Hi,   I read your entry and I was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia too but at 41 years old.  I was admitted to a psychiatric hospital because I refused to believe that I had this problem.  I was forced to take risperadal injections once every two weeks.  It had no effect on me for about 6 weeks but I became gradually better and better.  The injections were too painful so I chose to take Risperidone tablets 1 mg twice a day (which is a very small dose) and I feel perfect.  My symptons are gone and I feel completely normal.  I will be returning to work shortly.  I feel like my old self prior to the illness. The only thing is that when a person is on risperidal or risperidone they tend to want to eat more but it's not the same for everyone.  I gained about 30 pounds and my weight is starting to decrease slightly but some people never gain any weight at all.  People who are on this medication should continue exercising so that they don't have weight gain.  People who take this medication have to take blood tests probably once every six months to monitor thyroid, liver and blood cholesterol levels.  If people gain too much weight, they may get diabetes so it's important that they try to maintain a normal weight at all times.    When I first got sick, the psychiatrists tried me on all kinds of different medications and it never did any good.  Sometimes, I would feel so groggy that I couldn't get out of bed.  Seroquel didn't work, abilify didn't work, only risperidal and risperidone has worked for me.  It has less side effects than the other medications.  Weight gain, I would say, is the only side effect I've had to deal with.  Hope that helps you.  Take care