What I did on my weekend

[Angrboda]

I'll have to return to this later, love, as Mr. Sandman and me haz plans. Sorry to hear you suffer, whatever the cause. If I'm not mistaking the spelling, Quietipine, aka Seroquel, is an atypical anti-psychotic. It's known for it's sedating properties, and in my case, is prescribed solely to that end. My tipping point for "dead next day" is a little higher, between 175-200 mg. I have no experience with its use in the treatment of depression.

I guess this was either a banner week for all, or perhaps we're twins separated at birth. I spent the weekend on a locked psych ward. That was pleasant enough, but what precipitated it was not. I overdosed on Haldol, resulting in a several hour episode of severe Akathisia. Akathisia is the feeling that you can't sit still (I believe restless leg syndrome is a mild form). Anyway, I got to where I couldn't remain in any one position for more than about 10-20 seconds. Stand up, sit down, walk around, lie down - rinse, lather, repeat. (I even used harsh language, I was so rattled.) After two hours of this in the ER room, waiting for attention, I was basically so exhausted I just passed out. I woke up two hours later to be informed that they were simply waiting for a bed. By that time, the intense Akathisia had subsided greatly, and so while I was still in a lot of pain, at least it was manageable. It took another 36-48 hours to return to baseline, and the rest is mere routine.

Anyway, I hope that which I didn't read included an "I'm doing fine now," or, at least, better. Till another day.

[Cyberman]

Thanks for clarifying that about the anti-psychotic; I had a feeling I may have got the properties of the two confused but couldn't be certain. Well, I could have Googled it but I'm a bloke.

Sorry to hear you had an ordeal yourself and I hope you're on the road to recoveryville. I think I did spot a mention of your hospital visit Tuesday night, which probably made me unsure about posting my own experience, but I was half asleep when I came online, having only woken up and visited the internet in order to check emails and Facebook. Also here, of course. Anyway, no doubt you're right about this being something of a banner week. Maybe someone put out a prayer contract on us?

[pocaracas]

Stimbo, old man... you have my sympathies... and hope you do a full recovery. of this most unpleasant ordeal.

That'll teach you to use anti-depressants. :p
You're a brit... drink beer, instead!

My weekend was much different.... birthday party for the youngest kid, taking care of some 10 4to9yolds in a 2 bedroom apartment, while raining outside. Good thing we had cake.
Here you can see some of the masterpieces my wife and her sister have made on that subject:
cakes and cakes and cakes
Have a taste:

[Cyberman]

That's some cake! Hope it tasted as good as it looks!

On the subject of beer, one thing I omitted from my account was a little snippet from the first procedure I had. The nurse asked me if I drink, and I said I do but only occasionally. She said, "I bet you will after this!"

[Faith No More]

I remember when my psychiatrist was explaining the side-effects of Seroquel(Quietipine). She mentioned priapism was one of them, and if that happened my penis would have to be drained with a syringe. I winced when she said that, so you can imagine how I felt reading your account of your experience at the hospital. It sounds like it is quite the painful and embarrassing experience, and I send you my sincerest sympathies.

---

FWIW, I was on quietapine for over a year. It felt like it took about 60 points off my IQ. That stuff has some nasty side effects, I was extremely pleased to stop taking it.

I was only on it for three or four weeks, because I had become, in a way, zombiefied. My intellect was still intact, but emotions were muted, eventually to the point that I felt nothing. It was a horrible experience much worse than the depression it was supposed to be helping with.

[festive1]

Oh my... That really sounds awful :-( Worse than awful actually. I'm glad you're home and healing. Yeouch!

[Cyberman]

Thank you. Yes, it was a few days I could have done without, I think. I've not long got back from my appointment with the consultant I mentioned, Mr Foster. Turns out I had the right person and the right time, but the wrong place. So essentially I made the appointment, but the appointment didn't. Anyway, after Heartlands did a bit of checking up, the clinic where I was supposed to have been said they'd keep the appointment open until I got there.

Mr Foster had a quick look and then explained the various options available. Basically, we could leave things as they are and see how they develop, which might make any treatment more difficult as time goes on and the tissues become fibrous, or we could go for having an implant installed, which is easier to do now but might not be necessary anyway. It's too hard to predict at the moment. He explained that if I'd still been painfully engorged, which apparently can happen even after the operation I had, then the implant option would be the only way to go. Anyway I've to go back in six weeks so we'll take it from there. The bruising and post-op swelling will have gone by then; it's improved just over the last few days.

[Autumnlicious]

FNM precisely described what Lamictal did to me after a year. I knew something was wrong when I spent all night awake, angry that I couldn't sleep, then zombie-shuffled through out the day. It dawned on me that my lack of upset with being so tired wasn't normal and that every emotion I had thought I knew was nearly dead to me.


Stimbo, I read the first post right after you sent it in, but it took me some time to let go of the nightmare you described. You deserved a hefty dose of painkillers prior to dick stabbing...

What a convulsive read. *shudder*

[Angrboda]

FNM precisely described what Lamictal did to me after a year. I knew something was wrong when I spent all night awake, angry that I couldn't sleep, then zombie-shuffled through out the day. It dawned on me that my lack of upset with being so tired wasn't normal and that every emotion I had thought I knew was nearly dead to me.

Yay. The hospital shrink prescribed this for me.

---

Maybe someone put out a prayer contract on us?

That just shows their desperation. They know they cannot prevail against warriors such as you and I taking the field. We will yet prevail, Mordroch!

[Cyberman]

Wow, sorry to hear about your, indeed everyone's, bad experiences with these drugs. I don't know how much your GPs may have kept you in the loop regarding treatment, but from mine I learned that it's essentially a matter of trying out different approaches to home in on what works best. For instance, when I spoke to him just this morning he was very pleasantly surprised at how bright I was looking (his words). He's not the first person to say that to me this week, so it's probably down to being off the meds for several days, giving my system a chance to flush out the compounds etc. He suggested that maybe the drugs had served their purpose by getting me to a place I needed to be. He's going to monitor me on a weekly basis to see how things progress. I asked him for something to calm my nerves, as I can be like a frightened rabbit if I'm in a noisy place, unexpected and loud noises make me very anxious. He gave me some beta blockers called Propranolol (love the 'lol') which I take on an ad hoc basis, as and when required.

Speaking of things progressing, poor old Bonnie the Boner (Sam's pet name for him) seems to be holding his own, as it were. Bruising and swelling almost cleared, just a little internal bruising coming out now, the only painful remnants of the whole episode. As for the long-term effects, I've tried a couple of arousal experiments and things are looking up. He's just been sulking, I think. And who can blame him?
[/TMI]