Drug Ratings for LAMICTALAverage Rating: 3.5 (1661 Ratings)
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Results are sorted by Satisfaction from lowest to highest 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 | | | | |||
| 5 | BP I | Fatigue, tiredness. I am a little more cranky than when I was on Prozac, but the crankiness may be due to the fatigue. ANy ideas in how to combat the fatique? I feel like I should own stock in Starbucks for the amount of caffiene I am ingesting! | Lamictal has picked up my sex life, but not in a manic-sort of way. I would recommend it to anyone. I've been on SSRI's for 13 years, and definitely am doing much better on Lamictal, without the SSRI | M | 49 | 2 months | 6/6/2007 | 5 | bipolar I | Surprisingly, none! | I've taken lithium for 12 years along with an antidepressant. I have added lamictal and nixed the antidepressant and feel so much better. FYI I lake 200 mg lamictal and 1200 mg lithium, although I may up the lamictal and decrease the lithium soon. Lamictal has worked really well for me since I do level out on the depressed side. | F | 30 | 3 months | 6/3/2007 | 5 | BP-II | Benefits: **Cancelled chronic depression** Strong vivid dreams (good for me) I'm now focused, disciplined, organized and taking care of myself physically (essential to long term management of my illness). Side effects: I may be having a slight problem with jumbled speech, but my thoughts are coherent, and I'm able to catch my mistakes and correct them (something you rarely do when in the grip of mania). Lamictal may also be causing me some insomnia, so I take the dose (500 mg) in the morning, and take a sleep aid at night. Possible interactions: Gabapenten tolerance excellent. Abilify caused extreme hypomania. I stopped Abilify after only one month. Seroquel (100-200mg) caused severe tardive kinesis, sluggish thought, impaired short term memory, and sleepiness. | I've been taking the drug since about 1999 with excellent results and minimal side effects. Mood stabilization is excellent. Anti depressive effects are excellent. In short, this drug is a god-send for me. | M | 35 | 8 years | 5/31/2007 | 5 | BiPolar II | Dry mouth, night sweats | After a recent suicide attempt I was finally diagnosed as BiPolar. It has been such a relief to have a name to put on this roller coaster of a life. So far the Lamictal has kept me level, which is such a relief. I feel like I can start putting my life back together. | M | 50 | 1 months | 5/24/2007 | 5 | Bipolar II | Has anyone else experienced weight loss while on Lamictal? Understand, that's a good thing for me(!) but I wondered if it might be the drug...I take 250mg daily. | F | 56 | 2 years | 5/20/2007 | 5 | Bi Polar 2 | Occasional challenge in finding a certain word. Return of childhood asthma. Floating dark specks over my vision. Random feeling of water trickling over my fingers (almost like they are falling asleep). Decrease in sexual activity. Concerning rash and sores in my mouth. Doctor lowered dosage per day from 200 MG to 175 MG. After this the rash and sores cleared up. IF YOU EXPERIENCE A RASH CONTACT YOUR DR. right away...it can be very serious | Prior to taking Lamictal, I quite literally had a nervous breakdown. I was incapable of functioning and was absolutely exhausted and overwhelmed. By combining therapy with Lamictal, I have returned to feeling much more stable. I was clearly suffering for many years prior to my recent breakdown, and feel like I am my old stable self again. Keep in mind if you are Bi Polar, do not confuse the illness with the medication. For instance if you begin suffering from insomnia, it is likely due to the illness and not the medication. In my non professional opinion, stay on it unless you have the rash or sores. | M | 29 | 2 months | 5/20/2007 | 5 | Depression, Anxiety, & Mood Swings | 1st Week: Dry mouth, eyes, and skin but mostly mouth. Second night I had a swollen lip and a weird mouth sore and was itchy but no rash. Emotional, crying for no reason. Felt like I was kind of going crazy, confused. EXTREMELY weird thoughts, not exactly voices, just very weird thoughts. (Definetely not something I've ever experienced!) Slept better than I've slept in awhile, but vivid and detailed dreams. I of course called my doctor about all of this, she suggested I take 25 mg of antihistamine for one more night (after 3 days of this) and that was the end of all of the horrible side effects for me! 2nd week to now: Most side effects completely gone, only ones that remain are the occassional 'mental fog' where I can't think of a word and just go blank. But it's been humorous so far and hasn't happened very much. And the second is some slight OCD-like behavior. | It's been great for me. If you can get through the first week of a new medication it's worth a shot to see if it'll work. Everyone reacts differently to medications and you have to give it time. All of my horrible ones were over after the first week and I'm SO glad I stuck with it because it has helped me tremendously. I started slow though- 25 mg the 1st week, 50 mg the 2nd, etc until now I am at 150 mg. | F | 25 | 2 months | 5/18/2007 | 5 | Mood stabalizer / bipolar | feeling lethargic/exhaustion, difficulty concentrating, feeling in a mental "fog"/short-term memory loss. | ****ADVICE FOR ANYONE TAKING LAMICTAL**** There is a way to minimize side effects relating to mental functioning and memory, almost eliminating them, that I works very well for people other