Bi polar disorder symptoms and conditions

Googled and found this site. Could not believe all that I read! I've been taking Lamictal for several years for Bi-Polar disorder. I also have GAD for which I control with another drug BUT...I guess it's been so long since I began taking Lamictal that I had forgotten, or did I ever even know, the side effects of it. First if all, the memory loss is incredible! Not being able to complete a sentence...never able to find a "word" that should be so simple to remember...going somewhere and within 2 seconds, forgetting what in the world I'm doing or where I'm going...happened today TWICE!
And to top it all off, my eyes are so bad...I didn't even attribute the L to this until I came to this site but it makes PERFECT sense! I feel such a sense of loss in my eyesight that it has begun to really scare me. I have not been to eye doc yet but plan too.
Also, someone mentioned in here that they feel the med just wears off before next dosage and that is exactly what I've been telling my doctor so at first, we just upped the dosage until I was on 450mg a day but even the, it still was not working. SO...now I'm decreasing and the doc added Depakote Er 250mg. But doc says I have to be almost completely off L to get fully on D. So...feel like crap a lot of the time!!
I'm like someone else on here who said, "just start fresh" and that is what I'd like to do but how do you go "cold turkey"? I know it isn't good! Even decreasing this L for the last several months has been hell!
I have been on a roller coaster of meds for 10 yrs. Have yet to find the "combo" that works! Sometimes I wonder if the diagnosis of BP was/is even correct.
Another person in here said he feels like he may have some side effects of OCD and I feel that way too. Nothing major but...enough for me to notice.
Damned either way, right?
One thing I DO KNOW is that I cannot take this eye problem anymore and now that I know my memory and all that other stuff has to do with L, I'm getting off it no matter what! I'm calling my doc tomorrow and we HAVE TO MAKE A PLAN!!!!!!!
I'm only 42 but my memory is that of an 80-yr old (except for my grandmother who died at 96 and could remember details of when she was 4 yrs old...lol) I guess it's good I can kinda laugh at all this but I DEF know it is not funny!!!
Anybody out there with insight to diff. meds...combo of meds?? I really am worn out!!
Right now, I am down to 375 mg of L and this has taken me several months now to decrease from 450mg...don't see the D working that well yet but it's only 250mg so...
I really am worn out!! My anxiety shoots through the roof bc of all of this! Esp. when I feel the L wearing off around 5p or so...
I'm game for any advice ( I did see where the one woman talked about changing the time you take this in the morning but that won't work for me)
Thanks!!

Just as all of these ladies have said I've been having many of the same problems. I had my mirena put in 6 weeks after my daughter was born in October of 2006. Since then I've put on 40 pounds, the heaviest I've ever been in my life. I work out 3-5 days a week and eat healthy. I have migraines and blurred vision. I have terrible mood swings I was considering talking to a doctor about bi polar disorder but if having the mirena removed helps then I'll start there first. I also have developed ovarian cysts because of it which are so painful when they rupture. I'm going to have it removed and going to see if it helps any my mom and husband have been urging me to do it for some time hopefully it's to blame and I'm not just falling apart.

After being on YAZ for about 7 months and realizing how it was harmin my mind and body, my doctor told me to stop taking it immediately, even though it was mid-cycle. he put me on Loestrin24fe because "there has been a much higher success rate with a lower dose of estrogen" NOT IN MY CASE!

i started taking it on a Tuesday, it is now the following Monday and i have already experienced:
harsh aches and pains throughout my body, unbelievable mood swings from cryin until my eyes hurt for NO reason to sitting and talking calmly within 5 minutes of each other, once again a complete lack of sex drive which i *just* recovered from with YAZ, not being able to eat yet having extreme weight gain??? my stomach is completely round when i have had a 6pack for my entire adult life and my jeans will not get past my thighs anymore, my skin and hair are oily and i have broken out worse than i did when i was a teenager ...

and the BEST one yet! Severe Panic Attacks during the night to the point where i am terrified to sleep because of waking up hysterical and actually "feeling" my dreams. i woke up from a nap yesterday crying uncontrollably because i was convinced i snapped my spine/neck because i dream it, felt it snap and HEARD it snap in my dream. it is all too real and i am on lack of sleep AND not eating for a few days.

