Bipolar Illness and Tardive Dyskinesia

This caught my attention because I've been dealing with TD for two years. I was on a low dose of Abilify--and only a few months--when my right eye began to twitch, and my right wrist began a slow, uncontrollable, outward turn. I mentioned these symptoms to my p-doc, who insisted it probably wasn't the Abilify. I said she was wrong, because I'd read about it online. And because it wasn't my imagination. It was real and it was a pain. A moot point now, but she backed me off on the meds till I was off of them.

The eye twitches disappeared in a week or two, but the wrist problem remains. Lately it's gotten somewhat better, but there are still times when, trying to sleep, I have to hang onto the headboard (maybe it's psychological, but I've convinced myself I can keep my wrist from turning). Even on good nights, I've become so accustomed to the "support" of the headboard, that I fall asleep touching it. Just in case.

I discovered, quite by accident, that the Ativan I was taking for anxiety relieves the symptoms to some degree. As I said, it seems to be getting better, but I don't ever expect it to go away entirely. It's more of an annoyance now, but even as recently as this past summer it was downright painful. I was always fighting my wrist, trying to get it to stop moving. At movies and sports events I'd sit on my hand to keep it still, and was always worried people would notice.

But that's my experience with meds and TD. By the way, I'm diagnosed with Bipolar 1, rapid cycling, and it was never one of those "I was hit with it" things, but rather something I've lived with my entire life.

I teach fiction writing, am working on a memoir, and though I haven't yet "come out" as bipolar to the public, I plan to do so eventually. There's no way around it if the memoir is picked up. So, fingers crossed. And TD (and Abilify) be damned.

~"Sooz Incognito"

My TD affects my right arm and hand. When I hold it still, it begins to shake on its own. As a pastor, this makes it very difficult to hold notes or a bible in front of the congregation. I have found that if I move my arm very slightly, instead of keeping it still, the shaking is greatly diminished.

I am currently on Lithium, Welbutrin, Effexor, Adderal and Lamictal. I have been on many drugs since my diagnosis in 1994, so I am not sure when it started.

Also, I have not told any one in my congregation about my BP. This is common practice, considering over 60% of the pastors in my state have purchased anti-depression meds last year. People aren't at that total acceptance stage that they should be. Many see my periodic odd behavior as, well, me being odd.

I have TD in my left hand (my dominant hand). If I notice it, I can usually shift hand position and it goes away, but papers shake when I hold them in that hand, so I shift to my right hand. Still, if this is the major side effect of effective meds, it's worth it.