How do YOU feel about Lamictal

[Anne]

Okay, I'm starting Lamictal tomorrow.  It will take me 2 months to get up to the therapeutic dose.  What's your feelings, experiences, etc...and does it make you gain weight?  For some reason, I'm just kind of freaked out by starting this.  I'll be on 90 mg Cymbalta, the Lamictal and prn Niravam. 

Anything you have to share would be great!

Thanks!

[Guest Llamanator]

Lamictal was the first thing that helped me *at all* with the BP stuff. Especially the depressive side. Doesn't look like it's the drug for me, but a lot of people have had very good results with it.

For me, it did/does take at least a week to physically adjust to dose changes, and a bit longer to see what the long-term mental effects will be. Most of the side effects I got were transient, and the ones that weren't were mostly just annoying.

It's pretty much weight-neutral, and I actually had the added benefit of not being hungry all the time on the higher doses.

Starting a new drug can be kind of nerve-wracking, yes. I go through it myself. Try to take it one day at at time and not obsess and stress over each little thing, as much as you're able.

I wish you luck!

Mimi

[Batou]

Lamictal has been bery, bery good to me.

It did take me a while to get to a therapeutic dose but it has been worth it.

I hade some headaches whenever I upped my dose but it was just a side eeffect and went away. I also had some muscle aches from time to time but they also disappeared.

Lamictal has been completely weight neutral for me.

I hope you also benefit.

Good luck.

[rayzunkane]

Lamictal gave me cravings for sweets like I had not experienced in ages.  It was the first time in 3 years I had actually bought a candy bar out of the snack machine at work.

Then I was not able to get over the death of a boy who was my sons friend, gained 25 lbs in 4 months, and became so distraught I had the pdoc take me off it. 

I have MDD, not BP, maybe that's the difference.

kane

[Anne]

That's my issue...my pdoc is not totally sure if I am BPII; but definitely MDD.  Story of life; I am always borderline EVERYTHING, except for depression.  That we know I have, and it is a stubborn beast.  So, I pick up my prescription this am and start it.

Can you notice SE's right away?  I have to go to this "women's breakfast" with my mom at her church this am and don't want to be the freak 

[Todd]

Hi Anne:

During my course of Lamictal therapy, I have never experienced any side effects. Zero. Zip. Nada. The only thing that I have ever noticed with Lamical is that it helps me tremendously. I hope your ride is as smooth.

Best of luck.

Todd.

[rayzunkane]

I did not notice the sweets cravings until after the 4th month when my jeans didn't fit.  Everything else seemed stable - not better, not worse.  I kept waiting for it to work.

One day after about 3 months I realized I felt better and it continued the next day.  After those two days when I felt really good, it was like the good feeling went away.

I had been on it 4 full months when my son's friend died and it hit me hard.  I couldn't get a hold of my emotions.  I went to see my pdoc and could barely speak I was crying so hard.

I have been off it about 6-8 weeks, the sweets cravings are gone and my emotional outbursts are limited to getting teary eyed. 

kane

[Fiona]

I've found Lamictal very helpful. It's slowed my amazingly rapid drops from feeling lousy to kill-myself-now-now-now, at least enough for me to do something to make sure I would be safe. And after a while, I think it helped prevent my reaching all the way to the bottom completely -- but that may have been an antidepressant actually working. I live on the depression end of life.

Fiona

[clumsycrawling]

I've found Lamictal to be very helpful. I take 300 mg along with 525 mg Effexor (which had pooped out but seems to be working again after a month-long vacation from it). It has helped pull me out of a really terrible 18-month severe-to-moderate depressive episode during which I tried to kill myself. I feel better than I've felt in the 13 years I've been taking Effexor. I can't say I'm grateful to be alive, but then again I don't remember ever feeling that way since as far back as my first "suicide attempt" at 5 years old.

