joshie Posted July 23, 2010 Share Posted July 23, 2010 i have schizophrenia and have been noticing my intelligence is getting worse and worse. so is my memory. im as sharp as a bowling bowl! i cant concentrate. i never used to be like this. i was diagnosed when i was 15 now im 25. i was a straight " a " student prior to being diagnosed. if the intelligence and memory loss is part of the schizophrenia shouldnt the antipsychotic help with that? im on zuclopenthioxol an old school antipsychotic after try ALL the atypicals. the atypicals didnt help with the intelliegence, concentration etc. been on zuclo. for bout a month. has helped with the paranoia etc. NO side effects which is good. hasnt done squat for the memory etc. is it possible that antipsychotics can affect memory or concentration or intellegence and make it worse. does anyone know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bpladybug Posted July 23, 2010 Share Posted July 23, 2010 i have schizophrenia and have been noticing my intelligence is getting worse and worse. so is my memory. im as sharp as a bowling bowl! i cant concentrate. i never used to be like this. i was diagnosed when i was 15 now im 25. i was a straight " a " student prior to being diagnosed. if the intelligence and memory loss is part of the schizophrenia shouldnt the antipsychotic help with that? is it possible that antipsychotics can affect memory or concentration or intellegence and make it worse. does anyone know? It is thought that episodes of psychosis or mania can damage the brain. Plus some psyche meds affect memory and intelligence. I know my memory is badly affected. And I do not know whether that is from bipolar mania, or my meds, or both. So, I think the answer to your question is yes. But schizophrenia untreated is bad for your memory also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
etkearne Posted July 30, 2010 Share Posted July 30, 2010 I found that when I started Zyprexa, my cognitive abilities went downhill dramatically. I was in college at the time, and I went from a Dean's List student in very hard classes to being able to barely pull a C in hard classes. This just fueled my depression more. I have gone on and off of antipsychotics a million times. Right now I am [semi] off and I can perform extremely well at graduate school, but my psychotic depression is rearing its head from the stress, and I will likely have to start taking the antipsychs more often, if not regularly. It is a horrible cycle, and I know exactly what you are talking about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NuttyJoe Posted August 1, 2010 Share Posted August 1, 2010 The APs I've been on generally slow down my thinking, it's kind of supposed to I guess. I don't think it's making you dumb, just a lousy side effect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NailFlower Posted August 1, 2010 Share Posted August 1, 2010 I have also had my memory, intelligence affected but so what! it's better than the crazy! I would rather be a little dumb than dead! I would rather be a little slow than off my rocker! I have been to the edge of the crazy and I refuse to go back!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
etkearne Posted August 1, 2010 Share Posted August 1, 2010 I don't know how you guys can sacrifice your intellect for a certain drug, unless, of course, all options have been exhausted. To me, my intellligence is my main virtue and quality, and in fact, my job depends on it 100% (grad student/academia). I could be fired for being "a little dumb/slow". I have to maintain a high average and do tedious research. I have switched antipsychotics tons of times to try to find the best one that won't kill my precious mind. Right now I am doing a low-dose Seroquel thing. It seems to be working. I still feel sharp in the morning (I only take it at night). My all time favorite is still Risperidone, but the doctor doesn't want me on that. He thinks I am sensitive to EPS and would react badly. However, I was on it for 5 years as a child/teen and it didn't give me EPS. The only thing that ever did was the insanely high doses of Zyprexa I was prescribed at times (like 20mg BID). EDIT: Please do not take this as an offensive statement. If your position in life doesn't require hyper-tuned brain skills, which most positions in life do not, then finding a medication that works albeit with cognitive side-effects is completely understandable. I pose my concern to people in college, high school, academia, engineering, etc., where your job is literally on the line based on cognitive performance. It is unfortunate that stability can cost so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Llama44 Posted August 1, 2010 Share Posted August 1, 2010 Well I know from one of my groups that there are positive, negative, and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia. So it is not just the meds at fault. I think it is a combo of both. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indigo 'n dye Posted August 1, 2010 Share Posted August 1, 2010 I have also had my memory, intelligence affected but so what! it's better than the crazy! I would rather be a little dumb than dead! I would rather be a little slow than off my rocker! I have been to the edge of the crazy and I refuse to go back!!!!! I absolutely, positively, and adamantly agree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NailFlower Posted August 1, 2010 Share Posted August 1, 2010 etkearne: for some of us it's a matter of having a job or being alive! I am in the process of a career shift because of my mental illness. It is preferable to me to go into a less intellectually demanding, slower type of work than it is to go off my medication. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
etkearne Posted August 1, 2010 Share Posted August 1, 2010 etkearne: for some of us it's a matter of having a job or being alive! I am in the process of a career shift because of my mental illness. It is preferable to me to go into a less intellectually demanding, slower type of work than it is to go off my medication. Don't worry. I completely understand. I had to take a two year break between undergraduate school and graduate school (present) because of my illness. I receive SSI to keep me solvent. I would probably have done something bad if I was forced into a job hunt right after graduation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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