Getting the best medicine for you

Most people who have mental illness find that taking some medicine does help them to control their symptoms and promote their recovery. However, all medicines have some side effects, which can affect people. The medicine you take may not have been reviewed for a long time and there may be a newer drug that would suit you better.

Case study...

One young woman who recently got in touch with Rethink’s
National Advice Service experienced some major positive changes in her life after she had her medication reviewed. She had been on antipsychotic medication for 12 years – she did not have a job, had trouble maintaining a relationship and felt she had a very poor quality of life. Rethink’s National Advice Service helped her to get a second opinion on her medication and it was changed. This medication change has helped her improve the quality of her life – she now has a paid job and is getting married.

Side effects

It is important to find a medicine whose side effects you can cope with. People react to different medicines very differently, so there is no one medicine which will work for everyone. Instead, your medicine and the effects it has on you should be monitored regularly. If you are experiencing unpleasant side effects, you should contact your GP or psychiatrist or talk to your community nurse.

Side effects might include:

  • Unusual body movements, 
  • Feeling very restless 
  • Unusual and repetitive movements of the tongue, facial and neck muscles 
  • Feeling drowsy and sedated 
  • Osteoporosis 
  • Reduced sexual desire 
  • Impotence 
  • Missed periods 
  • Breast enlargement and/or discharge from breasts 
  • Weight gain 
  • Diabetes 
  • Excess saliva/drooling 
  • Stroke 
  • Reduced white blood cell count 
  • Blurred vision 
  • Dizziness and unsteadiness 
  • Nausea 
  • Excessive urination 
  • Distorted vision 
  • Dry mouth 
  • Depression 
  • Headaches 
  • Diarrhoea 
  • Constipation 
  • Indigestion.
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Whilst these symptoms have been observed by many people taking medicine for mental illness, it is sometimes difficult to tell if they are being caused by their medicine or by another factor.

If you are suffering from side effects, it is important that you tell your GP, psychiatrist or nurse about the effect that the medicine is having on your life. They should then discuss things they can do to help you (for example changing how much of the medicine you take, changing the time of day you take it or changing the drug you take completely) and other steps you can take. If they do not want to consider changing medicine you take, you could ask for a medication review.