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 |
| 3 | Bipolar depression | Tempted to rate it a 2 due to the side effects: weight gain, fatigue, stiff neck, disrupted sleep, change in voice, constant yawning. | Worked by stabilizing my manic episodes. Bit researched side effects and weight gain was my most feared one, as I had always been overweight, but over the past decade I had lost almost 80 lbs, even considered myself athletic. I had gained tiny amounts back prior to med, but it shot up 50+ lbs in the time I've been on it. I had taken welbutrin in the beginning with it, but had psychotic episodes, so came off that. Lamotrigine is only one I'm on now, and I'm fatigued all the time, with food control and cravings thru the roof. Now I'm reading so many comments on here that say they've had weight gain, even tho my Dr assured me this was very uncommon. Maybe they need to do a new study on symptoms then. Could my wt gain have been exasperated while in this med because of my preexisting eating disorder? Sadly,now the wt gain has made me even more depressed. I think my manic episodes are controlled now, but I miss those days because I was able to go nuts in my workouts and get my house cleaned, get my groceries... Now afraid to go off med because of poss withdrawal possibilities. A co-worker show father tried Lamotrigine for his BP almost died from the Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Had to be treated as a burn victim because his skin essentially sloughed off,including his insides. Made a miraculous recovery, but made me realize the power of this med. | F | 34 | 2 years 400 mg | 7/12/2015 | 3 | Bi-polar | Like with Depakote it caused serious hair loss. I felt great but that caused me to stop using it. I just started back. Did no have weight gain. | F | 45 | 3 months 100 | 10/13/2015 | 3 | Bipolar mood swings | Large amount of weight gain in a small amount of time. Felt very tired. Messed up my blood sugar. Weird dreams. Trouble sleeping. Swollen limbs. Tender breasts (also went up a cup size) | Weird medicine! It's a shame, because both me and my family noticed a huge difference on only 100mg of lamictal. I wasn't easily angered, I was calm and happy go lucky... Positive, and my manics were under control. BUT I also gained 30lbs in 2 months!!! With no change in diet... My blood sugar was always wack and had me feeling horrible. I always felt tired and lethargic but yet had trouble sleeping. I thought I was having a pregnancy scare but noticed that tender (larger breasts) were a side effect... I believe this drug also had me retain water and be swollen! It could work if you don't have horrible side effects... | F | 26 | 2 months 100mg | 9/4/2015 | 3 | Mood stabilizer | I can no longer get buzzed on coffee nor alcohol. I cannot have an orgasm. I have become a shell of a woman. | Want to go off. I am on Abilify. Good cocktail … or too much? | F | 56 | 9 years 600 mg | 1/20/2016 | 3 | Bipolar II | Did a gradual step up to 100 MG and after a couple weeks at 100 MG I started to feel crazy. I was super scatterbrained, couldn't sleep and was talking out loud to myself ALL the time. Went back down to 50 MG and still can't sleep but no longer feel nutso bonko. My mood is definitely more stable since i have been taking it. | has dried out my scalp and skin a little. | F | 48 | 2 weeks 100 1X day | 12/31/2015 | 3 | major depression w/ mood swings | At first I had increased depression, suicidal thoughts, anxiety attacks, panicky feelings, extreme irritability and insomnia. After about 9 days, just insomnia and some irritability. | I am diagnosed with major depression with psychotic features. I recently developed major mood swings within my depression (no mania). I am only taking 25mg and will begin to take 50mg in 3 days. Initial side effects were pretty bad and I felt severe depression, constant anxiety attacks, irritability and insomnia. After about 9 days on this med, I have begun to feel a bit better with only some irritability but I still have the insomnia. I wake up 3-4 times a night, wide awake and unable to sleep for some time. I also take Effexor XR, Abilify and Librium. All these side effects are new and from the Lamictal since I have been on the other meds for some time now. | F | 31 | 11 days | 5/29/2009 | 3 | BiPolar | Weight gain (despite the 18 month studies saying weight gain isn't associated with Lamictal), severe dizziness and clumsiness if dose is missed. and thanks to this site my "brain" syptoms are explained: severe short-term memory deficits (going into a room and forgetting why I am there), a fog in general... which causes problems like clumsiness and general spaciness. recall People's names? Forget it! Phone numbers? Forget it! Appointments! Forgot them too... All the fixings on the counter I made a sandwich with this afternoon (or last night)... throw it all away! | I have been taking Lamictal for about 4 years now and this is the FIRST I've heard that my "brain fog" symptoms