Drug Ratings for LAMICTALAverage Rating: 3.5 (1656 Ratings)
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Results are sorted by Age from oldest to youngest Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 |
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR LAMICTAL | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
  | F M | | | | |||
| 3 | Bi-Polar !! | Lack of sleep (4 hrs. a night); loss of words; short term memory loss; loss of balance; sometimes blurred vision; tremors; not much appetite; still some excitability; lost weight; losing hair (mildly); put my libido in a normal range; and heart palpitations! | Even with all those side effects I will continue taking Lamictal. Without it I was unbearable to myself and others. Had to continually apoligize for my bizarre actions. Libido was out of control, and crying all the time. My highs were wonderful and I denied I had any problems whatsoever which created many unpleasant disageements with others. At my age none of the other meds worked anymore, so I'm thankful for the little help and relief Lamictal gives me. It hasn't stopped my creativity, as a matter of fact has enhanced it. I've been bi-polar most of my life. | F | 76 | 5 days | 4/22/2007 | 5 | bi-polar | My 72 year old mother suffered greatly...severly depressed almost catatonic for 2 months, manic 2 months, somewhat normal 2 months..this cycle repeated itself for 2 years ! | My 72 year old mother was put on lamictal starting out at 25 mgs twice a day...after 3 months she is taking 125 mg once a day and doing wonderful! I feel like I have my mother back...I highly recommend this medication but recommend starting out in small doses... | F | 72 | 3 months | 8/25/2009 | 4 | for peripheral neuropathy | Awful, constant, stomach cramps, difficulty evacuating bowel. | Lamictal has helped my burning feet/legs pain more successfully than neurontin did, but does not completely ease the burning sensation. | M | 72 | 6 months 25mg 3X D | 3/9/2010 | 4 | BPll | none | M | 70 | 2 years 200 1X D | 7/29/2010 | 4 | chronic depression with anxiety | short term memory loss, possibly some hair problems | has anyone experienced increased and more masculine hair growth on arms and side of face? | F | 70 | 3 years | 10/31/2009 | 3 | bi-polar | drowsiness,poor coordination, anxiety, | In first stage--3 weeks--100mg with 150mg Zoloft. No positive effects yet, but I remain hopeful. For now I feel like I'm in state of suspended animation. | M | 70 | 21 days | 4/29/2008 | 5 | Bipolar Disorder Type II | It seems to have helped my OCD. | M | 69 | 2 years | 10/4/2007 | 5 | bipolar | Over last 2 years - short term memory loss, word retrieval, spacey, forgetful, can't remember names any more etc These problems MD's do not seem to know about. Have sent me for CAT scan, blood work etc | It has done a fabulous job of stabilizing my mood swings. Given a choice between being "crazy" and being a "zombi" I will take Zombi. Will see my MD next week. I am on a very high dose and maybe reducing the dose will help. | F | 68 | 6 years 75 mg 8X D | 8/25/2010 | 3 | Mood stabilizer | On 100 mg. I had bad blurred vision, especially in one eye. Also had double vision and could not focus on anything. Had hair loss, too and very dry mouth at night. | On the good side I had wonderful sleep and lots of dreams but not bad dreams. My mood was better and I could deal with my problems. I would have stayed on the medicine but I couldn't see, could hardly even watch television. There was no way I could read a street sign so I didn't venture too far while driving. Would try this medicine again but no more than 50 mg per day. | F | 67 | 5 days | 10/14/2007 | 1 | bi- polar | Frequent depression, headaches, nausea, and an overall feeling of anxiety and sadness. I became preoccupied with how I was feeling . I believe that I felt better only when I was able to overcome the drug's effects through my own determination. Sometimes though I just crashed into a tearful, despairing individual. It was awful. Doc's solution, raise dosage. This went on for several years. | This is a very toxic drug. On two occasions I took 2 in the am (200mg) by mistake and became severely ill. Tried to crawl into bed, vomited all over, and could not pick up the