Olanzapine for Schizophrenia User Reviews (Page 2)

• Jay
• April 16, 2023

"Olanzapine saved my life. I have been on haloperidol but the side effects was unbareable. I have also been on depot also side effects waw unbareable. Been taking olanzapine for 4 years with no side effect."

• Lorri
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 16, 2019

"Don’t know what would of happened if I hadn’t been put on olanzapine, I was in a terrible state, seeing things, hearing things, suicidal and a complete mess. Olanzapine has saved my life, yes I’ve gained weight but hey ho I’m better"

• Wills
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 30, 2016

"This drug calmed me down within an hour. Thoughts became more moderate in most respects over a longer period of time. Having been taking it for four years, my cognitive skills have improved due to improved social functioning. My advice is to give it a chance. Be prepared to tolerate some physical drawbacks for the sake of improved mental functioning and cognitive gains based on stability of mind. It is true that some forcefulness will be lost from your thoughts, but you may want this. Depending on your state of mind, this drug could be a life saver."

• Naboo...
• December 20, 2016

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "Worked great for me. Not only did it control my perception of reality, it also takes away the strange emotional attachments that I was having. It made me go from sitting on the couch hidding, to working full time as an electrician, sometimes up to 10 hours a day, something I thought I would never be able to do again. There were only two problems. I was unmotivated, I didn't have any passion for life. I was just going through the motions. However this is much better that being psychotic and suicidal. In the 9 months I was on the medication, I gained almost 100 pounds. This happened even when I was eating the same amount as before I was medicated. Again, this is far better than being angry and paranoid."

• bjohn
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 7, 2021

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "Like other drugs, zyprexa has different effects on different people. For me, the drug was a life ruining experience. When I was on it, (for a psychotic episode) I had severe side-effects, including sedation, emotional numbing and life threatening metabolic deterioration. With a psychiatrist's help, I cross-titrated from it to Latuda. However, I happened to be in the fraction of people that has severe repercussions from discontinuing Zyprexa. With withdrawal, I had severe insomnia, which half a year later, has only mildly improved. I have had to be on Ativan to get some sleep, and there are many testimonials to the same experience I've had -- Zyprexa can for an indefinite period of time disrupt sleep regulation. Because of this, it should not be tried unless newer antipsychotics with a more focused receptor profile have been attempted."

• Mom
• November 4, 2020

"My son suffers from paranoid schizophrenia and has been on olanzapine for 3 months. After a month the medicine took effect and he seemed calmer and less delusional. But it lost its effectiveness by the third month and he started talking aggressively, delusional, irritable, uncontrollable movement in his mouth, lack of sleep and then he had a seizure recently! Olanzapine is only a temporary short term fix and it can possibly cause brain damage. I wouldn't recommend it all."

• Druger
• February 15, 2020

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "I was on Zyprexa for 1 month and 1 week and in that time I gained 20+ pounds and did not help with ANY of the symptoms I was having. Didn't help with voices, delusions, paranoia. Nothing. Was really a complete waste of time and to top it off ruined how I look. (I used to be a very thin 160 pound male, and am now 220...) that's from all the antipsychotics I've tried combined. Zyprexa being the worst one for weight. I give zyprexa a 2 only because it did sedate me a bit relieving anxiety. I'm now on Loxapine which is supposed to be weight neutral but I'm still putting weight on from that a bit."

• Bella
• April 27, 2021

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "I am very grateful for Zyprexa. I had a very scary problem of not being able to sleep for a long time, resulting in psychosis. This happened twice in my life within a couple years of each other. The first time they put me on haldol and depakote. I was in so much pain I could not move, and at the same time the depakote gave me horrible shakes and no filter when talking. Worst of all I still had a lot of trouble sleeping. I was lucky enough to taper off them completely eventually and my sleep returned to normal. However two years later I lost my job and could not sleep, the same thing happens. I was put on 5mg Zyprexa and 10mg Lexapro. In less than a week I was stable and sleeping (very) well. Yes I gained weight but I have learned to control it. I am now doing well and down to 2.5mg. I think the key is a smaller dosage. I read some people have 15mg, I think I would have a lot of trouble with side effects too if it was that much. Maybe ask your doctor if you can do 5mg or less."

