Lamictal and seizure

I am 32 years old, and still have acne. I have been taking it for almost 14 years now. I know that Lamictal causes skin rashes. I asked my neurologist if Lamictal causes acne. He said no. I will never be able to get rid of acne, as long as I keep taking it. I have been seizure-free for over 2.5 years now. Dad won't let me get off of it, and be on primidone only. It's more important to keep driving seizure-free, than to have clear skin.

I got all those problems but the higher the dosage the more attacks i had.Another neurologist think that i just have pseudoseizures-paranoia attacks.Anyways the doctor screwed me up,he gave me 5 years ago something different and my seizures started daily than switched me to lamictal.I must say that sometimes i have or HAD electricity in my left hand all the time and once a women touched me and got stunned lol.anyways lamictal is bad,i didn't have any side effects like loosing hair but i did have A LOT of head hecks.I must share something with you,when i read epilepsy.com it seems that my seizures called myclonics in the end they are not but they similar in effects.Myclonics its seizures that happens only in the morning.Heres the catch for me,i figured out that if i won't close my eyes the first hour after i got up and went to the sun outside than i didn't have seizures.Its not a real solution so i decided to raise the lamictal from 175 which was ok for me to 200-250 like the good doctor said,just made me worse.Now i started dropping it by 25 mill each week and i must say i feel better only a little tired after 5 years that my body got used to it.Anyway if any of you have myclonics than don't close your eyes.BTW i have AURA-feeling before the seizure but luckily for me after a second if i open my eyes nothing will happen although i don't always take notice of it.In midway it would happen if i seat in front of computer and will lose attention if someone will call me or whatever but its a mill-sec seizure,barely noticible if at all and i never get "disconnected" from reality!!!
the ONLY thing which is bad for me is that except that im sick now my blood pressure is huge-140/82 and pulse 106 which is being like that for couple of days but i will get trough that.Since i lowered my dosage my midway seizures stopped,now im on 100.

P.S=Check yourself with the neurologist with a different one preheps.IF you can describe the whole seizure it means you don't dispatch from earth which mean it might be psydo seizures which are psychotic and not epileptic,the most important thing is that if someone takes lamictal or any anti apileptic drug even tho he doesn't have real seizures the medicine can do this.I got screwed and now i try to get over it,the doctor trowed me on woods with tablets after having a first seizure WHICH IS WRONG because you sepused to get tablets only after 3 attacks and after describing seizures and doing eeg tests to make sure that you DO have the problem.

Anyways remember what i said about the closing eyes in the morning part,if you close your eyes and feel weird keep them open at least those that have them after they wake up,that was a solution for me and it can help you to...MY doctor said everyone like me but i think he is laying,the other neurologist said my doctor was wrong probably about the seizures,i think i have both but i do know that believing and saying that you don't have anything WILL help you and lower your seizures,after speaking with the doctor i actually started to believe i don't have anything and walla i have almost NADA,today i had zero!!!! :D

OF course don't lower dosage without first consulting with someone expert,but since i know i can control basically every seizure i have and i know what to do to avoid it i let my self start dropping dozes!!!

GOOD LUCK my friends believe in yourself and if you want some personal info leave your msn i will add you and try to answer you the best i could,i was researching my self trying to figure out the core of the problem for 5 years but after 6 months knocking my head in the pipe when i washed my face i learned what i should avoid to minimize the chance!!!Try that

I would like to let people who are new to the Lamictal "experience" that it was VERY uncomfortable for me during the first few months also. In fact even at the very low introductory doses, I did not think that I could ever function in society.

The extreme confusion, the memory problems, the spaceyness, the feeling of detachment from everything that surrounded me... at the time I felt that I would never be able to function as a worker, a friend, or as a social being.

As time went on though, things did clear up for me. It took a few months, but I'm guessing that my brain function/chemistry finally somehow regulated itself, and my side effects did clear up. I am at a dosage of 600mg per day now, and yes, I do sometimes feel detached, but I certainly can function. My memory has also improved. It sometimes takes me a second or two to find the "right word" during my conversations, but a simple, light hearted mention of the problem resolves the issue for the person that I am speaking to.

