Fycompa and Drowsiness: What Users Say

• Dha...
• June 2, 2016

For Epilepsy "I have been on this medication since the study for it started. Medicaid covers it totally because I am on disability. I was taking three 4 mg pills. I now take 12 mg pills. But in my experience, it turns me into a zombie, so I take it only after I am in bed. 1-2 hours after I take my other meds or I get goofy as hell, and my partner says I slur like a very drunk person. But say I am asleep at midnight. If I wake up before 11:00 am, I will be groggy for about 2 hours unless I have breakfast."

• Mar...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• July 22, 2020

For Epilepsy "So I’ve been on Fycompa 4 mg for maybe 2 years, and it’s done a wonderful job against my seizures. Until the past 2 months, I’ve experienced 4 instances of déjà vu auras and a different type of aura I’ve never experienced. More of a hallucinating, double vision, lifting of the head feeling? Sort of like a roller coaster, and you feel your eyebrows go up. Anyway, my girlfriend said I’ve experienced that before, after a grand mal seizure. So my doctor upped the Fycompa to 6 mg. The first morning after taking it the night before, I felt intensely high. Very similar to the morphine I was given as a minor after surgery! Very sleepy feeling, and tingly body sensations that made me want to go limp. While my head just felt lifted in a sense. Slight dizziness and couldn’t focus on tasks. I know it’s getting used to the meds, but I don’t know if I’m comfortable taking a med that can make me feel high like that. Please let me know if you have experienced this before!"

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

For Epilepsy "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."

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

For Epilepsy "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

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