Conscious effort symptoms and conditions

I have been taking 25mg per day of Lamictal for five days now. I am also on (and have been for five years) 200mg Zoloft per day. I was recently diagnosed bipolar (no surprise) and after seeing a psychiatrist, this was the med I chose, Lithium and Depakote being the other two choices, I felt that Lamictal would be the most appropriate in my case, because it is supposed to help with anger/rage issues, according to the leaflet provided by my Dr., as well as the 'rapid cycling' of my moods. So far I dislike this med, despite the fact I started it with optimism. Side effects are as follows:
Sleepiness - started the first day, I took the first dose the night before.
Lack of energy/motivation - I was doing ok as far as motivation was concerned until I started Lamictal, I was on a positive mood swing at the time, now, it's taking all my effort to stay focused and finish this.
Feelings of disassociation - I don't want to go anywhere, or see anyone, take any calls, etc..this is a problem I have had prior to Lamictal, but it suddenly got worse upon starting it.
Sudden anger/rage - I have felt overly aggravated at times, fast to discipline my son without taking a minute to think it over, it's pretty spontaneous. Day two scared me a bit, I have been making a serious conscious effort to not lose my temper or react suddenly. Today I actually had a spontaneous thought of suicide during a moment of anger, which also alarms me.
Loss of appetite - I'm a skinny guy, can't afford to lose any weight or go without eating, this stuff has pretty much killed my appetite, I'm forcing myself to eat at least once a day...and it isn't easy, I tell you.
Hypersensitivity to noise - Seems like the volume on everything has been amplified, it's making me nuts..
Unpleasant taste in my mouth - since day two. Hard to describe, sort of metallic.
Decreased urge to smoke - I have been smoking for 23 years, a pack per day regularly. I noticed at day two the urge to smoke was dramatically decreased, I smoked about eight cigs total today. Being asleep helped with that too, I'm sure...gotta be conscious to smoke, right? This would be the only positive effect I have noticed thus far.
At this point, I'm really not sure if I will continue with this med due to the above effects. I am a bit disappointed because I had hoped this would do the job and I could avoid the Lithium (icepick up the nose is the only thing left if Lithium doesn't work) and the Depakote, because the effects of those are far more serious by comparison according to what I have read and heard from others who have taken it.
I don't know what to do next, honestly. I have taken nearly every type/kind of antidepressant, Zoloft seems to do the most good, but I'm still having mood swings/cycling while using it, so a mood stabilizer was the plan to fix that...seems like I'm pretty much hosed.

I started Niaspan at a 500mg dosage. I'm taking it before I go to sleep, with a baby aspirin at the same time (not before), and a bit of water. The first night, within 1-2 hours of taking it, I got a flush that lasted about 30min. It started at the head, and went down to my toes gradually. It felt as if my skin was on fire. Moving even slightly in bed was making me itch. I stayed, still, in bed, bedsheets and blanket off, breathing slowly, trying to relax, until it went away. I was a bit scared, but since I had read beforehand that flushing is a side effect, I did not worry. For the first 2-3 months, I had a couple more flushing episodes, but only in the upper part of my body (head, shoulder, not down to stomach).

My dosage was increased to 1000mg (2 pills of 500mg). This did not really trigger worse or more frequent flushes. I did not flush (or I did not feel it) the first night with increased dosage. I still get one flushing episode maybe once a month, but only at the head and shoulders.

I have changed my diet to remove beef, butter, eggs, and I switched to skim milk, nonfat yogourt, low-fat cheese if any. I cook with olive oil. I eat oatmeal or breakfast cereal with as much fiber as I can get.

I've been on Niaspan for less than 1 year, and I think I get flushes when I eat fatty foods. Another person mentioned this in this discussion. I'm actually pretty certain my flushes are triggered by fatty foods.

