Quetiapine for Bipolar Disorder User Reviews (Page 2)

• Lig...
• January 31, 2018

"The reason I'm rating this drug 10/10 is that it does not stab you in the back, and it does not ask for increased doses. It works all the time and kicks in fast, making you feel euphoric combined with sleepiness. If you stay awake more than 30 minutes after taking it, you will feel hungry. So, if you are worried about gaining weight, just take it and sleep. Find your correct dose that works well, and remember good sleep equals a good mood. If you feel sleepy the next day, that's okay, drink some coffee + 1 cup of water. And remember to do 20 minutes of exercise every day, just not before going to sleep, and you will feel better 100%."

• lis...
• July 18, 2016

"When I was first put on this medication in the emergency room, I was coming off heroin, and my mood swings were horrific, and my anxiety was off the charts. They put me on 200 mg immediately and told me to take it 3 times a day. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, PTSD, severe anxiety disorder, hearing voices telling me to kill myself, sleep disorder, among a few others. I have loved this medicine since day one almost 4 years ago. I have ended up 150 lbs. overweight and diabetic. However one may see this, I call this my miracle pill. I wish I had been put on it as a teenager. I have told my psychiatrist not to ever try to take this away from me, I get paranoid thinking about it. I may be fat and diabetic, but I have a good life and a great family."

• Ela...
• February 20, 2020

"I suffer from Bipolar II, take 200 mg Lamictal daily, and was prescribed 25 mg Seroquel to take at night to help me sleep during hypomanic episodes. My psychiatrist claimed it would calm the racing thoughts, help me fall asleep, and hopefully make me think more clearly during the day. After taking it, I would still be awake for a couple of hours trying to sleep and still having racing thoughts. In the morning, I had the worst experiences trying to wake up. I wasn’t trying to wake up early or anything, like 11 on my free days, so I could sleep in, and even then I could barely open my eyes enough to turn off my alarm and would immediately fall back asleep. After finally waking up, I felt groggy and disoriented throughout the day. I couldn’t think straight and was unable to focus during my classes. Not a good experience. I only took it a few times and decided it was only having negative effects, so I stopped taking it."

• ECC...
• November 14, 2014

"At first, it was horrible. I felt like I was dying every time I would take it before bed. I felt as if I were to fall asleep, I'd never wake up. This lasted 2 weeks, maybe a month. My body eventually adjusted to it, the voices went away, slowly but surely. I was also in a serious state of depression, and it takes some time. But now, after a little over a year of taking it, being bipolar and having countless manic and depressive episodes, Seroquel has saved my life. I've never felt like myself like I do right now in such a long time. The only downside is you have to seriously monitor your weight on this thing. The pounds just pile up if you don't watch your weight carefully."

• Wiz...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 13, 2016

"I was diagnosed with Bipolar II when I was 15 years old and have used only cannabis since then to deal with it, but after years of cannabis abuse, my symptoms started to become uncontrollable. I needed to smoke 2-3 grams of weed a day just to stay physically calm, and even then I had a lot of internal anxiety and no motivation. I could never quit smoking because if I did, I couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, couldn't sit still, and couldn't feel any joy. I would always relapse if I quit. I started Seroquel a week ago, and haven't had any weed since, I can eat normally, sleep 6-7 hours a night, and feel relatively happy. Plus, I have literally no side effects as far as I can tell. I haven't felt this good in years, It's all uphill from here!"

• Lin...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 13, 2019

"I take a low dose of Seroquel, and it is helpful as a sleeping pill. It can get rid of bad thoughts. I've experienced weight loss on it. It helps with increasing my appetite, though. I can still drive well on this drug. Insurance covers this drug."

• Gem...
• November 10, 2014

"Seroquel has worked wonders for me. I have been diagnosed with Bipolar 2, and after 7 months on Seroquel, I feel like a whole new person. I had been severely depressed and was self-harming before getting on Seroquel, and now I have never been so happy before! The only problem is the weight gain - I have gained about 20 pounds since I started taking this medicine. But this side effect is worth it to have my depression and anxiety gone!"

• lit...
• March 15, 2014

"Seroquel gave me my life back, calms me down and helps me think clearly during the day, and helps me sleep well during the night. Makes your mouth a bit dry and makes you hungry often but definitely worth it."

• Ahi...
• March 30, 2019

"Warning: may trigger suicidal thoughts. History: I was prescribed Seroquel after multiple medications weren’t helping to improve my depression. Quickly, my depression got markedly worse to the point of me not being able to get out of bed and not bathing because it felt too exhausting. I also had my suicidal ideation and thoughts get overwhelmingly worse. My psychiatrist increased my dosage and it just got worse. I had to change psychiatrists (unrelated to this), and my new psychiatrist immediately had me taper down my dosage with the goal of getting off the Seroquel completely. Once I got off of it completely, I felt like a new person - no depression or suicidal thoughts since. I know this medication has helped a lot of people, and I am so happy it has. I don’t think many other people have had this experience, but I wanted to put it out there that it wasn’t good for me, and if anyone is having similar experiences, please speak with the person who prescribed it and know that it can get better."