Needless to say, i have stopped taking the pill as of last night. i am hoping to get back to normal in about a week because i clearly cannot function like this. I missed a gorgeous Easter day yesterday because i was having a low grade panic attack ALL day and couldn't eat or even talk to anyone.

i am not going to let another bc pill ruin my life this year. its not worth it but i must ask, where do i go from here? i am concerned about getting an IUD because my body seems to have every side effect possible with any type of birth control but i think the IUD is my only option besides complete abstinence.

Wow, just wow I can't even begin to say how happy I am to have found this site. I am actually choked up. A little background:

I got the Mirena in about three months after the birth of my daughter in July of 02 (our second child), at around this same time my husband and I were having severe marital issues, we were a VERY happy couple before this. I was extremely irritable, was so mad at him all the time over anything he would do that would remotely annoy me, we attributed this to the baby blues and tried to work through it. My sex drive was non-existent, and I hated him more than anything. Well, about three years ago we divorced... after much counseling and anti-depressants, even being diagnosed as having bi-polar disorder and being put on Lithium (which I refused to take) I was NORMAL before all this, why did I snap? I had one baby and was fine!!! That was the greatest mystery to me, and I felt like a horrible worthless person. :(

The now:
I have met someone else, and we are engaged to be married and just bought a home together, when we first started seeing each other I was VERY shocked that my sex drive was back (which I now attribute to it being new, and I was free for the first time in years), however, over the past years we have been together it has all but completely vanished again. We will have sex maybe once or twice a month, and really it is to make him happy. My temper is outrageous, my kids are very touchy when it comes to asking me to do something etc.. I find myself stuck to my couch or to my PC playing WoW because it takes little or no effort on my part. I have no energy to do anything. Cleaning the house, or simply helping the kids with the homework is just.. exhausting mentally. My fiance takes the kids out because I never want to. We will make plans together only to have me break them, the ONLY thing that he can get me to do is eat out.. because and here is a shocker, I just want to stuff my face so long as it is prepared by somebody else. I used to love to cook and I don't want to anymore. I don't know how much weight I have gained since the insertion, this was 7 years ago and two Mirenas in. But I am HUGE in comparison to how I was.
About one year ago, a few months after the 5 year replacement was put in I started having problems with walking, which again Mirena didn't even cross my mind as being the culprit. I woke up one morning with slight cramping in my feet, within a month I was unable to walk. The doctors could not figure out what was wrong with me, I was getting odd lumps on my legs, and the pain from trying to walk was just unbelievable. They tested me for lupus, and it was a no go. Did the talk of birth control ever come up with the doctors? No. But after about a month.. it just, went away. Just as suddenly as it came.
Someone on here posted about "panic attacks" hun.. I have the same problem. My heart like to fly up to my throat, and it is the equivalent of feeling as though I were drowning.. but only for a few moments. Heart doc said.. I am normal. HAH! Really? NEVER had this problem before the Mirena... hrm.

So in a nutshell MY side effects I believe are (some not listed in the above background):
Insane mood swings
Walking problems
The inability to relax
NO sex drive, zilch gone
Laziness, no ambition to do anything even small daily chores
Discharge and odd odors
Never feeling clean downstairs
Facial hair thats right ladies, growing a beard :(
Large amount of weight gain
insatiable appetite
Depression
Dryness
Diarrhea
Sharp pains in my abdomen and breasts
"Fluttering" spasms in my abdomen almost feels as though a baby is kicking
One divorce and a quickly fading engagement...

PLEASE take it from me, DO NOT get this. It is just not worth it. It has changed my life for the worst, I have made do with my past and am actually happy for the divorce, the Mirena actually helped me to see what I would ignore in him. But everything else, has been nothing but a long painful road. It has made a normal healthy woman, into a fat lazy woman that has lost her lust for life and everything in it.
I am making a doctors appointment on Monday, I can't express how shocked I am that this birthcontrol has done this to me, sure some people may think that some of the problems I am dealing with or have dealt with may not be directly attributed to it... but think about it. I was fine and nothing was wrong until I had this inserted. And there are far too many coincidences to allow myself to turn a blind eye. I will keep you updated in my "rebirth".

