anyone else taken it?! my pdoc (primary doctor) recently gave it to me because she believes i'm bi-polar. i started taking it as of 9:30pm last night @ 50mg dosage. she said it would make me tired, but today i just feel like a total zombie. i've slept basically up until now 4:30pm est. :( i was maybe awake for 2 hours tops. has this happened to anyone else?!

my father was on it. From what I saw him go through I know that no one in my family would ever touch the stuff. That was one of the many side effects we saw happen to him, he went from functioning to sitting in his reading chair and staring out the window or sleeping.

However - I know it does work for some people, I dont know much about the dosing for it, but if that is not the lowest dosage for it - perhaps you should ask your doctor to lower the dosage. Anytime a person is questioning or uncomf with the side effects of their medication they should contact their doctor about it.

I would also see if your PMC will give you a consult to see someone who is more trained and up-to-date with these medications as well.

yes my pdoc told me to see a psychiatrist but i don't see her until feb. 8th. she said even if i'm not bipolar it should help with the depressive symptoms i've been having. as far as i know 50mg is the smallest dosage available (atleast in the XR type) . she told me i should take it until i am able to get into the psych. and then see if the psych agrees with her diagnosis, if not she'll put me on a different medication. either way, i feel like such a zonk today :( it's not that i don't like it, i mean its only the first day. i just hope it's not a forever kind of thing.

I've seen it work very well in some people with schizophrenia or psychotic symptoms of bipolar disorder or depression. But no-one here can give advice on an individual case when they are not in a position to assess that person, so I agree she really should discuss it with her doctor.

I was on Seroquel XR. My nurse practicioner put me on it to control my moods, (I have Bioplar I Disorder,) and also to help me sleep. She started me out on 25 mg and slowly increased it to 300 mg. If I became manic, she increased it to 400 mg until I came down from the mania. I was on Seroquel XR for quite some time and it worked well for my moods and it did help me sleep. I did feel like a zombie during the day for a little while, but eventually I adjusted to the medication and I was all right. I did experience a few problems with the medication, though. After a while, I noticed I was gaining a LOT of weight. Worse than that was the fact that I began having uncontrollable muscle movements in my legs, which spread to my arms as well. They were a little painful. So the NP stopped the medication. To this day my legs still twitch sometimes. Oh well. :-/ However, this does not happen to everyone. I know several people who take Seroquel XR and don't have any negative side effects. If you do experience uncontrollable muscle movements, tell the doctor right away, because my NP told me the uncontrollable muscle movements could become permanent. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for a pamphlet about Seroquel XR if you need to know more.

You should never get a diagnosis like that from a regular Doctor. They have such a broad range of topics that are on top of, things like Bi-Polar are not their specialty. See a therapist first. If money is an issue, you can call any you find up and see if they use a sliding scale. The sliding scale means that they base what they charge you off how much income you have. Meet with one, tell them what is going on, see if they suspect you have Bi-Polar. Then, don't go to your regular Doctor. You want to go to a Psychiatrist because they specialize in that type of medicine and have a better chance of prescribing you to a proper medication.

A therapist can certainly not make such a diganosis either. Something like bipolar disorder requires a formal psychiatric assessment (that is from a doctor, not a therapist or psychologist). It will almost certainly require medication, which only a psychiatrist can provide. Clearly her own doctor knows this, which is why she's been referred to a psychiatrist (although I would also have some concerns about a primary care doc prescribing like this... we do not know the full circumstances, and if he felt her symptoms were bad enough, it's not unreasonable for him to prescribe something while waiting for specialist help).

I'm taking Seroquel but not the XR one. I take 100mg 3 times a day for anxiety and as a mood stabiliser. I find that when I take them though they make me really sleepy and I usually have to have a nap.

I think it's a bit odd to be given something to treat BPD from a primary doctor. :-/
I had to see like six doctors and go through a bunch of tests before mine would give me something for it.

I got a very mild anti-depressant while I was going through the testing, but that was it. I was also only 17, so they're a little more reserved on giving minors anti-depressants.

But personally I wouldn't take something again that makes me sleep more than I'd like to. I feel more upset/grumpy when I sleep too much.
You should really be calling your doctor to ask her about this, not asking on a forum =/

BPD and medication isn't something to play around with.

Seriously, you should be discussing this with your doctor, not people online who have no medical training. Quetiapine (generic name) is a sedating antipsychotic... it's not ideal for it to be being prescribed by a primary care doc, rather than a psychiatrist, but if your symptoms (that is either psychotic symptoms of depression, or mania) are severe, your doctor may have thought it would help until you can be formally assessed and treated by a psychiatrist. Only a psychiatrist can decide what the best treatment is.

Best thing to do is see the psychiatrist, and if you're not happy with the medication you're on, go back and discuss it with your own doctor. There are alternatives, and they may be able to have you seen sooner, or at least speak to a psychiatrist for some advice about the best medication to put you on in between times.

One thing my psychiatrist told me to do with the medicines we tried is give it at least a week or two before deciding. The body has to adjust, and often symptoms (like nausea for example) go away after a week or two. Usually I would try a medicine for 1-2 months before giving a verdict on whether to continue or not.

Also, I've never been prescribed an anti-psychotic by anyone other than a psychiatrist.

I took seroquel wasn't the xr I don't believe. Actually it helped me a lot but I gained a ton of weight and it messed with my thyroid as well, but I felt so much better on it. I think I took 200 mg eventually. My old psychatrist gave it to me but now I see a family doctor and I don't take seroquel anymore. I take an antidepressant, something to help me sleep, and something for my anxiety. Also the main reason I took seroquel was for sleep, but my psychatrist thought I was bipolar also so it was for both. It made me sleepy but I didn't sleep as much as you seem to have :s. Plus mine wasn't xr. I don't know what the difference is I'll have to look that up :p.

I'm a psychiatric nurse, and we always give Seroquel XR on our unit at 7pm (because it is sustained release). Taking it later might be making you sleepy the next day.