Lamotrigine for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder User Reviews (Page 2)

• The...
• September 16, 2013

"Been taking for five days (post-traumatic stress disorder and bipolar). I am really surprised by it, I have virtually no anxiety at all! Only 25 mg this week. Taking mirtazapine as well. Apart from insomnia, there are no side effects."

• Gwa...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• December 21, 2018

"For months I haven't been able to sleep, mind racing and unable to control my thoughts. As it turns out, I was supposed to be taking 300 mg per day, and I was only taking 100 mg. My wife sets up my meds since she tosses a lot of vitamins in along with my other meds: Lexapro, Klonopin, etc., so I never checked. I finally looked at the bottle, and holy cow, I wasn't taking enough. So, I went back up to 300 mg, and what a difference. My only side effects are yawning and sleepiness, but a couple of cups of coffee knock that out. Finally, I can sleep and can get some things done around the place instead of sitting about staring at the four walls. Thus, I would give this med a high recommendation. Granted, not everyone can handle this med without some awful reactions, but I've always tolerated meds quite well. So, choose your poison carefully. ;)"

• Inn...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• December 18, 2021

"I started this medication for possible bipolar/PTSD. I suffered a nerve injury that was very painful and treated with steroids. The combined pain and steroids obliterated my ability to sleep, even with meds. This went on for months - refractory to Ativan, Vistaril, Lunesta, Seroquel, Lexapro. I was becoming severely anxious and depressed, and still trying to hold my job on 2 hours of sleep. Eventually, I began to break down. I got another psych opinion, and the suggestion was Lamictal. I escalated gradually, starting with pediatric doses, all the way to 200 mg. I was using 15 mg of Ambien to sleep in the beginning. That dropped to 10 mg pretty quickly, then 7.5 mg, 5 mg, and then 2.5 mg in divided doses through the night. By 8 weeks, I had my first drug-free night of sleep in 8 months. That was about a year and a half ago. I've tapered to 150 mg, and I'm shooting for 100 mg. I'm not sure if what I have is really bipolar or PTSD, but Lamictal gave me my life back."

• Lam...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 25, 2024

"I really recommend this medication. I took 200 mg for one year, and it worked really well until I got COVID. I have ME/CFS, which makes me very vulnerable to new infections. I felt that COVID really messed up my body and mind. After having post-COVID for over two years now, I finally talked to my doctor, and we decided to increase the dose, very slowly, to 300 mg. If that works well, maybe my target dose can be 400 mg. I know that dose works well for many people. People with both complex PTSD and ME/CFS often need higher doses than 'the standard dose'. I just wanted to share my experience. I really believe it can help a lot of people if more doctors would know about the mechanism behind the drug and how to dose according to what kind of problems their patients are dealing with. Love to all of y'all!"

• Jor...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 2, 2023

"Lamotrigine is a wonder drug! In the past, I have tried both Prozac and Wellbutrin. Prozac made me feel like a zombie, and Wellbutrin made me feel like the angriest person in the world all the time. When I started on Lamotrigine, I was skeptical, but to my pleasant surprise, it worked! I still have anxiety surrounding my triggers, but now I am in a spot where my baseline isn't fear and somatic symptoms. Lamotrigine has helped me get to a place where I have the energy and clear mind to improve both my PTSD and life as a whole."

• Bub...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 15, 2019

"I have been taking lamotrigine for two weeks now (PTSD), and my psychiatrist wants me to up it every week until I hit 100 mg. I’m on week 2 at 50 mg, and I feel much calmer. My anxiety is a bit higher, and I tend to overthink about small situations. My vision is a bit more blurry (which sucks because I’m already blind as a bat, lol!), and my balance and coordination are off. But overall, I’m in a better mood, no panic attacks, no flashbacks, or negative feelings. I’m much more patient with my kids, and I actually want to do more with them now than I have before. I recommend this medication to others to try for PTSD or any other reason they have it available for. I can’t wait to see how I feel on 100 mg, and once these side effects calm down, if they ever do. In the end, the side effects are worth the outcome of the medication."

• Don...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 19, 2021

"I have CPTSD with some bipolar II symptoms, but not too strong. I've just reached 100 mg of lamotrigine, and after a week, was amazed with results. I feel calmer, but not numb. I actually feel like I'm not taking any chemicals. The only downfall is its increased insomnia and not needing to sleep as long. However, no other side effects. My doctor is happy for me to remain at this dosage as long as it keeps working. I've tried Seroquel, lithium, sodium valproate, Cipramil, and this is 100% compared to other meds that gave side effects. I'm thrilled. Doesn't mess with libido or weight gain/loss, absolutely nothing for me. Definitely the right med for me. Highly recommend for PTSD. Way better than an antidepressant by far."

