Folic acid symptoms and conditions

Ok...now I am really angry. I posted in early June. I am 7-8 weeks out from stopping the drug (only took for 2 weeks) and, while I feel better in the am, I continue to have "attacks" mostly at the end of the day after work or when going to sleep. I have minimal dry mouth/cough (keep drinking water/peeing constantly but ok because I am eating foods to dump water which is why doc wanted me on this poison to begin with). The feeling woozy and nausea has subsided. I continue to have racing heart (happens when about to fall asleep and causes anxiety/insomnia), sharp pains all over the chest and in left arm (constantly think I am having a heart attack/stroke), tingling/burning in hands/feet, and to top it off shooting warm burning pain (very annoying) up and down legs (this is new). My doc told me to get off all my supplements (because he knows nothing about them and thinks they are complicating the picture...now I think he is ignorant). I restarted my CoQ10 which is protective for the heart and the racing has stopped so far (been a few days). In my research, most of the symptoms fall under "peripheral neuropathy" which can be caused by toxicity from drugs. Natural treatments suggest making the body more alkaline and detoxing the organs by eating nutritious foods (organic when you can), exercise, drinking lots of water (with lemon and cucumber slices which make the body alkaline and purify the organs) and taking alpha lipoic acid. To treat the neuropathy make sure you are getting enough vitamin C, E, and B complex with B6, B12 and folate/folic acid (I take B100 caps). Please research these before taking anything and make sure its right for you. I used to say check with your doc but, in my experience, most don't know about natural treatments. I will post again in a week to let you guys know how its going. Best of luck to all.

For those of you taking this drug and want to get off, please know it takes 3-4 weeks (longer in others depending on your metabolism) to be "totally" out of your system. Don't think you'll feel better in a few days. Give it a least 6 weeks to show significant change in your symptoms. I know, my husband took this and was having mental sluggishness, depression, confusion which led to many other tests. He has been off the drug now since Sept 08 and off the anti-depressant too. Guess what...no depression has returned since being of this drug. He's back to an aspirin a day, what he took before this nightmare began. Anybody taking this drug should stop immediately. It's the drug from hell!

I took Zocor for 9 months after I had a heart attack. After about 8 months I began having sever muscle spasm in my legs. I had a couple of episodes where when walking I couldn't pick up my feet and thought I was having a stroke and had to sit down and rest before walking on. I had to do this several times to get where I was going. I told my cardiologist and he had me stop the Zocor. The spasms stopped but I never regained the strength in my legs. Today I have had to put ramps in at home cannot climb steps. The ramp is difficult because of the incline but it is better than crawling up my steps to get in the house. I can only walk about 50 steps before my legs give out on me. I cannot walk on uneven ground without holding on to something or someone. I have now had 2 back surgeries because I have been told over and over it is my back with no relief for the legs. This last surgery my left foot drags and my big toe hangs down and I cannot pull it up. Now I fall a lot because of that and have to wear an AFO to keep my foot and toe up so it doesn't drag and trip me. The back doctor thinks it another pinched nerve and wants to open back up again. I am so tired of them trying to convenience me it is my back when I know it was the Zocor and the damage apparently is irreversible but no one wants to agree with me. I am sick of it and just wish they would say yes it was the Zocor and get you a scooter and live the best you can. I know I am headed for that road I use a walker and cane when I don't have someone with me to hold on to. Because I am so unstable on my legs.

I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid arthritis at the end of 2007 and have been on prednisone since then. I started on about 105mg a week and am currently trying to reduce it but it is really hard as the moment the dosage goes down I lose all mobility and cannot even get out of bed. I am only 23 years old and really feeling the disease to the extent that I cannot even cope with my life. The prednisone has really taken its toll on me and the side effects are crazy! I just want to go back to my old self as I am finding it sooo hard to get through a single day. My side effects include:

Insomnia, tooth sensitivity, depression, anxiety, mood swings, moon face (my face is so swollen that I cant stand looking in the mirror anymore, dizziness, temper, feelings of uselessness, nightmares, night sweats, water retention, and to top it all off the arthritis is getting worse and I am in constant pain. Is there anything anyone can suggest then please help me!

