LAMICTAL Reviews (LAMOTRIGINE)Average Rating: 3.4 (1917 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare LAMICTAL with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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More on LAMICTAL: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR LAMICTAL | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 4 | depression | Over 125 Mg lots of intense dreams. I agree with the person who said take it in the morning only. It makes me stay awake so I would sleep less. The problem is that I would get fatigued from no sleep and I think I would have all the range of sleep depravation problems (confusion, anxieta, anger, depression etc.) simply from lack of sleep, even though my concentration and attitude was improved during times that I did sleep. I dropped to 125 from 150mgs and it seemed right for me. | One thing that is published that seems true is that lamictal seems to have a very narrow sweet spot for dosage. also lamictal seems to react with other drugs and can vary the effect of lamictal. Caffeine use is NOT good. Caffeine use may also cause the skin problems associated with lamictal. Dosing is sensitive, too much and you loose sleep too little and nothing happens. My only problem at first was that when I started up near the 100 mg level nothing really happened. I then started taking 150 mg and then I could not sleep. I felt great at first but I got so exhausted from no sleep. Finally I was taking a 100mg and a 25 mg for 125 total. I think it really was good. My concentration was better, I did feel better. I was more alert and I seemed to be making better decisions. I took it for about a year. I stopped taking it about 8 days ago and I have been very tired. Im going to see how I feel. | M | 50 | 13 months | 7/6/2007 | 4 | Bipolar | Insomnia and DIFFICULTY Concentrating, poor short-term memory, | This med has really helped with my mood swings, but I work with computers and I need to focus. I can't remember where I put my glasses...ooppss, there're on my face. | M | 45 | 13 months 400mg 1X day | 5/18/2010 | 3 | Depression | Disturbing/Vivid Dreams, Night Sweats, and Incontinence. My does recently went up 50mg and my eyes are killing me. I had to buy eye drops, but they wear off quickly. I don't know if I can handle the dry eye. | I haven't seen any large change. I also take effexor xr and seroquel, so it's difficult sometimes to decide which side effect comes from what, but I'm sure of the link, especially with the dry eye. | F | 19 | 13 months | 1/9/2007 | 2 | seizure | mood swings, trouble sleeping, CONFUSION, short term memory loss, hallucinations, incresed brusing,(can get touched hard and burse's), tremers in hands, IRITALAILTIY AND AGGESSION, panic attacts, | we found our that our 9 year old was having partial complex seizures and he was started on lamictal 13 months ago. He can't even go outside to play on most days. he is having panic attacts he thinks ever little bug is out to kill him he runs away from them in a blind panic screaming. he never had this problem till the last few months. we has mood swings one hour he is fine and so sweet, then he is yelling at us and makes no sense. he cant sleep at night. when have to tell him things over and over, he can look right at us and we can tell him something he can walk over and to do it and then forget what he was told, i know some of that could be age related but this is a all day everyday thing. and he is still having seizures. and over the last few months he has had to start on adderall for A.D.D. becouse he cant seem to keep his mind on anything. with all the changes in our son we are looking for a different medication for him | M | 9 | 13 months | 6/28/2005 | 2 | BP Depression | Took this for about 13 mos. Weight gain - I gained weight for sure. Eye pain - so bad I couldn't stand it.. went to eye Dr and he said I had very dry eyes and gave me expensive drops to use. That didn't help though. I stopped taking Lamictal about 3 weeks ago and the eye problems have almost gone away. Alcohol - I know they say you shouldn't drink w/ Lamical (and many drugs) but I do occassionally. Lamical makes seems to double the effects of alcohol and not in a good way. You feel 'out of it' and like crap if you drink and the next day is just aweful.. waking with cold sweats and feeling like you're going to die. I'm not talking binge drinking either... just one or two drinks with dinner. | M | 34 | 13 months | 3/3/2008 | 4 | depression | it might be increased libido; but in addition there