinza and is doing very well."

• Mar...
• May 13, 2017

For Schizophrenia "Was doing well on 4 mg risperidone but wanted to try an injectable long-acting med. Doctor suggested I start with Invega oral to be sure it would work. Tried 6 mg Invega for a month but never felt as good as with risperidone. Made me depressed, tired, insomnia, and even had some breakthrough delusions. So glad I didn't go straight to injections. Restarted risperidone and feel good again. It must work for some people but not for me. No data anywhere comparing Invega to risperidone, which is odd because the drugs are related. No evidence this is a better drug than risperidone."

• ER2...
• June 4, 2016

For Schizophrenia "I have been using Invega for less than a year. The reason I appealed to this medication was because it was the only extended-release medication on the market. What this means is that the medication slowly released into our body within 24 hours. Other medications, when you take them, hit our body straight away to the top and gradually decrease the medication in our body. I find that it is good as it gives less severe side effects, as the medication in our body is at a constant level. I don't have any major side effects from this medication other than depression and insomnia, but that is in general related to my unresolved personal life issues. My prolactin level is lower compared to when I was on Solian. Less lethargic and sleepy."

• moc...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 17, 2022

For Schizoaffective Disorder "I've only had the two beginning doses of Invega, and it has been awful. My doctor talked me into it since I sometimes miss my pills, so she wanted me to get an injection. I agreed, and now I can't sleep. I have such vivid dreams, like I wake up in another life. So vivid, it seems real. Sometimes I can't decipher reality and my dreams. I'm seeing things often, more than when I was just on a pill medication, and I am going to tell my doctor this week that I refuse to take this again. It made me lose a job, I can't focus. I'm scared all the time. It's just terrible."

• Wom...
• November 17, 2021

For Schizophrenia "Invega ruined my life until I actioned by myself the switch to another antipsychotic. Any side effects mean that the meds are not really working to treat the mental illness. I stopped sleeping for 3 years straight and gained so much weight I looked like a mutant. My body and face. I lost both my menstruation and sex drive, so it was like sterilized. Well, I stopped living my life, obviously. I couldn't even get out of bed for those years. And I was totally going crazy. Much worse than before my diagnosis. I believe my psychiatrist gets kickbacks from pharmaceutical companies, so he doesn't really prescribe as a doctor. My new meds, just another antipsychotic, still leave me with chronic insomnia, but I fought for sleeping pills by now. And the rest, I am back to ME all the way."

• Rob...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• October 6, 2021

For Schizophrenia "I have taken Invega for 10 years on and off. It does stop the mood problems and psychosis, but at what cost? I'm 334 lbs and was 250 lbs when I started. I have lost sexual function. I have night terrors, and for years I have had panic attacks. I am an insomniac because sleep is the worst. I sleep two hours and wake up. Then I wait till I'm tired again and sleep. I haven't slept 8 hours in 4 years. I'm diabetic now. This ought to tell you how bad schizophrenia is--I still take the medicine and never plan to stop. I'm about to get a bachelor's degree in two months and have had straight A's for a year. This is the best medicine I've gotten yet. When are we going to do better with pharmacy?"

• Bal...
• January 26, 2016

For Schizoaffective Disorder "This med is rubbish. I can't sleep, I have insomnia, weight gain, feel like garbage. It was helpful for the first 4 months."