[chloeolivia9]

I have recently been put on Lamictal for a mood disorder, not for a seizure disorder or bipolar disorder as usually prescribed. I am wondering if anyone has experienced any of the horrific side effects and what was the outcome. I would also like to hear from anyone who is on this drug and has worked wonders for them. This drug scares me, but I am hoping that is the answer to my prayers. I was thoroughly informed of a life-threatening facial rash, painful mouth sores, swollen neck glands, etc.... I also was informed that the rash could leave horrific facial scarring. Wow! That is quite a risk, I hope it is worth it. Chloeolivia9

[girl_xxvii]

I was on this drug for a while. I had a bad rash due to Lamictal. It's very rare to get a rash but it healed up with no scaring.

[morticia]

hi
my hubby has bi polar and he is on 500 mgs of lamital and it works wonders for him its a great drug for people with mood disorders or bi polar i think youll find that it works good for you too. how long have you been on it? the rash is rare thats why they start you on a low dose first. my 13 year old son take 150 mgs and let me tell ya it work wonders for him he has ADHD and inaminnit explosive d/o and what a difference it made in him . what dosage are you on?

best of luck to you hope this helps!

good luck,
Morticia[:I]

[chloeolivia9]

Thanks for your reply, Morticia. I am still titrating and on my second week. I hope this works. It was nice to hear that it not only works for mood disorders, but for ADHD as well (I am pretty sure that I have that, too. Great to hear that it works well for your loved ones. Chloeolivia9

quote:Originally posted by morticia

hi
my hubby has bi polar and he is on 500 mgs of lamital and it works wonders for him its a great drug for people with mood disorders or bi polar i think youll find that it works good for you too. how long have you been on it? the rash is rare thats why they start you on a low dose first. my 13 year old son take 150 mgs and let me tell ya it work wonders for him he has ADHD and inaminnit explosive d/o and what a difference it made in him . what dosage are you on?

best of luck to you hope this helps!

good luck,
Morticia[:I]

[awfulife]

I have a very close friend who suffers from bipolar disorder and she takes lamictal. She says that she buys her medications on www.drugdelivery.ca and that the site is really equipped with all the necessities that a patient or a curious person needs. It's in fact true. I went through that site today searching for some pain killers for migraines, and wow, it's so detailed and precise. And there is also a live chat system which gets prompted when you surf on the site for a long time. It asks if you have any queries, and you may ask whatever you feel like. Hope this helps you!!

[Iwolf]

I took it for three years - I was very happy with it. No side effects. It didn't take me all the way but it was much better than the antidepressants (I am bipolar II, mostly depressed). I am only off it because I wanted to try Topimax to deal with a weight and drinking problem.

[jenniferever]

I was put on Lamictal for "mood disorder" as well. My doc gave me the oragne starter pack to titrate up on the dose. I must say, I had serious aprehentions about taking it. It took me like 2 weeks to start it because I was so nervous. I did. Everything was fine until I reached the 200mg a day point. As soon as I started taking 200 mg a day I developed Vertigo. I was a mess, my cognitive abilities where taking a beating as well. It was bad, my doc told me to stay at 150 mg for a while. I did, then I started developing a "acne" type rash on my face. That was enough for me to throw in the towel on lamictal. I was not about to chance a "potentially fatal" rash reaction. After my face calmed down, I thought about taking it again (i don't know what i was thinking, i wanted to more for my doctor then myself). I called GlaxoSmithKline and asked about what I should do to restart it. They said it is not recommened to restart Lamictal if you had any type of skin reaction while taking it. Since there is no really way to know what caused to "rash" on my face, I can't restart it. I am glad now though. Its an expensive drug and I don't think that I REALLY needed to be on it.

[betsy_still_tokes]

My ex-boyfriend was on Lamictal for multiple personality disorder, but I won't get into the jokes about that. What did happen was he got a painful rash in his testicular/perineal region, which cleared up after a doctor prescribed a topical cream. Served him right, the cheating bastard. Best of luck!

Jesus Christ will help you through. -Betsy

[Sinden]

I'm new here and I'm so glad I found this site. I've been taking Lamictil for 2,5 yrs now and it saved my life!...no.....actually it gave me a life I never had. I suffer from temporal lobe epilepsy and bipolar with acute manic phases.It was hell to stabilize me, but it was worth it!

I've been doing great, till 2 months ago. I started getting nervious and anxious again. I couldn't concentrate for 2 minutes in a row and couldn't even read. I started to "forget", like in blackouts.

My psych try to increase it, but I got worse, then he gave me seroqual...what a desaster!...He now gave me Cymbalta, but I'm too afraid to use it. I use to get all side-effects in the book when they put me on meds!...I think I'm first gonna try hypnotherapy or something else. I'm in danger of loosing my job when I get sick of meds again.

I'll be glad to hear from someone who takes Lamictil and Cymbalta in combination.

Did anyone here ever had digestive problems while taking Lamictil?



Carpe diem!

[connieb]

quote:Originally posted by Sinden

I'm new here and I'm so glad I found this site. I've been taking Lamictil for 2,5 yrs now and it saved my life!...no.....actually it gave me a life I never had. I suffer from temporal lobe epilepsy and bipolar with acute manic phases.It was hell to stabilize me, but it was worth it!

I've been doing great, till 2 months ago. I started getting nervious and anxious again. I couldn't concentrate for 2 minutes in a row and couldn't even read. I started to "forget", like in blackouts.