phone to call for help. Finally was able to stand and hoist myself into bed. I remained until I could function enough to clean up. This was just 100 mg extra in the am. If I became so sick from just that, what was the drug doing to my body on a day to day basis? I weaned myself off of it finally and am starting to feel human. Still taking zoloft 100 mg. Would not recommend this. I am disappointed that the doctors didn't go along with me on this. After a couple of years I did it slowly. | F | 67 | 5 years 100 3X D | 5/23/2010 | 4 | mood stablizer | seems to help more effectively against depressin than other mood stabilizers | M | 66 | 2 years | 6/30/2009 | 2 | Bipolar Disorder | One MAJOR side-effect -- and I do mean major -- was an increased sex-drive. While some may think, what's the problem with that, let me submit that for the 8 months I've been using this medication I've racked up close to $3,000 in internet porn fees, i.e., memberships, dvds, and so forth. Sorta kinda think that's overkill. The good news is I'll now be weaning off the med: Lamictal was prescribed to me to get me through 6 months of Interferon/Ribivarin treatment for the Hep-C I'd contacted. Well, the treatment was a success -- thank God, and I no longer "need" nor do I want this med in my body anymore. My bipolar stuff ain't gonna kill me; it may be handled sans meds. | Let the prescribee decide. | M | 66 | 8 months | 9/16/2009 | 5 | bipolar disorder | I take 100 mg. at night, which was increased six months ago to 150 mg. to improve my sleep even more. I may go back to 100 mg. My psychiatrist works with me to adjust my medication. I view medication like clothes and assume it has to be fiddled with and I have to be patient. My sleep is pretty good but short now. My dreams are the best they have been in my life. I have no nightmares, no night terrors, and don't sleepwalk anymore! No kidding! All three "run in my family." We are an eccentric group. My side effects: Night sweats, some cognition problems, weight gain, and most recently a sodium deficiency, which my internist said might be a side effect. As I read through the comments, I didn't see any reference to sodium deficiency, so it may not be a side effect. The night sweats are a real pain. And I struggle to keep my weight down--sometimes I have to starve myself to keep the weight where I want it. I thought the problems with using the wrong word was due to approachi | Lamictal has been a life saver. I am very grateful. The two antipressants could not take care of the mood swings (they aren't supposed to do that), but it is terrific not to have those mood swings! My periods of mania were never that extreme, but boy could I get really nasty, blaming others for no reason at all. I have encouraged my father and son, both of whom have bipolar disorder, to take it, but my father doesn't like to lose the mania. My son won't admit he has bipolar--he is 46. I also take provigil for daytime fatigue. This is a real drug cocktail; but for the first time in my life I am not at the mercy of my unpredictable moods. I am a writer and have accomplished quite a bit academically, but it was at great physical cost--I thought I would never find out what was causing my black moods, but I have now with the the aid of some intellectual clarity and some sobering realizations. | F | 65 | 3.5 years | 6/20/2007 | 3 | Grand Mal Seizure | August 2009 while in the ER due to a 4 to 5 minute seizure (1st ever) my husband was given the loaded dose of Dilantin (in addition to morphine and Ativan). We saw our Neuro a few days after discharged from Hosp and she gave us a schedule to taper off Dilantin and start Lamictal XR 50mg and increase over 5 weeks to mtce dosage of 200mg. He's been taking 200mg of Lamictal for about 3 months now; some hair loss, dry scalp, has had several styes in one eye, more significant hand tremor (which was much less pronounced prior to Lamictal). His appetite did seem to increase initially, but he did not gain any weight. He's had cognitive decline for almost 6 years so not sure if Lamictal is adversely affecting memory. I don't like the fact he may have to be on anti-seizure medication forever, but don't want him to experience another seizure either. | M | 65 | 3 months | 11/29/2009 | 2 | adjunct to antidepressant | Short-term memory loss. We all misplace our keys now and then, but I began to lose track of EVERYTHING that I wasn't wearing. It was a frightening experience for me. | F | 65 | 3 months | 3/9/2007 | 5 | BiPolar 2 rapid cycling | Muscle aches, Constipation and inability to fall asleep 2-3 times a week. | Still titrating and taking it very slowly, but feel a lot better already. Effects occur in the first week after titrating and start to ease in second week but don't go away completely. Moving from 25mg to 50mg has been a real problem and I might stay there for a few weeks until my body adjusts. Problems are bad enough to make me stop taking the drug if the problems persist | M | 64 | 6 weeks 50mg 1X D | 9/6/2011 | 5 | bi-polar; depression | I have had none that I'm aware of. | For the first 50 or so years of my life I was swinging wildly from out of control to lethargic. Since I have been on Lamictal I look back on those years and am aware of how ill I was. Many bad life-changing decisions could have probably been avoided had I understood the problem, and had I had a miracle drug like Lamictal. | M | 64 | 2 years | 9/17/2008 | 4 | Bipolar | TERRIBLE INSOMNIA!!! | I have been taking 200MG. It helps me control mania, but I have TERRIBLE INSOMNIA. I have gone 48 hours with 20 minutes of sleep. I can't function like this. I almost had a driving accident because of this. Now waiting for a return call from the doctor. There HAS to be something better than this. I have been diagnosed with Bipolar over 20 years ago and have been on numerous medications. This helps me with mania better than anything else, BUT I can't function without sleep! | M | 64 | 45 days | 2/17/2006 | 2 | depression | None unless recent sleeplessness is due to lamictal | At first, I felt a difference and felt less moody, but after taking lamical for three years, I feel it is ceasing to work, or did some time ago, much the way prozac quit on me years ago. I am still taking 300mg, by the way. I am frightened of anti-depressants after reading the posts regarding them, particularly effexor. I think probably I will have to live with frequent to occasional periods of depression for the rest of my life. How unlucky can you get. | M | 64 | 3 years | 3/30/2008 | 5 | depression and mild bypolar 2no | none | one day after taking it i felt much better it was ammazing | F | 63 | 4 days | 3/30/2005 | 5 | depression and mild bypolar 2no | none | one day after taking it i felt much better it was ammazing | F | 63 | 4 days | 3/30/2005 | 4 | depression | mild headache but may be from the season too-usually have headaches this time of year because of my sinuses. Some itchiness on my arms, but probably from reading about the bad side effect of this drug lol. | I actually feel like doing housework and enjoy it. I'm up to 150mg now. I was on Wellbutrin before because I have RLS and Wellbutrin was the only antidepressant that didn't effect it. Wellbutrin worked great until I started to have violent mood swings and ended up in the hospital. As I increase the lamictal I feel better and better. RLS is still a problem but not worse than with the Wellbutrin. Prozac etc. made it much worse. | F | 63 | 5 weeks | 2/15/2007 | 4 | depression bi polar mood swings | none | did the job, no side effects. helped but not cured depression, no mania anymore, excellent drug. i have been told 600 mg is way too high a dosage by other dr. i am afraid to go to lower dose since all is well on 600 | M | 63 | 3 days 200mg 3X D | 7/15/2010 | 1 | epilepsy | dizziness, lack of coordination (broke glasses, spilled food, knocked things over, bruised self, afraid I would fall down stairs or while taking shower), insomnia, fatigue, nausea, itchy scalp and itchy arms and legs, sensitivity to sun, skin bumpy, slurred speech, "hot flashes" day and and night--stopped wearing makeup, changed stinky sheets often, washed clothes more often, showered more often,--dry mouth, frequent sinus headaches(try nose spray)and severe migraine headaches (try maxalt-MLT), easy bleeding (when washing my face) and easy bruising (on abdomen??), vaginitis, tremors, lips pursing, sores in my mouth, biting my tongue while eating, clenched jaw, new type of seizure with teeth clenched--WHO WOULD HAVE GUESSED???? A dentist my find my teeth moved (absence--petit mal for 20 years after last tonic clonic), chest pain, impaired memory; difficulty spelling words correctly; emotional lability (very angry--throwing things vs. crying about nothing) | I HATE IT!!!! The main reason for taking it was to lose weight seeing as Depakote causes weight gain. My seizures were already under control. Not driving for over 6 months changed life style--no exercise so more weight. Migraines keep me from everything. And I'm afraid of these new seizures. I hope they disappear when I get back on Depakote. 