• Sea...
• October 16, 2014

"I've been taking Seroquel for 7 years, after 20 years of delusional thoughts, mania, and large amounts of depression. It worked within two weeks, and I noticed that when I woke up each day, my delusional thoughts were getting easier to identify and let go of. It changed my life. Since taking Seroquel, I have been able to learn how to drive, work in permanent jobs, save money, travel overseas, socialize, have a successful relationship, and reconnect with the real me. I have also worked on my cognitive and emotional development and continue to attend counseling. I have gained 30 kgs, but this has probably come about due to the combination of Seroquel, inactivity, diet, and sleep apnea (of which I have only just been diagnosed)."

• Srz...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• July 12, 2015

"This medication completely changed my life. My diagnosis is mixed rapid-cycling bipolar disorder with psychotic features. Before my regimen, I would suffer a week of depression, followed by a day of dangerous mixed affective episode, followed by a few hours of euphoria before the process would begin all over again. I had ruminating and intrusive thoughts, panic attacks, anxiety, extreme guilt, dissociation, and suicidal ideation (and a few near-attempts). But, within weeks of the therapeutic dose, my mood stabilized, my anxiety dropped off, my obsessive and intrusive ruminations relinquished their hold, and unexpectedly, I gained a spectrum of emotions I didn't even know I lacked (and that was the best thing of all). Truly life-altering."

• Jim...
• April 7, 2008

"For many years I have been impulsive, and that impulsiveness has led to a lot of serious problems in my life. (Some of which were legal.) Seroquel has installed a 'buffer' between the impulsive thought and the words/actions that come as a result. I am now able to fully analyze a thought process and decide whether or not to act on it. I have noticed a profound change in all areas of my life, including my musical abilities. My family and I are now benefiting from a more calm and appropriate person."

• Hap...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 7, 2014

"I was off meds for a while and thought I was fine - nope! Had a manic episode. I take 100 to 150 mg of Seroquel at night. Before this, I took Geodon and lost weight, but I had uncontrollable muscle movements. I didn't want to switch, but my family was embarrassed by my non-stop hand movements. I switched to Seroquel and feel a million times better. I sleep great (used to not sleep for days). BUT, I have gained 40 lbs. I wake up the next morning and see what I ate the night before and get so irritated with myself. It makes me want to eat everything bad for me. If I don't eat, it's like an itch I can't scratch. I don't feel foggy, but well-rested...then again, I sleep till 8 or 9 am. To me, it's worth the weight gain to feel stable."

• Wil...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• October 2, 2013

"I've been taking Seroquel for about a year, and I can honestly say I don't ever want to live without it. No other medicine had any effect on controlling my extreme mood swings and delusional/psychotic thinking. The sleepiness (which I now find very helpful) and morning fog were bothersome, but I've gladly adapted my schedule to allow 8-9 hrs sleep nightly."

• Sel...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 1, 2021

"This medicine literally saved my life. I wish I’d known about it sooner in my adult life. I’ve struggled with PTSD, anxiety, PMDD, mood swings, and bad depression for 8 years. I tried every medication out there, and none of them helped. I’ve been on this for almost a year now, and I recommend it to everyone. I cried my eyes out when it hit me just how much this medication has helped. I feel normal now, and everyone tells me this is what it’s like to be and feel normal, and to be happy, to be content with life. I wish I wish I wish I would have known about this years ago. I could have saved myself a lot of heartache. But hey, everything happens for a reason. The ONLY downside is being tired. I have to make sure I have extra time to sleep. And if I forget to take it, or don’t refill my script, I’m not sleeping that night, lol. TRY IT. DO IT. It will change your life. It changed mine."

• Bel...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 27, 2017

"This drug is a wonder drug. After 15 years of brutal bipolar symptoms (undiagnosed/untreated) that destroyed my whole life, I now take 300 mg at night, and now I can have a normal life free of anxiety, mood swings, and bipolar symptoms, etc. I hold down a responsible full-time job, have healthy relationships and friendships, and I have hobbies. I never had any of that before; my bipolar disorder destroyed my whole life. Seroquel gave it back. I hear of people wanting to go off Seroquel... I'm the opposite. I would go to any lengths to make sure I never have to go off it. I'll gladly spend the rest of my life on it because it gives me a normal life, and I won't risk that for anything. I've been on it for 3 years, with no side effects."

• ins...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 10, 2014

"Took for bipolar. Good side effects: more or less consistently put me to sleep every night. Bad side effects: gained roughly 20 lbs 6 months in, had a difficult time getting up every day, needed more sleep than usual. It helped for a while, but it mostly made my episodes less severe, did not effectively stop or prevent them."