• Anonymous
• October 1, 2020

"Been on lamotrigine 25 mg for a week now, no side effects as of yet! Hopefully, it will stay that way! I have EUPD (emotionally unstable personality disorder) and complex PTSD. My mood has been good, and no really bad depression days, but it's only early days, hopefully, it works."

• Nic...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 11, 2022

"I have PTSD from prolonged sexual abuse and the aftermath of speaking up about it when I was younger. I also had noticed a very defined mood/energy cycle for many years, but because the cycle was fairly rapid and the energetic end of it was anxiety, agitation, and what I called 'energetic sadness' with suicidal thoughts. There had been four major recurrences of PTSD symptoms in my life since the things happened 25 years ago, and the most recent lasted 3 years and was the worst. During this time, the energetic side of the cycle would cause suicidal ideation. When the episode subsided, the underlying cycle became more extreme in some ways, while most of the suicidal thoughts had decreased. I was on Vyvanse for ADHD as well. I talked to my psychiatrist about the cycle a few times, and when it got more extreme, she said it sounded like cyclothymia, so she started me on Lamotrigine. All symptoms are gone. If this is happiness, then I've never been happy before! It's like a new life!"

• R M...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 29, 2018

"Lamotrigine was prescribed to me in combination with an SSRI for unipolar depression. I am also diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. I have noticed lamotrigine helped tremendously with my symptoms of hypervigilance, which are much less severe today. It also helps me with depressive episodes. I rarely fall into depressive states where I cannot function, and when I do, they are much shorter than they used to last. Sadly, I haven't seen any improvement in avoidance symptoms, but I didn't expect it to help this symptom of PTSD in the first place. It might also be important to note that I don't have a history of manic symptoms."

• Bri...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 11, 2021

"This had had a life-changing effect, and I couldn't describe it any other way. I had to come on here and make a review. Before taking this, I was scared to leave my house, scared of people, dealing with all sorts of issues. Would have panic attacks daily, silent scream in the shower to get all the emotions out, my body was in chronic pain from all of the anger and big feelings. I'm just telling you this to describe HOW BAD it was. 25 mg of lamotrigine, and I feel like a normal human being. I no longer have to worry about what I will wake up like. If I'll be in a bad mood or a good mood. I'm just... stable. For the first time in my life. My muscle pain melted away, I can stand up straight, I've maybe had one mild panic attack in 2 weeks (and that was because of external stress issues). The only side effects were some diarrhea and insomnia, which is going away. Before, I had so much anger in me that I could see people being extra cautious around me. Now, people are responding to me differently. I am a happier person now."

• Tha...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 18, 2024

"I was in foster care, sexually and emotionally abused. My brother died; I saw his dead body months after my dad died of cancer, in which I watched him dying in my living room basically. The sexual abuse was the worst from 5 to 10 years old, and it was my brother who died. My college always prescribed antidepressants and didn't even mention anything about PTSD (I wrote them a long letter). I had antidepressants making me want to kill myself more. I threw them out and weight lifted, and that helped, but I started seeking out substances (alcohol and some drugs) to avoid the flashbacks and relax. That all led to a DUI, in which that night I blacked out from PTSD after being triggered by a song. I recall wanting to crash my car into a tree; mental health was getting worse. I could function; I had jobs. I just masked and survived a lot. I got put on 150 mg of lamotrigine, and it's AMAZING. Grateful for my DUI. Finally got help and relieved from the mental hell of CPTSD."

• ABA...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 16, 2021

"(I have PTSD from multiple sexual assaults.) I had been taking Lexapro and bupropion for depression/anxiety for the past 7-8 years. My new psychiatrist suggested stopping these and being put on lamotrigine to help with my depressive cycles and panic attacks and just to stabilize my mood and trauma responses. I went up gradually, from 25 mg to 50 mg to 100 mg, and just started 150 mg. I had a panic attack and self-harm incident after starting this medication, but overall I am not as triggered by things, and my response time to hard situations has gone down to 6 minutes to an hour or two compared to taking me out for days at a time. I was really reluctant at first since this was a mood stabilizer, but it's the only thing that's worked for my PTSD."

• Jay...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• January 29, 2023

"I've been taking lamotrigine 200 mg for a while now. I originally started it as some of the other drugs I was taking were giving me terrible withdrawal symptoms if I had missed a dose. If I miss a dose of lamotrigine, it doesn't seem to make my condition worse and takes me half the day to notice that I'm becoming more irritable than normal. Lamotrigine has improved my reactions to events that would previously have put me on edge and has improved my mood. I am able to maintain a better version of myself for longer and have more trust in myself around people."

