Some people are having hallucinations and other psychotic symptoms after stopping GLP-1 drugs

By the end of their first year on GLP-1s, more than half of patients stop taking the medication.There are a number of reasons for this, including high costs, unpleasant side effects and satisfaction with the weight they’ve already lost.The catch: stop taking GLP-1s, and the weight is likely to come back fast.

And that’s not all — your mind can suffer too after stopping the jab, according to new reports.Research is just beginning to uncover the psychiatric impacts of stopping a drug that could be affecting how the brain processes mood and rewards.New case reports published in The Primary Care Companion CNS Disorders detail the stories of two men who suffered psychiatric effects after stopping the weight loss drug.A 61-year-old man stopped tirzepatide (sold under the brand names Mounjaro and Zepbound) in August 2025 because of nausea.Two months later, he was hospitalized for worsening confusion and erratic behavior.Doctors noted he was experiencing paranoia, auditory and visual hallucinations and Cotard’s delusion, a condition when the patient believes they are dead or do not exist.These symptoms met the criteria for a psychotic disorder.Although he’d had a history of depression, his condition worsened significantly in the month prior to hospitalization.Tests on his cerebrospinal fluid, along with brain MRIs and electroencephalogram, all came back normal, ruling out several other causes.

Doctors told him to continue his antidepressant (Zoloft) and put him on two other antipsychotics (Zyprexa and Haldol).While his psychotic symptoms and depression initially improved enough for him to return home, he was readmitted weeks later for depression with catatonic features, becoming motionless and unresponsive.Ultimately, he required inpatient care and was treated with electroconvulsive therapy.A 52-year-old patient stopped the same medication (tirzepatide) abruptly in September 2025 after significant weight loss — he had shed 100 pounds over six months.Just one ...