Again.. thank you.

My son 35yrs old was given Prednisone for an allergic reaction. He has a history of Bi-polar disorder. His family doctor prescribed this. He went into total psychosis , destroyed his own home, and is now sitting in jail on charges of Criminal Mischief.....When is someone going to put a black box warning on this drug?

I have had alot of the similar side effects with the mirena as have the rest of you. I had it put in sometime in June 08. My doctor said it was my only birth control option because i had a blood clot last summer after i had my baby. So i went with her on it, i had it put in, well right away, i started bleeding, constantly, and still am, cramping, im so tired, ive horrible mood swings, acne,bloating, and back pain. Ive associated the mood swings with my bi-polar disorder, i thought i was having a relapse and started taking my meds for it again, which i am so glad i found this site, because now i know it was the mirena. I went in the middle of sept to have my mirena checked out and i told my doctor i wanted it removed i couldn't handle the mood swings or the constant bleeding. She told me that the mood swings had nothing to do with the mirena, and that she could give me some pills to stop the bleeding, that where i had got the mirena put in my body was out of sorts and needed some medicine to get back in to a rhythm. I said okay. Well i took the hormones for a week, that ended Wednesday night, and here it is Saturday and im bleeding badly again, and cramping so bad, i can hardly sit here and type, so i am defiantly calling Monday to get it removed. When i went in last time she couldn't even find the mirena, i had to have an ultrasound, its been traveling upward in my uteras, and theirs no strings on it that they can see, so i have no idea how they are going to remove it, and i pray it don't take surgery. This is the biggest mess i have ever gotten myself into. I so wish i had done some research on this, besides mirena's pretty little website, before i had gotten it pt in.