6 mo. before tapering back to depakote | F | 63 | 6 months | 9/17/2008 | 5 | bipolar disorder | Nothing definite--perhaps a bit more clumsiness | This has been my wonder drug. Previously I took lithium and depakote. I was diagnosed as bipolar in 1985; the first ten years I was hospitalized half a dozen times. Since beginning on lamictal in January 1997, I haven't had a serious manic episode, and it is the only drug that has alleviated depression. | F | 62 | 10 years | 12/9/2007 | 3 | Bipolar II | Fatigue, nausea, periodic vomiting, abdominal cramping, diarrhea weekly, dry itchy skin with bumpy red rash, fatigued or insomiac, lack of concentration and short term memory, irritable with a depression that spirals into hopelessness, acid reflux developed leading to Barrett's Esophagus now on a regimen of Nexium and periodic endoscopies. And, last, but not least, extreme weight gain 30-40 lbs. since I began Lamictal 2.5 years ago. Very frustrated. | The psychiatrist who prescribed Lamictal in 2006, along with my present physician, disregard the side effects I am experiencing. They've even increased the drug dosage when I'm experiencing increased depression/hopelessness without regard for my continuing side effects. Since taking this drug, I have been unable to continue my career as a college English professor, been deemed total/permanently disabled by Social Security and financially challenged. Very frustrated! | F | 62 | 2 years | 6/26/2009 | 3 | bipolar symptoms | Extreme memory loss, confusion...scatter brain actions unforgiving dry mouth | It's the only bipolar drug so far that I can take w/o getting very sick, falling asleep, flu like symptoms (badly), or psychotic feelings-like I'm drugged w/ an illegal drug. Hair loss. I still feel like I'm in a mind fog most of the time. I really don't know if this is a bipolar thing or it's the drug. | F | 62 | 4 years 400 mil 2X D | 1/5/2011 | 2 | depression | very large area of bruising appeared on my left side under my left hip: 10 in. long, and 4 in. wide!Also experienced body aches, and undesirable/vivid dreams. Have been switched to topamax . Was only on lamictal for about 4-5 weeks. | M | 62 | 45 days | 10/2/2006 | 2 | bipolar disorder | abnormal dreams every night - headache every day - high blood pressure - cuts down on the manic episodes, but does nothing for the depression - low energy - muscle fatigue | M | 62 | 3 months | 3/17/2008 | 1 | Depression, anxiety, PTSD | Nausea - absolutely horrible - like chemo but without the hair loss. | I managed to stay on the stuff for two weeks, noticed absolutely NO change in my moods, but could not deal with the nausea, so I quit taking it. | F | 62 | 2 weeks | 7/19/2009 | 5 | seizure | None | stoped seizure right away. A miricale pill. Expensive,but woth it. I had grand male and parciale seizures. Took 4 differant meds befour lamictal. They didn't help. I had side effects from all 4. | F | 61 | 15 years | 8/23/2009 | 5 | Originally TLE, then BPD | None | The relief of Cyclothymic (Bi-Polar) symptoms I originally experienced, along with an overall regulation of mood, was noticable. However, it was when due to financial issues (no insurance) I had to go off Lamictal for a while that I fully realized how greatly it had affected me. Now in Canada where Generic Lamictal IS available, I'm back to | M | 61 | 3 years | 1/14/2005 | 5 | TLE, BPD | None | Ref previous entry: TLE: Temporal Lobe Epilepsy (Complex Partial Seizures) BPD: Borderline Personality Disorder (also related Bipolar Disorder) | M | 61 | 3 years | 1/14/2005 | 5 | Epilepsey | Lamictal has greatly changed my life. I remember dreams and am very alert. I