• lif...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 22, 2024

"Current working diagnosis, treatment-resistant depression and cPTSD or BPD. ---- I have been on so many SSRIs and SNRIs trying to manage debilitating depression and anxiety symptoms for years. Zoloft, Lexapro, Prozac, Pristiq, Cymbalta, Effexor. Nothing seemed to help. My depression and anxiety kept getting worse. I was swinging wildly back and forth with mood, but often horribly depressed. Everything started getting worse while I was on Lexapro, buspirone, and Lamotrigine at the same time. I started getting bad visual hallucinations, horrible paranoid delusions, horrific nightmares. Life was getting dark. I came off the Lexapro, stayed on buspirone twice a day, stayed on Lamotrigine, went up 25mg to 125 a day. I think this saved my life. My hallucinations are way down. So is my anxiety. I'm sleeping every night, at least 7 or 8 hours. When I was bad off, I was getting maybe 3 or 4 hours of sleep a night. The lamotrigine has balanced me out so well. I think this could help!"

• ald...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 1, 2022

"I have been taking Lamotrigine for about 2 months now for anxiety, PTSD, and dissociative symptoms. Along with Effexor XR, this drug really does the trick for depersonalization and derealization. Effexor decreased intensity a lot, but the addition of Lamictal decreased it even more to where I can function a whole lot better. I feel more grounded in the present moment, and I’m starting to feel emotions again. It feels like it keeps my brain in check when I’m anxious, and my brain wants to dissociate me. I used to get a lot of head pressures, but now I don’t experience those pressures anymore. This drug was a miracle, but watch out for some side effects. When I got to 200 mg, I experienced short-term memory loss, and I could not focus. After 3 weeks, though, it has improved a lot; seems to be clearing up. Anyway, if you have PTSD, give it a try! It might save you!"

• KOS...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 13, 2021

"After multiple antidepressants (and combinations) were unsuccessful in shutting down chronic flashbacks and intrusive thoughts, lamotrigine has been a game-changer. Still some intrusive thoughts, but they are manageable now. Flashbacks have stopped, almost completely. I have my brain back and feel like I can now rebuild my life."

• S79...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 14, 2019

"After 2 or 3 days on lamotrigine, I began experiencing the worst abdominal pain ever! Day 4, I began vomiting blood. Took many months for the stomach ulcers to heal. Almost a year later, I still am prone to gastritis."

• mtc...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 25, 2015

"I've been on lamotrigine for a month. I keep losing my temper. My wife moved out a month ago too. She got tired of my anger. I yell at people over stupid shit that they had nothing to do with. I'm losing faith and hope quickly."

• Ano...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 13, 2023

"Lamotrigine/Lamictal appears to be working really well for my high baseline panic/anxiety concurrent with PTSD. My symptoms have become more manageable. The side effects I've experienced are grogginess, some blurred vision, headaches, and increased appetite, but they're well tolerated after a month. I'm on 25mg for 5 weeks, increasing to 50mg now. I'm grateful for this off-label use and hope it proves to be effective for me in the long term."

• nai...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 3, 2020

"I have C-PTSD, depression, anxiety, depersonalization/derealization, and my condition is constantly worsening over the past two years. As you can imagine, I've already tried numerous drugs with mostly pretty bad side effects and no benefits at all. So I was really hopeful that this time it would be different, also because it apparently helped so many others with various conditions. But again, I was disappointed. I started with 25 mg lamotrigine and went up to 300 mg, and still it did nothing. In the beginning, I didn't have any side effects either. Lately, I have nausea, headaches, dizziness, muscle pain, and another weird thing: always when I close my eyes, I see bright colors. But I think all these things are rather because of my ongoing deteriorating health situation than because of this drug. I wish you more luck!"

• Von...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 22, 2021

"Started with 50 mg and have gone up to 75 mg at night and in the morning. I got a rash, they put me back down to 50 mg, said it was probably bug bites due to my homeless situation, but it’s clearly not, because on the 50 mg at night and in the morning was fine, no rash. And now they are putting up my meds yet again. It’s starting to feel like they’re purposely trying to give me Steven Johnson’s syndrome. And boy oh boy, if I do get it and I’ve got it for life, I’m going after my prescriber. Apart from that, I feel the meds are doing their job, but only at 50 mg at night and 50 mg in the morning."

• Kal...
• May 23, 2013

"First dose 25mg, first day, have not felt this good for 15 years. Absolutely amazing effect on mood, energy level and pain. Thank you to my very smart doctor."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 24, 2017

"Best things stabilize my mood."

• Sus...
• June 30, 2015

"I have taken this for 5 days and it's not working."