Quetiapine-induced visual hallucinations

[Closure]

Since going on 50 mg of quetiapine I have been getting visual hallucinations. They essentially look like a constant static, a constant flicker, constant rapidly moving transparent lines, or looking through the open doors of a supermarket on a cold winter day, encompassing my entire visual field. I used to see these same hallucinations before I went on risperidone a long time ago, in any mood.

Now that I am at 100 mg of quetiapine they are more pronounced (e.g. I now see this in my computer screen where I did not at 50 mg), and I assume that they will become even more pronounced with subsequent dose increases. And it does seem that my dose will need to be increased as, while 100 mg is working some, it is still not working enough.

Apparently hallucinations are not an uncommon side effect of quetiapine. What I am asking is for others have they continually increased with dose, and they have, typically how fast have they increased? I ask as for me the hallucinations are likely going to be the limiting factor in how high I will be able to go on quetiapine, and while I really want to see if I can go higher on it even with increased hallucinations, if they increase so much that I will never reach a therapeutic dose before the hallucinations become intolerable, why should I bother?

Edited November 6, 2016 by Closure

[cipher]

I'm so sorry that you're getting that side effect, closure. It's been a long time since I've been on Seroquel aka quetiapine - but if memory serves right, I *think* i was having what you described for a day (i remember backstroke sculling in the pool when the hallucinations kicked in) when I went cold turkey after being on around 100mg, as I just simply did not want to continue on a course of drugs anymore due to sideeffects (lethargy and dulled thinking). I think these are excellent questions for your pdoc, as the side effects may go away over time.

[uncomfortable thoughts]

I can't remember the dosage but was 50 or 100mg.

I would hallucinate shortly after taking it, like vivid colors and would become very sexual aroused and after that it would knock me out.

It become less and less intense, I guess it disappeared at the first week.

Edited November 7, 2016 by uncomfortable thoughts

[domovoi]

i had never hallucinated on seroquel until i hit 400mg mark, at which point i started hearing radio static, seeing rats in my bed, and sometimes black cats in the apartment (i didn't have a cat then).

the worst part was that stopping seroquel abruptly causes severe withdrawal, which i can compare to benzo withdrawal syndrome. so i had to be patient until i got to the doze of 50 or so, when the hallucinations disappeared.

if you are bothered by this side effect, please talk to doc about stopping the drug immediately if you're on a low enough dose or starting to taper ASAP.

[Closure]

Right now I haven't decided how much hallucination I am willing to put up with. What I have right now is somewhat annoying and distracting but I feel I can put up with it. But I likely won't know what I can't put up with until I get there. This means that the best strategy is to increase the quetiapine the least possible in hopes that I never reach that point, so I don't gave to go through titrating down to a dose I can tolerate or, if it acts like it did for domovoi, titrating off it altogether, which would be even worse.

[Eilatan]

I get similar ones from sertraline. Trippy colours and waves. Sparkly stuff hovering all over everything...And it's all purple too. I call it my purple haze. We decided to just put up with it as it's not too distracting at lower doses.  When i gets higher its quite hard to see throygh it all. My aripiprazole I think makes sure they don't get too out of control tho. 

Sorry I know I'm not on quietapine but had to reply since what you described is so similar to what I get. 

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