I have been taking Lamictal since October of 2007. I experienced some of the symptoms (muscle pain in the head and neck) before I started the medication. I have experienced panic attacks since July of 2005. I have had mild heart palpations since I was in my mid 20's (I'm 36 now). I have had what I would consider a below normal energy level since my mid 20's also. Ok so like everyone else I am thinking I'm a hypochondriac! However, I was diagnosed August 28th 2007 with having Lyme’s Disease and also Hyper-Thyroid (same time, same lab-work). Two weeks later I was diagnosed with Bi-Polar Disorder (this is one thing I knew I was battling but didn't know how to handle it). My physiatrist started me on Lamictal and I did the standard ramp up to 200mg. I also was started on a 90 day treatment of Dyoxicycline for the Lyme’s and Methimazole for the Hyper-Thyroid. I was very very weak and was only able to stay awake for short periods of time (4 to 5 hours max). Just an fyi, I am not overweight, lazy or unmotivated. I have the physical appearance of perfect health. This, I think works against me as the Dr's seem to think I'm just whining. Mater of fact; my Primary Care Physician never tested me for Lyme’s. I went to an Urgent Care Center which tested me for Lyme’s disease and I came back positive (they also tested my Thyroid levels and found the problem with my THS levels) I told my Dr the results and he insisted I have same test done again. Guess what, new tests, same results.
My symptoms today are very similar to what I have seen posted many times. Muscle pain (entire body, some areas worse than others), heart arrhythmia, racing heartbeat, intense palpitations, nausea, foggy “un-plugged” mind, fatigue, weak muscles, muscle cramping (especially after repetitive motion, such as strumming a guitar), panic attacks (much more severe) and the latest addition to the group, Insomnia. Muscles pain in my head, fore-head, jaw, temple, neck (front and back), shoulders, is terrible to say the least. The pressure in my fore-head (right under my brow) makes me feel like I need to close my eyes or rest (resting does not relieve anything). The front of my neck is so tight at times it feels like my jaw is being pried down. I could go on and on.
On my quest to find out what else is going on with my body I have had 2 Echocardiogram’s on my heart and abdomen, 2Nuclear Stress Tests, blood work out the wa-zoo, MRI of my brain, 2 CT’s of my Head and Neck, Chest X-rays, Endoscopy, Colonoscopy, and all revealing nothing.
Most doctor’s I have encountered seem to want to treat the symptoms, not the problem/disease. I believe I know why; we (the ones who are there for solutions) tell them what the symptoms are (how we feel). We of course are thinking “this will help with a diagnosis of the problem/disease”, when in fact (I feel); the doctor’s thought process stops there. They don't know what’s wrong with you but they do know what your symptoms are so....bingo, let's treat the symptoms. Don’t misunderstand what I am saying. I’m not saying, “Most doctor’s don’t know what they are doing” or “don’t take your meds”. I am saying you and I are one of the 20 to 30 patients most doctor’s see daily (100+ weekly). They may be caring and good people but they are just as human and fallible as you and I. My advice is this; (and I am taking my own advice) don’t always “pop” into your body what the doctor suggests/prescribes, without doing your own research. Heck most of us won’t buy a car or more importantly, send our kids off to a college with out doing your own research (we just don’t trust those shinny brochures). Your body and your health are worth you doing your own research. Just keep in mind, Pharmaceutical Reps are always at your Dr.’s office (sit in the waiting room for 10 minutes and I’m sure you will see one). Reps are paid to do one thing; encourage (push) the Dr.’s to promote use of the Pharmaceutical Companies drugs.
My wife and I have been doing our own research on Lamictal (after a year of taking this stuff) and the side effects associated with this drug. We have searched through many (many,many) web sites for information and we have talked with pharmacists and Dr’s for opinions. Although I’m am not thoroughly convinced that Lamictal is the cause of all of my symptoms, my wife and I have decided to lower my Lamictal slowly from 200mg to 100mg. I am now taking 150mg daily (three days now) and plan on staying at this level for a total of two weeks before lowering to 100mg. I do fear dropping the dosage to quickly (potential side effects) or lapsing into a mania. To help avoid a manic episode my wife and my immediate family are all “up-to-date” with my course of action. They are on “Red Alert” and have promised to keep a close eye on my behavior patterns and moods. (I don't want to put them through another hyper-mania episode, its much too devastating). I do want so badly to feel healthy and alive again and at this point I am rather frustrated with the Dr.'s ability to help me achieve this goal. Remember it is called “Practicing” Medicine. So now I’m going to practice a little, very carefully and cautiously.
As a foot note; I have recently (past two weeks) been re-tested for Lyme's with a negative response. I am keeping in mind Lyme's test are very inaccurate (still hoping this one is accurate). My thyroid is under control and normal, so.... let's see if dropping below 150mg of Lamictal will eliminate some of these other symptoms. I will keep you posted.
Erik

My son has been taking Singulair for several years. He is now 16 was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder about 2 years ago. Prior to that he was misdiagnosed with ADD. Unfortunately he is in a behavioral health facility, probation placed, and I feel I have very little control over the situation. The staff, his GP and his psychiatrists will all be getting phone calls from me, along with his attorney. I have wanted to get my son off of all medications since he attempted suicide twice 3 years ago while in juvenile detention. Luckily his attempts were very lame and definitely more of a cry for help. Because of the legal issues, his medications are all controlled by "them" and not mom & dad. I have seen my beautiful boy change so much, and now his childhood is gone.

Aside from this drug not working as it should have in lowering my blood sugar, when my doctor increased my dosage it made me have headaches violent mood swings. One minute I was crying, the next I was extremely angry and the next I just didn't care about anything at all. I have no history of bi-polar disorder, but that was I experienced on this drug. I quit taking it and I'm perfectly fine now. My blood sugars are exactly as they were before it was prescribed.

I have a 9yr that was placed on Singulair about 3 or 4 years ago with Concerta for ADD. He was always coughing at night and the doctor said it was allergies and told me to give him 5mg every night before bed. And the school said he had ADD. Well needless to say, my son weights 48 lbs and has had headaches. But he also doesn't act like a normal 9 yr old should. He does things destructively (breaks toys and destroys things in the house) and states that he doesn't know why he does things. He doesn't want to clean his room, shower, brush his teeth like he used too, and he acts depressed all the time. I ask he whats wrong and he says he doesn't know. He doesn't want to play outside or do anything remotely fun. After reading all these post I'm wondering if I should take him off the medication he's on and see what happens but I'm afraid of more side effects. The doctor says he needs to be on this medication. He has problems going to sleep at night is this a side effect? Any advice would greatly be appreciated.

