LAMICTAL Reviews (LAMOTRIGINE)Average Rating: 3.4 (1917 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare LAMICTAL with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
|
Results are sorted by Satisfaction 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 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 |
| 4 | Bipolar Depression | VERY mild. Hot flashes and felt like I had a fever, but passed. Emotional numbness at higher doses (>100mg). Otherwise none really. | I was prescribed this years ago after starting a new psych, who diagnosed me as bipolar, about 10% manic and 90% depression as the problems. The best thing about this is that 1.) it's very mild and 2.) works very well at fighting the depression part of BP. Didn't dull me out like several others I tried (Depakote ER, Zyprexa, Trileptal, Tegretol), and after about 2 weeks after starting it I noticed just an overall improvement in my mood. Didn't propel me into a manic state, just an overall brighter attitude and outlook on things. I've been on up to 200mg and my psych has for years changed the dosage until we finally settled on 100mg as the most effective for me. | M | 29 | 4 years 100mg 2X day | 11/8/2012 | 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 day | 10/21/2012 | 4 | Mini Seizures due to MS | No side effects at all On it for 3 mos so far | Given this drug due to having what they think are mini seizures. Really all that happens is when I'm writing my handwriting will suddenly turn into scribble and my hand shakes badly. This is due to MS ( Multiple Sclerosis). I was given a starter pack and slowly increased to 100 mgs. It works great for that problem. Has kept it stable and no more issues. | F | 38 | 90 days 100 1X day | 10/20/2012 | 4 | Seizures | Blisters in mouth, swollen tongue, yellow eyes. | I love Lamictal for it's giving me good mood and somewhat control the seizures. However, I had such terrible side-effects in the first week that my doctor took me off the drug :( I think it's a great drug, just not the right one for me. Sad... | F | 37 | 5 days 25mg 1X day | 7/31/2012 | 4 | Depression, SSRI induced bipolar II | Increased libido, mild itchiness at dosage increase, no others | I am on my third week on Lamictal. I took 12.5mg for 1 week, and I am on my second week on 25mg. So far, so good. Little effects. Maybe a good one with the increased libido. I've also noticed orgasms come quicker and more frequently. My moods have been more level and my actions, which previously were often dictated by emotions, are easier to control. I have recently come off Buspar/Zoloft combination due to agitation (mixed state?), increased paranoia, and hypomania. I don't believe my diagnosis is bi-polar, but more like depression that cannot be treated with SSRIs. On the Zoloft, I had little ability to orgasm, so the libido change is drastic. Although, it is hard to pinpoint if it is the Zoloft withdrawal is increasing libido or the Lamictal. I suspect it is a combination. | F | 26 | 3 weeks 25MG 1X day | 6/30/2012 | 4 | BPD I | Oh the dripping sweat. From places I didn't know you sweat, like my kneecaps. Cognitive side effects--went from being a Spelling Bee speller to a their-there-they're confuser. Used to type 70 WPM with few errors, now I type 40 WPM with lots of backspace backspace backspace do over action. Weight gain/loss 50 pounds--related? not sure... | Lamictal plays a significant role in my mood stability--I have a mostly normal life these days. For me, the cognitive side effects are annoying, but being crazy is more annoying. So I use spellcheck and am grateful. It caused some problems in grad school, but I managed it. Being overweight is generally unpleasant, but I would much rather be buxom than batsh*t crazy. I do hate the sweating, but I am grateful my home and car are air-conditioned. I am just so glad to have something that helps me stay on an even keel and maintain good relationships, which I can't seem to do on my own. I guess we all have to do our own calculus about what we can live with. | F | 39 | 6 years 300 1X day | 6/22/2012 | 4 | Migraine headaches | I hadn't had any side effects while taking Lamictal in Italy years ago. Now I started it again, I bought the same brand in Bulgaria and had several side effects: first 3 days - feeling dizzy and confused, which subsided, then - feeling sikc (a common side effect, as I se), which subsided again, then - 3 days of headache and now - feelin restless, not sleepy (I have been sleeping less than usual but I am not tired at all) | F | 37 | 2 weeks 50mg 1X day | 6/11/2012 | 4 | mood stablizer | none | Helps calm me, taken with Adderall | M | 55 | 7 years 