• firew...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• September 29, 2017

"I have had a long history of depression, despair and anguish. For a long period of time I felt like I had failed. I was dying, not physically but we are more than physical creatures. I used to be extremely intense, This culminated in a psychotic episode and I was institutionalized in a psychiatric ward. I was told by a doctor to take zyprexa on the first night. Following this the next couple of days were a blur waking to eat and take medication is all I remember. Long story short, I have had the happiest, most productive and most stable years of my life, although I don't feel as intellectually sharp as once it is small price to pay I feel. But I am considering lowering my dose. Currently on 10mg at night."

• elusi...
• September 28, 2018

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "I took this medication for 9 months before the voices in my head went away. I continued taking this medication for two years. I'm still not convinced that this medication had anything to do with the voices going away. I think if it were effective, the voices would have stopped sooner. I also always felt sedated and never had any motivation to do anything. I used to be the person who always read all of the recent news and was well-informed but this medication turned me into a lazy and ill-informed person. I also used to run and do yoga often but this medication made me have no motivation to do those things anymore. I gained 40 lbs on zyprexa. I just started taking latuda two weeks ago and I have already lost 10 lbs and I feel like I have much more energy and motivation. The only issue is that now I have insomnia from zyprexa withdrawal. I wish my doctors would have originally prescribed latuda instead of zyprexa so I wouldn't have had to deal with the withdrawal."

• Steven
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• December 1, 2012

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "I have tried many meds Seroquel, Risperidone, Abilify. Seroquel have me peeing all night long, burning sensation like urinary tract infection. Abilfy sex was good but give me anxiety, fast heart rate, light headed feeling, fainting and insomnia. So far Zyprexa is the best for me. Sex is ok, having problem with sensual sensation, dizzy sometime. Now I am on 2.5 mg I still feel dizzy even without it you feel better if you take the pill. Weight gain 30lb. Triglyceride high."

• bww
• March 4, 2012

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "The medicine brought my wife's symptoms under control finally. Was very sedating to the tune of her sleeping 14 hours per day. We are trying Invega instead but Zyprexa is always the fallback plan because it works."

• Cat
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• November 5, 2018

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "While I am schizoaffective, I was put on 2.5mg (now 5mg) of zyprexa for intractable insomnia after averaging 2 or 3 nights a week without sleeping. I now go without only sleep once a week. I also sleep much deeper. Unfortunately, I have gained 2.5lbs a month on it and have gone from normal blood sugar to circling pre-diabetic. My doctor put me on 7.5mg briefly but my appetite was unreal. I wish I could take more but I've already put on 30lbs. I can't say if it has impacted my psychosis as the other anti-psychotic was working when I started on this. I think it helps with my anxiety. I sometimes take an extra pill when I have an anxiety attack. It helps but maybe it is the placebo effect."

• Czr
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 17, 2019

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "I was on 15 mg of Zyprexa and it completely got rid of all my symptoms. The only complaints I have are weight gain and sedation. I gained 70 lbs in a 6 month period and slept for 14 hours every night. My cholesterol went over the maximum limit and my blood sugar rose to a level that made me a prediabetic. Other than that, I would try this drug again."

• Blu
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 29, 2020

"Olanzapine is a sick joke and should never be given to humans full stop. It causes catastrophic weight gain. So if you want your six pack to disappear and you walking round like a no life with extra weight take this"

• IG...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 16, 2018

"The drug is not entirely good. Like most other drugs, it has its own good and its bad. For me, I've been on it for 11 months now and I can assure you, it wasn't easy at first. But now I'm used to it. It relieved all my symptoms and I'm doing fine. I had to change mindset and accept the diagnosis of schizophrenia before it actually started to show its effectiveness. Nothing good comes easy. No matter how hard, if you face your fears with courage there is certainly light at the end of the tunnel. Just be true to yourself"

• Turtle
• December 15, 2020

"I hate olanzapine. When I started taking them, together with risperidone, which I'm off now, I couldn't really talk or gather my thoughts in any cohesive way, I'm tired and sleep two to three times a day. My dose is 20 mg, 10 in the morning, 10 evening. I can't really say anything to their effecziveness because I have had one psychotic (probably marijuana induced) episodes, and now its been two years since that. I feel like my brain is shut down. I don't really have any thoughts about anything except my anxieties anymore. Can't wait to stop taking them."

