Aa
Aa
A
A
A
Close
Avatar universal

What could be the next logical step in trying to fix my psychosomatic vomiting?

I am posting this in the Eating Disorders forum, mainly because it has to do with vomiting. But my main condition is a personality disorder diagnosed in March 2013. After 3 weeks in a mental health hospital, period in which, without being checked or asked about how I am coping, they upped the anti-psychotic to a schizophrenia dosage. The doctor wrote me the diagnosis of schizotypal personality disorder and sent me home to continue to take Solian(Amisulpride)600mg in two dosages. I lasted almost three months on the medication, because it made me very sedated and not capable of functioning properly, I was having weird irrational thoughts, death phobias, bad nightmares all the time...Anyway, I lowered the dosage step by step until I quit it altogether and it started to feel like I was coming back to my usual self. Of course I tried to contact the doctor before lowering the dosage, but he kept telling me that I just have to be strong and go through the bad period, because it is going to get better. No advise of lowering the dosage or anything, which made me feel like I was not treated profesionally. After something like 2 weeks since I completely went off the anti-psychotic, the nausea and vomiting started appearing. I was vomiting anything, from water to one or two complete meals, with no feeling of anxiety, agitation or something like that. Actually, if I am to recall the exact sensations I had when I first encountered this condition, I guess it was kind of a build-up, since I tried to fight and control the nausea feeling and only went on to vomit when I felt like I cannot hold it anymore. But once I got more used to it, I found out that eating something and just letting the vomiting come, I could empty my stomach and then the urge would disappear on an almost empty stomach.
Back in July or August 2013, since my only obvious health factor was the fact that I interrupted the anti-psychotic, I  asked several psychiatrists about the phenomenon and all of them told me that in 2-3 weeks the drug I took is completely out of my system and that it can't possibly be the cause of my vomiting. So I went to an organic doctor, which did an abdominal ecography, prescribed me with metoclopramide and omeprazole...Then, since those didn't work, I went on and did an endoscopy, which revealed nothing wrong. Advised to seek a solution from the obvious functional problem I had, I went on to the psychiatrist who first diagnosed me and told him about this random vomiting and he gave me Lexapro(Escitalopram, also known as brand name Cipralex or others) as an anti-depressant, Orfiril Long(which is derrived from sodium valproate as far as I can tell from the prospect and is a "prolonged release" drug for epilepsy, guess it was prescribed to me as a mood stabilizer, but the doctor was a PhD in psychofarmacology, so I guess he knew better what and why to prescribe). When I told him about my having trouble sleeping once more, he also told me to take 200mg Solian again. The treatment worked kind of well, since it reduced my vomiting only to nausea feelings which sometimes still triggered the vomiting reflex, but I was able to control it and not vomit, although it made me still have grimaces sometimes. I think I stayed on this treatment for 3 months, then I went to another town to try to get a job, but even while on that treatment, the vomiting started appearing again slowly and I lost faith in the treatment, stopping it. It could be argued that I had the usual anxiety-like feeling of going to another town, starting fresh and that kind of thing...But as far as I can recall, I was pretty content with the situation, I was looking forward to that kind of challenge, so the phenomenon didn't feel connected or natural to me. Because I am writing a bit too much, let me kind of fast forward: I went to another psychiatrist, who tried different mild anti-depressants which didn't work, then he put me on another anti-psychotic, risperidone 2 mg. It worked in 24 hours in completely stopping the vomiting and nausea, but it made me more constricted, affected my cognitive and emotional functioning, I became sort of overly empathic, it didn't work quite adequately. The doctor then made me quit it step by step and prescribed me with 100mg Solian. Yes, Solian once again, which worked the same as risperidone in making the vomiting disappear, it was the lowest dosage possible and it made me able to function, get an 8-hour job and a job at home. I finally thought I can finally forget about the nausea and vomiting. After a little bit more than a month, I started feeling the urge to vomit once every two or three days and I decided with my doctor to raise the dosage to 200 mg. I left the town I was in with my roommate to live back in my native town with him, I still had kind of a good period, had a girlfriend, kept my freelance job which helped me get by. Again fast forward, broke up with my girlfriend and started frequenting the doctor in this town, she put me on Lexapro again, 10 mg, didn't feel much difference, but I wasn't quite depressed anyway, as far as I can read my personality, I am an analytical person, with a sort of neutral emotional affect. A new vomiting period came, again with no obvious warning or connection that I could make between my mental state and my digestion, stomach state etc. Doctor tried to up the dosage for Solian, it made me feel constricted again like the Risperidone and doctor suggested I try Risperidone again. This time, the same dosage as the last year, 2 mg Risperidone, made me feel okay and I began a new period, with a new job...I was also switched on Prozac(fluoxetine) 20mg and it worked fine for a while. I did a stupid thing, took 5 pills of Prozac because I was bored, wanted to use them sort of as drugs and I ended up hospitalized again...Fast forward again, I was switched back on Lexapro 10mg with Risperidone 2mg. For a while it worked okay, then I had a psychosis when I did another mistake and went off the meds for 4 days. And since then, coming back to the meds didn't work as good as before, the vomiting started appearing again, I started developing a fear of psychosis which made me think I had micro-psychosis almost daily...After trying advised by the doctor different combinations of Solian or Risperidone, sometimes even one day Solian, one day Risperidone, I went to another doctor who thought I could benefit more from being on Seroquel XR. I did another hospitalization in order to be switched to Seroquel XR, I was stabilized at a dosage of 200mg. I also took Rivotril(Clonazepam) 0.5 mg a day and I felt very good while in the hospital for three weeks I think. Then I asked to be put on Seroquel XR 300mg instead of 200mg, the doctor approved and I was also prescribed to continue a month with Clonazepam 0.5mg. After one month of this treatment at home, the vomiting started appearing again and I kept it in check by upping the dosage of Clonazepam. But, as I was told and also did the research myself, Clonazepam is not a drug that can be taken for a long time, since the brain gets used to the dosage, it requires a higher dosage and then some, until you become kind of addicted to it. So I stopped trying to solve the problem this way, I asked the doctor about trying Prozac again, I tried it for about 6 weeks with a dosage of 30mg(a pill and a half), but after some time it made me have irrational phobias, even suicidal thoughts, I realized something is wrong and went off the Prozac, back to my usual dosage of Lexapro. Now, I think I am approaching again the 20 day mark of vomiting daily at least one meal. I am feeling kind of hopeless, since I do not know what the next step is in trying to solve this...I can't even seem to catch a break to regain composure, I may not be the strongest 24 year old male, but I am still trying to resist and think about what causes this. The blood tests ruled out every time an organic cause and every doctor tells me it is psychosomatic. Help?
0 Responses
Sort by: Helpful Oldest Newest
Have an Answer?

You are reading content posted in the Eating Disorders Community

Didn't find the answer you were looking for?
Ask a question
Popular Resources
A list of national and international resources and hotlines to help connect you to needed health and medical services.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Condoms are the most effective way to prevent HIV and STDs.
PrEP is used by people with high risk to prevent HIV infection.