Hi to All,
Please talk with me about Seroquel. Who's taking it? How does it work for you? How much do you take? What do YOU take it for?

Need input, please.

I was started on Seroquel maybe 1/2 a year ago. Current dosing is 300 mg I take in the evening. I can take an additional 100 mg as needed. This is a lot more than most AD patients take. What can I say, I'm special!!

The two biggest reasons AD patients have to leave home are irritability and insomnia, I think. I had insomnia assert itself almost a year ago. The irritability has been increasing more gradually over the last few years. Really irritable, moving into aggression. Seroquel has really reduced my rage episodes, maybe I'll go 1 to 2 weeks between eruptions.

The drowsy effects of Seroquel slowly wore off. It helps, but it won't push me asleep like in the beginning. I have occasional dry mouth from it, but I carry sugar-free mints with me, so no problem.

Please, feel free to ask more questions.

mom takes 150 mg of seroquil at night. it helps with sleep but mostly agitation.

Dear Alan,
Thanks so much for sharing your experiences with Seroquel. You are special with or without meds! Thanks for all your help and support. I will take my first 1/2 dose tonight. My doctor told me to take 1/2 for 2 weeks then increase to 1 @ bedtime. I think the dose is 25mg. Could that be correct?
I sure hope it doesn't make me have a hangover the next day. I very much hope it will help with the irritability and occasional rage! I would like that monster to stay asleep!

Eloquentsolution,
Thanks for sharing about your Mom's dose. Does she have a medication hangover in the morning?

Lisa, I think that 25 mg is a common starting dose. I'm eager to hear how it affects you. It took my body around a week to learn how to work with it, till then I think it made me a little more troubled.

There's also the extended release version, which is what I take most days. I don't think you can get a hangover from that version.

Looking forward to your news!

Hey Alan,
Well, I took my 1st 1/2 dose last night. It knocked me out! I fell asleep on the sofa, tv and lamps on. Didn't wake up again until 5:30am. Had pretty bad hangover but survived. I'm still a little slow now @ 2pm. I am hoping that my body will adjust because I did sleep well and that's a start!
What do you think?

Lisa, well, insomnia isn't a problem anymore. Your body almost certainly will adjust. Be patient, maybe give it two weeks to see how your adjustment goes. I had a few days, about a week into it, where my irritability spiked. That stopped, doc chalked it up to adjusting.

I'd be interested in frequent updates by you, as to how the drug settles in with you.

mom is much later stage, lisa. she did have a little hang over to start with but has adjusted very nicely. i see no signs of hang over now.

Hi to All,
Had a good night's sleep last night. Not so lethargic and confused today. Took 2nd night's dose of seroquel and adjusted some other night time meds. Feeling hopeful about seroquel.

Thanks.

so glad you slept well Lisa.

Eloquentsolution,
Thanks for caring and sharing. Your support is wonderful!

Hi to All,
Increased by Seroquel (as directed) to 25mg @ bedtime 2 nights ago. First night did pretty well. Last night "Nightmares!" Of course, I have a lot going on at home too.
Anyone suffering with Seroquel nightmares? Do they go away?

Lisa, Seroquel usually gives us intense, vivid dreams for a while. I think some of mine tried to be nightmares, but I wasn't all that impressed. The intense dreams start to decrease in frequency and intensity, but I still often have an intense dream just before I wake up.

But I might be different from you, in that I haven't had a nightmare since I was, like, 8 years old. It's just not how my unconscious deals with things, for whatever reason.

Hang in there with the Seroquel, the first week or two was the most difficult for me.

mom started with 25mg but had night sleep issues so it was increased to 50 then 100 now she seems to be sleeping well and waking up alert on 150mg. it may take awhile to find your dose.

Thanks for all the input.

I'm going to keep trying to find MY dose!

Just to update. I have been sleeping pretty well with the 25mg of Seroquel @ betime. Nightmare have lessened. I still have to take the clonazepam for muscle spasms and twitching, though.
Any thoughts on that?

Hi to All,
Another update. Still taking Seroquel 25mg @ bedtime. Sleeping better but not great. Is it time to increase yet??

Any thoughts??

Lisa, if your prescribing physician gave you permission to adjust your dose, I'd try 50 mg about an hour, hour and a half, before bedtime, see what it does.

