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 Date added. 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 | Tried to go off this drug under supervision of my psychiatrist. I was going to go down slowly. I went down to 150mg. Very soon after, I had SEVERE anxiety and sadness. It was not normal. I did not know what to do or if I could handle it, so I decided to go back to 200mg. I am fine, but would love to be off of it for good if I did not need it. Seems I do, though. | F | 35 | 3 years 200 mg 1X day | 7/10/2011 | 5 | BiPolar | Sometimes I get minor hives on my back and shoulders. Sometimes my eye twitches (but that could be tired eyes from computer screen). Reduced vision. Some memory problems, like searching for the correct words to use. | For me the perfect mixture is 200mg Lamictal, 10mg Ambien, 10 mg Amitriptyline, 4 mg Perhenazine. Taken all before bedtime. Zero Morning Carryover, I wake up crisp and ready for work. Doesn't cause pain, no dry mouth, no bad breath, no gas.. I get a very good sleep and stay even all day. No more Mania, no more depression. | M | 43 | 4 years 200 MG 1X day | 7/8/2011 | 3 | seizure | Memory loss--some long term but mostly short term--lots of trouble with names. Trouble concentrating and reasoning sometimes. Numbness in my face and confusion when I forget a dose. It feels like anesthetic has been injected and the skin on my face is sagging. Low tolerance for stress compared to before I started the med. My job performance has definitely been affected. | The side effects are intermittant--some good days and some not so good. Menopause and stress complicate things. In fact STRESS is a huge factor. I have regained some ability to concentrate since my dad passed away after 6 years of taking care of him. Meditation, exercising, not overscheduling myself, and eating right help. This is literally the only medication I have ever taken, and it has completely stopped my seizures which started three years ago. So I guess the side effects are better than having seizures. Still, I am very worried about not being able to work at some point. Right now I depend quite a bit on friends and my students to help me on the bad days. I guess I would give up driving if I could have my brain power back. But I don't know what it would be like to live with seizures. I have a benign brain tumor which is apparently the cause of those. There are risks if I have brain surgery, principally that the tumor is near my speech center. And, I am told there is no guarantee the seizures would go away after the tumor is removed. | F | 56 | 3 years 200 MG 2X day | 7/8/2011 | 4 | Bipolar | Some insomnia, small cognitive issues, | I have been on Depakote for 7 or so years and couldnt take the weight gain anymore. I am being weened off of the Depakote and put on Lamictal. I can feel very few side effects. Basically I feel almost the same as I did on the Depakote with different side effects. My appetite is down some (YEA!), more sex drive (YEA!), more energy (YEA!). I do have some trouble falling asleep, muscle cramps and stomach aches, but for me this is definitly better than Depakote. Im only two weeks in so only time will tell! | M | 25 | 2 weeks 25 mg 1X day | 7/5/2011 | 5 | Epilepsy | Memory loss, some hair loss, spaced out/disconnected feeling when dose not taken on time, muscle twitches | I have been on this medicine since the age of 14.5 years. The medicine I was on prior to this caused severe side effects. On lamotrigine I don't experience any of the tiredness, lower mental acuity or weight gain that I did previously and it generally controls my seizures very well, when no added risk factors - such as sleep deprivation - are added in. I have now been seizure free for 2.5 years. It is interesting to me that the person in the thread who has been on the drug for 17 years also gets the spaced out feeling if the dose is taken late...any other similar experiences? What might cause this? My doctor tells me that lamotrigine shouldn't have any psychological effects for otherwise mentally healthy people, but this doesn't seem to be the case. | F | 30 | 16 years 150 mg 2X day | 7/2/2011 | 5 | Bi-polar | I get headaches often, and if I miss a dose I throw up, I cant remember things I just did sometimes. | It has really helped me with my bi-polar! I use to have very bad outbreaks a couple times a month and since being on lamictal I haven't had a single one! The headaches