LAMICTAL Reviews (LAMOTRIGINE)Average Rating: 3.4 (1917 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare LAMICTAL with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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Results are sorted by Gender with females listed first (reviews with no gender reported listed before females). 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 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 |
More on LAMICTAL: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR LAMICTAL | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 5 | Mood Stabilizer | Vivid dreams -I stopped taking it at night and this went away. Mild acne increase. The worst thing has been the verbal issues that others describe. I will lose track of a conversation in mid-sentence or not be able to come up with a common word/phrase or even use a completely wrong name/word without realizing it until someone points it out. I find it interesting that so many of us complain about this, yet it is not an "official" side effect. | I find the side effects very meaningless compared to how much this drug has improved my life. I now react appropriately to stress. I think I've found "normal"! I would rather stumble with words and have acne than to go back to the rage filled, angry person that I was. This medicine saved my relationships with my husband and kids. | F | 40 | 1.5 years 150 MG 1X day | 12/15/2010 | 5 | Bipolar Type I | None that I can pinpoint specifically to the Lamictal, already had headache, memory loss, insomnia, and bruised easily before taking this - no change there. I did feel a bit shaky for the first little while I was on it, maybe a week or two, but I was in hospital and coming off Depakote due to a bad reaction. | This has been a VERY good medication for me, I take this in combination with lithium. If I miss a couple doses I start getting irritable and I know that will just spiral, so for me it is best to stay on it. I have taken many other types of meds to treat the bipolar and this combo has been the best by far. It doesn't zombify me at all, and as long as I stay on it I hardly ever get manic episodes. Feeling way more in control of my life, I have been in some very high-stress situations since I started taking it and have dealt with them like a "normal" person would! If I feel blue, it's for an external reason now (eg. death in the family) as opposed to it being the disorder. Even if Lamictal doesn't work for you, please keep trying others, it took me over 10 years of living hell to find the right mix but I damn well did it and can feel GOOD now! Hopefully it won't take you as long! Punch bipolar in the neck! | F | 27 | 3 years 25mg 2X day | 12/22/2010 | 5 | major depression | Really no side effects I recall. I was very happy with it other than waiting a week for it to work at all but that was a small thing since I was on other meds to keep me calm in the meantime. I lost 10 lbs and didn't gain it back. I had no problems with Lamictal at all as far as side effects are concerned. | I was a suicidal and psychotic mess going on Lamictal yet it worked great and I think its a great drug with few side effects for most . Unfortunately in my case I had hypothyroid myoexedeme at the time (severe hypothyroidism) All this was obvious to me and my family, just not my doctors. (If you have hypothyroidism no amt. of anti-depressants will overcome it if its not treated appropriately). So the Lamictal finally fizzled out after almost 3 yrs because of my untreated thyroid issues. I also have multiple type PTSD, possibly borderline personality disorder and bipolar too. That is a testament to how good Lamictal is, if you ask me, it glued me together for a long time despite great odds. I just take my Armour Thyroid med & Topamax and have no habits. I always take my meds punctually, bad days or not. This is how I know Lamictal was a great drug for me. I can recommend it. | F | 54 | 2 years 150mg 2X day | 11/7/2010 | 5 | bipolar mixed episodes | Updated cuz I forgot to mention I have problems with acne. I used to have a clear complexion. I.have scars on my face now. | F | 40 | 150 mg 1X day | 11/29/2010 Patient History | 5 | Epilepsy | Feel a bit spaced out if I don't take it on time. | This has been a very good drug for me. Very well controlled siezures. Took it all the way through my pregnacy with my first child, he is perfectrly healthy and doing very well at 13 years old. I am interested to know if anyone has any information about lamotrogine and psoriasis, I have no family history and I am covered in it. As I have been on it for so long I wonder if it may be a long term side effect | F | 42 | 17 years 150mg 2X day | 12/7/2010 | 5 | bipolar | None. | It changed my life. Seriously. I finished graduate school, got