than myself. Try it!: Take the Lamictal only in the morning. Taking it in the evening seems to negatively effect memory. After you take your regular dosage, ***go back to sleep*** for a period of half an hour to an hour. When I took it on my way out the door, I was in a "fog" for a few hours and had similar problems with intellectual functioning that I've read about on this site. When I set an alarm to take the lamictal in the morning and go back to sleep (not just lie down), the negative cognative side effects are gone! I told my psychiatrist about this, and he reccomended to his other patients to try it, and it worked for them too!!! I would be happy to hear from others if this technique works for others too, and be in touch by email. Overall, This medication has completely saved | M | 26 | 5 years | 5/9/2007 | 5 | for bi-polar I | i haven't had any side effects that i have noticed. when i read some of the comments here i found that i may have a few. night sweats, but not sure if that is due to age; menapause. i did have headaches for maybe the first few months after i started taking it. i have insomnia at times. no other side effects that i can tell. | i was prescribed lamictal a little over two years ago. i felt like it was a myracle drug for me. i have taken several other medications before i began taking lamictal. i took lithium for seven years and felt numb most of the seven years i took it. i have so much more energy. i am much more outgoing. i am happier now. i feel i have my life back. i feel better than i have felt since i was diagnosed with bi-polar nineteen years ago. i have had a severe episode with depression and was suicidal. i've had two severe episodes with mania where i was totally out of reality. in between the severe episodes i stayed mostly depressed, but did have mania some too. i have finally come to terms with my bi-polar and i make sure i go to see my doctor and take my medication the way i'm suppose to, cause for so many years i did not want to take my medications and was in denial that i was bi-polar. best wishes to all of you. | F | 45 | 2 years | 5/9/2007 | 5 | BP II | Absolutely NO side effects | I have been given hope again. My life is as "normal" as it's ever been. I had been on 8 different meds over the last 3 years with horrible results and side effects. As one last shot, based on the reviews on this board, I tried Lamictal. All I can say is I wish I would have has this in the beginning. | F | 35 | 7 weeks | 5/6/2007 | 5 | Bipolar I | Some skin irritation, mostly in the beginning, and slight issues forgetting or misspelling words, but which generally never happened to me in the past. Haven't really experienced any of the other side effects mentioned here. | I am at 100mg and this drug has seriously saved my life. Instead of the madness of mood swings, I am completely balanced and I feel consistent like I did in my teens. This was my first bipolar medication and I haven't experienced anything really negative to date. In the beginning I did have a few inconsistent spells, or brief periods of depression, but I haven't experienced that in quite a while. | M | 28 | 90 days | 4/27/2007 | 5 | Bipolar | I don’t remember if I experienced any noticeable side effects when I first started the medicine, but I was aware what the minor side effects were and I think my body just got use to them. Never had acne/rash as a side effect. But, last July, I began having neurological problems (trigeminal/occupital neuralgia) and I pieced together problems that I’ve had since 2004, but they are getting worse. The side effects of Lamictal mimic symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis. Some of the similar symptoms include: Memory loss, confusion, hand tremors, feelings of exhaustion, loss of balance, intense itching, blurred vision (only my right eye though), etc. | Started with 100mg for first 3 years, but increased to 300mg per day... 100mg in morning and 200mg night. Has anyone else noticed additional side effects with long-term use? My other neurological symptoms include: Body stiffness, drift into a wall or object, unable to maintain body temperature (cold hands/feet), out of breath, sharp muscle pain, tripping over feet, tight/stiff wrists, stiff/sore joints, loss to hearing, changes in eyesight, electric-shock like pain on right side of face only., etc. The side effects/symptoms never occur simultaneously... one day I will have one problem and then the next day I will have another problem. Does this sound familiar? | F | 40 | 4 years | 4/24/2007 | 5 | Depression | Vivid Dreams at onset | Added Lamictal to Zoloft regimen 2 yrs. ago, then switched from Zoloft to Effexor XR a yr. ago. Now, I take 200 Lamictal + 187.5 Effexor XR, and things are much smoother. It's not a cure-all, but former life irritants (work, other people!) are now mild annoyances, if anything. Tried "weaning" myself to 175 mg a month ago, but noticed recurring irritability, depression. Went back to 200 mg. a week ago, and feel much better. I'm incredibly sensitive to most drugs. A question: I see some people take their doses once-a-day, and others twice. I take mine once, but what's the conventional wisdom on this? (I know it has a short half-life). | M | 38 | 2 years | 4/22/2007 | 5 | Major Depression | Blurred Vision, Bruising Easily, and Serious Weight Gain. | I was diagnosed with OCD and major depression. Have had these problems for as long as I can remember. However I did not seek treatment until 5 years