Last night I ate Indian food ("butter" chicken) which had a creamy sauce. Very yummy, so probably very fatty. I also had dessert (something I rarely have), a pecan pie with chocolate filling. Gorgeous. But I got serious flushing at 4am (almost 8 hours after taking Niaspan!), although it only went down to my stomach, not lower than that. I got up at 5h30 to get ready for work, I was still slightly itchy and my skin was a bit red (like a mild sunburn). I took a hot shower, which did not make it worse.

I really think that fatty foods trigger flushes: I make a conscious effort to keep my fat intake low, and I have few flushing episodes, but when I break that habit, I get flushes...

After reading so many of everyone’s stories, I feel I got off easy, but not without some agony. I developed a double whammy of acute bronchitis and pleurisy in my left lung. If you are not familiar with pleurisy, it feels like hit with a baseball bat in your ribs each time you attempt to take a normal breath. I was completely uninformed of the condition and it is now burned in my memory forever. I was prescribed azithromycin and Prednisone for a month. I started with two 20mg (40mgtotal) tabs for 7 days and then tapered off in the following manner. 1 ½ tabs for 7 days, 1 tab for 7days and then ½ a tab for the last 7 days. I have read many of the users who have been on Prednisone for years at a time and my heart goes out to each and every one of you. I experienced a large number of side effects for being on it for such a short period. My wife was ready to attach the ole cinder block to my ankles and drop me in the lake, but she stuck through it. The first side effects began within the first week. My appetite went through the stratosphere, my heart felt like it was going to erupt out of my chest on some nights and finally, my memory just went to (for lack of a better work) shit. After coming home from the grocery store on multiple occasions, I left the house key in the key hole on the outside, only to find it the next morning on my way out the door. My short term memory was just misfiring constantly. There are too many funny stories to tell. For some odd reason, I did not gain near as much weight as I should have given the mass quantity of food I ingested. The total weight gain was only around seven or eight pounds. The most prominent side effect was my mood swings. I am a laid back person my nature, but not for that 30 day period. I had to make a conscious effort to not put myself in a position to disagree with another individual. When it did occur, it was just not a pretty site. A few of the other side effects were lack of sleep and profuse sweating. I would wake up every morning and my pillow was drenched. I live in Austin, Texas, so the AC was pegged and 67 degrees and no one was allowed to touch the thermostat without grave consequences. I broke out the winter pajamas for the kids and my wife wrapped up in multiple layers of clothing, while I was spread eagle under the ceiling fan (Highest setting of course) in my birthday suit, and was still only the in the moderate comfort range. More side effects included swelling of my ankles and hands. I was not on it long enough to get the infamous moon face or the hump on the back of the neck. The side effects after stopping the dosage were no less entertaining. I took my last dose seven days ago. The three main effects have been rashes on my ankles and under my arms, severe energy loss and heartburn. The worst of it all has been my energy level, or the lack of. My energy level crashed so hard I have had to literally peel myself out of bed each morning. If I did not have a two year old daughter and a four year old son, I would probably still be asleep right now. It has been getting a little easier each day. I have started walking each morning now and hopefully this will end soon. I have also been drinking large amounts of water. That has seemed to help me out. The heartburn was easily treatable with some Pepcid AC. I hope my experience offers some solace to those in a similar situation and fair warning to those who are about to embark on this medication.

I'm 46 yr old female and have been taking Singulair for 5-7yrs. I have been treated for Asthma for the last 10 years. I was treated at first with pulmacort until I figured out it was causing a break out around my mouth after several years (4) of being on it. My Dr. switched me to Singulair. I never noticed any of these side effects, until after I've read some of yours. I work out 5 days a week( swim & cardio) and have noticed my ears sometimes bother me. I'm on the computer all day, but my right hand has some tingling occasionally and sometimes it's a conscious effort to open and close my hands. I went to this web site to find out the long term effects of this drug. I had my blood pressure taken today and normally it's around 100/60-70 and today it was 100/80. I know that's not terribly high, but for me it is. I only take two drugs nexium and singulair and was wondering if one could be causing a rise in my blood pressure. If anyone knows please advise. Thanks Sylvia