Fycompa for Epilepsy User Reviews (Page 2)

• NYY...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 7, 2017

"I take Fycompa together with Vimpat, lamotrigine, and levetiracetam. These drugs have made me seizure-free. I had video EEG monitoring, and this changed my life. My neurologist determined the lobe of my brain that was involved and placed me on the correct meds. If any of you cannot become seizure-free, please ask your doctor to consider video EEG monitoring. Without this, I would still have seizures."

• Zoe...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• November 1, 2022

"I started taking Fycompa about five years ago. I was on high doses of Keppra and Lamictal, and I still had seizures. Fycompa 6 mg was added, and my life changed for the better. Between all three medications, I do have side effects, but I am able to handle them. My neurologist and Fycompa gave me back my life."

• Kim...
• December 2, 2022

"All I can say is thank you. My son has struggled with seizures most of his life span that we can remember. The combination of Depakote and Fycompa has been incredible in treating absence seizures and grand mal! He has been seizure-free since he started the Fycompa! Thank you, I feel like I have my son back for only 10 dollars a fill!"

• 197...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• March 19, 2017

"Good points: reduced my seizures and made me feel overall a lot more confident. If I ever had a seizure, I tended to know when it might occur and my 'trigger' points. Bad points: It made me in some ways overconfident, to the point of feeling careless. Not so much suicidal, but thoughtless and self-indulgent. I would get angry easily. I work in a professional place and therefore had to taper down from it, though I am still on a low dose."

• Anonymous
• February 5, 2018

"I have been on every medication, and Fycompa was the worst. I was prescribed 2 mg in the morning and evening. I would get so dizzy that I could not stand and walk. I do not think my Vimpat and Fycompa mixed well. On my own, I started cutting both so that I did not take them together. The dizziness was less, I could at least function but was still a little dizzy. Now my new doctor is having me take Fycompa every other day for 10 days and then take me off the Fycompa. He said that medicine lasts for 300 hours, yes, 300."

• Dav...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• June 13, 2017

"My son had a tough case of seizures that generally occurred overnight, and we had difficulty achieving seizure control. After exhausting many meds, a doctor told us we'd have a 3% chance of finding a medicine that would control his seizures. The seizures started right when he turned 4; he's now 5. Eventually, the cocktail of Fycompa and oxcarbazepine did the trick; 10 months seizure-free and counting. Also interesting to note is that he and I both have a genetic variant of unknown significance on the CACNA1A gene. I've never had seizures, but he has. He is experiencing side effects, most noticeably, he gets groggy after taking the Fycompa and oxcarbazepine before bed. Also, mood swings and behavior, but part of that is being 5."

• Wen...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 18, 2023

"Started on 2mg and increased gradually to 10mg (recently). My seizures have decreased very slightly which I'm very pleased with. Side effects are feeling dizzy, can't walk straight, slurred speech and make me feel very tired and relaxed. I take it at night before bed, so by morning I'm back to normal. I take Clobazam and Tegretol at night and Tegretol in the morning. I do not drink alcohol and do not have any suicidal thoughts or aggression."

• Tba...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 26, 2021

"The only AED that helps me sleep deeply. On 2 others as well, and until placed on Fycompa, I slept poorly. Made me dizzy, tired, and anxious at first, however, those side effects dissipated. Still sleepy in the mornings, but that is to be expected being on any combination of AEDs."

• SeC...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 16, 2020

"I have been on this Fycompa for a month, 4 mg for LGS/rare epilepsy. It has caused severe restlessness. I have called to see if I can be taken off it. Hopefully, I will get the call soon, and it will be possible."