I am a 44 yr old female. I have been on Zocor for 2 yrs. I have never had high cholesterol. I have a family history of heart disease and after my 44 yr old brother had a heart attack and the transplant, my doctor put me on Zocor as a precaution. I have had problems over the 2 yrs and have been to the doctor many times only to be dismissed as Oh, I need to lose weight, I need to get out of the house more, I need to exercise, It must be my depression....and on and on. I have never had a kidney or liver test in 2 years. I never knew I needed on and my doctor never tested me. I have over 30 symptoms/side effects of Zocor. I only looked into the side effects after my mother-in-law had muscle break down, an intestinal blockage and a ruptured bowel and almost died a few weeks ago. I couldn't believe what I found on this site. I immediately stopped the Zocor. I started to feel better right away but it was short lived. i felt great for 1 week and then it all crept back in on me for a week and then this last week I am back in bed with dibilitating fatigue and muscle weakness. I will now list my symptoms/side effects.
Shortness of breath; heart palpitations; droopy eye lid (left eye); eye lid twitch (right eye); optical migraines; numbness & tingling of my arms (from the elbows down) and my hands; My hands "fall asleep"; Itching all over; severe muscle weakness ( I have dropped things); muscle pain; joint pain (even the little ones in my toes); leg cramps; critically anemic (on 3 iron pills per day); ruptured ankle tendon (left ankle, currently being treated with a brace trying to avoid surgery); hot flashes/flushing; cold hands and feet; dizziness;, loss of balance; headaches; blurred vision; mental fog; confusion; loss of memory; loss of concentration; extreme and debilitating fatigue; insomnia; trouble staying asleep (wake every hour); huge weight gain; swelling of calves, ankles and feet; dark colored urine; gas; upset stomach; diarrhea; stomach pain; depression; anxiety; hair loss; bruises; mouth ulcers; back pain; tingling on top of head; heaviness in my thighs; EXHAUSTION! I feel like I am 100 yrs old. I have had nights that I thought I was dying and had panic attacks that I would not survive the night. I have 3 young children to take care of. I can not even put conditioner on my hair or shave my legs in the shower because I have to get out so quickly due to exhaustion. I have to lean on one elbow at the sink to brush my teeth. When I get out of the shower I can barely breath, I am wheezing, my heart is pounding and I feel like I will collapse so I have to get out and rush to my bed. I home school my 3 children and most days we do school in my bed. Everything is an effort. I can never plan anything because most days I am incapacitated. I may have a good day and can actually go out to dinner or Walmart once or twice a month and then I can't wait to get back home and get in bed because I am so worn out. I don't see how this drug can actually remain on the market. I am so angry and upset that my doctor never told me this could happen. When I asked about side effects I was told "oh no there aren't any really". My doctor never ran tests on me. I just can't believe this. I go tomorrow for blood work and I go to the doctor on Mon to discuss the results and all of my problems. I am so afraid that I have permanent damage to my muscles and possibly my heart. I went tot he doc months ago with shortness of breath and swelling and she did an EKG and said my heart was fine and I was not having congestive heart failure. I fear I was and still am! It is not normal to be out of breath just brushing your teeth and combing your hair. I hope we all get the answers we are looking for and that we all recover from this horrible drug. God bless you all!

Like many patients, I started out on a low dose of Lamictal. Eventually, I was taking 300 mg. This seemed fine for awhile. Then, I started feeling a bit down, so the doctor increased the dose to 400 mg. Increased dosage does not necessarily mean improvement in mood (bipolar). I began to experience a good number of the adverse side effects reported here, including excessive fatigue, gastrointestinal disturbances, cotton mouth and very bad taste in my mouth, muscle tension (particularly in my legs), forgetfulness and confusion, and sinus and chest congestion. At one point in time, I even had difficulty articulating words.

