Oxcarbazepine for Bipolar Disorder User Reviews (Page 5)

• Anonymous
• February 16, 2009

"I started taking this medication about a year after I'd been on bupropion with no lessening of depression. After 6 months on oxcarbazepine minimum dosage, I stopped drinking. Had to increase dosage to 900 mg/day (I'm one who really doesn't like having to take medicines). I've been clean/sober for 18 months and tried to get off both medicines mentioned in a week. Nearly relapsed, so went back to former dosages. Doctor suggested reducing dosage of bupropion over a year. I decided to stay on full dosage unless I lose my job/insurance. No more suicidal thoughts or that feeling like my brain is going down a dirt road. I'm not sure I'd label myself bipolar, but this does seem to help a lot."

• Def...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 14, 2014

"My dose is 900 mg twice a day. Been on nearly every medication out there. Due to side effects and allergies, this was the last medicine before trying lithium. I am a 100% disabled veteran, so I receive my healthcare from the VA. Also take Lorazepam 1 mg three times a day and Sertraline 100 mg in the morning. Trazodone and Prazosin to sleep. Hard to treat bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, I guess."

• Swe...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 1, 2020

"This medication, Trileptal, has made my moods extremely stable in a short time. It also is helping with my anxiety, PTSD, and acne (dries the skin). So glad that I switched from Lamictal. However, I'm extremely frightened by the blood disorders this medication sometimes causes (loss of red blood cells, immune cells, and/or platelets). But on balance, it seems safer with less risk of skin rashes/encephalitis than Lamictal. Won't assign a number value but wanted to offer a bipolar review as none here yet & will update with further feedback later. PS may actually help my hair thicken & shampooing much less often, big relief in summer."

• Yee...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 29, 2022

"It helped quite a bit the first couple of months, but I am now noticing a severe reaction when I happen to miss them. From the moment I wake up the next morning, I am a ticking time bomb, I'm violent, angry, depressed, suicidal. I honestly fear for myself and others when I happen to miss the meds. The only downfall when I am on them is that I almost feel emotionless and a severe lack of empathy."

• Sad...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 20, 2018

"I have been taking this for bipolar disorder, and it works great for me as a mood stabilizer if you find that perfect dose. It helps a lot with the manic mostly. No side effects from this for me. I take it in conjunction with another mood stabilizer and a couple of antidepressants to keep everything regulated."

• Kat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 15, 2021

"I have been battling severe mixed states for over a decade with my bipolar II diagnosis. I started a low dose of oxcarbazepine about three weeks ago, and while it does help your brain more or less 'relax,' it also strips it of any creativity or motivation. I have been sleeping better but feel like I am in a constant haze. I will have therapy sessions or doctor's visits and not remember any points from the conversation. For this drug to be considered mild compared to other meds seems inconceivable to me. I think this medication would be helpful for those in manic episodes, but because I am battling severe depression, I do not think it's going to be a long-term solution as it strips me of wanting to do what little hobbies I enjoy doing anymore. Also, my skin is a nightmare. I prayed the listed acne side effect would not select me as a victim, but it indeed did. I am breaking out like an 8th grader in puberty."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• July 31, 2012

"I am not really sure if this medicine is working as well as it could. I feel better since I started taking it, but I still have serious manic days around my period. So much so that I am not allowed to work during those few days. I also wake up with shaky hands, and my teeth chatter until the medicines kick in. When my dosage was higher (I take 600 mg twice a day), I would have a half hour of being seriously high, and I was unable to walk around. It would feel as if I had a really strong eyeglass prescription."

• VAb...
• October 28, 2009

Oxcarbazepine "This medicine was given to me as I was being taken off an antidepressant and has given me headaches, nausea, joint pain, and a feeling of not being fully alert. I was started at a 1500 mg daily dose, and I think that is way too high for me. I have been at this dose for over three months, and the doctors seem to think that the side effects are outweighed by the positives. I have felt more depressed since they put me on this, but they don’t worry about that. I would rather have the antidepressants back, at least I could be a human with them."

• kbc...
• October 16, 2009

Oxcarbazepine "This medication has helped me so much, and with minimal side effects. I am also taking gabapentin and a low dose of Lexapro. This combination has finally made the difference, but everyone has a different body chemistry."

