Tegretol and depression

I have been on tegretol since I was approx. 15years old, I am now 41years old. In the beginning (probably since I was so young) I really don't remember too many side effects. Until 2 years ago when after complaining to my doctor about extreme weight gain did he take me off tegretol and move me over to this "new miracle drug called Topamax". Well maybe it would have worked if the dosage was correct. I personally feel my doctor did not equate the dosage I was taking with tegretol to topamax. Well after eight weeks of suffering and I mean having 3 seizures a day from 0 a day. I demanded to go back weight gain or not. That's when the side effects hit! and well!!! All of a sudden I had migraines daily, I now suffered from Vertigo, I went into depression and was seriously talking suicide. It was bad for about a month. Good news a year later everything went back to normal... I will now stay with Tegretol. I have been taking seizure meds since I was 7yrs old and this one seems to be the best after your body stabilizes.

for a number of years i had been taking tegretol for depression, my dr. then switched me to trileptal suggesting it was a purer form of the same drug, i've been on trileptol for over 3 years now, my face is a mess rash, itching alot of the time , i have never ever had any such problem before, also i am experiencing musle and joint pain, another big one is my hair is thinning loss of condition, my question is can long term rx use be causing too many toxins in my system?