Antipsychotic medications are used to treat a wide variety of symptoms. Prescribers use them to treat typical symptoms of psychosis like hallucinations and delusions. They also help with closely related symptoms like agitation and mania. Psychiatrists may prescribe antipsychotics for conditions like bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder (MDD) with psychotic features, schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. They can also treat the symptoms of neurological conditions such as Tourette’s syndrome and Huntington’s disease.
Those who take antipsychotics should be aware of their most common side effects. You should also discuss any unwanted effects you experience with your prescriber. This blog post lists eight of the most common side effects of antipsychotic medications.
What are some common side effects of antipsychotic medications?
Each different antipsychotic medication comes with a unique set of potential side effects. However, as a group, the more common side effects can range from mild to severe. With many antipsychotics, people experience brain fog and sedation or dizziness. Some can affect your metabolism, causing weight gain, high cholesterol, or high blood sugar that may lead to diabetes. Some people develop movement disorders like tardive dyskinesia that may be permanent.
8 common side effects of antipsychotic medications
Each person responds to different antipsychotic medications in different ways. For some people, these medications are critical to their ability to function. When recommending an antipsychotic, your doctor should give you a full list of potential side effects and discuss your risks. During the first several weeks, you should see them regularly for medication management. You’ll use these sessions to talk about how your medication is affecting you and any side effects. Your prescriber may suggest ways to cope with them or adjust your prescription. Their goal should be to balance the positive effects with the risk of unwanted and possibly dangerous side effects.
The following are eight of the most common side effects of antipsychotic medications:
- Weight gain — Because antipsychotics can affect your metabolism, some people gain weight while taking them. Your doctor may recommend you stick to a balanced diet and exercise regularly.
- Brain fog — Antipsychotics can make it hard to concentrate, think clearly and remember things. Although getting enough sleep and eating nutritious foods can help, brain fog caused by medication may require medical intervention.
- Sedation — Many antipsychotics cause sedation or sleepiness, especially at higher doses. If your medication makes you drowsy, your doctor may tell you to take it at night. Or they might lower your dose or combine it with another medication.
- Drop in blood pressure and dizziness upon standing — If you experience dizziness when you stand up, your doctor may want to change your medication. Drops in blood pressure can result in fainting and falls or chest pain.
- Movement disorders — Taking antipsychotics can cause you to have involuntary movements or feel unable to sit still. Switching to another antipsychotic as soon as possible may help reduce these effects.
- Metabolic effects — Antipsychotics can affect your body’s ability to metabolize lipids or sugar. Your care team should monitor your cholesterol and blood sugar while you’re taking this type of medication.
- Sexual dysfunction — Antipsychotics can increase your body’s production of prolactin. It’s a hormone that plays a role in different sexual functions. Over long periods, high prolactin can lead to sexual dysfunction, menstrual irregularities, galactorrhea (breast milk production unrelated to pregnancy or breastfeeding), and reduced bone mineral density.
- Dry mouth, blurred vision and constipation — Dry mouth is a mild but common side effect of antipsychotics. In extreme cases, the same mechanism that causes dry mouth can lead to constipation, blurred vision, and a fast or irregular heartbeat. If you have these symptoms, your doctor may switch you to a different antipsychotic.
Your doctor should work with you to find a medication that’s safe and doesn’t cause you too much discomfort. Tell your care provider about any health conditions you have and discuss any concerns you have about certain medications. Feeling good about the medications you’re taking is an underappreciated factor that affects your ability to follow your treatment plan.
People with psychosis and related symptoms may need a lot of support while they’re getting used to new medications. Our Residential Treatment Centers (RTCs) and Partial Hospitalization Programs (PHPs) offer a calm and structured environment with Client Care Techs who know how to help people form good mental health habits. These programs include medication management, and our RTCs have around-the-clock nursing care.
Are you looking for treatment providers who are well versed in helping people manage their side effects while they find antipsychotics that work? We can help. At Lightfully, we provide personalized treatment for each client. We combine individual, group and family therapies with medication management. Our Precision Care Model ensures that each person gets a treatment plan that’s tailored to their unique personality as well as their symptoms and health conditions.
Contact us with any questions about treatment or get in touch with our Admissions Concierge Team to get started.