• bi_...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• June 1, 2017

"This was the first and only medication that I have used, and within 2 weeks, I noticed a difference in my manic side, and my depressive side is nil. My manic side is triggered by slow and inconsiderate drivers, which makes it easy for me to judge how well it works and if I am missing a few doses. The only downside to it is a low libido. I was taking 300 mg in the AM and 600 mg in the PM, and I just tried to up it to 600 in AM and PM. That made my libido almost nil, but it did stop the frustration with any drivers on the road. I think I will lower the meds back down to what they were or try something else."

• BAA...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 30, 2015

"I started taking this medication because Lamictal stopped working for my bipolar disorder. I'm giving this one star because this medication didn't stabilize my mood disorder, and I had side effects: dizziness, nausea, sedation. I have since switched to other medication and have been stable for many years."

• Jen...
• August 16, 2018

"I was diagnosed with bipolar II when I was 16. They started me on 1800 mg/day of Trileptal along with several other meds. I've taken it for the majority of the last 12 years. It worked wonders for me! Since it can be harmful to a fetus, I've tried several other meds, including ones that were 'safer' to be pregnant on (Lithium, Risperdal, Geodon, Abilify, Latuda, and Zyprexa along with Zoloft, Prozac, Buspar, and/or Topamax). Unfortunately, none of those ever helped my bipolar enough, so I always reverted back to Trileptal. The only side effects/negative that I've had was extreme fatigue and that it decreased the effectiveness of my birth control by approximately 40% (Lybrel/Amethyst). I was willing to deal with those to be as wonderfully stable as I was, though. I was able to feel 'normal' emotions for once. Approximately 6 months ago I decided to try Lamictal, which is in the same class as Trileptal, so I still can't get pregnant on it. It is now my go-to just because it doesn't have those 2 side effects."

• und...
• September 7, 2011

Oxcarbazepine "I have been on Trileptal for a little over a year. I was taking 1200 mg/day. On the flip side, the symptoms of dizziness and double vision I had about an hour after I took the medicine, I just dealt with because the medicine worked so great in stabilizing my moods. These two side effects never lessened. I am Bipolar 1 with one major depressive episode. I also take Wellbutrin. I am being taken off the medicine slowly due to acute hyponatremia, which hospitalized me for 3 days. I took Tegretol prior to the Trileptal. I loved the Tegretol but wanted to change because there were fewer potential side effects with the Trileptal, which is now very ironic. I will be starting Lamictal when the Trileptal is completely out of my system."

• Hen...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 12, 2019

"Lamictal didn't seem to help for my bipolar, so I figured I'd try something else. Dr. put me on Trileptal 150 mg twice daily. Within a few days, I was depressed and overwhelmed with emotions. I searched online for reasons why I was feeling this way. Apparently, I take Seroquel XR and Buspar, and I just realized that Trileptal decreases the effectiveness of those two drugs. No wonder I was miserable. Feel tired and having more anxiety than before. Headaches too. Waiting for the next visit with the doctor. Either I stick with Trileptal and start another atypical psychotic or get off the Trileptal completely. I don't like the emotional imbalance in my brain. Very scary stuff."

• Hla...
• May 23, 2017

"I have tried almost every medication on the market. I am on a cocktail. I take 1800 mg of oxcarbazepine, 600 mg three times a day, 1200 mg of lithium, 1200 mg of Topamax, and 180 mg of Geodon, and this last increase from 1200 to 1800 seems to have finally stabilized me."

• bp6...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 8, 2021

"I was on only 150 mg of oxcarbazepine for 6 weeks as a treatment for BPD and bipolar disorder. I cannot suggest enough against using this awful medication. Two weeks after I began my treatment, I developed migraine headaches daily from the moment I woke up to the moment I went to sleep. These headaches could not be stopped by any pain medication. I began to worry that something was wrong and visited my local urgent care to get blood work. As it turns out, oxcarbazepine made me severely anemic. I have never had anemia in my life, and because of this drug, I am now suffering from extreme hair loss as a result of the anemia that it caused. I am constantly fatigued and have daily headaches still after stopping the medication. Never again. Beware. Oh, and also I am under the age of 25."