ago. I have been prescribed almost every antidepressant out there. Most would start out working then stop. Finally I was prescribed the max dose of prozac (80mg) and it completly took care of the OCD. I just didn't care. However, depression and feeling exhausted was still an issue. So, my doc augmented the prozac with everything from provigil to adderall. Then not only was I depressed, but I was anxious. THEN, as I was about to give up on the whole medication thing, she gave me lamictal. Starts out really slow, but once I got above 100mg, it's been amazing. My entire preception on life has changed, I have energy, I have empathy, I feel connected to people. I do not coward away in social situations. I laugh and joke, have confidence and do not take things so seriously. I feel NORMAL! Try this drug and give it time to wor | M | 29 | 3 months | 4/19/2007 | 5 | Bipolar Disorder | I feel a little spaced out when I have missed a dose. I can not take it on an empty stomach too often; that may be me though. | Thank you GSC | F | 19 | 180 days | 4/17/2007 | 5 | Bipolar mood stabilizor | I haven't noticed many at all. When I canged from Deopakote to Lamictal I lost 25kgs. I do dream and have bladder issues, but I take a coctail of medications so it's hard to blame a particular one. | Before Lamictal I had at least 1 inpatient admission for depression every year, I have been out now for 17 months. My moods still fluctuate but the lows are not as deep and disabling as before, I still remain functional. It has been a revelation to me. | M | 50 | 3 years | 4/16/2007 | 5 | Bipolar 2 | I take a combination of drugs so to pin anyone side effect on lamictal would be difficult. I have vivid lucid (pleasant) dreams which could also be attributed to lamictal or Seroquel. I have a decreased libido, but I blame that on the Zoloft | I lived with anxiety Depression and OCD for 8 years. I take 200 MG's and this drug and it is a life saver. It stopped my uncontrollable outburst in public, my suicidal thoughts, and my nervous shaking hand. I can go outside and not feel like I am constantly under attack or like someone is going to punch me in the back of the head. For the most part I feel great and like a normalish person. I wouldn't write this drug off it has enormous benefits, the side effects are a little price to pay for greater good this drug does. | M | 26 | 2 years | 4/11/2007 | 5 | anxiety and depression | none that I'v noticed | before I started taking it I use to have panic attacks and scream and freak out and I was very suicidal...I tried many pills but they made it worse. This was the first one to help I take 200Mg every morning It's probably changed my life. My highschool gpa was 2.46 and now that I can concentrate on school and not on how depressed I am my gpa is 3.6. It's really changed my life! | F | 17 | 1 days | 4/9/2007 | 5 | Bi-polar II | Very vivid dreams, but they are enjoyable. Some headaches, but not too bad. The worst problem is trouble finding the right words. I am not used to that, but am trying to overcome that part. | I have been on anti-depressants for years. Finally saw a psychiatrist who said probably not just depression. I feel normal for the first time maybe ever. Any side effects worth it to me to feel like I'm on an even keel. Please give it at least 2 months if no physical side effects. | F | 47 | 9 months | 4/2/2007 | 5 | Bipolar II | Migraine in the a.m. if I don't take it within the same 1-2 hour window at night; depression/irritability hits only when I don't get enough sleep/exercise - that's a LIFESTYLE choice; my hair grew back with Lamictal (thank God!) after losing 1/2 of it on Wellbutrin and Topamax. | Was misdiagnosed clinically depressed and prescribed Wellbutrin XL which I took alone for 1.5 years - life went from bad to horrible with manic episodes. Went to a diff. Dr. who gave me Rx for Topamax (aka DOPAMAX) which combined w/Wellbutrin made my manic episodes far more aggressive and depression more suicidal; Topamax put me to sleep every afternoon - was impossible to keep a F/T job. Finally found a decent doctor who took me off both and started me on 25 mg Lamictal and worked up in small increments to avoid any "rash". So far I've stabilized at 225mg. This stuff works when I combine it with a healthy lifestyle and some cognitive therapy - there's no miracle "cure" for Bipolar! | F | 41 | 1.8 years | 4/1/2007 | 5 | Atypical Depression | At 100mg was told to expect some irritability. Whoa...way past irritability. Took a week off to let it pass. Psyc says 10 years of antidepressants when misdiagnosed are making the reaction more intense, but says it's a finite thing that I can ride out. No hair loss, headaches, rash or any of that other stuff. | Are you guys seeing psychiatrists or just general MDs? I came off general MD prescribed Zoloft (wow, that was HORRIBLE withdrawl, worse than anything I've experienced!) and went on Lamictal. This was the first time I'd ever felt I needed a psyc, but am SO GLAD I DID! It made me realize that there was a reason I couldn't pull myself up by my bootstraps ... I had none. I love this drug, it treats my neurons, not my chemical imbalance and it makes so much sense. I can't help but wonder if some of the side effects others experience are from mixing SSRIs with Lamictal. I finally have hope of living a normal life after 30 years of depression. Oh, and those of you who say you get "really drunk" ... Oh my gosh, don't you know that alcohol in conjunction with