kittyloaf Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I need a new mood stabilizer, and I could use a migraine preventative that isn't a triptan or Excedrin migraine. My GP recommended topamax or gabapentin for migraines, and I know both are also mood stabilizers. Are any other ACs good for migraines? I figured I'd ask pdoc tomorrow to try topamax or gabapentin, but after reading on here about the "topamax stupid" or gabapentin weight gain I'm wondering has anyone on here had good experiences with either drug? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamingbutterfly Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I had a good experience with topamax. It helped prevent migraines for me. Also I lost a little weight when I was on it. For me gabapentin didn't work for my chronic pain at all, including migraines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crtclms Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 A lot of the migraineurs on Crazyboards love Topamax. The metabolite of it I took (Zonegran) caused some kidney damage, so I had to stop it. I also didn't think it worked for me,. But for other, it has been their silver bullet. Topamax is not considered that good of a mood stabilizer, but here and there people do respond to it. The first time I used Gabapentin, it was really great. It helped with my head a lot, and I think it helped a little with my mood, even though it generally isn't considered a the greatest mood stabilizer. It also is good for anxiety. In fact, while it stopped working for my headaches, I went into remission for 5 years. That may have been a coincidence, but it correlates pretty well. The second time I tried it, I put on a lot of weight quickly, and came off of it. I don't know why it didn't do that the first time, because I was actually the thinnest I have been as an adult, and I stayed that way through a couple of years of use. The other mood stabilizer that is used for migraine a lot is Depakote. Depakote has been the most useful med for my migraines, although I always had some breakthrough migraines. But I have a insane number of headaches when not medicated. But I started having more and more breakthrough headaches, and it screwed with my libido, so I titrated off of it. But once again, it is the med that has worked best for my headaches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearhead Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Topamax has worked well for me for migraine and takes the edge off my irritability/anger, but it does not work for me as a mood stabilizer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crtclms Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I'm not sure I said the word "but" enough in my last post. Geez. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Topamax was great for my headaches. It also seemed to calm my brain. I never took it as my only mood stabilizer. I always took it with either Lithium or Lamictal. For me, it wouldn't cut it as my only mood stabilizer but it sure did help make the other meds work better. However, it gave me terrible word recall problems. Simple words, like chair. I also forgot the names of people that I'd known for 20 years or more. These problems did not get better with time. I finally had to give it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearhead Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 A lot of the migraineurs on Crazyboards love Topamax. Wouldn't a woman with migraines be a migraineuse? That's been buggin' me for months... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crtclms Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Yes, you're right. But the plural is the masculine. So you are a migraineuse chatting with other migraineurs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gizmo Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I took topamax for migraine prevention for two years. But not as my only mood stabilizer. It worked well until it pooped out on me. Plus he made me really stupid. I take depakote as both my mood stabilizer and migraine prophylactic. It works really well on both, but I still have breakthrough migraines weekly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearhead Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 Yes, you're right. But the plural is the masculine. So you are a migraineuse chatting with other migraineurs. I didn't think of that. Which is stupid of me, having studied languages other than English. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crtclms Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 To be honest, I do refer to myself as a migraneur. I am annoyed by gender specific titles. Although I guess in a way I am falling right into their gender trap, by preferring to refer to myself in the "masculine." It's like actor and actress. A lot of nominal actresses prefer actor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearhead Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I agree that it's vexing that there are no gender neutral terms in many circumstances. But if that is the case, I prefer to be credited to the correct gender. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lavender fairy Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 I take Neurontin for fibromyalgia and have found it to be immensely helpful. I gained some weight when I first started it, but I seem to be dropping it now that I am on Welbutrin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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