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 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 2 | ear pain, headaches, loss of appetite, drowsiness, brain fog, dropping words, | I have only been taking this med for 4 days, but after reading the posts here I was so prepared to have all the terrible side effects. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the side effects I am having or mild and very tolerable. I am also taking 300mgs of Wellbutrin so I don't know if that makes a difference. My pysch is starting me off slow with 25mgs for the 1st 2 weeks, 50mgs 2nd 2 weeks, and ending up at 100mgs after that. I know the medicine probably hasn't started working yet but I feel better. I feel very good which is kinda weird since right now my husband is laid off and we are late on most of our bills. I think things are going well now, hope it stays this way as I increase my dosage. | F | 29 | 4 days | 5/4/2009 | 4 | Bipolar II | Brain fog | I have taken Lamictal for mood stabilization for 3 years and am currently at 200 mg twice daily. I have not experienced anything more exciting than hypomania for a couple of years now. The only side effects that really bother me are the brain fog and short term memory problems which I have only begun to notice after 3 years of being on it. For a little perspective, Lamictal is nowhere near as bad as Topamax which made me simply incompetent to do my job. I describe the feeling as an "access failure." Even when I know that I know something...that I have done or understood perfectly in the past...I am not capable of understanding it. The knowledge just can't be accessed. Same feeling with short-term recall and word-finding. Having just reached "crisis state" with the fog thing, I started taking Deplin (Rx methyl-folate supplement) which is supposed to help the cognitive slurring. I never knew that Lamictal did this until I asked my Dr if the drug could possibly be making me stupid. Her response was, "Oh, yeah, that's pretty common." WTF? If you're taking lamotrigine/Lamictal and you're not as sharp as you used to be, it might not be just you! Ask your Dr. | F | 36 | 3 years | 4/22/2009 | 4 | BiPplar 2 | Weird dreams no other major issues dry mouth and have to use the bathroom alot more. | This med same to help me alot I was om topmaxx but cost way to much and abifely deathly sick | F | 37 | 30 days | 4/20/2009 | 4 | bipolar ll | vivid dreams, itching, surreal moments, trouble finding words, mild acne, interacts badly with alcohol. | I am starting this med again for the fourth time. Twice quit due to bad sores in my mouth and abdominal discomfort. It seems that I cannot take the normal theraputic dose so my pdoc said to take 25 to 50mgs as this is beneficial to some like myself. It has been very beneficial for quite a few months to stop suicidal thoughts, stabilize my moods and stop the severe depression. I'll keep going back to this one. I have taken it with 300mg. Wellbutrin for a number of months but will start this by itself this time and add other meds as needed. Been on all the anti depressants, etc, sometimes 4 or 5 meds over the past 30 years. Finally glad to know it was bipolar and needed a mood stabilizer. | M | 60 | 14 days | 4/13/2009 | 4 | mood disorder | tiredness, MAJOR MEMORY and cognition problems | I am so in love with this drug but the fogginess is getting to be a real problem. The other day I was driving to drop off a very important loan package for our business. I needed to stop at the auto store for something and walked out and completely forgot about this most important thing. If my husband hadn't called I think it would still be in my back seat. May have to give it up even though it has made me really stable. Am on Wellburtrin (150) too and all depression is gone. I have ADD and used to take Adderall--maybe this will help the fogginess? Anyone had success with that combo? | M | 40 | 1 years | 4/6/2009 | 4 | BiPolarII-Depression-Anxiety | mixing up words, starting to say the wrong word and having to correct myself, dizzyness when I stand up, balance/coordination off | Though I still have the side effects, Lamictal was a miracle. After 13 years of being on every anti-depressant under the sun, it was decided that I might be BiPolar and try Lamictal. It's like I came out of a fog and could see clearly. He also put me on Seroquil to sleep/racing thoughts and I am STILL on Klonopin for the anxiety and Effexor for the depression, but the Lamictal has made all the difference. I'm just a little clumsy and sometimes have tounge twisters when there aren't any. | F | 31 | 4 months | 4/6/2009 | 4 | Depression, Anxiety & OCD | Hair loss, mild insomnia | I could have stayed on this drug except for the hair loss... I am so frustrated about it because for me, Lamictal was wonderful. All the static in my brain relaxed, I was able to think clearly, I felt more positive about my life... None of the other medications I have been on ever did this. However. The hair loss became so bad that the anxiety about my hair made it impossible to continue. Really unfortunate. However, I would highly recommend this drug. It worked SO WELL for me. It's my issue that I can't deal with the hair loss and it might not happen to you. | F | 41 | 2 years | 3/19/2009 | 4 | Epilepsy | Short term memory problems--someone will give me directions to follow and as soon as I walk away, I have to go get the directions