Abilify Side Effects

I've been taking Risperdal, Abilify and Aripipraloze for years. The Veterans Administration put me on forced medications in 2004 based on some lies of 2 family members. They said they thought I had Schizoaffective Disorder and Bipolar but I never had any of the symptoms. I started wanting to frequent prostitutes but forced myself to stop after having been celibate for about 18-1/2 years after my wife died of cancer. Then I developed tremors which get very serious at times and cannot grip things or sign my signature at times. I told my doctor who prescribes it but she has me hold still for about 20 to 30 seconds and I tense up to try to hold still. I developed a facial nerve problem the last few years but don't know if it's related and I seem to have developed a nervous problem and had somewhat of a nervous breakdown about 8 years ago. I have witnesses to my problems but I just don't know what to do anymore. There's probably much more to say on the issue if I spend a day or two thinking on my problems.

This is complete garbage. I took Abilify for 5 years with no such side effect. I started on oral tabs then went to monthly injections all at 30mg daily. What complete horseshit. If you gambled your money away, don't blame your medication, blame yourself you idiots. There is no case that ended in a monetary settlement between pharmaceutical company and patient due to being a gambling addict as a side effect. What a joke. Get rich quick schemes. SMH.

I've been taking abilify for around 10 years now. My doctors psychiatrists and top pricey rehab institutions highly recommended it. My family told me to always take it to control my ups and downs and mood swings. It seemed to work but once I blew $70,000 cash fast in las vegas then purchased a $60,000 vehicle which was out of my budget and shopping and very hyper sexual which got me in some dangerous situations ( no stds) just violent situations. Also I hear it can cause neurological damage. So now what do I take? Can't take seroquel or Geodon or lithium or resperedal or like that but now what do I take? Zyprexa? I'm going to get a few new internist evaluations...bad news and I'm getting involved with litigators in this class action lawsuit against abilify manufacturers. I'm very upset about this misleading deception from a multi billion dollar lying pharmaceutical company and believe I should be financially compensated!

As a patient who was diagnosed with bi-polar, ADD, and addiction problems back in 1993; it is my understanding from an email from the FDA dated 2016, with these predisposed behaviors, I should never have been put on Abilify. I would guess that ten of the fourteen years I was on this medicine, I was on the highest doze, 30 mg. My family immediately noticed the flat-faced, zombie affect. As I went on to live a quite an exciting life,embarrassing my parents, grandparents, my siblings, and I even ruined my reputation. I went from a well rounded athlete with artistic abilities, to somebody always pushing the boundaries. I put myself in completely unsafe situations, becoming sick as a result of such occasions and even being date raped by one such acquaintance. With such a sordid past as mine, who would believe me? IF I HAD KNOWN IT WAS THE ABILIFY CAUSING ME TO ACT OUT IN THIS MANNER, I would have quit a decade earlier. I have a ruined reputation, I've been to countless mental health institutions, several drug rehabs, moved from job to job, from city to city, with roommate to roommate, had countless sexual partners, many unprotected, received several std's and was anally raped by one such acquaintance. I take some of the blame for my actions, however, I am finding out that the makers of Abilify knew about these side effects LONG BEFORE letting the consumers in the US know. When I first started taking abilify, it was like $1400.00 a month, a gift my uncle generously gave me. Even now, 14 years later, the GENERIC price is still outrageous. Im weaning off of it and am down to 10 mg...my gambling is not as pronounced, overeating...not so much and the hypersexuality is almost non-existent....

I took it for years & my daughter too. I believe it made me be compulsive Sex gambling etc diabetes I have had too

I just realized all the horrible side affects of this medication I have only been on this medication for a week. I absolutely do not want to gain weight as I have an eating disorder already and gaining weight would make my depression even more to the extreme. Now I am frustrated on all the comments and what I should do. Any suggestions or comments would help.

Wow,i had no idea that this medicine would have affected me this way..reading the other complaints, now i see...the unprotected sexual encounters...the stealing beyond control..i thought i was crazy..
And the diabetes. .

I was on Abilify for about three years. I took a break after hearing all the disturbing news. However, I can attest to some disturbing behavior I had while on the medication. I did becom sexually aggressive. I was never like that in all my life. I started taking chances with unprotected sex as well as with people I didn't really know. This behavior was not as bad as my impulse to shoplift. I can tell you with money in my pocket, I just had to try to take an item without paying for it just to feel that thrill. I guess I did all of these things for the thrill because I could not stop if I thought about the consequences I were to have contracted a fatal disease or go a criminal record and never were able to find gainful employment up to my standards.