this drug is extremely dangerous?! Please stop drinking! | F | 45 | 2 months | 3/22/2007 | 5 | epilepsy | Sleepy, Word loss and confusion(but then again I did that on the tergretol, zonegran, and keppra) loss of appetite, vivid dreams!!! word to the wise>>If you experience the skin rash immediatley contact your doctor, I experienced the skin rash while takin tegretol, its not the rash that will kill you, its something called stevens johnson syndrome, you get extremely high fevers and your deathy ill, i waited way to long cause i had no idea and it nearly killed me!! | Im in the beggining weeks of Lamicata but it seems to be going great! Although a blood vessel has just unexpectly just poped in my eye and im just wondering if that has anything to do with the medicine or if its just my eye acting stragne?? | F | 18 | 2 weeks | 3/15/2007 | 5 | Nocturnal Epilepsy | Loss of memory, slower thought (well I'm getting older as well but I think lamictal plays its part). Sensitivity to sun. | I have been taking valproic acid for 10 years and were having about 3 - 4 seisures a year (nocturnal). Changed to Lamictal 5 years ago when we decided to make a family, as it was supposed to be safer for my pregnancy. It took more than 6 months for it to show results but I am 3 years completely free of nocturnal seizures. It also stopped tremor side effect of valproic acid. I'm happy for the end of the seisures. I also have two very healthy children now. My 4 year son has a speech problem - is there a chance it's because of lamictal during pregnancy? More important: after changing to lamictal, I have started experience "jerk" movements of my hand during the day. Is there a chance it's because of the medicine? | F | 37 | 5 years | 3/15/2007 | 5 | Nocturnal Epilepsy | As my earlier comment of 3/15/2007. | As my earlier comment of 3/15/2007. And another note: might the side effect be due to high dosage and might they be controled by changing it? | F | 37 | 5 years | 3/15/2007 | 5 | grand mal seizures | weight loss, which i don't mind at all :) , some trouble with remembering names and finding the right words, i thought it was just me but i noticed after reading some of the comments that it is a side effect of lamital, it has worked great for me, no more seizures. I am on 100 mgs of lamictal once in the morning and once in the afternoon,total 200 mgs a day, compared to 200 mgs of dilantin 3 times a day totaling 600 mgs a day. | I was on 600 mgs of dilantin and it didn't help me,I was on dilantin for a little over 3 years i had 2 seizures while on them, i have had a total of 3 seizures, none since starting lamictal though, i had gastric bypass a little over 5 years agao and lost 165 pounds, went from size 24/26 to size 00s, i never had any seizures until after the gastric bypass, and it did say that they could be a side effect, but i would do it all over again, ( the gastric bypass surgery not the sezures) :) | F | 54 | 6 days | 3/11/2007 | 5 | seizures | F | 16 | 1 years | 3/8/2007 | 5 | Depression | My depression has controlled my life, for the past 18 years. I have tried almost every anti-depressant on the market, but something was missing. I've been taking Lamictal in conjunction with another anti-depressant, and it has made all the difference. | F | 56 | 2 months | 3/6/2007 | 5 | Bi-Polar II | The big one is the zoned out feeling, can't find my words, slight stuttering, headaches, dizziness, mood swings increased acne, increased libido. | This is my first medication. All the side effects leveled off around 5-6 months. It was really tough to come on. I got bad headaches each time the dosage increased. I got violent mood swings that would change multiple times a day. I felt really crazy for a few weeks. I would get completely depressed, happy, angry all within a few hours and with the littlest reason. I would recommend that you have a good support system in place as you work up to the appropriate dosage. Unlike others, I actually got a huge sex drive boost, which while it sounds good, was difficult to manage and quite frustrating for my significant other as well as myself. Having said all that, the results are amazing. I feel so much more in control of my life and my emotions now. I can think clearly and get through my day better. I can experience emotions without letting them ruin my life. I can feel depressed and still manage my life and my job. | M | 31 | 7 months | 3/4/2007 | 5 | bp | Short term memory loss (most times people will ask me if I remember something and I will say no but them after thinking about it a while I remember.) headache's, trouble sleeping, involuntary muscle tremor's in arms...not often. looses my train of thought in the middle of a sentence, sometimes I zone out. my bp cocktail is... 200 mg lamictal, 300 mg of wellbutrin, 10 mg of paxil and 3 mg lunesta | Lamictal saved my life and my family. I almost lost everything. I didn't want to admitt that I was bp, but about 2 yrs ago I hit rock bottom. All side effects are worth my mental, emotional and mood stabilization. Everyone has seen the "before and after" lamictal and hands down they prefer me now. I thought everyone loved me when I was on a bp high I didn't realize how wreckless I was, my judgment was very poor. Now I don't have compulsive actions and I feel "in control" of things. | F | 37 | 2 years | 3/1/2007 | 5 | moodswings and anxiety | I quit Wellbutrin and started Lamictal. Now I'm warm for the first time in my life. Unfortunately, I lost quite a