• Darkh...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 17, 2017

"My quality of live has improved significantly on this medication. It has calmed my voices a lot and helps me to sleep at night. The weight gain is a problem but I guess I don't mind it because I am feeling so much better. The hallucinations and delusions are less frequent and I can think clearly and get on with other things. I also don't wake up with that hangover-like-effect in the morning. I think I have found my miracle drug."

• LiamG...
• August 23, 2015

"I have been on this medicine for about 2-3 weeks now and although I missed a dose a couple of times it has helped me greatly. Before going onto this medicine I was awake for 3 days straight with racing thoughts/extreme anxiety and agitation. I still have anxiety but I feel more calm and collected. In terms of treating psychosis I have given this medicine a 7/10 (so far) because although I am getting some paranoid thoughts still, it has enabled me to think more clearly and rationalize them better. They are no where near as intense as they were before starting this medicine. I was talking to objects and saying strange things to myself in the mirror... this no longer happens and I feel more 'normal'. This medicine is great in a number of ways."

• Hana
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 19, 2020

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "Zyprexa worked for me to some extent. My paranoid thoughts and anxiety almost completely went away, however I had some negative side effects. One major negative side effect was weight gain. This caused me to feel very insecure about myself. I had very poor eating habits and I would crave foods that I wouldn't normally crave, especially in the night time. I'm not sure if this is common or uncommon, but while I was taking Zyprexa, I felt emotionally numb. I couldn't feel emotions like I did prior to taking the medication. My sleep was also regulated while taking this medication, but I would sleep for long hours and would have difficulty waking up in the morning. I don't take Zyprexa anymore. It did help with some of my side effects relating to my mental illness, which I am glad about, but I feel that it caused negative effects in other aspects. I think we need to weigh the pros and cons because most medications won't be "perfect" without any side effects."

• Cat
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 30, 2020

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "I take 10 mg of zyprexa in the morning and at night. I use 1 mg of cogentin morning and night to stop side effects. Then I use 50 mg of vistaril for my anxiety. But zyprexa makes me feel worse. The voices are still there. I'm more paranoid. I've gained 20 lbs in 1 month time. My appetite has increased. I have tremors throughout the day. Plus the vistaril doesn't help much with my anxiety. I can't wait to see my doctor and get something else! I wouldn't recommend this medicine to nobody from my experience. But each person is different."

• bhai
• July 18, 2017

"I used to hear conversations which were not real. I used to think people are actually following me and every body knew what I am doing. In other words, I felt very uncertain about my privacy. I have taken olanzapine for almost a year. I have completely recovered from hallicuinations. I am still taking medicines though. I am from Nepal."

• Straw...
• January 15, 2021

"This drug olanzapine has not helped me at all. My obgyn put me back on this medicine when I had my baby so I won’t get sick again but I didn’t have any symptoms and I wasn’t taking anything for 2 years before I was pregnant or while I was pregnant. This is the worst medicine I have ever taken. It takes all of your energy away, I was paranoid taking the medicine and I was so lazy. I don’t know who made this drug but it made me feel slow. I wouldn’t recommend this drug to anyone."

• Aliasz
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 23, 2022

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "I was prescribed Zyprexa 20 mg daily for pschychosis, not otherwise described. NAO The first two years it seemed to work. None or less thoughts, heavily sedated. Slept a lot. Flatten emotions. Blunted. After a couple years more I became heavily obese. At the beginning my weight was 100 kg. After a few years 160kg. This medication doesn't only increases binging on eating it also alters your metabolism. And totally relapse if you don't taper off gradually. As soon you are stable, ask your dr as quickly as you can taper off this medication. As this is no medication for long term use"

• Ktferro
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 19, 2021

Zyprexa (olanzapine) "Wow!!! I’ve only been on this med one day and this stuff really works. I’m taking it PRN. I’m thinking clearer, no hallucinations and I feel less anxious (also no paranoia). I also have bipolar disorder so I’m not sure how it works for mania and depression. But I feel a lot better today."