If you are just getting on Lamictal, try to be patient. I have found that in time, it has helped me much more than the side effects hurt me. It did take a few months to get used to, and I did have to explain to others at work that I may be acting strangely for a couple weeks because of it... but the overall effect is quite nice now.

Lamictal now helps control my seizure problems almost completely, and has the added benefit of making me feel much more confident, and balanced.

I've been on Lamictal for 3 years, and it's started to fail. I was on a generally small dose for epilepsy, 100mg twice a day. Well, I started having these twitches that caused a car incident, so I had to go to the doctor to get the dosage increased. Well, I did that, slowly, and I was twitch free. I thought that this was great, I can finally rest easy. Also, for some reason after I increased the dose I was oversleeping. No severe side effects though. But then, just yesterday, I had what we believe to be a full fledged seizure during a shower. I missed my dose by 2 hours the night before, and luckily I was having trouble falling asleep (or perhaps unlucky), and I probably got 5-6 hours that night, which lack of sleep is always a bad thing with epilepsy. So, during my shower I started twitching, bad. I turn the shower off. Then the next thing I'm on the shower floor, and I see blood on the wall, though too dazed to make anything of it. My family hears the bang and comes down and tells me to open the door, but I yell out to wait until I'm dressed. Then I felt horrible. So obviously the dose increase didn't help, and the Emergency room doctor put me on Depakote plus the lamictal until I see a neurologist next week.

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 have been on it for about 7 weeks now, I have the best Dr.I dont know what I would do with out her..I am transitioning from the Dilantin, been on that 25 years, now have ostiop........... ( Used to be a really good speller, maybe thats a forties thing!) in my hips and back. I started feeling really good, now having huge lapses of depression, Lonliness, eye sight which I hear very common, spotting different times of month, headache, dont know if its a side effect but each time I up my dosage things I think are becoming clearer, and cry a couple days, like to much information is flooding my mind. I Have bad dreams the kind that you can obviously analize, but wake up crying. Its a very lonely place to be, people think you will have a seizure thats why they avoid me ( I have been told) which I dont understand because Im taking more medicine and feeling better!

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 started taking Lamictal about six weeks ago for epilepsy. Now keep in mind, I was on Dilantin which worked great for 17 years and then suddenly stopped working. I have been in medication hell since then. First Topamax made me dumb as a rock. I would space out all the time. Worst drug ever. Then Keppra which was better in that my memory/ability to speak came back but I had these intense ups and down. I had rages constantly. Now I'm on Lamictal. So far, it's better than the Topamax and the Keppra, however the dreams are very intense as are the night sweats. I'm also experiencing much hair loss. Fortunately I have a full head of hair but I'm afraid I will eventually lose it all.

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'm 25 and have never had great skin, but I've found that minocycline will clear up my acne right away. That is, it used to, until I started with lamictal. Even with the minocycline plus tazorac and an antibiotic cream, my skin is breaking out on my face, especially at the jawline and outside of my face. But the really weird thing is that my back and chest are breaking out. That has NEVER happened before and it's not the infamous rash.

Other things I've noticed: sensitivity to computer screens and TVs, probably because my vision is getting worse, but so I get headaches; brutal periods with extreme breast tenderness; slurred speech and short-term memory loss at first, but not any more; occasional feelings of just being "out of it;" a bit of weight gain and I've always been superthin, but even with diet and exercise am having trouble maintaining my weight. Oh, also the nausea mentioned above, in the mornings; it was so bad I thought I was pregnant.

I'm only on 75mg/day at night for mood stabilization, but mostly because I take wellbutrin and had a seizure on it last year, though I'm not epileptic. I've always been sensitive to medications, and I have to say I've felt extremely "stable" on lamictal, but almost too stable. It's been a bit disorienting and I've felt my creativity diminish (I'm a writer). When I first started the lamictal I had also started a new job. This was a really bad idea as I couldn't remember any of the things my boss was telling me and my speech was messed up; I even stuttered a bit, which was scary.

