Is trying low dose quetiapine playing with fire?

I am over stressed and with sensory overload. Some evidences of adrenal fatigue. OCD is exacerbated due to the taper and I refuse to increase SSRIs as they caused tinnitus for me.

 

Is it risky to take low dose quetiapine to deal with all this? Better or worse than updosing benzos? How is the withdrawal?

I think so.

 

I also have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Obsessing over not sleeping was the reason I began using Xanax and got horribly addicted, so I've been there. The ride has been insane.

 

With OCD, you really just wait for the episodes to pass. OCD is a very cyclical condition. I hate to advise you to 'do nothing', but sometimes it's best with OCD. We're expert problem-solvers, constantly looking for problems and always trying to solve them. We have to learn to just...  accept. It took me a long time.

 

It's pretty well-known in psychiatry that antipsychotics like Seroquel weirdly worsen OCD, worsening compulsive behavior especially. This is probably because they suppress dopamine, and compulsions give dopamine, etc.

IMO-definitely playing with fire. Antipsychotics can be extremely dangerous. Please do your homework as you have other options. Hydroxyzine, a beta blocker, even Magnesium can help. Ashwaganda, L’Theamine, Lavender oil pills, Kava…..

IMO-definitely playing with fire. Antipsychotics can be extremely dangerous. Please do your homework as you have other options. Hydroxyzine, a beta blocker, even Magnesium can help. Ashwaganda, L’Theamine, Lavender oil pills, Kava…..

 

Ashwagandha spiked my tinnitus but maybe I will try again. Also, I have low cortisol after the noon so Idk if it's the best for me. Magnesium is complicated as people tell that might hinder recovery due to binding to gaba receptors and I think magnesium has its own wd but that is a guess. I will not take quetiapine I guess though...

I think so.

 

I also have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Obsessing over not sleeping was the reason I began using Xanax and got horribly addicted, so I've been there. The ride has been insane.

 

With OCD, you really just wait for the episodes to pass. OCD is a very cyclical condition. I hate to advise you to 'do nothing', but sometimes it's best with OCD. We're expert problem-solvers, constantly looking for problems and always trying to solve them. We have to learn to just...  accept. It took me a long time.

 

It's pretty well-known in psychiatry that antipsychotics like Seroquel weirdly worsen OCD, worsening compulsive behavior especially. This is probably because they suppress dopamine, and compulsions give dopamine, etc.

 

So you overcome your OCD without meds? How severe was it? I would like to talk more about that but I am mentally fatigued these days and I don't want to bother.

Personally I would switch to a different AD before considering an atypical. They are gross, make you groggy and fat.

Personally I would switch to a different AD before considering an atypical. They are gross, make you groggy and fat.

 

I am afraid there are no ADs for OCD that doesn't make tinnitus worse.

Personally I would switch to a different AD before considering an atypical. They are gross, make you groggy and fat.

 

I am afraid there are no ADs for OCD that doesn't make tinnitus worse.

The way to deal with OCD is cognitive behavioral therapy, not drugs IMO.

Personally I would switch to a different AD before considering an atypical. They are gross, make you groggy and fat.

 

I am afraid there are no ADs for OCD that doesn't make tinnitus worse.

The way to deal with OCD is cognitive behavioral therapy, not drugs IMO.

 

Pre existing severe OCD amplified by benzo wd demands too much for me. I am doing therapy with a CBT specialist and it's not enough. I feel so low because of the options and also so lonely.

I think so.

 

I also have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Obsessing over not sleeping was the reason I began using Xanax and got horribly addicted, so I've been there. The ride has been insane.

 

With OCD, you really just wait for the episodes to pass. OCD is a very cyclical condition. I hate to advise you to 'do nothing', but sometimes it's best with OCD. We're expert problem-solvers, constantly looking for problems and always trying to solve them. We have to learn to just...  accept. It took me a long time.

 

It's pretty well-known in psychiatry that antipsychotics like Seroquel weirdly worsen OCD, worsening compulsive behavior especially. This is probably because they suppress dopamine, and compulsions give dopamine, etc.

 

So you overcome your OCD without meds? How severe was it? I would like to talk more about that but I am mentally fatigued these days and I don't want to bother.