I am always tired and kinda shaky I cant figure out if its the Lamictal or Seroquel which ever I am stopping it when I find out what it is I cant handle the side effects I am very sensitive to the side effects of any meds.

so far i like it, but me being on this med does this mean I'm bipolar?? doc said i was not but thinking he thought i would freak if i was... Also he gave me a sample pack, I have great insurance but what is the cost of this med??

So...
The Geodon seemed to make me too drowsy and I felt it was causing my sleep issue. I couldn't wake up in the morning. It was like I was still in REM while trying to wake. I could sleep until 12 noon and then realize I was late for work. Adderall barely seemed to help anymore.
After swearing off medications forever, I finally hit rock bottom realizing that my BiPolar had gotten the best of me. A DUI, WAY BAD CREDIT...I dug my self a hole of DEBT! My compulsive EVERYTHING had dug me a hole that thank God my Mother is still willing, after 22 years, is willing to help pull me out.
On my own, no psychiatrist involved, with my samples of Geodon and a prescription of Adderall provided by my primary care physician...I decided to go back on medication and so far...a week into it, I have noticed a significant difference...and so has others. Yes, I still might not want to wake up in the morning, but I am able to effectively work and actually somewhat enjoy doing it. I feel like I want to do things where as before...I just wanted to sleep or lay on the couch watching TV. I want to have a future and I want to better myself, where as before I wanted nothing but another drink and some pills. I feel that my quality of life has already improved and I hope with seeing my new psychiatrist on Tuesday, he might better my therapy.

Here is my current problem before asking my doctor.... hadn't taken any adderall for days. I took the Geodon at night, 60mg one day and 80mg the next thinking it might help with my sleep but it didn't do a thing. I Then the next day I took adderall around 7AM and 80mg of Geodon about 9PM and I couldn't keep my eyes open about 1-2 hours after taking the Geodon and I over-slept that morning and didn't wake up until after 10:30am when I am suppose to be at work at 9:00am.

Is it common for the extreme drowsiness to occur with the combination of Adderall in the morning and Geodon at night? I know before when I took both never missing either one, I was always extremely drowsy and that's one of the reasons I stopped taking meds. But after experiencing Geodon without adderall, I am wondering if the TWO don't mix well.

PLEASE HELP.

I have been on Wellbutrin XL 150mg for 5 days now and have noticed that I am very short with people and experiencing anger. I tend to lash out. Will this go away?

I started taking Lamictal for bi-polar disorder. I did the starter pack about 6 months ago. Then went up to 200mg. I felt like crap. My head was foggy, couldn't remember things, easy stuff like how to spell words that I know I can spell. Upset stomach, blurry vision terrible headaches abd migraines.
I stopped taking it and went back to my shrink and he said it's like have high blood pressure I have to keep taking it.

So I started the starter pack again and I'm up to 100 mg. I ache all over. My bones hurt so bad and after reading all of the info on here I'm going to talk to my doctor about other trestments.

My primary dr. has sent me for blood work and results were normal so she wants addition blood work done, but I think it has a lot to do with the lamictal. I'm glad I found this site, I don't feel like I'm alone.

It's hard feeling this way and friends and family think your faking or crazy, and I'm not. My mood has stabilized on this med but all the side affects suck.

Oh yeah and the weight gain! And no matter what I do I can't lose any weight. The vivid dreams are wild too. One night I woke up sweating with my heart pounding so hard from a nightmare I was having.

Thanks for all the info. I wish you all well and good luck finding the right meds.

First month I gained 20 lbs was at 600 mg had racing heart rate, restless legs and couldn't get up before I had slept 12 hrs. Medications works well for my bi-polar disorder and I still have my personality which some other medications seemed to have wiped out. Now I am down to 400 mg and am starting to have stomach pain, maintianing the same weight but no more restless legs or racing heart. Seroquel is the only medicine I am one and am starting to get sore stomach in the night. I have been on it for 4 months now.