again. Increased sweating at night. Migraines (at a lower level 75mg, doctor put me on 4 different migraine medicines and they messed me up bad, so I self medicated and bumped the dose up to 150mg and have been migraine free). Constant need to shake my leg when sitting down. Frequent ear problems (same thing other poster posted about it feeling almost like swimmer's ear where you can hear your voice in your head before your ears pop). Every day about 4:30 for some reason I start getting really shaky--not sure if this is blood sugar or what. | This medicine has pretty much cleared up my seizures. I do have memory problems, but from what I was told by the doctor, this medicine causes the least memory problems of all seizure meds. The other side effects are minimal and hardly noticed. I love this medicine and would recommend it to anyone. Also, I was on the pregnancy registry cause I've had two babies, and recently it was reported in their findings that this drug is safe to take during pregnancy. I had no complications with my babies because of this medicine. I know not many people on here say that they would continue this medicine, but you just have to keep in mind that every medicine--no matter what it is--some people are going to tolerate it well, and some people are not. You just have to find what works for you. Don't take this website as all negative, because people who are not having problems with this medicine generally are not going to be getting on a site like this. Only those individuals who are having prob | F | 26 | 5 years | 3/13/2009 | 4 | Hypo-Manic (Bi Polar) | At first, massive weight loss (medication killed appetite, made me feel sck) I lost about 25 pounds in 2 months. Since then, RAPID weight gain - Up about 45 pounds total. Has helped, makes me tired (Have been from 25mg to 200mg, now at 100mg) So that may have to do with weight gain. | I feel very spacy, I am also treated for ADHD though. I loved it at first, now it's almost love hate. No symptoms, but no sex drive, no appetitte but weight gain do to constant fatigue. | F | 22 | 2 years | 3/1/2009 | 4 | Possibly Bi-Polar II | Slight heart burn, Extreme heart burn when drinking alcohol (which has made me cut back on drinking; a blessing in disquise I guess). | Its not certain yet whether or not I suffer from bi-polar II disorder, but my Dr decided to treat me with Lamictal to see if it helped my sever depression/anxiety. I delayed treatment even though I was severly depressed for a long period of time becuase of my past experiences with anti-depressants/anxiety medication. I have taken Zoloft, Zeprexa, Klonapin, and Cymbalta in the past (when I was 17 - 18 years old). Even though I didn't take the Cymbalta long enough to let it work, the other medications worsened my depression to an extreme point where I wasn't myself at all. It even landed me in jail (I was so drugged out on the dose my doctor was giving me at the time, I didn't even remember what I did, or that I was even in jail). I totally don't trust any Doctor to prescribe these types of anti-depressant and anti anxiety medications because I feel that they don't monitor their patients well enough, and get happy with the prescription pad. Even though I initially sought help with t | F | 23 | 39 days | 2/28/2009 | 4 | Major Depression; mood instability | Vivid dreams - not really a problem though. Feet are sometimes itchy, but it's only a minor annoyance. | Lamictal has been a great help to me! After months of trying different SSRI's, only to be pushed into hypomanic episodes time after time (in between depressive periods) this mood stabilizer was prescribed to me by my psychiatrist. I no longer have sleepless nights, or the need to be constantly moving! Most importantly, (I'm not up to a full dose yet) but I have been so much less depressed and anxious lately. Great medicine! | F | 21 | 2 weeks | 2/8/2009 | 4 | Bipolar II | At this point, I can't be sure if these problems I've had for several years are a result of the drug or not, I was not aware they were side effects when I started taking lamictal so I haven't kept good track of when they started but I'm concerned that my moderate acne, slight weight gain and frequent (very frequent) urination are to blame on lamictal. | I was very satisfied in the beginning because the drug really did even out my moods. It dulled everything though, so I went on wellbutrin as well. But after 5 years of weight fluctuation, not in my favor, and increasingly worse acne (which the topical prescriptions including retinol no longer help) as well as being constantly aware that whatever activity I'm planning should take place near a bathroom, I've had it. I'm currently weening off my 200 mg dose right now. I'm honestly scared about what will happen but I've had it with these other aspects to the point that I am at least willing to try and see if this helps my other problems. I wish I had the advice of someone who understands. I don't know anyone else in my position. | F | 25 | 5 years | 2/6/2009 | 4 | bipolar | None that I can trace to Lamictal, but dr. also put me on Buspar for anxiety and it caused dizziness/clumsiness/hair loss/memory problems, so I stopped taking it. Dr. now wants me to try Klonipin for anxiety. | I had depressed/suicidal and "up"/confident periods for 35 yrs. Son was diagnosed w/ bipolar disorder last year and learning about it made me see that my problem wasn't just