 

Yeah, I've learned to live a comfortable-ish life with OCD. It will never be a normal life, but it's mine and I'm proud of how far I've come with it. OCD still bothers me. I still fear LSD contaminating my foods and drinks, I still have that ubiquitous OCD fear that I have schizophrenia, and.. you know how it goes, lol. As for severity, I have the Pure O subset, so most of my obsessions are morality/sanity/religious-oriented. In 2021, when it began to worsen due to having entered my twenties, I nearly stopped eating for fear of contamination. I couldn't go out to eat, nor could I touch surfaces, I had to quit my job (the same one that I worked at through acute benzo withdrawals!), it was atrocious. My best decision ever was to resist the temptation to get on psych meds. I learned how to deal with it holistically, and accept it as an inalienable part of me, like any other. You can too. I believe in you. 

In any case, you're not alone. OCD is terribly mischaracterized and misunderstood. I understand at least a part of your anguish, I've been there myself. OCD and drugs just don't mix, we're so susceptible to the ritual of using or taking meds, it becomes compulsive very fast. OCD got me onto benzos, and OCD got me out of them too by creating an aversion obsession towards them. I took advantage of my OCD superpowers, researched the f*** out of psychiatry and pharmacology, and developed revulsion to the point where I was able to torture myself into resisting them. Best decision I ever made, or I'd still be a vegetative psych patient.

 

Message me if you'd like to talk OCD or benzos, or anything really. You're not alone.

I think so.

 

I also have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Obsessing over not sleeping was the reason I began using Xanax and got horribly addicted, so I've been there. The ride has been insane.

 

With OCD, you really just wait for the episodes to pass. OCD is a very cyclical condition. I hate to advise you to 'do nothing', but sometimes it's best with OCD. We're expert problem-solvers, constantly looking for problems and always trying to solve them. We have to learn to just...  accept. It took me a long time.

 

It's pretty well-known in psychiatry that antipsychotics like Seroquel weirdly worsen OCD, worsening compulsive behavior especially. This is probably because they suppress dopamine, and compulsions give dopamine, etc.

 

So you overcome your OCD without meds? How severe was it? I would like to talk more about that but I am mentally fatigued these days and I don't want to bother.

 

Yeah, I've learned to live a comfortable-ish life with OCD. It will never be a normal life, but it's mine and I'm proud of how far I've come with it. OCD still bothers me. I still fear LSD contaminating my foods and drinks, I still have that ubiquitous OCD fear that I have schizophrenia, and.. you know how it goes, lol. As for severity, I have the Pure O subset, so most of my obsessions are morality/sanity/religious-oriented. In 2021, when it began to worsen due to having entered my twenties, I nearly stopped eating for fear of contamination. I couldn't go out to eat, nor could I touch surfaces, I had to quit my job (the same one that I worked at through acute benzo withdrawals!), it was atrocious. My best decision ever was to resist the temptation to get on psych meds. I learned how to deal with it holistically, and accept it as an inalienable part of me, like any other. You can too. I believe in you. 

 

Also pure O or close to that here and religious-oriented/morality OCD drives me sometimes to analysis paralysis and I just want to be more spontaneous. To be honest, with the energy spent and stress I deal, I would not complain taking a med if it wasn't for some possible potential persistent side effect such as tinnitus. I kinda miss being able to max out antidepressants as a resource.

 

I am almost to the point of embracing the chance of spiking the tinnitus to reduce the severity of the symptoms. Quetiapine working quickly seems so tempting...

In any case, you're not alone. OCD is terribly mischaracterized and misunderstood. I understand at least a part of your anguish, I've been there myself. OCD and drugs just don't mix, we're so susceptible to the ritual of using or taking meds, it becomes compulsive very fast. OCD got me onto benzos, and OCD got me out of them too by creating an aversion obsession towards them. I took advantage of my OCD superpowers, researched the f*** out of psychiatry and pharmacology, and developed revulsion to the point where I was able to torture myself into resisting them. Best decision I ever made, or I'd still be a vegetative psych patient.

 

Message me if you'd like to talk OCD or benzos, or anything really. You're not alone.

 

Thank you. I also researched a lot but it's kinda sad because I did all of it to try to stop suffering. I think you also did that. I am not sure if I am "anti-pill" regarding antidepressants even with the tinnitus, but I see them as a last resort. Life was surely easier when I was at 60mg of paroxetine despite the apathy and being more fat. I really regret starting benzos though.

 

I would really like to talk more about OCD or life in general, but I think my adrenals are fatigued cause screens and too much stimuli slams me and I start to not feel well. I wish I could know something like me, or something like you, in person.