married, and got a job. I might be dead otherwise. | F | 29 | 4 years 300 1X day | 7/30/2010 | 5 | Bipolar Disorder, Depression | Dry Mouth, Fatigue, Headaches. | It is far from an overstatement for me to say that Lamictal has changed my ability to enjoy life. Since early adolescence I have struggled with depression, manic episodes and frequent mood swings. My performance in High School and College suffered, subsequently. I began taking this medication at 25 and have since felt "Like myself." I am making more healthy decisions, and am able to put things into perspective. I am able to keep jobs and relationships longer now. This medication has proved a LIFE SAVER for me. I also take Lexipro, occasional xanax and oral contraceptives. I still occasionally experience bouts of depression, but am able to manage them quite well! I have learned that mixing ALCOHOL with this medication results in NEGATIVE reactions (temp. amnesia, psychosis, manic syptems). I have found this medication so effect and EARNESTLY hope others find the same RELIEF it provided me! LIFE CAN BE MANAGEABLE AND ENJOYABLE with the correct medicinal practices. PLEASE take this as a sign of HOPE! it's NEVER TOO LATE to get your life back!!!!! Good luck to all who suffer...and please dont give up!! | F | 28 | 3 years 200mg 1X day | 8/3/2010 | 5 | depression, mood disorder | Nausea, stomach upset, increased anxiety (all the first week) | I was hospitalized when my Zoloft, Klonipin, Inderal combination was not helping anymore and my depression and anxiety just plummeted to where I was non functional. While I was hospitalized, my doc added Lamictal to this combination and after a few weeks I felt like a new person. I was happy again, didn't have severe mood swings, and actually wanted to get out of bed. This drug has been a life saver to me! | F | 30 | 1 years 25mg 1X day | 8/10/2010 | 5 | Bipolor 2 Disorder / Anxiety | I dont think I had any negative side efects. Maybe a little dizziness upon standing, but my other meds have side effects of that also. | When I started taking this, I also took seroquel, ativan, and zoloft. I was at rock bottom, almost admitting myself to a psychiactric hospital. My new Psychiatrist, started me on this along with the seroquel, and I was already taking the other 2. I noticed very quickly (within a day or so) How much BETTER I was feeling! Finally I felt like a normal content person. The seroquel, (I think) made my cholesterol high, Im not sure if Lamictil contributes to that too. Im here to find out. :) | F | 35 | 2 years 150 2X day | 8/14/2010 | 5 | Cyclothymia - Bipolar 2 | When the doctor has increased my dosage from 50 to 100 to 150 (over the course of several months), I had insomnia for a few days after the dosage increases. After that transition - NO side effects! | I love this medication. It has almost eradicated my mood swings (only minor ones during PMS now) and calmed racing, grandiose thoughts. Like another poster commented, I have finished grad school, can hold down a job for more than 6 months, am more patient with my children and I'm getting ready to be re-married. I think more clearly, cry less (I still cry sometimes - I'm a woman), feel more stable. It's been a miracle for me. | F | 33 | 3 years 150 1X day | 8/19/2010 | 5 | Bipolar Disorder | The only side effect I had with lamictal in the very beginning was feeling spaced out and as if my brain was reacting to it- as if it knew it was being given a drug (it was!) and was "soaking" it in and trying to reconfigure itself to the new drug. This went on for about a week or two. As I titrated up on it- from 25 mgs. to 200 mgs.- each time I would have a bad headache (the famous "lamictal headache")that lasted from 2-3 days and then went away. Each and every time I upped my dosage I had this headache, but ONLY for 2-3 days. Other than that- ZERO side effects-only benefits. I did not gain any weight and I do not feel as if I am taking a drug at all. I love it! | I am bipolar- undiagnosed until I was 48. I am 53 now. I tried a variety of meds, but had bad side effects on all of them. Then I was put on lamictal. I was afraid, because of the rash thing, which I obviously did not get. But at the time I agreed to go on it, I had had it with all the other stuff I had been put on that I wanted to be dead anyhow, so I thought- ok-I will give this drug a chance because I have nothing left to lose. I am so happy I said yes to this drug! I have never had a deathly deep depression since I was put on it, nor have I gone off the charts manic. In truthfullness, I did start drinking heavily after my diagnosis because I could not believe I had a real mental illness. Even with my heavy drinking, the lamictal kept working. But because I was drinking, it did not work as well as it could have until I