150 2X day | 4/28/2012 | 4 | Bipolar Disorder II | I am posting this because I feel I need to warn people about the withdrawal symptoms of this drug. Yes, it does help stablize my moods (did give me some sense of no emotion though), but what they did not tell me is that it is very psychologically and physically addictive. | If you ever stop taking this drug, do so very slowly and expect it to be difficult. Physically, I've experienced severe nausea, fatigue and headaches. I am having excruciating pain in my shoulders and back and my vision seems to be blurry. Psychologically, I had sudden, very intrusive violent suicidal thoughts, a feeling of being disconnected from my body, being "in a fog" so severely that I can't comprehend what people are saying to me, weird thoughts and a sudden onset of paranoia. This has happened so suddenly (i.e., in a day) that I am attributing it to the med withdrawal and not the disorder itself. My moods are still relatively stable as the meds aren't out of my system yet. I just feel like I'm completely losing my mind. I was on 200mg, tried to go cold turkey and realized that was a HUGE mistake. I've dropped back by 50% every two weeks and should be at this for another week or so. | F | 46 | 2 years 200mg 1X day | 2/27/2012 | 4 | Bipolar1 and PTSD | Had success on this med several years ago but stopped due to rash. Being desperate am trying med again. I had rash again and stopped but now retrying with no rash so far. Dry mouth can be problem and can wreck havoc on the gums/teeth. Take precaution if you have problem. Otherwise only med other than trileptal that has helped without devastating side-effects. | I suffer from severe depressions for the most part and mixed states. This med helped with the illness several years ago and I have seen positive effects again. Most docs try to get patients up to 200mg. For me I have done best at 100mgs. I also notice that the drug affects me quickly at 25mgs in a very positive way. Bipolar has robbed me, as it has most of you reading this, of a life. It is worth it to me to risk the rash and not to panic if I get one again. Most rashes are not of the fatal variety, but of course the docs know what they are doing in stopping the med and there are other meds. I recommend Trileptal if you are having rash trouble and cannot tolerate depakote, lithium, etectera. But for me I am not stopping at first sign of a rash. I will treat it as a typical rash if possible. That may be crazy but They say I have bipolar disorder anyway. So listen to the Docs not me. I'd be interested in hearing about your experience especially if you had a rash and you were able to continue or if not stopping caused you big problems. Thanks! John | M | 48 | 20 days 50 1X day | 2/12/2012 | 4 | Seizures, including Grand Mal | My dosage was increased to 250 MG a day 3 months ago. Before that was very low and had no side effects. When I started the higher dose, got VERY curly hair right away (which I LOVE!) I have gained weight but not sure if it is from this medication or not yet. | I love this drug, still not totally seizure free since my Grand Mal 3 months ago but it is helping and we are titrating it up. This is the only seizure drug I could handle, have tried a dozen if not more. Aside from the weight gain possibly being from this drug, I haven't noticed any other side effects except for the curly hair. I went from poker straight hair all my life to very curly hair, something I've always wanted. So no (or almost no) bad side effects, actually helps my seizures and curly hair. Total win-win situation. :). Couldn't be happier. | F | 30 | 1 years 125 MG 2X day | 2/4/2012 | 4 | Bi Polar II, Depression | Sluggish, some weirdness with sleeping, but got use to it. Really no side effects at all. | Ok here is the key- Titration is a must. I would recommend going up 12.5mgs per week until you get to the therapeutic amount. Also you have a way better chance of avoiding the rash and it also helps you get use to the med slowly. The beautiful thing with this medication is there are virtually no side effects. You hardly feel like you are taking anything after awhile. It definitely helped with some of my manic symptoms, stress, and irritability. The only reason I didn't give it a 5 is because it did little for my depression, it did help me from going into the depths of despair and doom, but I still feel 70-80% the depression I felt before. I think combined with an antidepressant I will be where I want to be, never had good luck with SSRI's though. My anxiety levels on Lamictal seem to be a little bit better. I'm going to switch to generic this week because of the cost, I hope