Hi, I read most of the postings and I can definitely relate, I have been taking Abilify sense 2005 and couldn't loose weight no matter how much I exercised so I basically gave up. I ended up getting type 2 diabetes and put on 110 lbs. I also had tardive dyskinesia with tremor like symptoms with my tong. This made me feel really uncomfortable around people. I also have had a compulsive gambling problem since 2005 when i started taking the medication Abilify. I played video poker one time and I was hooked. I couldn't hang on to 5.00 for more than a day. I feel lesser than because I lost all of that money, but I know now that it wasn't my fault. I stopped taking Abilify about two months ago and I seen and felt a decrease in my cravings to gamble and to over eat. Now that I'm off the Abilify my craving are gone. Please if your on Abilify don't play video poker you won't be able to stop! Thanks Mark J.

My daughter, in her freshman year of high school, was put on Abilify for irritibility, depression, and other symptoms associated with her Aspberger's Disorder. She was on for only one year but was exibiting alarming weight gain, (at least 25 pounds within one year, a drastic metabolic change for her), symptoms I associated with blood sugar problems and tremors in her hands. She also reported "black outs" in which she would suddenly "come to" and realized her surroundings, not knowing how she got there. She was also even more depressed than before she started the drug. The prescribing psychiatrist didn't seem the least alarmed and I ended up taking her off the drug myself. Her weight started dropping dramatically, in fact it wouldn't stop and she has been on Synthroid for her thyroid ever since. She also never lost the tremor in her hands and has dropped and broken things and reports her ability to do her artwork has been affected.

I was on Abilify for 2 years, stopped in feb 2016 but side effects of uncontrollable tongue licking, smacking, biting my tongue, slurred speech have continued. Iam more depressed now then I was before this medication.
Don't take Abilify. I need help please!!!

Just to make thing short I was put on abilify for having physosis I was in geriatric physosis in unity for two week the starting giving me the ability at 25 mg then moved it up to 75 mg then I was discharge from the hospital and a few days after I was home had a massive heart attack I am here today do to the quick actions of my daughter who gave me c.p.r until medical help arrived I have dementia also l am 84 year old and I never expected to have all this happen to me my daughter read on line this medication should of never been giving to me because of the dementia and physosis It should of never been giving thank u alice

I took anti-depressants for years and developed a severe gambling compulsion (over 7 or 8 years, I lost half a million dollars). It started small and grew out of control quite rapidly. This compulsion caused a suicide attempt and years of additional depression and self loathing. I did take Abilify, but I don't think it was for very long. I also took Effexor and Cymbalta and several others in numerous dosages and combinations. When I stopped taking these medications, the gambling compulsion slowly went away. A year and a half later, I no longer gamble at all.

After reading another comment from a parent, I see that we are not alone. Our son has been on Abilify and other medications for mood stabilizer, anxiety, depression all associated with ASD. He has become extremely obsessed with just about everything causing rages and harm to others in the home. One of the biggest obsessions is food. He would go into a terrible rage if we told him he could not eat. His weight has ballooned and no matter what we tried we could not stop his eating. He was recently hospitalized for harming a sibling, threatening suicide, and attempting suicide. While in the hospital we found out that he is border line diabetic with an elevated A1C and has high cholesterol. The next week is when we heard of all the issues associated with Abilify and it made since. We removed him immediately and replaced with something else. He has become a completely different kid.

Hello, we started my son on Abilify about 3 years ago. The doctors said it would help with his behaviors associated with ASD. The drug was amazing for about a year. Then it stopped working. They increased the dosage. Then more and more. Long story short, the child doesnt stop eating! Its terrible, he has gained so much weight that its unhealthy. The poor child is ony 7.

I was seeing things that were not there. This was the symptom I was having during the time I was on Abilify. Also I could not lose weight I was always eating. I took Abilify for a whole year.

I never knew this about abilify. I've been taking it and gaining weight for a year. My memory is terrible. My hair is coarse and falling out. I'm also being treated for thyroid issues and pre diabetes testing. The overeating is terrible. I learned a lot reading these posts.

just been on this tablet for 8 weeks it has already slightly efffected my gallbladder and immune system

I was taking Abilify (the generic one) for a short period of time. Close monitoring by my dr. and I developed unusual gasping episodes. I was taken off the meds but the gasping has not stopped. It is less often and less severe but still present. I am not comfortable speaking with anyone as I tend to gasp during the conversation and more than once. This started in 2015.

