Lamictal and doctors

I have been on Lamictal for about 3 and a half yrs now for Bipolar 1. Overall, I have had a really great experience with the drug. I started with 100mg and then went to 200mg after a year and a half. Now I take 225mg as of a month ago. For about a year and a half I had the acne on my chin and then it went away suddenly (thought it was cutting out dairy from my diet though). I have been extremely fatigued for awhile now. 7hrs of sleep is not good enough for me so I end up taking long naps when I have the opportunity each day- I always want to sleep. I feel stupid and lack focus and motivation. I use to be a social butterfly and now I feel so exhausted when entertaining. I am a personal trainer and am in the business of making others feel better, but I seem to be feeling worse. I have experienced weight gain as well and that is hard for me since I use to be bulimic and have always had poor body image issues. I was on the NuvaRing for 5 months and it made me sooooo depressed so I finally got off that and feel better- don't mix those 2 drugs.
I am going to ask my doctor to take me off of it this week because I am ready to trust God with my mental health. I have a great support system to help me through the tough times and if I want to get pregnant, I have to go off it anyway.

just thought i would put another post on to tell you how my autistic son brett is getting on with coming off his lamictal i told that he was on 750 mg a day we have had meetings with his doctors and they agreed we should start to reduce lamictal we are now 2 weeks into the reduction at 25mg a week he is now on 700mg a day the reduction does seem to have had a positive affect for brett his speech has become less repetitive his conversation is more meaning full the rash on his back is getting better he seems to be more settled in his self so at the moment things are ok i must say i make sure he has mis meds when he gets up in the morning around 7.30 then again around 7.00 on the night i will keep posting and letting people know how he is getting on

my son has been on lamictal for over ten years for the control of petit mals
he is also autistic and has associated learning difficulties he is on 750 mg a day and we seem to have reached this level due to the doctors uping his med when he was having behavior problems and now over a period of time he has been having anxiety. agretion .hostility. frenzied abnormal excited moods .loss of balance and coodination problems . museal problems in legs which is leading to his ability to walk.. poor gate nervousness . irritable.and these symptoms are not there all the time but have been rearing up on a more regular basis and after a lot of research on line and reading i have come to the conclusion that its time to remove him from this medication with medical supervision i must add the problem is that lamictal has only be on the market for about 16 years and there is not much information on long term use and also my son just gets on with his life the best way he can and can not tell you what is happening to himself due to his autisum but these problems have been going on now for some time and gets put down to behavior problems which is not the case i believe it is the lamictal that is doing this to him so he is coming off it the absences are a less problem then the side affects i think over ten years on lamictal is enough.

I took lamictal alone for about 7 years it seemed to stabilize my BP, but always complained of fuzzy thinking; the doctors never took my concerns too seriously...8 years ago I said enough is enough to my new meds guy and went off of it. Having tried a few combinations since then and recently feeling depressed the doctor suggested lamictal. I was against it at first but it was his number one suggestion, so I tried it. This time in combination with other my meds.
Talk about fuzzy on 200 mgs I am down right daft. I was on my way out of it, but I think it may be helping my moods. I can't ask for any insight as this one is really up to me. thank you EHE

I've been on Lamictal for about 5 months now. I recently have had some horrible side effects. I've had the acne, brain fogginess and weight gain all along. About a month ago I was hospitalized for having a blood phosphorus level of 0.6 which is dangerously low. The symptoms around that day were nausea, feeling like I couldn't breathe, hyperventilation, heart rate of 120-130, tingling sensations from my nose to my toes, diarrhea and almost blacking out. Of course, the ER doc thought I was having a panic attack and told me to breathe into a bag and try to breathe slowly. NOT from a panic attack. Granted, I was panicking because I was scared. Has anyone experienced this low phosphorus problem?? I will be coming off of Lamictal in the next week. Hasn't made my depression, panic attacks or sex drive any better. thanks.

I have been on Lamictal for about five months for bipolar II. I has been increased slowly over these months and I am now up to 300 mg a day. I have a tendency to sometimes forget things but remembering numbers has never been a problem for me. In fact I can look at someone's tag number driving down the road and remember it for days. Phone numbers of people I have known for 20 years would stick and I wouldn't even have to call them on a regular basis to know the number. However, recently while trying to use my bank debit card at the store I was asked to enter my PIN number and totally could not remember. I tried it several times but it never came to me. I felt like a fool!. At this time, that was three days ago and I still cannot remember it!

This is very, very distressing to me. I feel like something has been wiped clean and that I will never get it back.

My Lamictal dose has been increased in the last couple of weeks and I thought maybe Lamictal or one of my other meds could be making this happen so I started researching and found this site where other people were complaining of memory loss while on Lamictal.