My 14 year old son began Lamictal 2 weeks ago for absent seizures, starting at 12.5 mg at night for one week, then 25 mg for one week and then will increase by adding a morning dose at this rate; ultimately to titrate up to 100 mg at night and 100 mg in the morning. The slow increase in dosing is supposed to avoid the life-threatening Stevens-Johnson syndrome (indicated initially by a rash).

I have noticed he is moody, angry and tearful now. I find this concerning since it is also prescribed for mood stabilization. He complains of body aches and especially leg pains/soreness. I think his short-term memory difficulties are worsened. He has made comments that he doesn't care if he lives or dies.

I noticed that his lymph nodes in his neck and just below his skull are a little enlarged, though he saw his pediatrician yesterday and they are not big enough to be considered outside normal range.

I am a nurse, and drew blood work at home today to rule out infection and look at liver function. There are no tests which quantify a therapeutic range for lamictal--it's very individualized.

I want to take him off of the lamictal and am looking for alternative ways to minimize seizures, such as exercise, diet, vitamin supplements, omega oils, perhaps neurofeedback, massage therapy, music therapy--any and all things which may help.

I feel like my child is sliping away from me with this personality change; I want to find out why he is having seizures rather than just treat symptoms which are the siezures. I'm reading--night and day and will not give up until I am convinced there are no natural approaches which are better than drugs. It's exhaustive to put the work into it, but I think it is necessary.

It is recommended that Lamictal be tapered off over about 2 weeks, to prevent siezures--whether you are taking it for this or not. I don't know how his neurologist will respond to this request to take him off. I think it's important to have a good working relationship with your doc. However, in my view a good doc is open to individualized concerns and alternative treatments.

My heart goes out to all of you who are struggling with your own problems and suffering side effects. I wish I could do something to help you. In my journey to learn, I will post any things which I discover to be helpful to my son, though they may not pertain to your particular problems, they may also be of help to you.

I have learned that seizures cause oxidative stress to tissues, just like an apple browns once you have bitten into it--it does so due to oxidation. Vitamins C, E and selenium may help, since they are antioxitants. Siezures disrupt the metabolism of essential fatty acids, so supplementing with omega 3 and 6 oil may be helpful--these oils also stabilize cellular membranes, because cell membranes are constructed of phospholipids derived from these essential oils. At minimum, I would do these things.

Exercise may help, and also a modified Atkins diet. I have always struggled with depression, and nothing helps me other than exercise and eating a diet restricted in simple carbs and sugars. I think this is important for everyone, as this is the way to prevent and sometimes also reverse type 2 diabetes. Everyone should eat like this and exercise--this is the best mood stabilizer of which I know.

I think that most illnesses are related to metabolism, and in this day, we are exposed to unhealthy foods continuously and our lifestyles/jobs make it difficult to get physical activity. I believe our bodies are screaming at us to make changes in this, and that is why we are having so many problems with illness in general.

I know it is hard to exercise when you are depressed, but if you can do it, you will see the changes in the quality of your lives. Be careful though, becuase the meds you all are taking may put you at unknown risks for injuries that I have no knowledge of.

I wish you all well.

Sherry

I believe that it is best to try to find natural ways to help

I have been prescribed Lamictal for seizures, and am currently taking 400mg daily, with my 300mg of Dilantin. Had horrible side effects this weekend-nightmares, exhausted, worsening depression, crying jags, difficulty swallowing. Has anyone else experienced mood changes for the worse while on this drug?

100mg 2x daily for complex partial siezures.. Initially thought this was great after dealing with dilantin and feeling like a tired zombie. The only side effect I had was a chronic runny nose. I then started having low back pain, then nearly unbearable muscle spasms down the back of my legs. It was so bad I was setting alarms so I could take ibuprophen round the clock. I began having stomach issues from the ibuprophen, so I scaled back to only taking it in the am. Muscle spasms are now tolerable, but I've developed a new issue - I'm often dizzy and have random blurred vision. I waited 6 months to get my license back (after one minor siezure). Now I don't drive because of the side effects. I don't know whether cutting back the dose of lamictal would help, but I intend to ask.