Both of my sons were prescribed abilify. My youngest was taking it around 2097 to 2008 and he was experiencing hallucinations and tremors. They now have prescribed my middle child abilify and he's displaying hypersexual behaviors compulsive eating and gambling problems. I have asked the doctor to discontinue the use of it and he has not yet to this day! I need help. I have documentation from all the years they have both been in it and expressed my concerns without any resolutions...if anyone could please provide me with someone who can help me with this I would greatly appreciate it.

I have been taking abilify for approximately 7 years. I have a severe shopping addiction, sex addiction and I pick at my scabs incessantly.
I am hoping that you can advise me on this lawsuit

My husband and I were both given Abilify in addition to our antidepressant. We have ordinary endogenous depression. Shortly thereafter we began to make irrational decisions. We have gone from having our home paid off and a nice IRA to totally broke. Once we stopped taking the Abilify our normal decision making ability returned. We are 74 years old and in bad health. My husband had to return to working so we can pay our rent and other regular bills. I have no doubt that the Abilify created this disastrous thinking and our actions.

i fight against sucidail thoughts every day have high blood perrsure overweight ,insomnia stiff legs stiffness excessive saliva from the drug amblify

While taking Abilify for bipolar disorder, I have developed a compulsive shopping addition, tremors, muscle rigidity, hypotension, dizziness, loss of balance, trouble swallowing, tongue thrust, overactive bladder, hair loss and fatigue. I was recently diagnosed with Parkinson's secondary to Abilify.

Diagnosed with Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome, taking Abilify for more than 6 years and no MD suspected that is was caused by Abilify. Rigid muscles in arms and legs, irregular heartbeat (180+ ppm), sweating, loss coordination, fever. Alert... May 2014 review PDR states that side effects (each one) are progressive from 2 months up to 12 years of taking Abilify.

It all started a year ago when my dad, who had been prescribed Abilify by a hospital doctor on staff at Beaumont Hospital Royal Oak, Michigan while he was admitted for treatment of depression. He was NOT Bipolar, he was NOT Schizophrenic, and he was not suicidal, although, Beaumont requires that you say that you are suicidal in order to get admitted for treatment. What is wrong with this country!!!! Another psychiatrist had already prescribed Zoloft and Cymbalta, and his regular doctor doubled the Zoloft. He takes approximately 12 different medications. He seemed much better and the hospital released him advising to follow-up with his regular psychiatrist which he did and continued to supposedly be monitored by this doctor. Unfortunately, that was not the case because my dad who is 83 yrs old started these terrible jerking movements while he slept . Eventually, they became so severe that my mom took my dad to the emergency room at Royal Oak Beaumont Hospital two weeks ago! The ER doctor admitted him to the hospital to perform a myriad of tests. After three days, and my dad so increasingly worse (having uncontrollable muscle jerking and movements, struggling just to turn over in his slept, facial movements that looked like he had Cerebral Palsy, hallucinations seeing people that were not there) the nurse came in and said good news we are releasing you to go home. Mom spoke up and said I can’t take that man home in this condition and the doctors never even diagnosed my dad or provided any information to us. They were going to just release him as is and it would all be on us because of what a doctor did and did not do! Well, things changed again as they didn’t release him and one doctor from his heart doctor’s office advised that we will never be able to take him home and that he will have to stay in a nursing home the rest of his life. You can only imagine the shock and dismay that took over my mom and me. This all happened within 3 days!
Next, the case worker came in and talked right in front of my dad, mom and me that we will need to choose at least 3 different nursing homes with rehabilitation facilities. My 83 year old mom and I spent that entire Tuesday morning and afternoon touring 5 different nursing homes. We come back to visit my Dad after we were finished and were told that they were going to admit dad to a different floor at Beaumont Royal Oak for rehabilitation. Come to find out this was the Neurology section of the hospital. Not one doctor spoke to us about diagnosis or what the game plan was and all the time my dad was getting worse symptoms of the uncontrollable muscle movement, zoning out, and hallucinations, slurring speech and dad couldn’t even walk at this point.
They did move dad to the Neurocenter for rehab at Beaumont in a semi-private room and they told mom that they would put their heads together and find out what exactly is causing these symptoms and starting rehab. So, he endured hours of physical, speech and occupational therapies and never complained.
Apparently, the nurses had to alarm his bed because he kept getting out of it and was so confused at where he was and where he wanted to be and learned how to turn the alarm off. The jerking uncontrollable muscle movements became increasingly worse and he was showing signs of believing that his hallucinations were real and he was slurring his words and making statements that made no sense at all! Really scary and surreal for all this to start while he was in the hospital! It was a Wednesday night I came to see how my dad was by myself and to give my poor mom a break. He was in bad shape. He would not wake up to eat because he felt too sick. So, I sat there for a half hour watching this man that was so miserable and in pain and I honestly left the room crying profusely and no one came to my aid let alone my poor dad’s aid. Isn’t that what nurses do????? So, I started taking names and asking questions and requesting information.
Next day, I decided that I would take another day off work and spend it with dad and follow his day through his rehab schedules and took notes and asked more questions related to what he was doing in rehab to understand what our family needed to be prepared to do for dad, because we were taking him home no matter why any doctor or nurse said.
Dad was moved him to a private room and assigned a sitter with him because he knew how to turn the alarm to the bed off! You must understand that this is a very intelligent man who raised his family in the Air Force for 22 years and served his country through 2 wars but unfortunately that means nothing anymore. My dad is a veteran even though he is 83 years old he deserves the same resources that are advertised for all of the new veterans coming home.
A different case worker was assigned to dad’s case and said it might be a problem to get him into a nursing home for 20 days of rehab while he has an assigned sitter because nursing homes do NOT accept patients needing sitters. If he needed a sitter then he would have to be in the nursing home full time, baloney to that. I am sure that I am so distraught that I am missing some details of the whole nightmare our family had to go through. Then the case worker said he should have never had a sitter put on him. What? What are they telling us now. Nobody communicates there with the families, the nurses don’t know about the patient. Also, doctors and nurses are explaining things to my dad that he had no comprehension of, duh! Finally, got to speak with a doctor that knew what he was talking about. I directly asked him could Abilify cause the pseudo parkinsonism and extra pyramidal disorder and he advised it is possible, in fact, all the nurses and doctors we spoke to said the same thing. But the Indian doctor that originally prescribed Abilify for dad when asked by mom if it could be causing these symptoms said no it would not cause these symptoms, in fact, he told my mom that on two different occasions. All I can say is this is the third time this hospital and/or some of its doctors have honestly make serious life threatening errors .
Today, my dad is doing so well since his system is clear of the Abilify and his Zoloft has been reduced, however, we are watching him closely because we do not know if the symptoms will return and keep praying each day that it will never happen again. He is currently getting in home rehab for a short period, but was told that he must be homebound in order to receive them by a Beaumont Royal Oak Rehab therapist! That is nuts and I don’t trust what any doctor says anymore which is really sad how the quality of care has decreased so. And the left foot clearly doesn’t know what the right foot is doing, sad, sad, sad they should be ashamed of themselves!