Headaches are another common side effect for me while on this med. It has really helped me emotionally and I need to know if the memory loss is just going to be a temporary thing and it will get back to normal or if I will be forgetting more and more over time. PLEASE HELP!!!

I have been on Lamictal and Topamax for approximately 4-5 years now. I also take effexor. I have a seizure disorder. At first everything was alright, however now I have been having double vision, staggering, memory loss that has occurred slowly within the last two years or so, and of course as with most meds the usual diarrhea or constipation. I wonder how long does it take being on medication for these side effects to kick in? I read all literature whenever I start a new medication even if it is a OTC drug. (over the counter). I just got out of the hospital and am being sent from one doc to another. I feel like a guinea pig in a lab! Please help!

I was on Lamictal for 4 years and after the first year I suddenly started having all kinds of teeth and gum problems for no discernible reason. But since Lamictal has the possible side effect of "sores or blisters on the inside of the mouth" I wondered if it could be related.

I did a Google search and am coming up with no experts yet, but lots and lots of posts connecting anticonvulsant meds, particularly Lamictal, Topamax, Neurontin, and Depakote, with dental problems. Dilantin is well known for causing gum disease and breaking down tooth enamel, loosening of teeth, and even breaking down of jawbone tissue.

I don't think the experts have connected the dots yet, but is anyone else having this problem?

lamictal controls seizures if you take it at the right time. i am on 200 at night and 200 in the morning plus epilim. sometimes i just sit and cry wen im trying to concentrate on reading books i have to study or trying to remember work i learnt at school which has left my brain. im failing school not matter how hard i try, i study all the time then the next day i have forgotten it. im so young and i havnt even started my future yet and i may have screwed it already. failing exams because i forgot wat i learnt the night before hurts so bad. its hard to say "hey everyone the reason i failed is because lamictal screws my memory" i know thats what it is. i was extremely intelligent before i started taking it, but now im a failure. i guess deep inside i know really im not a failure, but lamictal makes me one. : ( p.s add a constant hand tremor and sudden jerking movements every now and then.

I have been experiencing a flu like symptom for over a year now. They started about 2 months after I began taking 350mg of lamictal a day. Symptoms include exhaustion, headache, soar/achy throat, post-nasal drip, TONS of nausea, lack of digestion & regurgitation of food. I am tired and feel warn out all the time... I have had everything checked by doctors and they've found no health reasons to explain these symptom's.

HAS ANYONE ELSE EXPERIENCED THIS????

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.

I started Lamicatal May 19th, 2005. I was warned by my doctor of dangerous rash and itching. If so, stop taking medication, call him if not too bad that I need to call 911 to go to the hospital. On my print out from the CVS pharmacy is clearly stated: Serious (sometimes fatal) skin rashes have occured while using this medicine. Immediately notify your doctor if you develop any type of rash. If this medicine is the cause of the rash, the medicine must be stopped. Even after stopping this medicine. It is still possible for the rash to cause permanent or life-threatening scarring along with other problems.

Possible Side Effects:
drowsiness, trouble sleeping, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, muscle aches, double vision, blurred vision, fatigue, weakness, headache, shakiness, or clumsiness.

Symptoms of an Allergic Reaction include:
rash, itching, hives, fever, swollen glands, swelling of the lips or tongue, painful sores in the mouth or around the eyes, severe dizziness, or trouble breathing.

Symptoms of Overdose:
may include unusual dizziness, serve headache, unusual sleepiness, involuntary eye movements, and loss of consciousness.

I starting itching really bad the second day on the medication. To the point I had huge bruises allover me. I got a spurt of energy that I have not had in several years the second night but not since then. I can't go to sleep at night. Even taking 6 Tylenol PM and a Klonapin I don't get sleepy until around 9 to 100am in the morning and then I sleep all day long. I have started to have frequent headaches, suspious bumps around my mouth area. My muscles ache, too. It is Memorial day weekend so I can't call my doctor but I am going to on Tuesday. I have (MDD) Major Depression Disorder, Manic Depression, (TRD) Treatment Resistent Disorder. Nothing I have taken thus far has helped me with my depression.

Does anyone have first hand knowledge on ECT treatment? I am seriouly considering this procedure. I am desperate but I have no insurance or money because I haven't be able to work for 9 years now. This is the only thing that has kept me from getting the ECT treatments, is money! I have contacted every Talk show, hospital, clinical trials and no luck in finding free help with ECT.

Any ideas, guidance or suggestions would be most appreciated, I am dire to get help soon or I won't make it.
Sincerely,
Lost Hope