• enj...
• December 4, 2007

"Seroquel has been very effective in clearing up my thinking. It has also helped me sleep better. I am bipolar and had a lot of irrational thinking, but Seroquel has cleared a lot of that up. I was in a terribly blue depression but Seroquel helped bring me out of that."

• Aff...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 14, 2020

"They don't call it the demon drug for nothing. I was prescribed 25 mg in the evening for extreme irritability and 'insomnia' off-label. I cut it in half because I'm relatively small at 115 pounds. Knocked me out like a light. Went up to 50 mg and became nauseous, saw stars, had heart palpitations, and my body felt extremely heavy. I stopped taking it immediately after. Please note that the mood-stabilizing effect only kicks in at a minimum dosage of 100 mg. Anything under that is a sedative, like Benadryl on steroids, with the added benefit of developing akinesia and metabolic syndrome. You WILL gain weight on this drug regardless of dosage. On the bright side, it'll get rid of your allergy sniffles."

• Ano...
• May 8, 2021

"I was prescribed Seroquel 100 mg as a mood stabilizer (for Dysthymia and Generalized Anxiety Disorder) by a psychiatrist to be taken alongside 200 mg Wellbutrin daily. It knocked me out the first time I took it, and I noticed my blood pressure dropped sharply, but I felt good in the morning. After 3 weeks, I started to feel like a zombie and developed severe constipation. Then, suddenly, a feeling of internal tremor, so I contacted my doctor to stop. I slept 2 hours a night for about a week, had horrid nightmares, sleep paralysis, and severe mood swings and panic attacks. I was put on Xanax for the panic, but also developed muscle twitching all over my body that continued at night, waking me up. It's now been 40 days since I stopped taking the Seroquel. My mood is okay, but I still have (slightly less) muscle twitches in the day and night. I wonder if I'll ever be normal again. I'm so angry this was prescribed without explanation for a minor condition when its effect on me has been far more deleterious to my life than my original condition."

• BAB...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• May 31, 2013

"I was diagnosed with bipolar when I was 14 years old. I am now 34 years old. I have been on many different medications for my bipolar. Seroquel has been a wonderful medication. I take 1000mg at bedtime. I have been on it for almost 16 years. It works well for me."

• Sof...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• September 4, 2019

"I have bipolar disorder type 2. I'm on Seroquel XR 150 mg for 10 years now. Before, I was on Seroquel 300 mg for more than a year. I have tried different antipsychotic medicine combinations for years, but only Seroquel works for me. Changed my life for the better. I have chronic insomnia, tried all sleeping pills, but only lasted for weeks, then I couldn't sleep anymore. But Seroquel put me to sleep, deeper sleep, and I wake up feeling better. I just need to sleep every night at the same time. Also, I gained weight, and the side effect when I feel groggy at night is I feel hungry, so I ended up eating at midnight. I know it sucks that I gained weight. I tried to stop taking it for a few days, then my depression attacked me very suddenly and my mood fluctuated. From then, I never stopped taking Seroquel and I feel better. I told my psychiatrist that Seroquel is my best friend, without it, I feel horrible. It is indeed a lifesaver."

• Get...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• July 23, 2019

"I was hospitalized 17 years ago with a major manic mixed episode. It was the worst thing on earth. Was given 200 milligrams of Seroquel, and it calmed down the demons. Tapered the dose down in months' time, came and stayed successfully at 50 milligrams for the following 17 years. Long-term side effects began with blood changed, elevated blood sugar, and triglycerides. Weaned and got off it, took several weeks. Feeling better with more clarity and regular movements now. Those two weeks of getting out of my system caused side effects of weird dreams, body aches, and mood swings. Hard time sleeping. Increased over-the-counter supplements and made sure my life was low-key until things settled. I’m grateful for the med. If not for the side effects, which would have led to diabetes, I would have remained on it. But I believe in the beginning, it saved my life."

• Rai...
• October 19, 2016

"A word of caution. I've noticed how positive these reviews tend to be. You should look up the withdrawal effects when coming off this drug. I've been on and off medication for the last 20 years. When I came off Effexor 15 years ago, I couldn't walk for three days. But that was nothing compared to Seroquel. And it takes 90 days for the withdrawal effects to begin to wear off. Seriously, before taking this drug, you need to do some research. I would strongly advise you to find another drug."

• Jak...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• April 17, 2019

"Have been on many meds that were inappropriately used for my anxiety and instability, including high-dose Depakote and tricyclic antidepressants, making me more unstable with unbearable antipsychotic overloads. Eventually, a sedative dose of Seroquel around 125-150 mg worked very well for calming down anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and allowing me to sleep. It is ridiculous that some of the doctors who aggressively medicate aren't cautious because the right dose of helpful medication can be life-saving, while a bad approach can cause instability that caused serious problems in my life. Then, unfortunately, psychiatrists often blame your condition over their inappropriate treatment, so it's important to be aware of what's going on with you."