are Lamictal related. I share what others experience here: short-term memory funk,"tip of the brain/tongue" problems. Dyslexic. My speech is clumsy at times as well. This has been increasingly distressing because it's getting worse. so why haven't ANY of my psych docs made this association for me!!??? I have been worried that I have dementia or mini-strokes. I've slowly gained weight (~7lbs yr) since beginning this med. Since the "cute" tummy roll turned into a blob dripping over my waistband I've tried dieting. I limit to 1200 cal. a day (low fat) and not sedentary for a year!, yet the weight doesn't budge. I think Lamictal has all but shut down my thyroid. Symptoms of dry itchy skin/scalp, dry course hair/ hair loss, dry eyes, menstrual irregularities (I have a period every 10 - 21 days)weight gain / trouble losing weight, brain fog,decreased mood, decreased libido/ energy... are all related to low thyroid, seems many of us suffer these symptoms... I am beginning my taper off Lamictal today. I am grateful this site exists. Thanks for sharing. | F | 46 | 4 years | 5/20/2009 | 3 | Bipolar | Extremely frequent urination, nickle taste in mouth, random short term headaches, coordination problems, cognitive problems (Bad with word recall), Extreme thirst, sensitivity to sun, inability to sweat | I'm still very depressed, especially at night. I haven't really noticed weight gain as my weight naturally fluctuates 4lbs. I'm currently on 25 mg twice a day and will be upping it to 25mg 3 times a day. The frequent urination just started so i'm not sure if it's linked to the lamictal. I also started having a few days where I just don't feel right and I can't give a real reason why. It has helped my Hypo-mania, but has not done much in the way of my severe depression. | F | 21 | 1.5 months | 5/9/2009 | 3 | Seizures | Burning on abdomen like an actual burn. Wake me up diring night. No rash. Just like bad sunburn type burning. | Been taking for8 weeks | F | 44 | 8 weeks | 4/7/2009 | 3 | Bipolar II | Horrible Rash!!! I have been on Lamictal for two years and about 3 months ago I increased the dose from 100mg to 200mg. The doctors tell you to watch for any skin changes when you first take it but for almost two years I had none. So I forgot about it when I increased the dose. | Aside from the rash I didn't really have any side effects. It seemed to work well, although I also took it with Effexor XR (Great medicine if your looking for an anti-depressant that won't make you gain weight). I believe at this point the medicines are counter acting each other or something because not only do I have the rash but I'm having horrible mania and depression back to back! I think I'm gonna try and switch to Geodon. I've been on medicine since I was 12 and finding a new medicine sucks sooooooooo much! If anyone has ANY advice for me please send me an email, it would be much appreciated! | F | 24 | 2 years | 8/21/2008 | 3 | Bipolar | Dizziness, blurred vision as I increased the medication, headaches, sore throat as I kept increasing the medication. My psychiatrist does not want to lower the medication because I have been more stable with my moods. But the side effects are driving me insane because I am not myself. I also can't concentrate so I don't what to do? | F | 34 | 5 months | 7/29/2008 | 3 | depression/anxiety/docs donno! | I'm 14... and i live a day to day life and it was really weird at first idk if i really had side effects i've been taking it for a while... but i've had vaginal discharge which is weird because i'm not at all sexually active (being 14 and all) and idk if thats only me but i'm too scared to bring it up with my parents i also thought about it and i think it did begin when i started taking lamictal... i could be totally wrong but idk... its really annoying though... | help please if its you too! | F | 14 | 1 years | 7/30/2008 | 3 | bi-polar ? schizo-affective? | bad rash went on steroids, tried again titrating very slowly but not going beyond 50mg, now at 50 mgs for 5 months. Terrible acne which is not responsive to any treatment, sun sensitivity. Have had a lot of vaginal discharge and yeast infections which coincide time-wise but who knows. | helps depression but no miracle. am getting upset about acne scarring, but no one seems to be able to help with controlling acne. wanted to tell 14 yr old girl who posted that discharge may be normal part of cycle, but given my experience may also not be. hope she can find someone to trust to help her talk with her mom or doc | F | 18 | 10 months | 8/22/2008 | 3 | bipolar II | Significant cognitive impairment that continues to increase throughout the years. This has caused me to become more reclusive and anti-social; I have a very hard time articulating my thoughts and "blank" out during conversations. My memory has decreased to the point that my teenagers take full advantage of me; they know I won't remember if I agreed to a 3 a.m. curfew. Thankfully, I still remember that this is