it is as effective. Overall I think it is a well tolerated medication and I highly recommend it, some people say it really helps with the depressive side. Feel free to e-mail me with any questions. | M | 35 | 4 months 200mgs 1X day | 1/29/2012 | 4 | Bipolar 2, manic episodes | I originally started taking Lamictal about 1 1/2 yrs. ago. I went from 25 mg-50mg-100mg-150mg-200, and I was on 200 mg for about a year and last week my doctor increased my dose from 200mg-300mg, because of manic episodes such as; severe anger and irritability, crying-sadness, to make a long story short, I feel like I was on a "Bi-Polar Coaster", and I have been feeling miserable, and making it hard for loved ones to be around me because they never knew what to expect. I have been taking 300 for 3 days now, and I am feeling more groggy, and have the urge to stay in bed all day, also I am getting headaches daily. Is this normal while I'm adjusting to this increase, and will these symptoms eventually subside? | I do think that Lamictal is a wonderful medication. It has helped me tremendously, but I'm just feeling uneasy about these new symptoms I am experiencing since my dose increased from 200mg to 300 mg 3 days ago. | F | 33 | 300 1X day | 1/22/2012 | 4 | Bipolar II | Weight gain! Sweating, and vivid dreams. In 3 years I consistently went up in weight. About 60lbs in three years. The meds did help stabilize my mood a lot though! I'm currently working with my psychiatrist to wean off this drug and zoloft. | F | 17 | 3 years 75mg | 1/22/2012 | 4 | Bipolar II | Slight short-term memory loss on brand name. When switched to generic (as insurance made me), started having body aches and depression came back to point of suicidal thoughts. | I had GREAT success with the brand name Lamictal but when switched to generic "Dr. Reddy's Lab," my depression came back along with body aches like I had the flu. I began tapering off the 200 mg I was on and at 100 mg, the aches were gone but the depression not only came back but so did slight hypomania in rapid cycling form. My recommendation is for anyone considering going on this med it to be sure your dr. says "no substitutes" on your RX form and gets you the brand name form. I had came across crazymeds.org and there it is said that the "Dr. Reddy's" is so useless, it's like a placebo. This med worked great under the BRAND NAME. If you wanna try this med, get the the real thing. Also, it was after being switched to the generic that I quickly gained 10 lbs. I read this has happened with others. | F | 35 | 8 years 200 mg 1X day | 1/6/2012 | 4 | Bipolar II | Hair thinning and brittle, insomnia, hypermania at higher doses, random suicidal thoughts | This is a wonder drug for me. It stopped my severe depressions and stabilized manics somewhat. This medication did appear to have caused my hair to become increasingly thinner and brittle, and I have had a lot of hair loss. Didn't notice it until about 1 yr. Have to take it in AM because PM dose causes insomnia. Tends to lift mood, which means I do still struggle with some manic phases, but the depression is completely gone. | F | 41 | 2.5 years 100 1X day | 12/2/2011 | 4 | Bipolar II | Itchiness, hair loss, jumbled words, memory loss. Most settled down soon after starting on this though hair loss continues. | Changed my life for the better. SIDE NOTE - any other bipolar folk also hypermobile like me? It has helped my neuropathic pain associated with that enormously too. Am not a researcher, but I have Ehlers Danlos Hypermobility type and there may be some association with mood disorders/bipolar, so I'm interested to know! :-) Contact me and let me know, I've enabled email comments (I hope, at least I tried to!) | F | 49 | 1 years 50mg 1X day | 11/30/2011 | 4 | bi polar 2 | Migrains, dry mouth. | I have been on 15 anti depressant and other meds like them and this worked by far the best for me. it gave me terrible migraines which is the only reason i stopped it. i would recommend it still. | M | 19 | 2 months ? 1X day | 11/29/2011 | 4 | The lamicital has worked very well for me | M | 28 | 2.5 years 220 2X day | 10/12/2011 | 4 | bi-polar deppression | Only side affect is forgetfullnes of names. Good side affect includes help with sleep and normalizing sleep/wake patterns | Only depression med that feels natural -as in I don't feel like I'm on a drug of any kind. If you dislike the feeling SSRI's give you (which I do) you might be pleasantly surprised to find that no strange brain feelings or numbness or just "general SSRI weirdness" seems to accompany this med. Doesn't blunt my feelings or creativity. | F | 32 | 40 days 100 mg 1X day | 9/29/2011 |