sleep about 6 hours a night and have a clear mind in the morning. My personality is now very level no ups and doens. I have taken many other medicaitons for epilepsey and this is the best. | I have been taking medication for epilepsy for 48 years and this is the best drug for controlling my petit mal and grand mal seizures - it has the least side effects of any drug I have taken in the past. | F | 61 | 5 years 450 mg/day 2X D | 12/3/2011 | 5 | bipolar | nausea and dizziness if I miss only 1 dose. If I miss 2 doses I can barely stand | no side effects if i don't miss any doses | F | 61 | 7 years 150mg 2X D | 1/12/2012 | 4 | bipolar ll | Short term memory loss, trouble spelling, forgetfulness, stomach ache, bleeding easily, sores in mouth, mild rashes, acne. These are usually mild and most go away after a couple months. | I have taken and quit this med at least four different times. My reason for quitting were bad sores in my mouth and bleeding. It says that these are signs of a bad reaction to the med. The reason I keep going back to it is it stabilizes my mood and helps with the depression. It will pull me out of a depression and help with the negative obcessive thoughts and ruminations. I will continue to take this med until the side effects get too bad and then stop and start again at a later date. It is one of the only two true mood stabilizers. | M | 61 | 40 days 50 mg. 1X D | 4/27/2010 | 4 | Seizure | Most prevalent side effect has been vivid dreams that seem to occur every night. | I was diagnosed 2 years ago as having had a seizure, which I had never experienced before. I have been taking 200mg per day since that time with no recurrence of seizure symptoms until about a month ago. This occured immediately after a week-long vacation during which I missed about 3-4 doses. The missed doses were only my evening dose. Since I take Lamictal twice/day, I always took my morning dose. Around that time I had been experiencing very vivid dreams that occur nghtly. They started before the last seizure; however, their prevalence and intensity has increased over the last month or so. Since I have had only one additional seizure since being diagnosed over 2 years ago, I am assuming the drug is working. But the dreams are driving me nuts. | M | 61 | 2 years | 12/29/2005 | 4 | depression | it might be increased libido; but in addition there are almost nightly nocturnal emissions, sometimes twice a night. Without the dream; but I'm reporting, not complaining | Best thing ever.Fights with Zoloft, if you're on both. I quit the Z. | M | 61 | 12 months | 2/12/2008 | 2 | BiPolar 2 | Started out at 100 which seemed to help with severe depression after a total nervous breakdown in which I stayed in bed for a month, stopped eating, lost 25 lbs and would cry uncontrollably when I was awake. MD put me on 100 and I stopped crying constantly and having intense racing thoughts and started functioning fairly normally. Psychiatrist MD upped dosage to 300 and it totally increased my depression. I am able to function 8 hours a day (I work from home), but crying daily and hysterically for an hour. I told him that I sincerely felt his original diagnosis of BP was incorrect and that I suffer from severe depression without the mania associated with BP, so he reduced me to 100 and added Wellbutrin. With Lamictal, I would sleep well, but wake up every morning feeling totally groggy, not well-rested and would take at least an hour to be able to start functioning. Lamictal made me hyper-sensitive and hyper-emotional. | I think Lamictal is miraculous if you're diagnosed correctly with BP. I think my doctor made a quick diagnosis because of my complete breakdown, without inquiring about possible manic episodes, which I never experienced. | F | 61 | 3 months | 4/2/2008 | 2 | Bipolar | decreased short-term memory, reduced cognitive ability, inability to notice things around me, anxiety attacks | Although I feel great on it (none of the chronic depression I had on lithium), I'm finally going back onto lithium. I hope that the effects listed really are due to the lamictal and that they are reversible. I lost my high paying engineering job and am having difficulty functioning in a minimum wage bakery job. (Besides which lithium is MUCH less