absurd. Still, it exhausts everyone when I ask them 8 times if they did their homework even though I had checked it an hour earlier. My doctor said these side effects weren't a result of Lamictal. A second opinion agreed with him. Also, the higher the dosage the higher the anxiety. anything above 75 mg. pushed me over the edge. My appetite decreased significantly. I am 5'2 and down to 100 lbs. now which I HATE. I lost hair although vitamins helped it grow back. I am now going to try to go off of Lamictal to see if I can get my brain function back. | I think Lamictal is worth a try. It helped stabilize my moods enough so that I could process therapy sessions. After one year on Lamictal my dr. put me on depakote to offset the anxiety. The depakote boosted my mood and lessened the anxiety. Currently, I have had to make a med change. I am increasing the depakote and tapering off of Lamictal. Depakote makes me very tired but at least I can think clearly. I want to work and enjoy life without living with post-it's all over the house. I am ready to try something new (although I HATE med changes). | F | 37 | 4 years | 8/22/2008 | 3 | bipolar II (bad depressive states) | not many; acne, motor coordination/balance problems, lack of affect (on the plus side: no weight gain or sexual dysfunction like with other mood stabilizers or SSRIs) | This drug takes a whole month to get to a clinically helpful dose of 100 mg. Once I got to 200 mg I felt better (not so much depression) but then I started to feel NOTHING. I couldn't feel joy or hope or almost anything at all. I wasn't suicidal or sleeping all the time but I still was not participating in life. I couldn't get excited about something that would make me excited even when depressed. It was awful. I weaned to 100 mg (too fast, which made me a bit nauseous and disoriented) and was doing much better. I know I have fewer obsessive, racing thoughts while on it. BUT it doesn't seem an end in itself. My psychiatrist will not prescribe an antidepressant with it but this does not work on depression the way an antidepressant does. I haven't taken my dose in a few days and have not felt withdrawal but worry about starting to take it again if need be | F | 35 | 1 years | 8/23/2008 | 3 | Bipolar | I have been on this drug for 4 years, with various dose levels. Have recently increased from 200 mgs to 300mgs. I feel like I am burning up from the inside out. My skin is not hot but under surface I feel like I'm going to spontaneously human combust! Also have a kind of rash - almost like mosquito bites that itch and appear all over - is this the kind of rash people talk about? | I'd like feedback from anyone about the symptoms I've described, as this is the only drug from my 'cocktail' that has been increased and I am wondering if this is causing the itch and heat. | F | 49 | 4 years | 9/24/2008 | 3 | Severe depression/ Anxiety | muscle stiffness,blurred vision,weight loss according to my doctor although I don't feel I've lost anything, I'm not a person who weighs themselves regulary. At first my appetite decreased a bit but after a few months back to normal. No Sex drive whatsoever! | Lamictal has made me feel good again, my horrible thoughts have gone away. But my vision is not as good, I'm going to see an eye doctor to find out what he thinks about this medication. My psch said the blurred vision is really rare hmmmm. And she weighs me everytime I go to see her. I have lost some weight. but from other patients comments I have seen that Lamictal also causes weight gain. My psch says that as for sex drive this drug is not likely to cause a decrease, but from what I can tell they all do. Is there anyone out there who has found a drug for depression that allows you to still enjoy a good sex life? I've been on Celexa,Paxil, Effexor and Abilify. Pleas help! | F | 44 | 4 months | 7/6/2009 | 3 | Epilepsy | Extreme Headaches, Severe Acne on face, stomach & back. Memory Loss, Clumsiness, Slurred speech, Racing thoughts & Insomnia, Unable to think clearly or finish sentences. | The headaches and acne were worse in the first few months. The acne was so bad I actually went to the ER thinking it could've been the rash. Still having problems with the memory(I have to write everything down now). It's hard to put thoughts into words, and I end up stuttering or slurring my words. And as soon as I close my eyes to sleep, a million things fly through my head. I can't relax. I feel as if I'm losing my mind sometimes. | F | 22 | 3 years | 6/2/2009 | 3 | bipolar 2 | nausea, stomach ache, diarreah,run burn like rash on face and neck. I did take myself off of it. But i think i will try it again, and try to be more in tune with the side effects and see if i can live with them. fuzzy head I did feel different, been biploar since i was 11 | are any of you on disability for this illness, if so let me know who you make, cope with it. | F | 49 | 4 days | 5/31/2009 | 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 |