bit of sexual responsiveness, either from quitting the Wellbutrin or from taking Lamictal (or both). No other side effects, except that food tastes absolutely delicious now, which is very enjoyable, but of course I have to be careful about gaining weight. | This is a miracle drug for me. I am free of all the anxiety and irritability that were making my life a living hell. I am free of the shame and self-hate, and I even have confidence in myself now. The moods have leveled out pretty well -- there's still a slight up and down but nothing compared to what it was. I am also free of the alternating loving and loathing of my partner. I think this has saved my relationship -- no small thing! | F | 50 | 37 days | 2/25/2007 | 5 | moodswings and anxiety | As far as working out, I seem to have more energy than before. No other workout changes so far. | F | 50 | 37 days | 2/25/2007 | 5 | bipolar I | Not sure if the muscle burning/ fatigue durine workouts is becauseof medications or not. Really no other side effects yet. | I'm an athlete and really stressing about the effects this will have on my body since my livelyhood is dependant upon it... anyone else on here workout regularly or is athletic that could let me know how its affected you and your performance? | F | 22 | 6 weeks | 2/17/2007 | 5 | Bipolar II | Nightsweats and trouble with sleeping because of constant and very unpleasant vivid dreams, which are extremely troubling and causing a lot of problems due to the lack of "good" sleep. | I've been taking the medication for about a year and a half, and overall it's been a "miracle drug" for me (I've tried so many meds in the past, and this has been the only one to help me), it's helped stabilize my moods to the point that I am better able to control my emotional responses to every day things. The medicine along with positive changes in my life has done wonders for me, and now I am better able to see a positive future for myself. Despite the side effects, it's a wonderful medication. | F | 26 | 1 years | 2/16/2007 | 5 | bipolar disorder rapid cycling | initially i had some side effects when i would increase the dosage. i would get painful sores in my mouth but they would go away after a few days.once up to 100mg no more side effects even when uping the dose. no weight gain no sexual side effects which alot of other mood stabilizers tend to do. | This drug has been a miracle for me. it has helped immensly in controling my rapid cycling. most of the time its the only drug i need. ocassionally i take ativan for anxiety but not very often.it really seems to help the depression side of bipolar with out throwing you into mania like some SSRIs. i take 200mg at night and 100mg in the morning. | F | 24 | 2 years | 2/15/2007 | 5 | Bipolar II | No Side Effects | This medication gave me my life back! I have tried every psych med (literally) and this is the one for me. It can pull me out of a depression within days. I can't recommend this drug enough. | M | 38 | 6 years | 2/11/2007 | 5 | bipolar II | Can't find the right word for conversation. Need to urinate, but only a little comes out. | Newly diagnosed. Been on Wellbutrin for 8 years for misdiagnosed depression. I use to enjoy the "high" Wellbutrin would bring, but the lows became to low and the "high" more like anxiety. Very hopeful for this med. Want to feel "normal" | F | 37 | 8 days | 2/9/2007 | 5 | Bi-Polar 2 | the headache is awful but seemed to only be a problem when increasing doseage, really vivid upsetting dreams, restlessness, anxiety, trouble falling asleep but sometimes sleeping really well, wierd eye twitch that is hard to describe, itchy (no rash though!), motivation increase, grinding teeth, slower recall, clumsy, trouble articulating sometimes.... | sounds like alot of side effects, but overall i feel so much better than i did before. my doctor wanted to increase to 125, and decided to stay at 100mg to see how i felt and i have slowly felt more depressed and anxious, so i have decided to increase the doseage again. I was previously diagnosed with anxiety and depression and took lexapro for awhile and with the new doctor, new diagnosis and new med i feel better than i have in a long time! | F | 21 | 12 weeks | 2/7/2007 | 5 | BP Type II | I experience "jiggling of the eyeballs", mild clumsiness, loss of words immediately followed by forgetting what I was talking about, repeating myself, night sweats, nightmares, minor acne on my chest, a little buzzed if I take it in the morning, and frequent urination with very minimal results. | I’m fighting a depressive funk right now—first one in almost a year. I saw the psych yesterday and he upped the Lamictal from 300 to 400mg. I started this dosage last night. My only concern right now is this is only my second night taking 400mg Lamictal and within a few hours my palms became really itchy and my joints ached—it has subsided within the past hour and now they feel kind of numb. I’m so glad I found this site as now I know what is probably causing this itching. I will be calling the psych tomorrow about an adjustment in dosage. Overall, some of Lamictal’s side effects are really annoying, but it sure beats the hell out of the constant weirdness I felt most of my life. | F | 38 | 6 years | 2/4/2007 | 5 | BiPolar and severe Insomnia | Dry mouth, trouble when typing, mixing up the letters, mixing up words when talking, loss of sex drive. | For numerous years I was treated with about every SSRI you could think of, and with