expensive.) Current cocktail: 2x100mg Lamictal/day, 1/2x5mg Zyprexa/day, 10x 20mg Prozac/week | M | 61 | 21 months | 3/9/2006 | 5 | Bipolar | NONE - definitely worth trying if you're Bipolar and feeling hopeless. So much better than Lithium. That's when you'll fee like a Halloween zombie. | F | 60 | 12 years 100 1X D | 10/11/2012 | 5 | bi-polar & night sweats | night sweats | F | 60 | 3 months | 1/13/2010 | 4 | bipolar ll | vivid dreams, itching, surreal moments, trouble finding words, mild acne, interacts badly with alcohol. | I am starting this med again for the fourth time. Twice quit due to bad sores in my mouth and abdominal discomfort. It seems that I cannot take the normal theraputic dose so my pdoc said to take 25 to 50mgs as this is beneficial to some like myself. It has been very beneficial for quite a few months to stop suicidal thoughts, stabilize my moods and stop the severe depression. I'll keep going back to this one. I have taken it with 300mg. Wellbutrin for a number of months but will start this by itself this time and add other meds as needed. Been on all the anti depressants, etc, sometimes 4 or 5 meds over the past 30 years. Finally glad to know it was bipolar and needed a mood stabilizer. | M | 60 | 14 days | 4/13/2009 | 4 | Bi-Polar I | Nearly eliminates my Tinnitus on a daily basis. If I miss a dose my tinnitus comes on really strong. Twice when I missed it, within 2 hours or so my tinnitus was extra loud, nausea, and dizziness hit. Went home took it and w/in an hour or so everything calmed down. | I'll probably never stop taking it. Tinnitus (especially when it's really loud), makes me want to tear my head off. I believe if more people with Tinnitus tried this drug and found that it worked for them, they too would never stop taking it. I believe it has to do with the anti-convulsion treatment. | F | 60 | 3.5 years 200 1X D | 10/21/2012 | 4 | seizure | loss of balance which has gotten worse after a year of useage/also some irritability | this drug seems to be doing its job and I can live with the side effects | M | 60 | 1 years | 8/7/2007 | 2 | bipolar 2 | headache, dizzyness, blurred vision, a feeling of "spaceness", difficulty focusing. Side effects continue, though to a lesser degree, 3+ weeks after discontinuing Lamictal 25mp @ hs (really a tiny dosage). | Lamictal certainly helped W/ irritability & anxiety but the side effects prevented continuation much less an incease in dosage. | M | 60 | 30 days | 5/29/2008 | 5 | bipolar II | Itching,blurred vision, memory problems like spelling and completing sentences and forgetfulness. These mostly lasted only a week or so with each increase in dosage. I discontinued once due to sores in my mouth. It was a mistake, I should have just reduced it for a while. | I didn't realize how depressed I was until I started taking it again. My psychiatrist said it would keep me from going so far down in depression and he was right. No thoughts of suicide since taking this med. | M | 59 | 6 months | 8/24/2008 | 5 | GAD/Depression | None | Went for years, trying every medication out there. Finally hit upon the cocktail of Lexapro and Lamictal. It is like the clock has been turned back for me to a time prior to my problems emerging. (the Lexapro alone did not do it. It was not until after we added the Lamictal that I gained relief) | M | 59 | 11 months | 6/11/2009 | 5 | Bipolar II, PTSD | Some memory impairment that I have to figure out ways to accommodate. Some sleepiness after taking it. | It has been a miracle drug for me. My psychopharmacologist tried every medication under the sun without success. Within days of starting it my suicidal depression began to lift. I wish everyone could have a similar experience. | F | 59 | 15 years 200mg 2X D | 9/13/2010 | 5 | Rapid Cycling Bipolar Disorder | This is the best drug I have used for 30 years. I feel normal. However, in the last 5 days, without any changes, I feel that it is just stopped working. I am having panic++ and am extremely depressed and just a little frantic. My dr. is unavailble until next week. I have no side effects at all, which is a miracle in itself. | F | 59 | 2.5 months 150mgs 1X D | 11/13/2011 | 4 | major depression, maybe Bipolar II | Short term memory loss and poor word