finally quit drinking in February 2010 and went to AA. I felt great for the 2 months I was sober, and then sunk into a depression- which I found out later is very common when you quit drinking. I was put on Wellbutrin 150mgs to combat this depression. At that amount, I felt better- but not 100%. I ended up having quite a few slips with the booze, until I finally decided- just recently- that if I am ever to have a chance at feeling close to 100%- I can never drink again. I deal with that thought ONE DAY AT A TIME. That slogan is out there for a reason- it works. If you think over the long haul, it becomes overwhelming. I also started going to AA, which I had | F | 53 | 5 years 200 mg 1X day | 8/21/2010 | 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 day | 8/25/2010 | 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 day | 9/13/2010 | 5 | resistant depression, PTSD, BPD | Unexplained bruising, chronic insomnia (sleep for 2 hours and then wake every hour after that until I get up)hair loss, constant allergic conjunctivitis. | It has been the first drug which has helped my mood. My most recent episode of deep, suicidal depression has lasted over a year. This drug has helped me out of that. My consultant is keeping me on 75mgs for the moment to see if the side effects disappear. She wants me to increase the dose to 150mgs if I can tolerate the drug. I have had mental health problems since I was 18 and none of the drugs I have been put on have helped at all. I am worried about the side effects though. Will they decrease/ go away? I don't want to go bald, I'm fed up with itchy, sore, crusting eyes and I'm exhausted through lack of undisturbed sleep! (I'm on sleeping medication, an antidepressant and Diazepam) Has anyone had these experiences? Would be good to hear from anyone who has. | F | 54 | 3 months 75mgs 1X day | 10/5/2010 | 5 | bipolar type 2 | dry mouth | Lamictal has been very effective at treating my bipolar type 2. What a relief! I am so grateful to have a normal life. | F | 54 | 5 years 100 mg 1X day | 10/13/2010 | 5 | bipolar PTSD | some sleepiness and dry mouth when started partial dose in a.m | 4th medication attempt for unrelenting suicidal depression episodes. within one week suicidal thoughts stopped and have not returned, even during stressful times. | F | 52 | 5 years 300 mg 1X day | 10/16/2010 | 5 | Bi-Polar 1 | Really, none that I can note. Maybe a little nausea when I have to "go." Oh, and the acne; nothing really bad, I just HAVE to wash my face or I am certain to have a zit show up. (lol) So far, no excessive eating, my swelling has gone down...! and I my thoughts are actually clearer then when in depression, but nothing is as clear as when manic! (if you are bi-polr, you know what I mean.) I haven't had any headaches at all, and I have previously struggled with migranes, but the Lamictal is the only drug I take, so no cross-over side effects. | I am still in the dosage climb... and the Bi-polar is a new diagnosis. I thought I was crazy for much of my life, but it turns out that bi-polar can have some psychotic symptoms. Very helpful to have some answers after a long time of hiding what I was going through. I no longer have any psychosis, and the deep depression has left. I feel hypomanic frequently still, but I am told that should subside a couple weeks after I get to the 100 mg dose (upping to in a couple days). So far, so good. I am REALLY looking forward to the "middle-road" I like the hypo-manic "high" but really have longed for what I knew could be, just didn't know why I wasn't able to "hold on to it..." Now I know! | F | 36 | 4 weeks 50 mg 1X day | 10/18/2010 | 5 | Bipolar | Itchy | I was on Geodon for a year before lamictal. The geodon made me zoombie like and very sleepy I switched medications after crashing my car ( I fell asleep at the wheel) on my way to work. I started taking lamictal and feel like I got my life back!! I want to be spending more time with my daughter and am awake to do so | F | 28 | 4 months 50mg 1X day | 10/26/2010 | 5 | Bipolar 2 | Very slight tremor (but all anti seizure meds do that), short term memory loss, word retrieval is sometimes very difficult. | Other mood stabilizers weren't working for me. Lamictal has changed/saved my life! In conjunction with a couple small dose antidepressants I finally 'feel normal'. Now my family and I only have unpleasant memories of the 'old me'. | F | 36 | 7 years 200 2X day | 10/27/2010 | 5 | parietal seizures | calf pain, rapid heartbeat, hot flashes especially at night. Otherwise the creepy feelings that comprise an episode for me have disappeared. I would like to try to be on a lower dose than 100 mg. since it seemed effective at 50 mg, but my doctor is insisting I go to the 100 mg. | F | 54 | 3 weeks 75 MG 1X day | 10/31/2010 |