Lamictal Inner Ear Problem, Psychosis, Bipolar Ii, Seizures, Severe Headaches
Posted over a year ago
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 ... more »
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!
Lmatincheck - My psychiatrist tried to push lamictal on me for chronic pain due to a neck injury from a vehicular accident 4 years ago.
I noticed taking 25 mg. for one week produced such a rage in me that I almost ruined my marriage and took out a state highway trooper for no other reason than I couldn't contain that rage.
I am not an angry person, I don't like extreme moods such as that.
My psychiatrist is still trying to push this on me but I will continue to resist.
This may be a good medication for someone else but not for me.
Speak up and tell your physician or psychiatrist this is not for you if it is producing unwarranted emotional problems. I consider unwarranted rage to be one of those problems.
Newton - I too experienced hallucinations after starting treatment with Lamictal for seizures, though my hallucinations were visual. When leaves were blowing across the road, they would appear as little monsters trying to take bites out of my tires. I also saw the road as crumpling and rising up. (Weirdly enough, I only found it frightening after the fact.) I have never had any hallucinations before, never had any mood problems of any sort, and the hallucinations stopped as soon as I stopped taking the medicine (that night). My doctor told me it was extremely unlikely that the hallucinations were caused by the lamictal (1/10,000 people experience hallucinations with lamictal.) I don't know what to say about this. The numbers clearly make it unlikely, and yet there was a direct correlation with the lamictal. (Of course, we should always be a little wary of studies of such new drugs.) In so far as anecdotal evidence is worth anything, many of the people I have spoken with have had similar problems on lamictal.
I, as I mentioned, am off the lamictal. It's too bad really. It helped a lot with the seizures without slowing me down cognitively like all the other anti-convulsants do. I am currently back to dilantin and neurontin. Doing fine, but a little slower that I used to be.
Hollyhms - I too am experiencing problems with Lamictal, but I take it for depression and mood swings. I started it almost 12 months ago on 150mg, and it was a lifesaver! My moods were wonderful, I felt great, and was on the right track. I didn't notice any problems until about 6 months ago. I went off Lamictal to see how my body was without it, plus I was just sick of meds (you know the deal), but 6 months ago I had to start it again due to depression. From then on, nothing was the same. I could notice no improvement whatsoever, it was as if Lamictal was doing absolutely nothing. Doctor raised the dose to 200mg when I began to feel suicidal, and there is still no improvement. (He has since added Cymbalta, but since we're discussing Lamictal, I'll leave that out, since that also hasn't been helping anyway).
About the time I re-started Lamictal I felt like I began losing control of my mind and the thoughts that ran through it. Various songs would play over and over in my head and I was absolutely powerless to get a word in edgewise. This was aboslutely horrible, since I have a history of panic attacks and anxiety, and this 'loss of control' made my anxiety rage. I have history of depression, mood swings, and anxiety, but no psychosis. I could not think for myself. Whatever thought wanted to run through my mind, did. Simple as that. It was like I was being invaded. I would say it was an auditory hallucination, but the sounds were definately coming from INSIDE my head, not outside, so I suppose it wasn't technically...
Then, about 1 month ago, I began hearing voices (once again inside my head) speaking to me. Random things, sometimes evil sometimes good, but terrifying nonetheless. There was also a time when I would close my eyes and see a flash of scary faces. And over the past 2 weeks I have become EXTREMELY SUICIDAL, much more than before. As in, I'm making plans to do it. It's mostly because of the voices in my head, but more than that, it's that I just suddenly don't CARE if I die, so I think if I'm going through this, I might as well die. I know that this is because of the medication. Someone whose mind is not being influenced would not think this way.
I am going off this medicine coldturkey, today without hessitation. I cannot put up with this anymore. Apparently this medicine wants to kill me!
Kbekkeli - I am 23 and have been taking Lamictal for a few months to treat recurring panic attacks and generalized anxiety. I plateaued at 100 mg, but wishfully thinking that I could get to the root of my anxiety by exploring my psyche (I'm an avid fan of Jungian theory and will be studying the subject at grad school this year), I lowered the dose to 50 mg. That was about two weeks ago; but to my horror, I experienced an auditory hallucination this morning. Water was running down the sink drain and the slurping sound suddenly took on the form of a voice. I thought I made out a word; but I didn't stop to figure out exactly what the voice was saying: I bolted out of the bathroom in a panic; my roommate, who was eating breakfast, just stared at me.
I should mention that my hallucination this morning was accompanied by a nightmare that I had last night. It was, in fact, the nightmare that had made me edgy and paranoid to begin with.
I have no history of psychotic episodes.
Staypositive - I'm taking 200 mg of lamictal (a dose of 100 twice a day) for bipolar II, and I have been having strange auditory hallucinations. I have been hearing music--songs I feel like I might know, but there are no words and if I try and follow the beat it seems to change. They are really faint and seem to come from nearby, as if someone is playing a song in the apartment next to me or outside. I hear it more often when I am tired. I love the drug besides that, it has been amazing for my depression, but sometimes I literally cannot tell when there is music playing and when there is not. Now I'm starting to question other sounds I've heard before that may have been auditory hallucinations as well. I have also recently been awoken right before I fall into a deep sleep, by what sounds like knocking on my bedroom door, and once I heard a very audible voice that seemed to be next to my ear, yet far away as well. I have no history of psychosis whatsoever. Research I have done seems to point to musical auditory hallucinations as not a sign of something serious, but it frightens me that a medication could create this effect. However, I don't know if it's worth the risk to go off of it since it's been such a lifesaver.
Guest1265 - Been on lamotrigrine (generic for lamictil), increased to 200mg almost a week ago, and have been hearing a vibrating noise in my left ear ever since I was on 150mg. Now, I have a right ear ache. I also think this med has caused me to be more anxious and even panicky - and I never experienced panic like this before. Rage seems to be an issue now, too.
Prachim - Hi--I've been on Lamictal (100 mg, twice a day). What Staypositive wrote about these sounds is almost identical to mine. I can clearly differentiate between other external sounds, such as from my TV, iPod, computer but for months I have also been plagued by noise within my apartment building. Several tenants have extremely loud stereos, but in most cases I can clearly tell where the sound is coming from. it is very distinct.
But there also is a constant noise (vague, like the bass from a stereo) that is impossible to locate, and seems very different. Two days ago, the sounds changed. It still sounds like a bass, but as if someone is playing a record that keeps skipping. This is either auditory hallucinations, possibly caused by lamictal, possibly caused by epilepsy. I have left temporal lobe epilepsy, which can cause auditory hallucinations.
But I doubt a seizure would last continually throughout the day and night. It is slighly less pronounced in the morning, or whenever I wake up. I have no history of pyschosis or depression, or being bipolar. Just mild anxiety. I take Klonopin for the anxiety. When I take the full dose of Klonopin (which is also used for certain seizures) the noise virtually stops.
Otherwise, I have to crank up the volume on my TV or constantly have my ipod on full volume to drown it out.
As I sit here writing this, I feel perfectly calm, very much in touch with reality, and yet this sound is constant, and I have a headache. In fact, the headaches began shortly after I started the Lamictal. The headaches are definitely from the Lamictal.
Long story short, I am either becoming mentally ill, it's the Lamicta or a combination of the two. I have no doubt that what I am now hearing are auditory hallucinations. It's disturbing, but since I can tell it is different from other clearly defined noise (music) I am not anxious. Worried yes, but no real anxiety.
Staypositive's information about this particular type of auditory hallucination is very helpful .
I do plan on contacting the FDA online. People having adverse effects from medication are urged to send the information to the FDA.
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