recall. Lethargic. Flat mood (zombie ish compared to previously). Difficulty getting enough energy to do things | It was the only medication (among many SSRIs tried) that made a positive difference. I take Abilify and Nuvigil and Clonazepam as well. The Nuvigil has helped immensely regarding the lethargy and revs me up to feel good and get things done. Lifts mood from lethargic to animated! Major problem is expense of meds; even with insurance , copay is $100/per three of the meds; Lamictal included. | F | 59 | 2 years 200 MG 1X D | 9/22/2010 | 3 | Chronic Clinical Depression | Dizziness, sudden muscle spasms and joint weakness, flu-like symptoms, sort throat, chest pain and heaviness, frequent urination at night, mental confusion, inability to focus, short-term memory loss, difficulty in completing letters in words when writing, many typos, difficulty in finding correct words to say to complete sentences in speech, clumnsiness, and difficulty in balancing myself when standing. | The Dr. started me on 50 mg. and slowly over several weeks increased the dosage. Because I take an HRT, the dosage has to be doubled to secure remission from depression. I did not notice a change in myself until I reached 400mg. The symptoms I noted began to affect me at the 400 mg. strength. I thought I was suffering from dementia and was physically ill at the same time. The Dr. has decreased the dosage to 200 mg. for a few days then I will try 300mg.to see how that affects me. I have been depressed many years, there are genetic factors and cognitive distortions stemming from years of being married to someone who is mentall ill and very abusive both physically and emotionally. The depression is less severe but still present. I hope to change though recognizing the cognitive distortions accumulated during the years and changinging my negative perceptions of the world and myself. I have been taking prozac for many years and eventually it because less effective over time. Anoth | F | 59 | 2 months | 7/29/2007 | 2 | siezures | Like most people, I read the pharmacy information on Lamictal when I got on it, and then forgot about it. Two months later I developed mouth, dental, fever, lymph problems and more. Neither the dentist, nor oral surgeon could figure out why I had a solid two months of pain after a tooth extraction. I re-read the pharmacy information on Lamictal, and we figured it out. My Doctor pulled me off it immediately. | I take responsibility for not being up on the Lamictal information, but I blame the manufacturer that the dentist and oral surgeon did not identify the problem. Lamictal was listed by me on sign-in data sheets in both offices. Dental cost #585, and a pain even oxycotten could not stop. | M | 59 | 4 months | 12/17/2008 | 1 | depression | Lamictal is HORRIBLE! I didn't sleep for 12 weeks! And I lost my appetite! And I was VERY IRRITABLE! And I had9 other side effects. And it made me MANIC! If you have depression and antidepressants don't work, ask me how I got rid of it after 15 years of on-and-off depression! I will be more than happy to point you toward natural healing methods that work! (No I'm not selling anything nor do I have stock in anything - I truly am doing this cuz I care!) | F | 59 | 12 weeks 30 mg 1X D | 1/26/2012 | 5 | bipolar II disorder | sleepiness at first, very vivid dreams (but not scary), unexpected weight loss of 5 pds in about a year, lowered appetite, feeling warm most of the time, an "oily" smell to my perspiration, recent problem with aching of joints of hands, difficulty "pulling up" the right words in a conversation. This medicine seems to have had a GOOD effect on my blood pressure, unlike the SSRI antidepressants. It seems NOT to have the sexual side effects of the SSRIs, too. | I LOVE this medicine. I feel calm and content, actually happy most of the time. I'm still a hermit by choice, but I no longer avoid social invitations. I'm only on 25mg most of the time. I have always responded to low doses of everything. Prozac made me manic, Paxil made me calm but paranoid, Wellbutrin gave me terrible vertigo, Lexapro caused a scary "fainting" episode...all of the SSRIs made me unable to reach orgasm. I will NEVER take anything but Lamictal again. My only advice would be to not