• Phi...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 6, 2022

"A little background for context first: 39-year-old male with right temporal lobe epilepsy. Focal point evolving to secondarily generalized convulsive tonic-clonic seizures. Over 15 years of uncontrolled seizures. I had 3 open brain surgeries since March 2020, two temporal lobe resections and a hematoma evacuation. Continuing to have convulsive seizures, every six weeks on average. Current AED regimen: 150 mg Briviact 2x daily and 6 mg Fycompa nightly. I have been on Fycompa for 6 weeks now and continue to have focal point seizures and occasional G.T.C. seizures. The first and primary side effect I noticed was overwhelming sedation. Even for seizure drugs, I’ve never been so “drugged” feeling. I take it before bed and wake up extremely sedated. I’ve noticed that it takes about 16 hours from dosing until I can function. It also messes with my stomach and gives serious balance and gait problems after dosing. I wouldn’t recommend this drug for anything but a last resort treatment."

• fyc...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 29, 2024

"Pros: seizure-free for 3 weeks, best I've gotten in a long time. However, this is on polytherapy with two other medicines. Cons: extremely irritable, more than I have ever been, biting myself in anger sometimes. Sometimes in anger, I imagine killing my dog when he's annoying me, however, I retain reason and know that would not be a good thing. Periodic extreme vertigo to the point of being unable to walk. Despite these side effects, my view of right/wrong has not changed, and I am not actually considering doing these things. However, I find myself thinking about these things far more than I should, over and over, for most of the day. Excellent medicine... if these side effects go away after a few more weeks."

• Ahm...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• May 30, 2022

"Before anything, many thanks to the organizers of this wonderful website. I've only been taking this medication for 10 days and gone from 2 ml to 4 ml. I was greatly affected by (abdominal gas, difficulty defecation, increased appetite, severe pain in the lower back, and pain in the left side of the body from the shoulders to the feet). I tested it with Vitamin B12 and saw improvement. I've taken many medications before, most recently and still Vimpat, which has greatly affected my memory and focus. Friends call me Alzheimer's. My main problem is the seizure after ejaculation and sex. I then go into insomnia for a period of between 1 week to a month, and then the seizure comes after eating any meal directly or at bedtime. I have not yet found a doctor who can determine the causes and know the final treatment."

• Sar...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• April 14, 2025

"I am on 4 mg of Fycompa every night. I rate this drug extremely high as it has stopped my seizures for 7 years now. The side effects regarding dizziness, sleepiness, and hunger come shortly after taking the drug. I immediately go to sleep once I've taken it as I cannot function properly once the drug is working. I believe that the side effects I experience for that short while every night are well worth it for being seizure-free."

• not...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 18, 2017

"This medicine has made me more angry than usual, and it doesn't help with my seizures. It also makes me sleepier than usual."

• Dha...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• May 7, 2017

"Started on this medication during its study phase. Just makes me really tired and in a 'fog' in the morning. If still up an hour after taking it, I sometimes feel 'drunk', balance is altered."

• nev...
• January 6, 2017

"Frequent bowel movements, later diarrhea, especially during the morning. Hard to tell if it helped my seizures, as I had 4 seizures in a 5-month period."

• Kw6...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 26, 2022

"This is a very good medicine for epilepsy, but it makes me hungry, off balance, and sleep for almost 10 hrs."

• Dha...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• April 19, 2017

"I started on it during its study phase. The only side effects are it makes me very tired, and it does take me longer to wake up. I think it is an awesome medication."

• Ros...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 28, 2021

"This is the worst drug for kids. The side effects are real. I do not recommend it for anyone, it causes mental problems. This is an awful drug and should not be on the market."

• Hei...
• June 7, 2024

"I had daily seizures until Fycompa. Thank God for Fycompa."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 30, 2022

"Good med. I like it. It has helped me a lot. It has not been a problem as far as side effects. I feel pretty good and have had no problems since I started taking it."

• Ker...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 25, 2022

"Was on it one month and stopped. Worst med I’ve ever taken. Caused severe memory and concentration issues. Was even let go from my job due to the side effects."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 9, 2022

"I had to increase the mg slowly and have found it made me extremely tired or dizzy when not taken with food. Overall, I have gone from 5 seizures a month to 2 in the past 8 months and am on 6 mg."