I'm so grateful to my pdoc for trying this med on me -- for xmas I'm making him a scroll of the past 6 months of my mood charts so he can see the big picture of exactly how much he's helped me (even though he knows this from our biweekly sessions). I absolutely love him for this.

[aimees]

I had a very bumpy road with Lamictal.  I had MANY side effects...rapid cycling, muscle aches, headaches and two miserable migraines, but I worked through all of that.  And today, at 200mgs, I feel more stable than I have in years.  After each dose increase, I had some side effects.  I still have an occasional headache, but , for me, the occasional headache isn't worth stopping my Lamictal.

I have gained a few pounds while on Lamictal, but I am not blaming the Lamictal for the gain and I don't feel that it causes me to crave a particular food.  My weight gain was from finally getting off diet pills (I had a 2 1/2 year addiction to diet pills) and I am a binge eater, so I blame those issues for my weight gain...well that and a short stint on Seroquel. 

I wish you great success with Lamictal.

aimee

[Guest shigg]

Like everything else, it is not a perfect drug; there are no perfect medications.

I am not Bipolar; I have re-curring depression, high anxiety and ADD.

The Lamictal helps a whole lot with my depression and anxiety. It made me more anxious at times when I increased the dose, especially up to 100mg, which is my thearaputic level. I combat that with a benzo.

Side effects for me: Zoloft shrunk up my testicles and flacid state of my penis, decreased my sex drive and made me feel dull at times emotionally (detached or hollow). Lamictal was the opposite...it is activating for me, and for some reason, my testicles have grown, and my flacid penis too, and everything is hanging very loose down there, which is nice. I noticed my hair got thinner on Lamictal, but I'm not going bald. Weight neutral all the way. Lamictal also turned my auburn hair more dark brown, almost black, no kidding. I have no idea why Lamictal produces these side effects for me in particular.

My favorite part of Lamictal is how it has re-awakened my creative juices and makes me feel artistic again.

I take Klonopin (generic) for additional anxiety coverage, and Adderall for energy and focus.

I like my cocktail, and Lamictal is an important ingredient for me.

I think if one is truly Bipolar, Lamictal may need an additional mood stabilizer, from what I've heard. I think for Unipolar Depression, it is awesome.

best

shigg

[revlow]

Anne:

Very weird...I posted something here earlier today. Saw it go up, no problem. Just came back and...poof...it's gone. Oh well. Strange.

[Mechante]

Lamictal helped me somewhat in the depression spectrum at 300mg but it's looking like I'm going to need an AD to take me the rest of the way. As for side effects, just headaches every time we increase the dose.

[MiaB]

I had a scare with the rash, but apart from that it's been pretty helpful in conjunction with Trileptal.  The headaches bug me - I still have one after titrating up to 400mg a couple of weeks ago.  Completely weight neutral for me.

Good luck! My best advice would be to titrate up to the therapeutic dose as slowly as possible.  It took me 6-8 weeks to do it b/c I was so nervous, and my pdoc was quite happy to let me do this.

[Anne]

Your responses have been helpful and I feel much less fearful than I did earlier.  I took my first dose yesterday morning (25mg which I will take in the am for 2 weeks).  I think the only thing I really felt from it was sleepiness.  I yawned all day.  I did have a headache, but I woke up with it before I even took the Lamictal, so who knows about that.  I am a very headache ridden person, so I hope this doesn't make it worse.

For those of you who already were suffering from headaches & migraines, did this make it worse?

[MiaB]

For those of you who already were suffering from headaches & migraines, did this make it worse?

I'm afraid so...

[revlow]

For those of you who already were suffering from headaches & migraines, did this make it worse?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It did for me. But again I stress, the extra "Lamictal" headaches did go away. Plus a lot of people don't even get them. So try not to buy yourself trouble. And if do you get any SEs, come back here and you'll be able to get feedback and help.

