tourette's medication

[mouse]

i have been recently diagnosed with tourette's syndrome and OCD. my facial ticks and throat grunts have begun to make my new occupation as a personal trainer awkward at times with new clients. the medication i have been prescribed is an antipsychotic called Stelazine. i will be taking it in low doses. does anyone have any similar experiences. one of the side effects is potential weight gain. i am 5' 7" and 140 lbs. with about 4% bodyfat (underwater testing). if "weight gain" will just raise my appetite then i welcome it, but i am worried about lethargy. i also take 20mg of lexapro for depression and riding my bike about 15-20 hours a week has been my best therapy. if the new meds make me too lethargic to excercise i may have a larger problem than ticks. i was supposed to start the Stelazine last week, but i'm kind of scared.

[rico]

Hello mouse -

Given the clinical complexities that not many on this forum are anything like qualified to address, I don't think you're going to find many answers here. Best thing is to talk to the doctor prescribing you the medication. If the doc is prescribing antipsychotics he/she must know their stuff and should have a responsiblity to talk to you about implications.

I can see why you're scared it will have an impact on your training - but do bear in mind that modern SSRIs (assuming that this belongs to that family of antipsychotics) are much less of a 'blunt instrument' than previous types of medication like tricyclics

Bottom line - speak to your doctor.

rico