different combinations. One doctor even had me on the pain killer Ultram because of the 'high' it gave me when I was feeling low... not knowing it was the depressive state I was going through. Nothing worked. My poor husband thought I was going crazy as did I. I finally was diagnosed as Bi Polar and put was put on Abilify. It didn't work. I gained weight like crazy. This doc was unwilling to try anything else so I went to a different doctor and he put me on Lamictal. It worked wonders. I take 200mg a day. I also take Xanax, Klonopin, and Ambien at bed time because I have such severe Insomnia. Over all I am extremely happy with the Lamitcal. I am kinda bummed about the change in my sex drive. But I would rather deal with that instead of all the other symptoms. | F | 46 | 1 years | 1/23/2007 | 5 | bipolar | minor difficulty finding words, stumbling over speech, mild nausea sometimes | This medication brought me out of a mixed state and has kept me really stable. It has helped me a LOT and I have very few side effects. | F | 27 | 8 months | 1/20/2007 | 5 | newly diagnosed BP NOS | dry mouth/metallic taste, sleep less disturbed,less anxiety almost immediately, teeth grinding,a "burpy" kinda bloated feeling , extremity tingling, menstrual changes, all have gone away now. Used to get a lot of headaches b/f this med. they stopped immediately after taking 25 mg. | newly diagnosed. only mania experienced was after taking prozac with adderall, which ultimately led to my DX, along with my erratic sleep pattern and family HX. Mostly i get "lows", with periods of severe depression throughout the year. I guess my "hypomania" exibits as irritability and anxiety, after having days of not sleeping much and lots of energy, then "low" again. This is my first mood stabilizer. less anxiety and mood swings. Now on 200 mg, some of my depression has lifted, but not completely yet, doc said at least 200mg to be therapeutic. This medicine has changed my life. Not on any other meds. | F | 30 | 5 weeks | 1/18/2007 | 5 | med-resistant depression | insomnia, agitation, rash? | After taking almost every antidepressant under the sun over the last 14 years, Lamictal has worked a miracle for me. It actually stopped my latest depression without the months of slow recovery. I take 450mg of Lamictal daily, all at night (which I think might be part of the insomnia problem). I also take 1350mg of Lithium and 300mg of Welbutrin. My agitation feels like a twitch, but I'm not actually twitching. Although I'm sleeping several hours less a night than I do normally, I don't feel tired during the day. ABOUT THE RASH: After taking Lamictal for about three months I developed tiny pink blisters around my neck. My psych., primary care, and a dermatologist disagreed about the rash's cause so I stopped taking Lamictal just in case. Six weeks later I started again, twice as slowly, and have had no more problems. | F | 34 | 2 years | 1/12/2007 | 5 | Bipolar II | Some facial numbness- may be the Wellbutrin I'm taking. Loss of word recall sometimes. It's more of a momentary annoyance than a major problem. | I have been taking Lamictal for several months now- and on the full dose (200mg) for about a month and a half. Not too long after I was on the full dose, my depression started to go away and I started having good days- now I am feeling back to normal for the most part. I am so grateful for Lamictal. | F | 34 | 4 months | 1/10/2007 | 5 | Depression | Vivid dreams - nightmares. Blurred vision, dizziness after alcohol. Memory/spelling issues. Getting better with time. | Have tried almost every anti -d with limited sucess. Ones that work caused major sexual side - effects. VERY satisfied with lamictal so far. it's early and just up to 50mg so far. Interested from hearing from other people taking this med for depression, as that is not so common. | M | 39 | 24 days | 1/9/2007 | 5 | Bipolar II | I am able to concentrat better...since before my thoughts were rapid. I have been infromed by my wife that I grind my teeth more. WHen I first take the med I am "zoned out". | as others have stated this is a "GREAT" med. I am able to concentrate better, where before I had a hard time sitting still enough to finish a task. Lost 25 poounds on the med... feel much better about myself. I take the med in the morning and drink coffee to get myself going. I am a litle "zoned" when I take the med in the morning, so everyone thinks that I am just tired...great way to hide it... but it only lasts for a short time period. I write down thing that I feel I may forget...this is a way to cope with the possible "MEMORY LOSS", which I am sure I had before. I was never one who could remember names. My relationship with my wife is better and overall I think this med is a wonder!!!!! | M | 30 | 1.5 years | 1/8/2007 | 5 | cyclothymia | None, I love this med! Have not had any itching or rashes. Sometimes I sweat at night, but I just shower more often now, and use perfumes. The dreams I have at night are better than pleasant, always about love and feeling good. I get headaches but not any more than I had before I started taking this. I am finally able to concentrate on a regular basis, so I went back to college and am getting all A's and B's - never could do that before. | I have had cyclothymia for 20 years and was never able to find a medication that worked. This is the first that has actually worked. My moods are very tolerable now. I am as creative as ever, and am finally able to keep a job, be