My psych try to increase it, but I got worse, then he gave me seroqual...what a desaster!...He now gave me Cymbalta, but I'm too afraid to use it. I use to get all side-effects in the book when they put me on meds!...I think I'm first gonna try hypnotherapy or something else. I'm in danger of loosing my job when I get sick of meds again.

I'll be glad to hear from someone who takes Lamictil and Cymbalta in combination.

Did anyone here ever had digestive problems while taking Lamictil?



Carpe diem!

[connieb]

Four years ago I was put on Effexor, Lamictal and Seroquel ... eventually I tired of taking so many pills and decided to stop Lamictal as I suspected it was responsible for negative side effects. Seroquel was also dreadful, didn't figure that out for another three years, so I'm glad your off that. So my response is basically to your querie about adverse effects on digestion. Oh, YES! Have been trying to fix damage to stomach for over a year, and am slowly improving. Pariet has helped; but I'm trying to fix these things now with natural 'stuff'. Effoxor has practically drained my brains entirely of memory bank. Found good info. tonight on this About: Depression page, under title "Vitamins for Depression?" It fits in with what my naturopath has advised. Hope U find what U are looking for a get better. Carpe diem - You're right about that!!

quote:Originally posted by Sinden

I'm new here and I'm so glad I found this site. I've been taking Lamictil for 2,5 yrs now and it saved my life!...no.....actually it gave me a life I never had. I suffer from temporal lobe epilepsy and bipolar with acute manic phases.It was hell to stabilize me, but it was worth it!

I've been doing great, till 2 months ago. I started getting nervious and anxious again. I couldn't concentrate for 2 minutes in a row and couldn't even read. I started to "forget", like in blackouts.

My psych try to increase it, but I got worse, then he gave me seroqual...what a desaster!...He now gave me Cymbalta, but I'm too afraid to use it. I use to get all side-effects in the book when they put me on meds!...I think I'm first gonna try hypnotherapy or something else. I'm in danger of loosing my job when I get sick of meds again.

I'll be glad to hear from someone who takes Lamictil and Cymbalta in combination.

Did anyone here ever had digestive problems while taking Lamictil?



Carpe diem!

[libby_R]

hi my husband was put on lamictal and it saved not only his lifebut our family as well . he was put on it because he suffered from severe depression i mean he woul not leave the bed for days he was then given thisand within a couple weeks he came alive he was so scared that he to would get the rash but he did not. lamictal has helped him get better.si id suggest u give it a go and goodluck start living

elizabeth

[plowboy]

I have been on Lamictal for about 2 years for a seizure. Previously, i was on Dilatin. That nearly put me in a walking coma! Terrible. When i began to take Lamictal it was like waking up. I expreienced no drastic side effects, but do seem to be having some minor digestive problems. i have noticed recent dental problems in that I haven't even had a filling for the 10 years previous to Lamictal and now I am on my 3rd root canal in 2 years. No sure there is any correlation, but would appreciate any feedback. By the way, a friend of mine (bipolar0 was put on Lamictal and it made him suicidal in just a short period of time.

[pshtcarli3]

I was diagnosed with Bipolar, and then re-diagnosed between three and a half/four years ago. I've been on Lamictal ever since. I am technically A severe Bipolar patient, with manic/depressive, and I am also diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. Before Lamictal I was put on so many anti-depressants I couldn't count them because they thought I was just depressed. Lamictal was a life saver for me. I was actually sent somewhere by my mother back then. I am currently taking 600 mg a day. I am so much better than I was back then. I am no longer violent, my mind racing is so much better. All of my symptoms have improved, but they are not gone, of course. I tick, every once in a while. Which is normal for Bipolar/BPD. I just wanted to know if anyone else was on a high dosage of Lamitcal, and if they still tick and have extreme violent, etc. behavior every once in a while?
Even if you aren't on a high dosage I would still like to know about anyone being on it and having episodes? How bad they are and how often?

-Carli

[Debpurpletiger]

I also take Lamictal 200mg in the a.m. I am diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder / Depression and I find that is works pretty well for me.

You should build up to the therapeutic dose for your condition VERY SLOWLY to help NOT getting the rash.

It has worked wonders on my Depression and I would recommend it.

[bipolar_bear]

I am Bipolar I and have been on Lamictal (400 mg) for 4+ years as a combination therapy with just about every other drug in the bipolar pharmacopoeia. The Lamictal has made all the difference to me in the past few years- it has successfully kept the lid on my mood and has no side effects that I can tell. It has succeeded where many many others have failed.

After such long-term success with Lamictal, my Dr and I felt comfortable trying it as a monotherapy since she has had success with other patients. Things have been going...OK. I have definitely been more more volatile but nothing I haven't been able to manage with some visualization and relaxation exercises.

Now for the past week I have been in the gnarliest mixed state, the first and worst I have had in years. I am seeing my Dr later this week and will most certainly add something back at least temporarily (probably for the long term.) In the meantime I am taking some emergency Invega that I keep around for when my brain starts going places it shouldn't.

I say give the Lamictal a chance but pay attention to your mood as you titrate- Personally, I had to go up to 400 to keep things under wraps and a good friend of mine went full-blown manic between 200-300 mg. And as with all mood stabilizers, AD's, etc don't be surprised if the treatment effect is reduced over time.

I wish you the best of luck. Take care of yourself.