Hi all -

My counseler just called and said after thorough discussion between her, my MD, and a 3rd pyschiatrist I've never met, that an atypical antipsychotic was needed...specifically .5mg Risperdal along with a Lexapro bump from 20mg to 30mg.

For some reason it's spooking me (maybe the "pyschotic" part) and curious on symptom similarities and experiences throwing this into the cocktail.

Quick history -

29, diagnosed ADD 10/06. After several doc switches, I've settled on what I feel is a trustworthy combination of counseler and MD in the same group. 40mg Adderall XR in the AM, and another 30mg XR around 2.

Was on Lexapro 20mg since 10/06 too, but told doc several times it didn't seem like it was doing anything. Came off that back in 09/07, and have noticed some significant kicks in what my counseler thinks is anxiety w/ a subset of OCD.

One of my biggest complaints is lack of interest in MOST things as long as I can remember (even as kid). Secondly, my obsessing over held back truth/intent in conversations, or people's possible view of me.

Otherwise I function fine, have good career, and no major complaints....until recently. Some real chaos amongst family, struggles w/ girlfriend of 6+ years, and plenty of other crap that'd make a normal person go mad.....caused me to break down one night screaming/crying (as a dude that's really rare for me) that was triggered by small fight.

Fast fwd to next counseler session and I handed her 2 pages of random concerns, obsessions, thoughts...whatever. Guess I had what she described as a panic attack while I wrote part of it. There was a newfound increased level of concern (which is what I needed to get across) about the impact these probs were having on my life.

I've got 5 or so people around me all preaching Ephexor and improvement over their anxiety problems, and this was clearly stated to doc, and will be a topic of discussion on Fri's visit w/ MD along w/ Risperdal.

I caught some other threads that Speedo posted in mentioning his luck - is this just my paranoia causing me unecessary concern? Seems like lotsa these problems have been around since young kid, but maybe super magnified and less controllable these days......

If it doesn't work the doctor most likely will be willing to try other things

Risperdal is used for a lot of things. In small doses (usually 0.25-0.50 mg) it is commonly used to treat autism, anxiety, ocd, touretts syndrome, and adhd. When it is actually used as an antipsychotic to treat bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, really large doses (like 4.0 mg) are typically given.

Risperdal is frequently prescribed for obsessive behavior as well as anxiety. I take risdperdal and it helps with my ocd and anxiety quite a bit. Oh, and I had a motor tic (blinking) that went away when I started on risperdal.

risperdal is also a thrird line medication for ADHD, so it is more add-friendly than some of the other meds (antidepressants) that might be prescribed for obsessive behavior or anxiety.

Risperdal might be worth a try. Keep an eye out for side effects. Weight gain is a common one. At such a small dose you are unlikely to have problems. But if you do have side effects on risperdal they can sometimes be severe so be sure to communicate with your doctor.

Me :D

Thanks for the info Speedo....

Side effects of Risperdal don't look too appealing - hopefully the low dose minimizes those.

Paranoia/obsession is still running crazy around the concept of getting treated w/ a med used for Schitzophrenia and Autism, and I can't get past the questioning to myself of, "is my head miswired THAT much???".

Also growing more concerned as I learn about various issues that can be hereditary, as my mother recently had her 2nd unexplained seizure.

So much confusion around what's normal and what's not - the last thing I expected to hear from doc was a recommendation for an anti-psychotic med. Hopefully the MD I see tomorrow re: this will be able to ease my mind a bit......