Geodon is a medication with a lot of issues so that it is not one of my first choices. It is a good antimanic mood stabilizer if taken in higher doses (120-160mg). At lower doses it can destabilize mood. It is not an anti-anxiety medication. It usually requires twice daily dosing and wears off fast if doses are missed and if not taken with food. It only has a 50% absorption. It is relatively benign from the standpoint of weight gain and metabolic syndrome. It is not acutely effective for insomnia. Dosing is more complicated because it is in capsules.
Abilify is in tablets that can be easily broken in half at the 2.5 and 10mg doses, has the longest duration of this class, and can be started low and slowly increased. test.askdrjones.com/2005/02/14/ranking-the-mood-stabilizers/ Both medications are pricey.