consistant with my projects and meet deadlines. I have not had any mood swings in the past year. I take 400 mg a day. Also, eating healthy and drinking lots of water really helps contribute to feeling good. I also drink detox tea occasionally to keep it from building up in my liver - its good to do that even if your not on any meds. | F | 35 | 1 years | 1/6/2007 | 5 | Seizures from Brain Tumor | I've been taking it so long I don't know what's a side effect of the medicine, and what's a side effect of getting older. But these are some of the negative symptoms I feel are caused from Lamictal: -Horrible nightmares (about 5 per week) -Frequent muscle cramps and backache -Poor short term memory | I take 400mg oer day to prevent seizures caused by a brain tumor which was removed about 12 years ago. After a few years of taking the medicine I went to the doctor to try and see if I could stop taking it. I started to taper off the dosage and all of the sudden I would get these periods of about a minute where I couldn't talk. I would be find otherwise but just could not get any words out. It was very akward, especially at work, or mid conversation with someone. Anyway we upped the dosage and I have been fine ever since. The nightmares I get are horrible though, and I think it's from the medicine. | M | 31 | 10 years | 1/5/2007 | 5 | Bipolar Type II | Difficulty finding the right word, articulation issues (losing the thread in the middle of speaking, etc.). Short term memory loss, blurred vision (at times), more frequent urination. | Tremendously helpful controlling frequency and severity of mood swings, especially depression. I was misdiagnosed with depression for twenty years because I did not have classic mania. Lamictal has allowed me to have a better relationship with my wife and children, as I no longer have the explosive rages and uncontrollable anger and irritation I had with severe mood swings. The suicidal thoughts and self loathing I have experienced all my life are now less frequent and of shorter duration. To help yourself keep a daily mood log--this will help you rate the effects of the drug over the long term--mine is in horizontal bar graph form, with normal in the middle, ranging from severely depressed to severely elevated on each end. This gives me an instant visual baseline for comparison over time. The degree and severity of your cycling are immediately apparent at just a glance, as is your progress over time. | M | 49 | 2 years | 1/5/2007 | 5 | Grand Mal/Petit Mal Seizures | blurred vision, memory issues, nausea, dizziness | Lamictal has helped tremendously! i've had seizures since 14 yrs and have "made the rounds" from phenobarbital, dilantin, tegretol, zarontin, clonopin, etc etc etc. Although the transition from the tegretol/zarontin to Lamictal was very difficult (it took 6 months to finally be on only Lamictal) it was definitely worth it. Only problems that remain are the constant blurred vision where I have to really try to focus to see well, very poor peripheral vision and memory issues (although my kids tell me i'm just old) | F | 49 | 4 years | 1/4/2007 | 5 | bipolar/depression | vivid dreams, some disturbing/difficulty coming up with the right words, also on topamax major tingling/ some fatigue. Mostly I can laugh at myself at some of the effects but the joint pain and tingling is a bit much. Breathing heavy is also a new one. After reading some of the other comments I'm hoping to skip some of the other effects. Libido is fine. No hair loss. | If I don't take my meds I notice I am very manic. I had no idea I was so manic until finally after a breakdown in my dr. office did they offer to try lamictal and topamax. For the first time in my LIFE I feel level and can deal so much better with my kids and husband. I actually can get out of bed in the morning wanting to get out of bed. I might be tired, but nothing my 7,5 and 2 year old jumping on the bed won't cure at 7 am. | F | 35 | 60 days | 12/31/2006 | 5 | Bipolar II rapid cycling | Clumsiness, difficulty focusing, difficulty with word retrieval at times, lose my balance on occasion or randomly drop things, developed purpura on legs after a year(but maybe unrelated), vivid dreams and intrusive images in head when overtired at night. No more headaches after a year but continued body aches and fatigue at times. | I think this medicine saved my life. I've struggled with episodes of major depression and hypomania since 14 years old. Since that time, I experienced "anxiety attacks" that caused depersonalization and dissociation. The lamictal has had no affect on the dissociation and depers., unfortunately, but within a month I found myself crying at feeling happy. I still do on occasion very unexpectedly. I have never felt this way before in my life. Maybe at moments but not like this. I feel like I connect with other people now; I'm able to think more clearly and my thoughts feel "cohesive." I still get depressed and slightly "up," but it's amazing how the highs and lows seem to stay in a more normal range relative to most people around me. It's like I now have a ground to stand on and a roof over my head. | F | 24 | 10 months | 12/29/2006 | 5 | Bipolar I disorder | Some initial constipation, occasional severe headache if it starts to dissolve before swallowing | I have slowly had my dosage increased to 150mg / day. There was little improvement until 100mg and then I started a depressive episode again. The 150mg /day dose fortunately has stabilized