let your doctor push you too fast to increase the dosage. You may do OK without a high dose, and the higher doses will surely make you have worse side effects. | F | 58 | 1 years | 12/5/2006 | 3 | BiPolar/Depression | I am SO happy to read some of the other people's side effects on this drug. I recently made an appointment with a neurologist to have an evaluation done because I thought I was losing my mind or getting Alzheimer's, like my Mom. I have experienced trouble typing, finding the right words and stumbling over my words in conversation, trouble concentrating and staying focused, bloating, nausea and upset stomach, slight loss of balance and coordination, dropping things, slight blurred vision, diminished libido, and lots of trouble with handwriting--like leaving out letters, scrambled letters, and basically trouble writing at all. I was an honors student all through school, including college, but these apparent side effects have made feel very stupid and/or sick. | I am slowly discontuing Effexor, which I have taken for almost 7 years while slowly ramping up with Lamictal. At least my depression hasn't reapeared. But the side effects I am experiencing are quite disconcerting and bothersome. | F | 58 | 2 months | 2/11/2007 | 3 | depression and anxiety | I have dry mouth which is causing burning mouth syndrome and an extremely bitter/mettallic taste in my mouth all day and all night long. It's awful. Has anyone else experienced this? | It's been somewhat effective for the depression and anxiety. I am feeling great emotionally again but the mouth problem is making me so miserable I can barely stand it. | F | 58 | 3 months | 5/10/2007 | 3 | Bipolar 1 | Tingling in back of throat, restlessness, a bit hyper, insomnia first few days after that I slept but woke often, vivid dreams (good ones), yawning, tingling in eyeballs. | The side effects were minimal. Didn't like the hyper feeling. Got a lot of work done though. Felt less depressed right away! | F | 58 | 12 days 100mg 1X D | 8/25/2011 | 3 | Mood swings, PTSD, ADD | At first, a little numb emotionally.At 100mg feeling OK, slight loss of appetite. I experienced some pretty tough things - like being laid off from a job for the first time in my life - and then got severely depressed. I cried for days,lost my appetite completely, felt suicidal. My dosage was increased to 150 mg and I didn't feel so emotionally labile, but had night sweats, itchy, dry skin, hair loss, small rash. After being on the 150 mg for a couple of weeks, I started really retaining water, my ankles became swollen, I got constipated, had decreased urination and lower abdominal cramps.Two days ago, I was at work, on my feet all day, and I had to urinate, but was unable to urinate. I got sweaty, felt like I was going to pass out,later that night had severe back pain, pain in my right kidney and trouble breathing. I tried some old fashioned remedies: I drank apple cider vinegar in water, and that helped me pass urine. I was also extremely constipated. I went to the local clinic and t | I started off trying all the antidepressants in 2002 - and the only one that worked was Wellbutrin. My best combo was Wellbutrin SR 300mg, Adderall 10-20mg XR and Prozac. I always took something for sleep, because it's always been a problem - but I've been taking Ambien 10 mg since 2002 as well. I felt bloated and decided to taper off the Prozac. Now I'm off it completely, but I miss it. I have to say that I'm not completely sure if this severe urinary retention is related to Lamictal, but it's scary. Having to go to bed with back and kidney pain is not good. So glad to be able to share this stuff with all of you. What got me to contribute was someone saying they had the neuralgia, which is definitely a red flag. | F | 58 | 4 months | 9/27/2007 | 3 | Diagnosed as Bi-Polar | dry mouth, lips. Hair dryed out, upset stomach, hart burn and finally bladder infection. | I was doing really well at first from 25 to 50 than 100 MG. Than shortly after the increase to 150 MG I started to experience heart burn. Now I have a bladder infection. I decieded to ween my self off of Lamictal. I not longer have heart burn the dry mouth but now have the bladder infection to deal with. | F | 58 | 6 months | 1/23/2009 |