depression. I always thought that my depression was a character flaw that I should've been able to overcome alone and God knows that I tried everything to get over it. My manic periods were not dancing-on-the-table euphoria, just a sense of normalcy and feeling capable of living, but knowing that a "down" would follow. Lamictal changed my life and I felt like the pills were my best friend; this extremely happy feeling (probably mania) only lasted about a month and my only worry then was that it wouldn't last, which it didn't. Because I'm impatient, I've experimented w/ doses (up & down) and am now on 100 mg but dr. wants me to ramp back up because I'm feeling depressed some days. My doctor keeps mentioning 400 mg as a goal even though I am thin; he says that a higher dose should not c | F | 50 | 5 months | 1/28/2009 | 4 | Depression/Anxiety | Practically none. Very vivid dreams. Occasional shakes when it would wear off. Saved my life when I had to abandon the entire SSRI class of drugs! | This drug changed my life. It was the 5th medicine I tried and had fantastic success! I have started hormone therapy (to try to undo 10 years of synthetic birth control damage) and it has helped me while trying to get balanced. HOWEVER ... I think I have to stop now and go the rest on my own, because based on what I have been researching, it must be lowering my Estrogen level and working against my hormone replacement! Thanks for all of your comments, you have helped me take another step on my journey to being well and normal and happy! | F | 32 | 1 years | 1/21/2009 | 4 | Grand Mal Seizures | Unexplained source of pain in my legs,night sweats,dreams,can't recall anything from the day before, tired,lethargic,weight gain,dry skin,slurred speech. I feel like I am in a tunnel most of the time. | If your Doctor suggest that you take this drug. Tell him no it is not worth risking your life. It may even effect you the way it did my friend. Causing them a horrible rash almost taking their life. | F | 30 | 4 years | 1/18/2009 | 4 | BIPLOAR 2 | blurry vision - decreased sex drive | 100mg a day - a great improvement with mood - no more cycling - racing thoughts. My remedy 1) 20 min. in am w/ sun lamp 2)1500 mg OmegaBrite Omega-3 gels 3) Lamictal | M | 42 | 19 months | 1/12/2009 | 4 | depression/mood stabilizer | tiredness, dizziness, brain fog, lethargic. | I have taken 100 mg for over a year, but I recently increased to 150mg in the morning. My moods have been great,I am much more stabile, and I feel like I now know what 'normal people feel like". But I am so tired that it is imporrsible. I will be lowering my doasage. I can sleep for 10 hours a night, and still be tired!I I don't have physical energy and have stopped working out (something I always did before). As a note I noticed that people who are taking lamictal for depression seem to note more drowsiness and tiredness as a side effect then the bi-polars. | F | 26 | 18 months | 12/31/2008 | 4 | Bipolar | confusion,memory loss, hair loss, body temp.rising,insomnia.Skin itches unmercifully at times,dry too. I also think it is responsible for what was thought to be premenopause. I didn't realize that I was having that many side effects. | This medication was at the time a miracle for me. I have been on some type of antidepressent for 23 yrs. Some worked for awhile, then they stopped. That is when I was diagnosed bipolar.That was 2yrs. ago. I went to my Dr. today. I told him it wasn't working.I needed a change. I am tapering off starting tonight.He said we would discuss another drug in 2 weeks when this was out of my system. To those of you looking for the right one or combo..don't give up! | F | 49 | 2 years | 12/18/2008 | 4 | BPD II | Hair loss (approx 1/3 gone). Sometimes brain fog. Considerable memory impairment (both short and long term). Finding the right words or getting my point across in a clear articulate way is difficult. | Take 200mg daily. Lost 20lbs (probably b/c of increased coffee consumption leading to appetite suppression). Allowed me to reduce my lithium from 1200mg to 450mg. Also take 100mg Zoloft. Does a pretty good job in stabilizing mood. | F | 28 | 1.3 years | 12/17/2008 | 4 | Epilepsy | The side effect that I noticed right away is that I have the most outrageous smelling farts and can clear a room with he horrible smell. That is the only one thing that I absolutely cannot stand. | Lamictal 200Mg I have been suffering from Epileptic seizures from the age of 14. I woke up in the ambulance not knowing anything about this condition. Doctors cannot give me an absolute answer to why this has happen too me. I took Dilantin 300Mg for 17 years. During my time on Dilantin I was able to control my episodes and had seizures years apart. Over time my doctor would attempt to lower my dosage and was unsuccessful. I have been on lamictal since March of 2008. I went through a six month transition from changing from dilantin to lamitcal. I was advised to change to a newer more up to date medication for years. I was scared to do so being that I was seizure free taking the dilantin and making sure my levels were consistent. After changing to lamictal I have been seizure free and feeling better about myself and better about life. I am glad that I changed. I do not suffer from the dragging effects of dilantin and feel very clear and motivated to do things that I ejoy and was no | M | 35 | 9 months | 12/14/2008 |