my moods very well. Still have my personality and still have good days and bad days, but the moods don't escalate further than blue or upset and come back to normal shortly (hours). When switching to 100mg from 50mg I felt almost intoxicated for two days but quickly adjusted. Recently I have developed pneumonia, which can be related to a lowered immune function, but it mostly is not related to the medication. Overall I am very impressed with the tolerablility and control of symptoms I have had. | M | 24 | 14 weeks | 12/23/2006 | 5 | Bipolar | No side effects except serious hair loss and night sweats. | I have never had a better medication or felt this good ever. Unfortunately, I have lost 25%-30% of my hair since starting the drug five months ago. I did not realize it until two months ago. This hair loss has upset me enough that I do not want to continue the Lamictal. I'm really bummed about it. Can anyone report to me that the hair loss stops at some point? Thank you. | F | 46 | 5 months | 12/16/2006 | 5 | Partial complex seizures | First year Great energy boost, sleeping problems (stay awake all night sometimes),slight dizziness. After 5 years blurred vision,body twitching,itching,short term memory loss,rash at times on chest,clumsiness,increase of urination at night and now I have no problems sleeping. I have problems getting out of bed. Too lazy at times,loss of sexual drive. | No seizures !My life changed alot after taking lamictal the first 6 months. I used too take dilantin and was fighting a drinking problem which caused depression problems. After the 6 months I felt good and had lots of energy. No seizures just feeling good. My drinking problems gone away and I felt good about myself.I didn't need drinking to feel good. At one time before i was taking dilantin and was working in a factory and always was asked to be a foreman but I never accept. ( too many Problems I thought). Now with lamictal I feel i could run the whole factory myself.Long term I believe after feeling great my body has gotten used to lamictal that I sometimes think I don't need it.But,deep inside I know I would never want to stop taking lamictal. Even with the problem with side affects I would recommend using Lamictal. | M | 39 | 5 years | 12/14/2006 | 5 | Epilepsy | Always thirsty, can't concentrate, dizziness, clumsy, short-term memory loss, short temper, eye irritation,loss of words. | If I stop taking it for a couple of days I begin to have seizures and twitches or jerks. It has worked great and has also have helped my migranes i would get all the time. | F | 14 | 4 years | 12/10/2006 | 5 | Bipolar 2 | Very thirsty, mild nausea, dampening of libido | Best med I've ever been on. Brought me to a place of feeling "normal" (whatever that is.) I haven't felt this good in a very, very long time. My family can tell a difference. Just some concern over my libido dropping. It's a bummer, but I will not come off of this med: it's been so good for me. | F | 44 | 3 months | 12/8/2006 | 5 | Major depressive disorder | Vivid, negative, disturbing dreams; insomnia; headaches. | Overall, I am very satisfied with Lamictal. For about a year now I have been quite depressed and have experienced major mood swings, but no textbook "mania." My depressive mood swings scare me to death -- obsessive and negative thoughts, constant thoughts of suicide, intense self-hatred, feeling like I will always feel this way and that there's no hope, and uncontrollable crying spells. In October my new psychiatirst recommended Lamictal to add to my long-standing regimine of 20mg Prozac each day. After a few days on 25mg, I began to notice that my depression lifted and I wasn't experiencing major mood swings or crying spells. The positive effects kind of wore off after a few weeks, but came back after I increased the dosage to 50mg. Now I am finally on 100mg and have been on it for about three weeks. I haven't felt this good in well over a year -- no mood swings, crying spells, and debilitating depression. But...after three weeks on 100mg, I think the drug's positive | F | 32 | 2 months | 12/5/2006 | 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 | 5 | Bipolar II | None | It's a good drug. I was taking Lithium carbonate for about 20 years, when my doctor suggested the switch to Lamictal in conjunction with a new prescription for Lexapro. Sometimes I've taken just Lexapro without Lamictal (when I've run out of Lamictal) for a few days, and felt fine. I think Lamictal is supposed to have fewer sexual side effects than Lithium -- i.e., not suppress your libido -- which is one reason my doc switched me. I got married around the time of the switch. But I haven't noticed any improvement there, since I also went through menopause around the same time. Personally, I don't think some doctors take into account the role that hormones play in mixing with these drugs. | F | 52 | 3 years | 12/4/2006 | 5 | Borderline pers. disorder, bipolar | I also take Paxil, Welbutrin and Celexa. I don't know which drug is causing this, but I have been having DEBILITATING vertigo, dizziness, nausea. The worst is my head seems to spin and I have to hold onto something and still feel the room spinning. Horrible. | Has really helped with mood swings, I'm not crying at everything, or nothing at all. I am able to participate in therapy, when I can tolerate being ambulatory. (I do miss out on things when I can't even get out of bed because of the vertigo.) | F | 52 | 1 years | 11/29/2006 |