Tardive dyskinesia (TD) is a rare but potentially permanent side effect of some antipsychotics and other medicines after long-term use. But there are multiple ways to treat and manage the symptoms. If you’re ready to look into treatment for your TD, here’s a guide to talking to your doctors about the physical and emotional effects of this condition.
Talk to Your Doctor
You’ll start by talking to the doctor who prescribed the medicine that caused the condition. This might be your family doctor or a specialist who manages a specific condition you have. Multiple medications can come with the risk of TD as a side effect.
Some of the most common ones include:
- Antipsychotics for several different mental health conditions
- Gastrointestinal medications
- Malaria medications
- Medications to treat neurological problems
Whichever doctor you’re visiting, it’s important to remember that they prescribed that particular medication for a reason. So you shouldn’t stop taking it before talking to them.
When possible, your doctor will change, adjust, or stop your medication. They might also lower your dose slowly over time.
Adjusting the medicine that’s causing your TD usually improves the symptoms, and sometimes, it can stop them completely. But if this first step doesn’t help, there are other steps you can take.
Talk to a TD Specialist
If your doctor’s medication changes don’t help you enough, you might want to talk to someone who has special expertise in this condition. TD, which is a movement disorder, is a neurological problem. You can get help from a neurologist who is a movement disorder specialist. Ask your doctor for a referral or do a search for this type of specialist online.
A movement disorder specialist may suggest one or more of a few different treatment options for your TD, including prescription medication, procedures, and supplements.
Here’s a little more about the various treatment options, so you can prepare to talk about them with the specialist.
Prescription medications
Doctors may prescribe a medication from a category of medicines called vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2) inhibitors. They change the activity of certain chemicals in your brain that affect muscles, nerves, and movement. These medications include:
- Deutetrabenazine (Austedo)
- Tetrabenazine (Xenazine)
- Valbenazine (Ingrezza)
Medical procedures
A couple of procedures may help with your symptoms, but doctors are still studying them and aren't sure about their benefits for people with TD. They include:
- Botulinum toxin, also known as Botox, which can temporarily freeze (paralyze) muscles in your face to prevent involuntary movement
- Deep brain stimulation, also known as DBS, which involves an electrode implanted in the brain, where it can stop involuntary movements
Supplements
Some vitamins or supplements may help improve symptoms of TD. It’s important to understand that researchers don’t study supplements as much as they do prescription medicines. So your doctor won’t have as much information about how well they work compared to the available information about prescriptions. That doesn’t mean supplements don’t work, but that doctors may not know for sure.
Some supplements that may help with TD symptoms, according to limited data, include:
- Vitamin E
- Ginkgo biloba
- Vitamin B6
Before you try a supplement, ask your doctor whether it’s safe. Even though they are available over the counter, they can still have dangerous interactions with your other medications.
Talk to a Mental Health Specialist
Treatment of physical symptoms isn’t always enough to bring relief for TD.
TD is different for everyone, but it can make it harder to get through daily tasks like:
- Carrying groceries
- Talking
- Eating
- Driving
- Dressing
- Managing personal hygiene
The condition may also make you want to stay alone at home to avoid the unwanted attention that your involuntary movements may attract in public.
This impact on your quality of life can lead to feelings of sadness, loneliness, and stress. These can be made worse by a preexisting mental health condition and any medication changes you’ve made to treat your movement disorder.
With all of this happening, you might want to talk to a mental health professional. If you don’t have someone already, ask your doctor for a referral.
TD is not an easy diagnosis. It takes a physical and emotional toll. But there is treatment that can help with both the physical and emotional symptoms. Don’t wait to talk to your doctors about your TD symptoms. The sooner you get help, the better you’ll feel.
Show Sources
Photo Credit: shapecharge/Getty Images
SOURCES:
National Alliance on Mental Illness: “Tardive Dyskinesia.”
National Organization for Tardive Dyskinesia: “Movement Disorder Specialists/Centers.”
Cleveland Clinic: “Tardive Dyskinesia.”
Mental Health America: “How do you treat tardive dyskinesia?”
Mind: “Tardive Dyskinesia (TD), Treating and managing tardive dyskinesia.”
National Library of Medicine: “FDA-Approved Medications to Treat Tardive Dyskinesia.”