For some people Lamictal is activating, for others it can be sedating. Some people take it in the morning, others at night, others split up their doses. (I take mine at night.) So if you find it makes you sleepy, take it at night. The important thing is to just take it at the same time every day.

Hang in there. Keep up posted.

revlow

[Anelize]

Lamictal has been a great drug for me as part of my cocktail.  I've had zero, zip, nada side effects from it.  My initial dose was 200 mg, and I think I got there over a period of a month.  That held me for about 3 months, at which time I cycled into a depression that stayed with me.  My pdoc had me bump up to 300, and then 400, which was successful.

I continue at 400, and am currently stable at that dose.

[Artchick]

I really like Lamictal. I hated a few of the other mood stablilizers. I've been taking 100 mg for about a year as part of a cocktail and this week I started on 200mg (I titrated up) because I was having some depression breaking through. I also take 300mg Effexor, 100mg Zoloft and 1mg Risperdal.

I've had no side effects. I don't think it affected my weight either way. I've lost 12 lbs on it but that also took a lot of diet and exercise.

[ncc1701]

Heya,

I love my lamictal.

At 25mg it fixed my sleep and got rid of my nightmares.

It's only getting better since.  Killed my constant rage outright.  Improved my focus so I can read again.  My FP and DH both say I'm calmer and slowed down.  I think I have more insight, and more ability to do some of these self-help exercises.

Side effects:

--yes, it makes me sleepy, so I only take it in the evening, and I'm not safe to drive for a few hours, but who the hell cares, I'm sleeping.

--messed up my periods for a few cycles -- I'm on Marvelon for birth control -- and I had some mid-cycle spotting a couple of times.  This seems to have settled down.

--endurance at the gym went down for a few weeks, which was unexplained until people on CB started talking about it.  This also went away.

--brief upsurge in acne, likely for the same hormonal reasons as the messed-up periods.  This sucked altogether but also went away.

People here have had a wide range of experiences at all different doses of Lamictal.  Hope yours is a good one!

--ncc--

[NARS]

First of all, page down on this forum and you'll see half a dozen threads with more answers to your specific question, as well as all kinds of discussions on adjunct stabilizers.

For me, yes to SEs for the first few days after dose increases.  Surprising sleepiness at first, which went away after I got to like 50.  And activation, mild manic symptoms, up to 200.  At 200 they went away.  Had headaches while titrating up, but since getting to 200 have actually had fewer headaches than before.

Lamictal has been bery, bery good to me.

Me too.  Only problem is almost definitely linked to 300 of wellbutrin I take with it.  I'm cycling slightly.  Another issue is using progesterone and estradiol.  They're in cream form, but still I've been lower than before since adding the estradiol.  Oral estradiol causes the lamictal to clear out faster, so I suspect I'm getting dips.  If you're on BC, you'll have to take more lamictal than if you weren't because of this effect.  I also have hot flashes, so maybe that's part of the problem.  Sigh.

But even so, I feel better on lamictal than I have since puberty.  Motivated, creative, cheerful, my memory is better, my social and performance anxiety is better.  If anything my weight has slowly been dropping because I'm so much more active on lamictal, even though I'm not going to the gym.  It's a wonder drug for me.  I may need to add another stabilizer and/or drop the wellbutrin (new pdoc visit on the 16th), but they'd have to pry my lamictal from my cold, dead fingers.

[witchywoman]

I've been on 25mg for almost a week.  So far, the only side effect I've had is sleepiness.  Yesterday and today, though, I haven't been very tired.  Also, Im already noticing a difference in how I feel.  Im not as depressed and my mood is better.  Im not sure if its a placebo effect, or if it could be the Abilify I started the same day as the Lamictal, or a combo of the two.

Anyway, so far, I have no complaints.  Im very hopeful this drug combo Im on now will be the one to make me better.  Good luck with the Lamictal. 