56 y/o female recently diagnosed as bi-polarI with dissociative features. Dr. started me out on the standrd regimen of 25 mgs. per day and today went up to 50 mgs. per day. The Dr. says that I will have to go up to 22 mgs per day. The change from 25 mgs to 50 has been noticeable. Today, I felt grumpy and miserable. She also put me pn abilify which made me eat like a termite and which titrated myself off of after 2 weeks. I probably gained at least ten pounds on that stuff. I have also been experiencing increasinly worsening vision which is of extreme concern for me since I had two episodes of narrow glaucoma using zyban/wellbutrin and have lost a good deal of my central visiual acuituity as well as a lot of peripheral vision. I abslutely do not want to lose anymore vision. I am already at the point of considering that driving may be dangerous. Two years ago I was in Mexico and used HGH. Human Growth Hormone and I felt better tha I had felt in years at the time I was taking Lexapro...was able to go off it entirely. I plan to go back to Mexico soon and will get more HGH and see how it works with the Lamictal and if it doesn't work well then the Lamical will have to go...I have yet to know anybody who has been able to maintain cconsistently on any one drug regomen with bi-polar disorder...perhaps it's because so many of usgo off the meds because of the miserable side efects.

Wow, I guess it's not just me. I take trileptal for my bi-polar disorder and also have terrible nightmares so bad that I am constantly having to change my sheets and/or nightshirt. I also occasionally have numbness on my tongue and lips that may be caused from this medicine.

I've been on welbutrin sr for 8 years. and it has been a miracle drug for me. I have bi-polar disorder, so am limited in terms of types of anti-depressants. Last week I went to have my prescription refilled, and the pharmacy told me it was back-ordered. They suggested I try welbutrin xl, same dosage, but once a day instead of twice a day. My doctor approved it, and I took it for 4 days. I couldn't leave the house, my anxiety was so bad. I couldn't stay awake in the afternoon, and couldn't sleep at night. I had a constant headache, and palpitations. I'm convinced that if I had remained on it, I was headed for a manic episode; the first in 8 years. So I called the drugstore, and they procured my old prescription for me. Anyone else have this kind of experience?

I have been taking Topamax for over a year for Bi-polar Disorder and Migraine Headaches. My I have been having Kidney problems since January of last year. Grainular type stones and kidney pain associated with the medication. Now the stones would come and go. I am a disabled veteran so I am dealing with the VA for my health care so it is hard to get appointments and proper care to begin with. I have to weigh the benifit vs. the pain. I was told that the tests were fine and that the meds were causing the stones that we have to cut back the medication. It is kidney pain and uninary tract pain, or manic episodes and migrains until I can fined another mood stabilizer that works as well as topamax.

My 12 year old son started taking Singulair for asthma/allergy. His personality changed and he became physically aggressive and uncontrollabe. He also experienced vivid nightmares. He was never aggressive in the past. It got to the point that I thought he had a bi-polar disorder. The side effects seemed to build up slowly in him and continued to intensify. I am so thankful that I came across this web site. When I read the other postings, I realized that the Singulair was the cause of his personality change. We contacted his doctor and took him off the Singulair. He is back to his normal, sweet self. I think that the makers of Singulair need to be made aware of these side effects that so many people seem to be experiencing. Also, the Singulair did not seem to help his asthma or allergy symptoms.

I have tingling of course of hands and feet. I take it for bi-polar disorder. Every time my dose is increased i freak out as if i am tripping out or as if i am in a dream watching myself. I start to get very paraniod and cannot leave my house but of course i have to so i live in insanity until my body gets used to the new dose. if i forget or mess up and not take it for 2-3 days, i have to go through that process again. I am in between if this medication is worth it or not. It seems to make me more moody although I am taking it to control my moods but at the same time , it seems to help, i don't know i can't seem to keep a thought enough to know. I have lost weight and for that i am happy. I also get the shakes and high anxiety if around alot of people. I think these extreme side affects go away in time but I find with topamax that if I skip doses the effects are pretty extreme so I set a timer to make sure this does not happen.