If you do increase your dose, I have a suggestion based on my own experience: Document in detail before upping the dose how your sleep is now. If you're like me, you'll be different, then not be able to remember how you feel/felt different. Doesn't matter, except for the doctor visit. But we need to keep our doctors happy.

Alan,
Re: documenting like journaling? Is that what you mean? How much I sleep and how I feel? The fact that I still wake up during the night?

Yeah, like journaling. Just a short note to remind you later of how you felt then. Or not, it may not be as useful as I think.

The reason I think about that is, I've been known to benefit from a medicine, according to my wife, when I didn't notice a difference.

I've been taking 25mg at bedtime since March 24th. Life has been good until last night, I guess. I've really been able to sleep quite well and focus better than recently. My wife says that I didn't sleep quitely last night. Says that I sat up a couiple times and did a lot of trashing.

Tom, I've come to think of some drugs as putting a lid on symptoms. While the Seroquel is putting a lid on, our dementia is pushing back against the lid. You just keep adjusting, until you have just enough medicine to keep the lid on, most of the time.

Usually with brain medications, there's a significant difference between enough medicine to work most of the time, and enough medicine to work all of the time. As long as you're sleeping well most nights, it's probably fine. And, perhaps your wife can help you remember what you did yesterday, to see if there's some continuity between things you did yesterday and the restless night. Caffeine, sugar, no protein, lots of things can affect our nights.

Hey Alan, what do do bet that Seroquel was invented in the 60's. It's a mother of a helper!

Maybe 25mg is a big dose for my fried brain. But they don't make a smaller dose per my doctor. Can't you lend me some brain cells so I can grow into 25mg?

Hey Tom,
25mg of Seroquel is a baby dose! I did start on 1/2 of that now I'm up to 25mg @ bedtime. Sleeping ok but not great. Plan to increase my dose to 50mg @ bedtime.
I am doing what Alan said and documenting how I am doing and sleeping and feeling.
I see my doctor on thursday. Will see what he says!

I wish I could borrow LOTS of brain cells until my re-grow!! Oh, that's right, they DON'T re-grow!

Lisa, brain cells can make new connections. That's how stroke patients get rehabilitated.
But how to make the new connections? I don't know.

Iris L.

Iris, that's a GREAT question - Why don't our brains heal from dementia, since our brains can recover from a stroke.

I'm not sure I could even fake a good answer. Maybe tomorrow.

When my mother had a decent sized stroke, she lost speech for several weeks. But all the little strokes, her vascular dementia, just kept going.

Anybody know about this phenomenon?

Alan, Iris, Mark, Tom et al,

Perhaps we need intensive rehab like stroke patients? Can we form new pathways or are our minds so filled with sludge that it's impossible??

Any answers??? Thoughts?? Comments??

Lisa, maybe that's it, the tangles and stuff that supposedly are happening to our brains? Maybe that's what keeps our brains from healing?

Hi to All,
Had a really shi..y day!

My anger is still raging. I finally saw the doctor later today (because I screwed up on the date). He was taken aback by my anger. He suggested that a take seroquel 25mg am & pm for 2 weeks then increase my pm dose to 50mg.

What do y'all think??

I just don't know what to do anymore.

Everything is aggravating me and making me angry!!!!

Has anyone else gone thru this? Is it a phase? Can I control it with meds????

Help!

Lisa, it's alright. There is medicine that helps, and you're already on it. And, you're already going to increase the dose.

I can't think worth squat when I'm angry as you are. I hope you have good notes on stuff.

Would you like to know what helps me calm down? Eliminate all distractions. No sugar, no caffeine. Except a little dark chocolate helps everything.

If you decide to watch tv, find a nature show, a comedy, fun stuff. Do not watch news or documentaries until you're back to your self.

Do one thing at a time, one step at a time. That's probably the hardest, and most helpful.

Remember to breath calmly. Mentally check your body for tension every now and then, and try to relax the tense spots.

And before you know it, you'll feel better. Maybe just a little, maybe a lot. But better.

I have a park near me with a duck pond. When I get real stressed, I'll walk over there and feed the ducks.

Also I listen to my oldies station.

Iris L.

Hi,
Thanks to all of you. I am a little calmer today. I slept fairly well last night. That seems to help.
Alan, your right about the tension. I found myself making fists yesterday. I am trying to be more aware. I do try slow, deep breathing and walking to alleviate that anger.

Love you all.

Gotta run, Mom's up!