• cyn...
• September 18, 2014

"Was diagnosed with Bipolar 1 12 yrs ago, took Neurontin, Lexapro, and Seroquel for 2 yrs with no problems. My P doc moved; new one weaned me off Lexapro and added Lamictal. I started getting fevers, stopped Lamictal, fevers more frequent and higher, till I woke up in an ER. Long story short, found out a month later I had NMS (Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome). My highest fever was 109 deg F. pDoc took me off Seroquel, fevers continued a while. Tried Lamictal alone, got Stevens-Johnson Syndrome. Result, I can't take any antipsychotics. Have some brain damage; can't go outside in hot weather, high blood pressure. Had bad depression, then manic episode, no sleep 8 days, therapist said I was psychotic. This was last 10 days ago. Just started Trileptal. This is my last-ditch resort."

• djr...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 31, 2017

"Very effective and low side effect profile in my experience. I didn't take my second dose by accident, and I notice a huge difference. Trileptal really helps specifically for severe mania in combination with a neuroleptic."

• Mus...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• December 18, 2021

"This is for my bipolar depression - moderate. I take about 2 or 3 of 300 mg pills of Trileptal each evening. Makes me drowsy. Helps me to sleep better. More soundly - don't wake up too much. Doctor says it helps my bipolar depression. For me, it helps my sleep and I feel better during the daytime."

• Ban...
• October 4, 2014

"I've been on at least 10 different medications for bipolar in the last 10 years. At the moment, I take Invega, Rivotril, Lamictal, and Trileptal. Trileptal was added later, about 6 months ago. Since Trileptal was added, I became noticeably less depressed and had no thoughts of suicide. My mood became more stable and less agitated. The downside is that I now have less energy and don't feel like leaving the house. From what I was feeling before, I guess having less energy is better than being depressed and constantly having suicidal thoughts. After switching all kinds of different drugs back and forth, I realized there is no perfect drug! There will be side effects and setbacks, but you just have to live with what can do the most for you."

• Noe...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• December 24, 2021

"I took it in combination with an antidepressant to stabilize my mood after a type 2 bipolar disorder diagnosis. This medication helped me a lot in the recovery and prevention of relapses towards both hypomanic and depressive episodes, which I feared enormously. I have not reported any side effects, but I recommend you add it gradually, starting from a half tablet in the evening. Another thing I recommend is to take a vitamin D supplement because, like many antiepileptics and mood stabilizers, oxcarbazepine can reduce the amount of vitamin D in your body. With the integration, no problem, however, my levels were optimal!"

• Anonymous
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• January 28, 2020

"This is a serious weight gainer. Doctor said no, but 15 pounds. This, after 30 pounds from Saphris. Very bad. Can't lose the weight and always hungry. Next, will try Vraylar, but it is also a weight gainer. Doctor will not give me Topamax."

• B D...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 11, 2021

"I'm bipolar I, and I've been taking oxcarbazepine (Trileptal) for over 3 years now and absolutely love it. It worked right away for me, and it was a revelation. My first pdoc insisted on going the anti-psychotics route, but they all had really, really nasty side effects. I'm mostly manic, but I take lamotrigine and bupropion for my depression, and they both work well together for that. The mania has been a real challenge to control. Oxcarb was the first one my new pdoc suggested, and I immediately felt it working like nothing had before. I've always been a high-strung, intense person, but this drug really smooths me out and helps me truly manage my emotions. I'm back up to 1200 mg x 2 a day for 2400 total, which is the max, but that's what works best for me. I have ZERO side effects that I can tell, unlike depakote, which worked halfway but did all kinds of weird things to me. I actually think all bipolars should start with oxcarb if possible. It's that good."

• Jos...
• August 1, 2014

"Even at the maximum dosage, this was honestly nothing more than a placebo, and I didn't feel any more balanced than I was before I got on it. After this, I took Neurontin, which was definitely better for my mood swings, although it took a pretty high dose and made me a little slow."

• the...
• September 12, 2015

"I have used it along with Trileptal, and it has really helped as a mood stabilizer, especially during the manic stage. The bad part of taking it is when my doctor did not increase the Oxtellar XR and took me off the Trileptal altogether, I had a relapse and was crying every day. I am back on the Trileptal, and my doctor is going to increase my Oxtellar XR 3 times a day and taper me off of Trileptal slowly because my sodium levels are a bit high. But other than that, no complaints."