Though I did not suffer from rash, I have been up in the middle of the night with itching all over my body. I had a few episodes of mouth sores and one pimple on my chin. Many of these have improved since the doctor brought me back to 300 mg. However, they have not entirely disappeared. I continue to suffer from the excessive fatigue many of you have reported here.

I recently had a blood test and learned I have very low levels of Vitamin D and Vitamin B-12. I do not know if there is any relationship between long-term use of Lamical and these test results. However, I do know that low levels of Vitamin D can cause fatigue.

Though I am willing to follow through with further blood tests, I am beginning to understand why some people are tempted to discontinue their medications. I am so tired of being so tired and sleeping so much. When I finally get up, I am still tired and drag through the day.

Sometimes, I think I'd rather have a down day or two than take this medication. I should add, though, that my bipolar is not severe, and that I am only reporting how I feel. I'm certainly not recommending anyone discontinue medications for this or any other condition they may be suffering from. If I were to recommend anything, it would be to get a second opinion if one is concerned about his or her treatment.
If I were to make any suggestion to doctors, it would be this: more is not necessarily better. Send your patients for blood tests (mine were ordered by my M.D. and not by my psychiatrist). Increasing the dosage--at least of Lamictal--might result in a host of negative side effects. Your patients might then become disillusioned with their treatment and give up.

If anyone out there has suffered from B-12 and D deficiencies, let me know. I'll let you know what I find out.

And remember, most doctors are really trying to help us.

This is by far the worst pill I have ever taken. Before Yaz I was on Nordette, Ortho Tri cyclen and Alesse. I saw the commercials and got sucked into trying this pill. All I can say is proceed with caution. I ended up taking this pill for the unhappiness 8 months of my entire life. I had problems with other pills causing weight gain (Nordette, Ortho Tri cyclen) or acne (Alesse). However, those symptoms are mild compared to what Yaz inflicted on me.

I have always been described as happy go lucky and Yaz gave me extreme moodiness, panic attacks about my future and life, and major depression. I did have the best skin of my life and lost about 5 lbs but I was an emotional MESS! I would cry at the drop of a hat and find fault in everyone and everything. This symptom didn't start right away but each month I was on Yaz got worse. My friends coined my "alter ego" "she devil." I almost felt possessed at times on this pill. I finally realized it was the pill and not life causing these problems when 3 of my girlfriends had the same problems and got off and the problems went away.

Prior to having this experience I thought people tried to blame too much on the pill but my experience showed me just how much these can mess with your body. I switched back to Alesse 5 days ago and it's like I am a different person--even my skeptical boyfriend noticed the change. As for the acne, I am going to go to a dermatologist to address that. I will be happy to have a few zits as opposed to being a crazy woman.

Proceed with caution on this pill and watch your moods carefully. Just because you've been on it for a few months doesn't mean you're safe. The majority of my emotional disorder started about 5 months in. I do have some girlfriends that like this but most have found it to bring out "she devil".

Hello! I've been taking Lamictal for about 6 years now. I'm diagnosed as BP II and have the most difficulty with depression. I currently take 500 mg-- 400 mg at night and 100 mg in the morning. I have to say that Lamictal has been very good to me for the most part. As long as I don't put myself into extremely stressful positions-- such as my last job-- I do quite well. I also take a combination of supplements with Lamictal which seem to give the extra push that I needed to completely get out of my last depression. I take 1000 mg EPA (fish oil), B-100 Complex, Folic Acid, Cal-Mag, multivitamin (high quality, organic), Vitamin D (at least 1000 mg) and a few others.

I notice that when I take it at night if I don't go to sleep right away, my mouth and tongue will tingle. Sometimes when I take it in the morning, I feel foggy and dizzy and sometimes get vertigo. Every now and then the side effects seem to get worse, which I am not sure about. I started searching on the internet because I've been noticing that the "tip of the tongue" problem has been occurring more and more often. I often cannot think of the word I want, simple things even. As others have mentioned, I also have difficulty with memory. I am still very successful, currently pursuing a 2nd Master's Degree, but have noticed that achieving the same level of quality of work takes a lot more effort than during my previous degrees.