[firedancer]

I love my Lamictal!  I am beginning to feel more stable than I have in years.  I'm at 100mg and will be titrating up to 200mg (per my neuro) if my pdoc approves it.  As far as S/E I had the headache, muscle aches, sleepiness and diarrhea, but they all when away.  I have chronic migraines (2-3/week) so I cannot attest to whether or not they make them worse.  But my neuro wants me to go up to 200mg because he said he has used Lamictal successfully with migraine patients to help relieve chronic migraines.  We will see.

[Anne]

So today is my 3rd day on 25 mg on Lamictal.  And I feel good -- in fact, I feel great; maybe too great.  I'm a little concerned; but on the other hand, I feel more stable and even keel than I have, I think, my whole life (and I'm 43 years old).  Probably a big placebo effect for now; I don't know.  But today at work I was just thinking all morning how good I felt, and then all of sudden, I started feeling restless and nervous -- not crabby, just restless.  I had to take .25 mg of Xanax, and then I was fine.  What do you all make of this?  I'm not too concerned, but maybe a little.

Thanks again for all your input!

[Guest billycat]

hi, I am currently on 300mg.    my pdoc took me up to the 300 when fall began.

Was at 200 for about 6 months.......300 is really the best I have felt in a very long time.    However, I too suffer with terrible migraines......they have changed since starting the Lamictal  they don't always begin on the same side of my head as they always did...and I don't always get the occular  'sparkles' that I see in the periphial.      they also seem to be much more powerful.  My pdoc has been working mostly with different doses of welbutrine...I just went down to 150 mg.

and not much change......If you are prone to headaches what I would suggest is

to keep a journal and document as much as you can about the headaches.

I cna totally empithize with anyone who suffers with migraines.

I hope you continue to do well on the lamictal.

[Guest luli2545]

I started 2.5 weeks ago at 25 mg every other day; am also on depakote 500 mg, effexor 225. I had bad depression for a few months on the depakote and effexor alone. So pdoc said to take lamictal; I was a little scared to take it. I think pdoc is having me get up to 200 lamictal, and get OFF the depakote.

I googled stuff about lamictal. Can't recall much about how it works. I'm thinking some folks use it as monotherapy and others use it with an anti depressant.

It helped almost right away reducing some of the depression. I'm not weepy 3 times a week; am able not to take stuff so seriously at times.

Anyone taking it along with depakote? and why the heck would my effexor flake out on me... like I felt pretty stable with effexor and depakote for about a year.

I guess I'm just checking in about it. I'm liking it. I am eating more, which is good for me, cause I wasn't eating enough.

If I do ok at a dose of lamictal less than 200, think I can talk with pdoc and hold it there for a while? I'd like to think I could increase it if I fell into depression again. Has anyone gone on lamictal and been able to stop taking an antidepressant?

Thanks,

Luli

p.s. No headaches as side effects. I think I have tinnitus or something but maybe that will go. A little tireder maybe, but I take it at night...

[Loon-A-TiK]

I take 400mg of the stuff and have taken it since last Feb.

It keeps me feeling pretty good, if a bit on the high side.

I know that it will not stop my mania, but I hope Seroquel will (learned the hard way).

[Guest guest]

I take it at night and it makes me sleepy (I take 75mg now, not yet at full dose) but, paradoxically, I am more energized during the day. 

Sometimes I even have this ... excited feeling.  Like something  (good) is going to happen, like I have something to look forward to.  Optimism maybe, but it is a physical feeling really.  My body feels both relaxed and energized. 

I can do the dishes without feeling oppressed/depressed. And I cheerily get my kids ready for school instead of yelling at them.  My concentration has improved also.

It does seem to wax and wane, this good feeling, or maybe I am still unstable. But I have been on the depressive side for at least two years now so I'll take it as it comes.

My dx is BP II.  Before Lamictal I was on Depakote, this is is much much better so far.  (I don't know why the doc gave me Depakote when I was depressed.  It put me in a haze, I couldn't get out of bed, my hair fell out, and I developed an ovarial cyst.)