Took mostly for seizures, but have been informally diagnosed with Bipolar II.

Had tremors at night, almost immediately, marked anxiety, weight loss, strange heat flashes, severe headaches (already have a migraine problem), complete w olfactory hallucinations (could have been breakthrough simple seizures, or headache auras).

Felt detached from myself and others. But the most disturbing symptom of all was auditory hallucinations. I have no history of psychosis and this only happened after starting Lamictal. Basically I could hear a constant chirping sound, subtle, but loud enough at night to keep me from sleeping unless my radio was playing to distract me from the sound. Could it have been a new form of seizure? Maybe, but regardless, the sounds started at the time I started this drug. Plus, according to a psychiatrist, I had no signs of psychosis, just the unexplained phantom sounds. One last possibility: Maybe an inner ear problem. Still would like to look into that.

People are right when they say this is still an experimental drug. If I had known what I was getting myself into, I never would have tried this drug to begin with. If any of you have had auditory hallucinations on this drug, without a history of any sort of hallucination or psychosis, PLEASE respond here and let me know about your experience. Thanks!

I recently was given 200mg over the recommended pharmaceutical dose of Lamictal. My dr.'s partner prescribed this after a trip to the ER for a seizure to get me by until I could see my regular neurologist at the beg. of the week. The extra dose caused major blurred vision side effects, inability to walk, extreme sensitivity to light, and nausea. I am now at 400mg of Lamictal and starting Topomax with it so I hope this works. Any thoughts from anyone else taking this med combo?

I've been on Lamictal for 3 years after a brain tumor removal. I was intially on Dilantin but the side effects made me crazy. My face constantly tingled and was numb, I couldn't speak well and the dizziness was debilitating. My neuro put me on Lamictal. I started off at 100mg, once in the morning and once at night, and had another seizure. I finally figured out I was having my seizures in the late afternoon and deduced the drug was wearing off around that time. My neuro put me on 150mg 2x a day and 100mg at lunch time. I've had no seizures for 2 years and 3 months so I think we have the dosage problem licked. However, I am really dizzy in the late afternoon and if I get excited like when I'm at a party. Shopping makes it much worse and I think that is due to moving my eyes around so much. Grocery shopping can be a tough task. I don't slur my words but I frequently cannot 'find' the right word. I'm slower in everything. I cannot take a walk looking at the horizon because I lose my balance and get dizzy again. Sometimes my head tingles. Heat makes it worse and when I get hot flashes (yes, I'm over 50) makes the dizzy much worse. Sometimes my fingers don't automatically go to the home key on the computer keyboard. I have to really concentrate on things that used to be automatic, like knowing a stop light is red. I used to be able to 'see' that and react appropriately. Now I have to concentrate on those red lights so it is irritating. I feel like I'm getting old. However, I will stay on this medication. It works and though the side effects are tough to live with, I'd rather stay on a med that I know works, rather than try one that might work. I lose my driver's license every time I have a seizure. I guess that is the worst side effect :-( I'm hunting for something to combat the dizziness and am using mybraintrainer.com to see if brain training exercises will help me become faster again. It can't hurt and so far I've had a little bit of success. I'll just keep going.

double vision, twitches of large muscles to point of near seizure eventually then walked like I had parkinson's - could not lift my feet when walking so had to shuffle.
My primary care MD and my prescibing psychiatrist didn't either one believe these things were not symtoms of lamectal
toxicity "cause they never read about them: infact psych. suggested I probably wasn't BP after all and just needed counseling - and she was the one that gave me that diagnosis/label about 6 yrs ago ! Primary went along with her.
Don't deny counseling would help, but very angry when they said "behaviors" couldn't be due to lam. cause level too low.

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