I do have some periods of anger/irritability and have recently been sleeping a lot, though it probably has a lot more to do with the time of year-- winter with less light-- than anything else.

I am particularly worried about my memory loss and inability to sound "well-spoken" in a setting which demands that of me. It is frustrating! I don't want to do any lasting harm on my brain. After increasing to 500 mg from 400 mg, I have noticed more of these brain issues, but I'm also doing so much better mood wise!

I took 10mg lipitor for 9 months and started having horrible arm pain that would not go away. Then the pain became mixed with weakness and I could not even lift a grocery bag. I am 53 and of good weight and I thought, good health - other than the elevated cholesterol level. My whole family has the elevated levels and there was an uncle who died at 43 of a massive heart attack. So, gave it a try. I got to where I thought I had ALS for sure. The leg twitching started in my calf and moved down to my feet and kept up even now. I have been off lipitor for 8 months. My strength came back in about 3 weeks and has progressively been better. The twitches are still here but am now taking 3 doses of CQ10 3x/day with Bcomplex and folic acid. All is helping and I am hoping the twitches stop. I will not ever take this again.

I took one adult dosage of Bactrim for a small persistent skin rash on my ankle. That dose has leveled me in a few hours. Chest pains, trouble breathing, body aches, loss of appetite and nausea. I went to GNC to get calcium and folic acid since I read calcium folinate is used to treat adverse reactions. They have helped some, but I still feel pretty bad. I can kick myself for not researching Bactrim first as I would have never taken a single dose.

Russell

I have been on warfarin for about two weeks as blood clots were found in my lung. I would like to hear from others who have developed rash ( non itching) on arms and now legs. My doctor does not seem to think it is linked to the medication, but really there is no other explaination.

Still improving--so those of you who are new to the levaquin side effects, note that I am improving each day over 4 days of ending the course of treatment (500mg, 12 days). I have much less trouble walking in the AM, but I do still have pain in my legs, particularly at night. The weakness seems to be subsiding. It appears that some people have much longer-lasting problems, and some don't. However, I am not completely recovered and I can only hope I gain back my strength and flexibility. Again, highly recommend lots of water and I am taking antioxidents and folic acid. I am intentionally NOT stressing my tendons. Best health to all.

I also recently had a very bad reaction to Levaquin. After finishing a 10 day course, I had severe joint pain, swelling and then lower back pain. I did take ibuprofen and it helped a bit with the pain, but not the numbness. I also was losing my balance because I had a strange sensation that I was walking with someone else' legs!!! Now, 3 days after I stopped the medication, I do feel relief. This morning I did not have so much trouble walking. I notice that I do have significant burning in my extremities, much more apparent at night and it's very uncomfortable. I will say, though, that improvements are noticable and I do hope others improve as well. There is no doubt in my mind that Levaquin causes very severe side effects. I am also taking antioxident vitamins, Omega3 and folic acid. Good luck--there is some hope. Just forge ahead, try to go through each day without worry about it and try to maintain a regular pace. But DO NOT STRESS YOUR TENDONS as it's apparent from the literature that you can cause permanent damage. Take it easy physically, but don't stop moving. Drink lots and lots of fresh water or seltzer.

ANSWER TO: Fri, 12 Jan 2007 06:47:48 -0600 by tracyann, #36221

I have tried to email some of the people that have posted but I have a feeling that really does not work on this website as I am getting no responses.

Normally it takes about 4-6 months to get any real serious impacts from TOPAMAX. My wife began losing her hair when she hit 100mg and about 5 months into her treatment. She is stopping use of TOPAMAX but has decided to come off just as she went on as the side effects initially almost drove her crazy so she decideed not to go COLD TURKEY off the drug. The doctor is cutting her dosage to 75mg for 3days then 50mg for 3days then 25mg for 3 days and then off the drug. She has consulted a dermatologist about her hair and he agrees that she needs to get off the drug before she goes bald. She will begin another regimen recommend by Dr Williams in Alternatives and will begin 20mg of B12 and also B6 and Folic acid to combat her migraines. Once she found out that you can also get OSTEOPOROSIS from the drug that was the nail in the coffin for this drug.