Anne- at times I also have wondered if I was feeling "too good".  But it is hard to tell when I've been depressed for so long.

[NARS]

Anne, your experience sounds exactly like mine when I started lamictal.  I too thought it must be a placebo effect, but I was wrong--it only got better & more stable from there.  I too thought I might be feeling "too good" but I was wrong about that too.  Bouncing back from depression, and having my motivation and cognitive function restored was wonderful; I've never felt clearer.  But I too had the jitteriness, and it went away.

Good luck on it!

[Guest luli2545]

Hi folks,

Unregistered Guest, how long were you on the depakote? Were you also on an antidepressant of some kind? Are you now on antidepressant? (I'm on effexor 225, slowly getting off 500 depakote, slowly getting on lamictal) mdd & GAD, ptsd whatever.

I'm at the 25 mg. daily stage for lamictal.

I think Lamictal started to help the effexor work better right away at 25 mg every other day, or else I was looking forward to seeing loved ones at Thanksgiving & felt better. But was in pits for 9-12 months on above med regime.

I take Lamictal at night.

I have a small side effect of feeling like I have a tight jaw, or am clenching my teeth a little. Maybe that will pass. I don't notice it until the afternoon.

Hard to trust that "good feeling" and I so want to.

Luli

[Guest me]

Lamictal gave me cravings for sweets like I had not experienced in ages.

[Anne]

Hard to trust that "good feeling" and I so want to.

Luli

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Why is that such a big deal?  I am exactly the same way.  I always feel untrusting of feeling good -- especially since this is the best I have ever felt.  I keep thinking it's a fluke and I'm going to wake up tomorrow with the storm in my brain.

I keep asking my husband if this is the way "normal" people feel.  Since he doesn't know how "crazy" people feel, I guess he can't really answer that -- really, I guess nobody can 

Well, I so hope it's not a fluke and this is the real deal!

Anne

[Guest guest]

hi luli, I took depakote for 4 months.  Started at 250mg and was taking 500mg when I stopped. My psych said my dose was to low to experience any adverse side effects. I switched docs, the new one started me on Lamictal.  For some reason neither doc would prescribe antidepressants.

I take Campral (which is to reduce my alcohol cravings) in addition to the Lamictal.  I don't know how these might interact.

I've been lurking here for a couple weeks and I've learned so much. These boards are a great source of info.  I can't register because I'm trying to maintain strong boundaries, hope that makes sense.

[Guest luli2545]

Sure it makes sense. I get it. Hope your cravings abate. Does the med for the cravings work pretty well? How's the lamictal going?

I will just accept that the lamictal is helping. Told tdoc that I am leery since other things pooped out and if this does I am up s**t creek. But there are some other things I can do that I am not doing to support mental health yet.

Luli

[cherie]

major love/hate relationship with lamictal.  been through lots of ups and downs.  but i like 100 mg, works for my depression.  don't give up on it!!

[Victoria]

major love/hate relationship with lamictal.

[Dweii]

FWIW I attempted suicide when on Lamictal... Not saying it's bad drug, just that it didn't do much for me. I tend to need both an SSRI and a mood stabilizer to keep me from going crazy.

[unipolarbear]

So here's my two cents on Lamictal.  We titrated up to 100mg over four weeks.  and then we increased it to 150 after blood tests said that it wasn't absorbing enough.  I'm very thankful that I didn't have any rashes or headaches *knocks on wood*. It works well to curb my rapid cycling,  But, I am still having panic attacks and a lot of anxiety, though.  I read here that I should do yoga and exercise, but then I also read that people have major muscle pains on it. SO whaddaya gonna do? 

[solstar]

For me Lamictal works best at 100mg any lower didn't work.

I don't have any muscle pains but I am sleeping a lot.

I also take Abilify and Lexapro so I am not sure which med is doing it.