At 08:38 AM 9/13/96 -0400, you wrote: >SUBSCRIBE parkinsn Stephen Howell > >This is a message I posted to the drugs side effects BBS of the health forum >on MSN. > >I am relieved, I was hoping that someone out there knew what I was talking >about, having chronic side effects without anyone knowing what they are >exactly is quite frightening. I have tried other various drugs but all major >tranquillizers can cause parkinsonism to some degree, e.g. I have been >prescribed Chlorpromazine, Trifluroperazine, Thioridazine, Pimozide and god >knows how many others ( I can only remember their names because of the >dreadful reactions I had to them). The problem is that I originally developed >a psychotic illness along with depression and in order to control those >symptoms I had to be put on some form of major tranquillizer, flupenthixol was >the only one they could find which did not produce chronically debilitating >side effects as the others (even though they are still pretty bad). I guess >you could say that im in a catch 22 situation. I did read something about the >drug blocking dopamine receptors in the brain ( or something like that) this >can increase muscle tension to a high degree and can also cause a tremor (in >severe cases), the others I went on caused a neck spasm similar to dystonia, >not nice :-( > >PS. The psychosis was (according to my Psychiatrist) caused by drug abuse. I >experimented with the street drugs Cannabis and LSD about two years ago >ironically to celebrate the end of my GCSE exams (as we call them in the UK). >I was only 16 and didn't know what I was messing with. The psychotic symptoms >seem to have dissappeared but im wondering if the cause of my unpleasant >bodily sensations maybe a long term result of the abuse of these drugs and not >side effects of my medication. I didn't know what was in the stuff I took and >wonder if there could have been a harmful substance in the drugs which made >things worse. I did only take LSD once but have been told that it can have >long term effects after one dose :-(. > > All of the above was posted and I was advised to contact the parkinsns list >serve group. > > Regs > >Stephen > Dear Spephen, You are far too young for such problems, but, alas, you have them anyway. #1 The problem may well be TARDIVE DYSKINESIA which is a result of use and/or overuse of the prescrition drugs you mentioned. The resulting Parkinsonism is largely reverseable and goes away after the offending drugs are discontinued. #2 There is a chance you could have taken in your LSD days a designer drug gone bad. The heroin-like / haldol-like drug which is MPTP causes Parkinsonism which is NOT reverseable. There is much research on non-human primates using this drug. The prime research on MPTP is being done at the PARKINSON'S INSTITUTE is Sunnyvale California USAwhich has a good web page. WILL JOHNSTON 4049 OAKLAND SCHOOL ROAD SALISBURY, MD 21804-2716 410-543-0110 Pres A.P.D.A. DelMarVa Chapter 63 Dx1991 Symptoms 1971