prednison is an evil drug but even that i have most of the side effects i still needed... i cant function without it. if i try to stop even reducing the dose order by the doc all the problems start. headaches, dizzines, swelling on arms, legs, ankles, shoulders and knees. i have been on prednasone since april 19,2005. i think im addicted to it, thanks god for this site i know now that im not alone and all of you have the same problems i have. now i hope all of u can cope with these med.
these side effects are not easy to deal with it but if the med is working hang in there. i try to quit just like that when i was on 60mg but believe me is not a good choice. god bless all of you and i wish you the best, by the way i dont know if the side effects are from the pred or the other 10 med i have to take daily, plaquenil, pred, methotraxate, folic acid, hydrocordone, prevacid, percoset, sulivanc, albuterol, etc... i dont wish my desease to no one... asthma, rheumatoid arthritis and lupus....be patience and good luck.
nora from las vegas

I have been taking 3 welchol in the am and 3 in the pm for many many years. I take it for bile salt diahrea - and it is wonderful - NO side effects at all - stops the diahhrea. It is notindicated for this, but thank GOD my doctor put me on it INSTEAD of questran which was a nightmare. YES - I did develop b-12 anemia - but that can be resolved by taking supplements for 2 months (2000mcg) and then 1000mcg) daily after that for as long as you take the drug. ALL of my symptoms of b-12 anemia deficiency disapeared (which is what I think ALL of these complaints are about) after b-12 supplementation. Please go to your doctor and have your b-12, folic acid and intrinsic factor checked if you are on Welchol for a long period of time.

my wife is experiencing itching when taking folic acid, does iberet have the same effect on her when taken?

In a low lose (prescribed for asthma) I experienced mild nausea, mouth sores and eventually, vertigo. Since Methotrexate binds with folic acid, once my doctor prescribed a supplement of folic acid, the mouth sores and vertigo subsided. The Methotrexate therapy in a low dose for 6 months improved a bad asthma flare greatly for me.

my 60 yr. old husband experienced hand tremor and tingling, muscle twitching and jerking of legs esp. at night and immediately upon awakening, slowed reaction times, walk without swinging of arm on right side. He was diagnosed with parkinson's disease last week. my niece's husband (57 yr. old) was diagnosed with parkinson's 3 weeks ago! when it was discovered they had the same symptoms and had one major factor in common: BOTH HAD TAKEN LIPITOR FOR 4+ YEARS, i made my husband stop the drug and began researching. since statins result in incredible decrease in the body's ability to manufacture coenzyme Q10 he began on 100 mgm/day of the drug. on his own. when he was diagnosed by the neurologist with parkinson's the physician recommended my husband take coq10 at a dosage of 1200mgm/day! ( He also is taking vit c, selenium, & folic acid)It is still way too early to determine if any benefits will result, but the night and early morning twitching and jerking of his lower extremities has stopped for the past 2 days and the hand tremors have definitely decreased.

I have just started taking Lamictal and typically have sensitivity to meds. I take it for mood stabalization along with effexor xr 150 mg. Moy dose of Lamictal is only 75mg right now. But I have been getting acne again which I haven't had to deal with in over a year and a half. I go my occassional pms pimple or two even but now I am constinantly fighting the blemishes, including a couple of new ones on my back which I haven't gotten in probably 7 years. Frustrated is an understatement. But it is good to hear others are experiencing similar systems and I am not as confused finding the cause for this. Memory loss, lack of focus, disorientation,confusion are also the scarier of the side effects I have been experiencing. Today something new and very scary happened. For a split second I had to grab my desk at work cause I literally felt like the room was spinning. Not see swirls or anything but like when your on the til-a whirl at the amusement part. Does anyone have any idea what that could have been? I have been feeling a bit dizzy since also. Anything neurological really scares me. Does anyone also know what other mood stabilizers if they have taken any have little side effects from their experience?