Olanzapine

Olanzapine is an atypical antipsychotic medication used in the treatment of conditions including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, where it’s often prescribed to help manage acute manic or mixed episodes, and sometimes used longer-term as part of a maintenance regimen. It works by affecting the activity of certain neurotransmitters in the brain, including dopamine and serotonin.

Olanzapine given at the right time as mania or hypomania is emerging is a fantastic prn medication. It has certainly saved hospital stays or shortened them appreciably.

Olanzapine has some side effects mostly weight gain and metabolic effects, which are easily monitored. It genuinely stimulates appetite, likely a very useful medication for eating disorders perhaps. It also slows things down a little, and helps restore sleeping patterns. For bipolar it may not be the gold standard that lithium is but its definitely the swiss-army knife.

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Without this I don’t think I would have survived til now. Bad truth, sad truth, full truth.