Guest guest Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 Hi there friends - old and new. I have taken to 'lurking' around these parts of late - but I do still read up on all the posts even if I don't jump in with any responses. Much of what I would add is already covered in the responses of others. I have sent the magazine with the article about my dad's struggle with LBD to in the hope that he will be able to scan it onto the site for all to read. I am hopeless with computers! I have seen that one or two newcomers have asked about Zyprexa - or Olanzipine. My dad ( died Oct 21st 2002) was given Olanzipine at the outset of his diagnosis around August 2001. At first it seemed to be helping. The hallucinations decreased and the general hyper-anxiety was less. It helped with his irregular sleep pattern too. BUT ... he began to need increased dosages to effect the same help and that caused other problems with side effects, in particular his pounding tremor. The Olanzipine affected his mobility quite significantly - making him rigid, clumsy and prone to falling. To tackle this increase in overall 'Parkinsonism' my dad was given Madopar (Levadopa) and then all manner of difficulties increased. Those two drugs are incompatible - and when my dad was switched to Quetiapine (Seroquel) overnight his problems accelerated wildly. My PERSONAL view is that Zyprexa effects some help at the beginning - when given in small doses. However, it is NOT a drug designed to combat LBD. It is a drug developed for the treatment of Schizophrenia. It has limitations. It might bring some relief at first but after a while I found it brought on more problems than it alleviated. BUT once on these drugs it is a nightmare to get off them! As ever my advice is; keep a detailed journal/diary. Make notes about dosage amounts, times given, any side effects or unusual/different reactions/behaviours. Watch very carefully and be mindful that no two LBD sufferers react the same to drugs. What works for one might spell disaster for another! Take your gut feelings into account and don't buy the slick sales banter that the drug companies foist onto the 'experts'. Yes, these are a new breed of 'atypical' neuroleptic drugs and they might well be an improvement on the old Haliperidol and the like.... BUT .... this stuff is still strong, brain fizzing s**t. Handle with care! Keep well!! Sally ( 'the cynic'!??) xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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