Risperidone is an antipsychotic medication licenced for the treatment of Schizophrenia. It is also licenced for the acute treatment of mania or mixed episodes of Bipolar I Disorder. It is commonly used for maintenance treatment of Bipolar I Disorder (but there is little research supporting this). Risperidone often causes weight gain, and there is a FDA warning that it increases the risk of diabetes mellitus.
I was put on Risperdal recently and have had no ill effects; in fact, it settled me right down. I objected to taking an antipsychotic, because I'm certainly not psychotic, but it is to supplement my BP meds. As soon as this stressful period of my life is over, I hope to get off it.
Oh, I did have trouble driving the first few days and bumped into a car in the parking lot. Otherwise, 1 mg a day has helped through this crisis.
I have found the combination of Respiridon and tegretol (carbamazapine) to be the best I've experienced so far---have been one many different meds to control Type 1 mixed states. For the first time in 20 years I feel calmly optimistic about life. I'm experiencing much less difficulty driving and controlling my social responses to difficult people. I did have to decrease my dose of carbamazapine. Evidently respiridone competes for the same metabolic processes in the liver and so symptoms of carbamazapine toxicity may arise.