My 11 year old son has constinant tremors in his hands that cause him to have trouble with writing and holding on to things.

tardive dyskinesia was the diagnoses from the neurologist as a result of this drug. Severe hand tremors and shoulder as a result of taking this drug for only 2 1/2 - 3 months

I have tremors very bad. Every doctor I see test me for parkinson's disease. I also have uncontrollable muscle movements and have to take meds to try to help them.

uncontrollable movements in my legs (right and left legs) and my toes. Uncontrollable muscle movements in my face. Tremors at night, when I'm in bed. Hyperglycemia.

I was diagnosed with diabetes type 3 after a physician started me on abilify 30 mg for bipolar. I started gaining weight and having water retention in my body. I was healthy prior to taking abilify and now I am morbidly obese with edema and newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. I have been taking abilify for several years.

My 13 old daughter has gained 20-25 pounds and has issues with her liver now and had her gallbladder removed in Oct. 2010. Some twitching not all the time. They said it would be a good idea to keeping checking to make sure she does not become diabetic. Problems sleeping at night. Leg pain at times and anxiety.

I gained over 65 pounds and now have a goiter and an enlarged thyroid. I am being monitored to see if surgery is necessary.

Hospitalized for 11 days with pancreatitis caused from Abilify, then at home on an IV drip with visiting nurses for an additional two weeks. Now I am diabetic and can never drink alcohol again. I am on a very strict no-fat and no sugar diet for the rest of my life. I now have to take subcutaneous insulin and cholesterol pills.

My wife was never diagnosed with diabetes until about 5 years after starting Zxprexa. She was switched to Abilify in 2005. Now she has periphial diabetic neuropathy. This has caused numerous ER visits with stroke like symptoms. Since she came off Abilify her sugar readings are greatly improving. She stopped the Abilify just recently. The Dr. put her on Trilifon for her antipsychotic. She is now taking Gabapentin for the nerve damage in her legs which has caused numbness, tingling and severe pain. I am not sure if she is diabetic, but even if she is the two antipsychotic drugs interferred with the treatment of diabetes.