are almost nightly nocturnal emissions, sometimes twice a night. Without the dream; but I'm reporting, not complaining | Best thing ever.Fights with Zoloft, if you're on both. I quit the Z. | M | 61 | 12 months | 2/12/2008 | 2 | Prescribed for depression/anxiety | Terrible headaches, tachycardia (heart pounding) and palpitations, and severe pulsatile tinnitus. | I suffer from anxiety, depression, and migraines. I was first given Paxil. It worked for depression but not the anxiety, and the sexual side effects and weight gain were unacceptable. Then I was given Amitryptiline. This raised my anxiety (heart pounding and palpitations), and worst of all, gave me high blood pressure. Since there is a family history of bipolar, the doctor then put me on Lamictal; at about the same time my family doctor prescribed Metoprolol for the high blood pressure. Lamictal was quite effective for mood stabilization. However, it did not help with anxiety/palpitations, made my life-long headaches worse, and gave me terrible pulsatile tinnitus. The Metoprolol stabilized my blood pressure but further contributed to the headache problem. (Despite what my family doctor claimed, beta blockers are NOT all the same, and only some work for migraine prophylaxis. Both Metoprolol and Lamictal are on the ototoxic list to be avoided if you have tinnitis. I am now off the Lamict | F | 58 | 12 months | 8/25/2007 | 1 | Bipolar | none | none | M | 12 months | 8/28/2006 | 1 | Bi-polor | I have been short of breath for 5 days body cramps nauseated panicking consistently panic attacks up to 10 times a day | Lamictal says nothing about these side effects on any of their sites this medication is the devil | F | 36 | 12 months 125mg | 8/21/2017 | 5 | GAD/Depression | None | Went for years, trying every medication out there. Finally hit upon the cocktail of Lexapro and Lamictal. It is like the clock has been turned back for me to a time prior to my problems emerging. (the Lexapro alone did not do it. It was not until after we added the Lamictal that I gained relief) | M | 59 | 11 months | 6/11/2009 | 5 | Bipolar Type 2 | Major Nightmares in the beginning with each increase of dosage. These ease as time goes on. Breast soreness in beginning. Blurriness in sight but improved with time. Creepy crawly sensation. (but this could just be me). Takes a long time to get up to dosage but better than getting that rash. This medication takes time to take effect. | Excellent medication. Make sure you take this medication on time and regularly. If I missed one dose, I had major moods swings. Also be careful of making up for missing a dosage later in the day, It will give you a major nightmare. My doctor split my dose (250 mg) into 100 mg in the day and 150 at night (I use to be half and half), And I sleep better now. I still have to have something to take besides this medication for depression but I has improved my life dramatically. | F | 43 | 11 months | 7/20/2007 | 5 | epilepsy | none | F | 20 | 11 months | 7/21/2005 | 5 | Bipolar I | not so bothersome: vivid dreams, weight loss, decreased appetite (compared to increased from Depakote, drastic improvement in menstrual pain/ it cured my dysmennorrea./// bothersome, but livable: slight word recall trouble/ speaking difficulties, some mental cloudiness and listlessness (but then again, i graduated magna cum laude on it), incredibly easy bruising, break through bleeding during ovulation which stopped after 10 months on it (but this could be due to stress) | A godsend. I was miserable on Depakote, which I was placed on during my first (and only) manic episode. I taped off Depakote and onto Lamictal. I lost 20 pounds and felt I had returned to normal. I felt/feel saner than ever. Mood improvement,it took the edge of my frequent spells of anxious depression and erased signs of mania. I excelled in school and personal life. hope it keeps working for me and I hope it causes no long term damage. anyway, it saved my life. the side effects do not interfere with my life. but if i miss a pill, my hands shake uncontrollably and i feel horrible. so dont miss doses. and do not go onto estrogen-containing contraceptives as they cause fluctuations in lamictal blood levels. try to use a progestin only mini pill. i am trying that now. i also feel that an increased libido is due to the general increase in well being that lamictal engenders. I am most bothered by the mental effects, but i get by just fine and am still known as highly verbal a | M | 22 | 11 months | 7/31/2007 | 3 | Mood swings, depression, anxiety | short term memory loss, nervousness, stumbling over words, trouble recalling words, loss of train of thought, hair loss, acne, became intoxicated very easily | Initially I thought this drug was helping me but after about 6 months I returned to writing and found it extremely hard to concentrate, recall words and hold conversations with people. I felt very dumb compared to my old self. Would get hiper sometimes out of nowhere. Got a new pimple every day and never before this had I experienced acne. You cannot drink on this drug and it is very expensive if you don't have insurance. Cons outweigh benefits. | F | 26 | 11 months 300 MG 1X day | 4/6/2010 | 5 | atypical rapid cycle bipolar | worsened short term memory loss, worsened stutter, worsened difficulty finding words, worsened trouble focusing, increase in acne problems. | In November 2008, I was diagnosed with atypical rapid cycling bipolar disorder, non-combat related PTSD, panic disorder w/o agoraphobia, rape trauma disorder, ADHD combined type, and hypersexual behavior. The shrink put me on Celexa and Seroquel. The Seroquel began to help immediately, but the Celexa took a few weeks to kick in. The Celexa helped with the depression for a few months, but I still had manic episodes and pretty bad mood swings. Eventually it stopped working all together causing panic attacks. After I started having psychotic episodes, my shrink switched me to Lamictal. The FIRST DAY I started noticing the difference. I was calmer and happier. After a few weeks, the mood swings had gone from 7-15 a day to once or twice every few days. The panic attacks tapered off, and my nightmares tapered off. Lamictal did decrease my sex drive, but I saw it as more of a blessing. Since I began taking Lamictal, I now have a NORMAL healthy sex drive. I'm not driven to risky sexual behavior that was dangerous not only to my physical health but to my relationships. This medication has helped me tremendously. | M | 23 | 10 months 75 mg 1X day | 5/26/2010 | 5 | BiPolar | Memory loss, words sometimes come out wrong, misplace things, absent minded. | I will NEVER stop taking this medication. Have been depressed for 30 years and even when taking other medications still experienced major depressive episods and "rages" where I was irrational. Have not had either type of episode since taking Lamictal. Has truly been a miracle drug for me and I feel emotionally healthy for the first time in my life. Absent-mindedness I will learn to live with. I'll just get better at writing checklists. | F | 38 | 10 months | 5/5/2006 | 5 | bipolar 1 w/ rapid cycling | Some short term memory loss (at first) and very painful menstrual cramps. | Has helped w/ the ups and downs of bipolar. I still get the mood swings, but not as severe ( usually only 1 day a month the day before my period). No unwanted side effects like fatigue and weight gain .. yeahhh! I am the most stable I have been in over 15 years and finally able to hold a job for more than 2 months. | F | 31 | 10 months | 1/27/2006 | 5 | Bipolar- mania | dry mouth, slight rash (occasional) | this drug, combined with lexapro, is the first combination that has successfully enabled me to function normally in daily life. I do not feel like a robot or have any severe side effects. i feel balanced and healthy. | F | 18 | 10 months | 9/1/2006 | 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 Type II | Hair loss, dry skin/psoriasis, eyeballs sometimes "jiggle" when I try to focus on something in particular, "lose" words sometimes, some short term memory problems | Previous diagnosis was depression, but after 9 years on various antidepressants (prozac, effexor, wellbutrin, zoloft, paxil et al), was still cycling from "happy normal" to "sleep-all-day-don't-go-to-work" depression. Ten months ago, psychiatrist re-evaluated diagnosis to Bipolar II. Tried Tegretol first, which was an unhappy experience for me. Then Lamictal (started at 50 mg) with a side of Lexapro. Stopped the Lexapro after one month without any appreciable difference from it. The Lamictal has made a significant difference. No depressive episodes in 10 months, no hypomania. After reaching 200 mg/day (taken at night), was seeing irritability and explosive anger under stressful conditions. Doc recently raised dosage to 225, and we may go to 250. So far, so good. No anger control issues since increasing dosage. The hair loss is a concern, but will work with PCP on improving that condition through either medication or nutritional therapy. | F | 50 | 10 months | 10/9/2006 |