girlwiththefarawayeyes Posted December 8, 2011 Share Posted December 8, 2011 I finally had to go look it up,and it turns out it's not an unheard of side effect- cold hands and feet. Jeez Louise, my hands are freezing! I shook a coworker's hand today and he recoiled and said, "you've got really cold hands!" Obviously, I told him, "yeah, it's because I'm bipolar as hell and I'm taking this crazy stuff that makes my hands cold..." No, I didn't say that. Other weird lamictal side effects: - the metalic taste in my mouth seems to have gone away, as predicted by crazyboards veterans. - my typing has gone to hell. I make way more errors than I once did, and I seem to have forgotten how to spell. I've heard about these cognitive "blips". Do they go away too? - I've read that lamictal can make menstrual periods worse- really painful. It's the exact opposite here. Hardly any cramps at all. So, my assessment is that lamictal is really quite weird, but also totally worth it. I'm going to have to wear gloves all the time, though, and invest in some thicker socks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bpladybug Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 maybe the SE will go away??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muriel Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 Lamictal doesn't mess with hormones so I'm not sure how it would make periods more or less painful. Where many of the anticonvulsants do affect hormones, with Lamictal it's the opposite. Levels of Lamictal can change with the fluctuations of hormones. I certainly never had that side effect on Lamictal, and I get more crampy if the wind blows the wrong way. The typing thing sounds common and will probably go away. Even if they don't, you learn to work around them. The cold hands/feet thing might go away too, and it might not be as big a deal once winter is over. Otherwise, yeah, invest in some warmer socks etc. Little electric space heaters under desks are nice too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearhead Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 My typing has gone utterly to hell and my extremities are even colder than they used to be. Which is really saying something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lysergia Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 - my typing has gone to hell. I make way more errors than I once did, and I seem to have forgotten how to spell. I've heard about these cognitive "blips". Do they go away too? maybe, maybe not. i have much more trouble with typing and spelling and math on lamotrigine/lamictal. and oh yeah, finding the right words for things is sometimes a challenge. it's dose-dependent for me too, though. i start to notice it at 200mg. lots of people take more than that and don't feel any kind of stupid, though, or for them it goes away. I've read that lamictal can make menstrual periods worse- really painful. It's the exact opposite here. Hardly any cramps at all. me too. i don't know why or how, and i don't care, but it's true for me. i've even started two AAPs since being on lamotrigine, and after a month or two of wonkiness, i've gone back to few little cramping and a blessedly short period. when i went off lamitrigine last year, cramps and longevity of the whole thing came back. the cold thing i blame on being a smoker. i don't know if i'm colder taking lamotrigine than usual. until i gained 30 seroquel pounds, it got blamed on being thin. but i'm just cold and pudgy now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odetta Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 Wow, could that be why I feel like I'm freezing even when i jack up the heat to 70 degrees and wear sweaters? Haven't noticed the cramp thing, but the cognitive/remembering issue is defintely there. Not real bad, just enough to be a slight nuisance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
girlwiththefarawayeyes Posted December 10, 2011 Author Share Posted December 10, 2011 Here it be: http://www.drugs.com...de-effects.html Painful mentrual periods is listed here. I was pretty sure I read it on the giant list they gave me at the pharmacy. I've been looking, but I can't find anything that explains why, though. Still having the opposite effect- lighter and fewer cramps. Weird. And cold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wj74 Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 I don't know, I'm always cold anyway but haven't noticed it getting worse on Lamictal and have been on it for 18 months. Cramps aren't an issue either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcjimjam Posted December 21, 2011 Share Posted December 21, 2011 My body temperature control was pretty messed up for a while when I started it. Its gone away now. I had the cold hands and feet too. Also had noticeable difficulty with finding the right words and that sort of thing. I did feel stupid for a little while. I think all those SE's have gone away now. I'm on a high dose so if it's gone for me I think there's a good chance it will pass for you too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benzoman Posted December 21, 2011 Share Posted December 21, 2011 i can relate because when i first started gabapentin i was freezing. Like had to get under the covers with a sweater on freezing. then again amoxicilin did that too me too so i could just have a shot liver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tryp Posted December 21, 2011 Share Posted December 21, 2011 Wow, interesting. I am ALSO cold as fuck and can't type worth a damn (sometimes I write the wrong words, sometimes I just can't spell and sometimes it just takes me forever). I just work around it. Feel like I've been through so many med trials that I just ignore most of this stuff now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Posted December 21, 2011 Share Posted December 21, 2011 I never get cold hands/feet on lamictal, but do get a bad case of the stupids. Then again I'm on a lot of other things that could be causing the cognitive problems. I'm a male, 57 in two weeks, so that might play a part in it too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearhead Posted December 21, 2011 Share Posted December 21, 2011 Wow, interesting. I am ALSO cold as fuck and can't type worth a damn (sometimes I write the wrong words, sometimes I just can't spell and sometimes it just takes me forever). I just work around it. Feel like I've been through so many med trials that I just ignore most of this stuff now. My life in a nutshell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
balletomane Posted December 22, 2011 Share Posted December 22, 2011 My life is one giant cognitive blip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EJSpode Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Just titrating up, and noticing cold hands and feet, as well as brain fuzziness. I kind of figured it might have something to do with serotonin levels ... It is a temp regulator (or at least it messes up people who flood their system with it via extasy o.d.). I am not a cold feet person ... Then again, also had a drop in blood pressure after upping gym time, then again when I started meds for gout. Lamictal really throws things out of whack for me. Metal taste, weird dreams, and ... Less depression. I will take that with the side effects for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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