Seroquel(9)

Smyles7720

Hello Everyone,

Mom’s doctor suggested Seroquel to help her sleep.

Any thoughts, I am not familiar with this medication. 

Thanks

M1

My partner takes it for exactly that reason and has helped hugely. It is an atypical antipsychotic that is usually well tolerated with few side effects, although there are occasional folks whose behaviors are worse instead of better, and it carries a "black box" warning regarding increased risk of heart attack and stroke in the elderly...there's another thread about it in the spouses forum right now (Lynne D started, about hallucinations).

M1

I'm not good with links but see Lynne D's thread Thanks for the heads up

SusanB-dil

Hi Smyles - MIL has been on Seroquel for maybe 2 years or so (approx).  Just last year, the dosage was increased by just a little for increased agitation.  It has been very well-tolerated with no problems at all, and has really been a blessing for us helping with decreasing that agitation. It probably does help with calming, so she does sleep better, too.

LevisHouse

I started my aunt on it about 6 weeks ago and it is tolerated really well. Just this week we started making some adjustments to get the timing right, but so far it is making a huge difference.

​fesk

I'd recommend reading up on this medicine and antipsychotics in general and weighing the pros and cons for your particular situation. If it is only a sleep issue that needs to be addressed, I would ask the doctor what alternatives there are. If there are other behaviors that need to be addressed, I would still recommend asking for alternatives. Then review all and see what may best help your situation. I believe there is a place for antipsychotics and from reading the forum here, they have helped many people. I would just be as informed as you can - the information can be overwhelming.