Comparing Clozapine vs Latuda

For Schizophrenia: My son is in his early 20'and has schitsoaffective dissorder.He has been on at least five different medications for his illness. And nothing seem to help or if it did it lasted only for a little while or he had severe allergic reactions. So he started clozapine/clozaril around a month ago. And it has made a big difference .The voices gradually are going away. He can actually sit and watch TV and have a conversation. He is enjoying things again. We do go for blood work every week which he does not mind. This medicine is working and I'm hoping his blood work comes back good every week, Because to see him getting better is such a relief . And I am hopeful for a happy productive life for him. Things are looking up.

For Schizophrenia: My son starting showing signs of psychosis right after his 14th bday. Diagnosed with schizophrenia 6 months later. He was in a constant state of his own reality and heard voices on a regular basis. Seroqel, Zyprexa, Invega, and Ability did nothing for him. His psychiatrist prescribed Clozapine as a last resort. I won't allow his dosage any higher than 300mg per day for now since the side effects worry me. This drug has been a lifesaver to allow him to participate in the regular world and quiet the voices where he can focus on real ppl. It makes him drowsy so he takes it at night. Weight gain is significant but most antipsychotics will do this. Regular blood monitoring to make sure his WBC stays normal. So good, so far.

For Bipolar Disorder: I was on Latuda (started at 40mg and ended at 80mg) for about a month and a half before deciding to switch. The best thing about the Latuda was the significant decrease in my appetite, but that could have been an effect of removing Seroquel from my regimen. When I first started I had a very hard time sleeping due to restlessness but that went away with time. The main issues I had with Latuda were a feeling of "numbness" to the world around me (no desire to do anything or say anything), a definite decrease in my sex drive, and the cost. Neither of my insurance plans will cover it, so unfortunately, it's no longer an option. If you do decide to try it, take it with plenty of food, otherwise you may get nausea.

For Bipolar Disorder: Latuda worked for my bipolar disorder for some time. After increasing it to 60 mg it all went downhill. Latuda made me pace back and forth all day long. Three months of this and I suspected Latuda. My doctor would not prescribe anything to counteract this. Benzodiazepines would have helped. I reduced the medication and I am choosing to quit