Lamictal hair loss

[TCB]

I've noticed that since I've increased my dosage on Lamictal (I'm up to 75mg) that when I take a shower or comb my hair I notice hair in my sink and hands. The same thing happened when I was on Effexor three years ago. I'm not going bald I don't think since baldness doesn't run in my family and when I was on Effexor it caused hair loss for me while none of my previous meds have done that. Has anyone else experienced this? Also I noticed that since I've increased my dosage that I lose my train of thought and I my speech and words get jumbled up a lot. This has happened on previous meds I was on when I got to a high dose. I figured that it might go away with time but I've experienced this for the past 2 weeks. I'm supposed to go higher in my dosage but if i can't communicate properly than there is no point in increasing my dose. Any input?

[crazynotstupid]

Hmm. Heard this one before...guy takes lamictal, loses hair, decides he'd rather ditch lamictal than lose hair even if it means getting depressed and kill himself.

Please don't do that.

He was only on 50 mg. Now..."normal" dose of lamictal tends to be 200 mg. Many go higher--I'm on 300.

OK. A question: As wth the other guy, kinda--what's more important--communicating "properly" or not being, y'know, suicidal or whatever? What are you taking lamictal for, and does it work? how long have you been taking it for? Dosage increases can change effects; efects can change or go away; dosage changes can show improvemnts in the symptoms that you are taking the med for.

Really. Old saying: waht is worse--symptom or side effect? I decided, once, that the possibility of maybe occasionally forgetting my name or where I lived was better than the alternative. Because I DID forget my name or where I lived. BUT the alternative? Well--drinming like a fish and becoming ultra-violent. And so on. Different med, same idea.

Side effects, they went away. Good effects, they stayed.

What you need to do--decide if the need of your med, i.e., the propsed effects, outweigh the current side effects, which may well NOT last. A lot of SEs go away. During titration, SEs show up then disappear. This is why a lot of people drop meds and then say "dude this med SUCKS cuz A B and C". And, like, we say "wuss. shoulda stuck with it a couple more months."

So. Decide. Hair loss, some mental fog--or maybe depression and suicidality. Maybe suicide.

S'up to you.

[Silver]

It takes at least two to four months (you will see references citing anywhere from 1-6 months, but 2-4 months would be the hump of the bell curve) for medications to cause "hair loss." What most people mean when they say "hair loss" (diffuse and fairly steady) is called telogen effluvium. The e-medicine article is very thorough, if you want more information.

Remember that TE can also be secondary to other physiologic causes. Severe physiologic stress/surgery, anemia, etc. Sometimes these causes are themselves secondary to the medications, with the fairly classic example of: pt on new SSRI, develops very slow GI bleed, develops iron deficiency, then the TE kicks in.

Rogaine works quite well in many cases. The generic, OTC, cheaper stuff is fine.

A "good brain day" (or at least a better brain day) beats a good hair day any way you look at it.

[TCB]

Hmm. Heard this one before...guy takes lamictal, loses hair, decides he'd rather ditch lamictal than lose hair even if it means getting depressed and kill himself.

Please don't do that.

He was only on 50 mg. Now..."normal" dose of lamictal tends to be 200 mg. Many go higher--I'm on 300.

OK. A question: As wth the other guy, kinda--what's more important--communicating "properly" or not being, y'know, suicidal or whatever? What are you taking lamictal for, and does it work? how long have you been taking it for? Dosage increases can change effects; efects can change or go away; dosage changes can show improvemnts in the symptoms that you are taking the med for.

Really. Old saying: waht is worse--symptom or side effect? I decided, once, that the possibility of maybe occasionally forgetting my name or where I lived was better than the alternative. Because I DID forget my name or where I lived. BUT the alternative? Well--drinming like a fish and becoming ultra-violent. And so on. Different med, same idea.

Side effects, they went away. Good effects, they stayed.

What you need to do--decide if the need of your med, i.e., the propsed effects, outweigh the current side effects, which may well NOT last. A lot of SEs go away. During titration, SEs show up then disappear. This is why a lot of people drop meds and then say "dude this med SUCKS cuz A B and C". And, like, we say "wuss. shoulda stuck with it a couple more months."

So. Decide. Hair loss, some mental fog--or maybe depression and suicidality. Maybe suicide.

S'up to you.

Well the medicine is doing anything for me. I've been on it for almost six weeks and I don't feel any better. I understand that the dosage for lamictal to be effective is usually in the 100-200mg range. But if I'm constantly studdering and losing my thoughts and not feeling any better than what's the point. My past doctors have said when you start to get fuzzy brained it doesn't go away unless you lower the dose or try a different med.

[crazynotstupid]

Well the medicine is doing anything for me. I've been on it for almost six weeks and I don't feel any better. I understand that the dosage for lamictal to be effective is usually in the 100-200mg range. But if I'm constantly studdering and losing my thoughts and not feeling any better than what's the point. My past doctors have said when you start to get fuzzy brained it doesn't go away unless you lower the dose or try a different med.

Yes. The "normal" effective dose for lamictal is in the 100-200 mg range. But, um...fuzzy brained-edness (eek), like other SEs, CAN very well go away with time and dose changes. Even increased dose.

Whatever. Meds have side effects. You have to decide, at some point, that some med or other has a side effect profile you can live with relative to it s benefits or that you just can't live with side effects. And then, well, you just live with the effects you were taking the meds for, which just pretty much sucks nasty ass.

Personally I'd prefer to look like my dad than feel like I used to.