do get very annoying, and usually last for a few hours. Don't miss a dose, you will regret it. I use to get angry very quickly/easily but since being on lamictal I'm able to control the anger. I do get depressed every now and then but the time period is very short compared to before. I recommend this drug to anyone that has bi-polar disorder! It has made my life so much better. | F | 19 | 1 years 150 1X day | 6/28/2011 | 1 | temperol lobe seizures/depression | no appetite tormenting dreams, bordering on what i imagine would be a good way to brainwash or "expertly interrogate" someone loss of emotion/feeling aches/loss of balance | this drug has denied me much of my ability to perform basic acts of survival as a human being. My appetite is horrible, even if i havent eaten for a day and my stomach hurts i can never get the drive to eat something, and in consequence meals simply become a fairly aggravating chore. sleep is the worst part, at first this drug was what my system needed but then it turned everything to hell. I have woken up feeling out of my mind or completely suicidal from some of the horrific scenes ive witnessed while dreaming while taking lamictol. more often than not i find myself literally terrified at the prospect of going to sleep, on a level below but to me comparable to those friday the 13th movies. also, i cant feel much in the way of emotion any more which just depresses me further because im unable to deal with any emotional issues ive had/am having. PLEASE DO NOT TAKE THIS DRUG, ITS BEEN KILLING ME FOR FAR TOO LONG OF MY OWN LIFE, NOT TO MENTION HAS IN MANY CASES DROVE ME TO ALMOST KILL MYSELF. luckily im weening slowly down off this drug but at whatever dose i know it still effects me. its because of this drug i have no trust in the fda to look out for its nations citizens, and ive begun to contemplate whether a life dedicated to shaming into bankruptcy/ doing anything within my power to hurt the fda and the company that manufactures this drug could be worth it | M | 17 | 2.5 years 50 2X day | 6/18/2011 | 4 | epilepsy | scalp itches, a few headaches, dreams, dry mouth, some all over muscle aches | Took Dilantin for 30 years for idiopathic seizures and started the switch to Lamictal about 2 months ago. Currently taking 200mg twice daily. The biggest side effect for me so far is the itchy scalp. Drives me crazy! A few headaches here and there but they go away. I have been dreaming more and can actually remember my dreams in great detail now. I like that. Frequent dry mouth but water and gum fix that. Muscle aches a couple of times out of the blue that felt like I had been run over by a train. Not sure if that is Lamictal related or not. As for my seizures, only time will tell if it works. I like Lamictal so far and hope that I can continue taking it without any problems. | F | 45 | 2 months 200 2X day | 6/11/2011 | 1 | Partial seizures | My husband called from the supermarket because he felt 'frozen.' Couldn't check out. Couldn't leave the condo to walk our 2 little dogs. Couldn't get dressed. Moody and hostile. Couldn'tbring himself to walk into the haircutter's shop. Changed his mind 8 times. Couldn't press "send" on e-mail. Started talking almost retarded, with bad grammar. He looked like a nut case when I'd come home from work. Problems with teeth and hair loss, too. He went from 155 or so to 128 lbs.!! | If your neurologist does not take your side effects from Lamictal seriously, take matters into your own hands.GET OFF IT!!! My husband finally went to the emergency room, and since he had a cardiac background, he was admitted to the hospital in Denver. ATIVAN (lorazapam) brought him back to normal, personality wise. It took about 2 months of physical therapy, etc. for him to return to normalcy. I really thought for a while that his condition was unreversible. He weaned himself off lamictal, and the partial seizures never returned!! THIS IS A TRULY HORRIBLE DRUG. | M | 58 | 4 months 100 1X day | 6/10/2011 | 1 | epilepsy | halucination, lose of coordination, horror dream, imagination of ghost, sore eyes,dizziness, blurred ,shaking,nausea ,suicidal | I took this medecine one month for epilepsy | F | 52 | 1 months 100 2X day | 6/9/2011 | 5 | Bipolar Disorder II/OCD | I have experienced no side effects from this medication. | Taking lamictal has definately helped me keep my Bipolar Disorder and the Obsessive Compulsive Disorder under control. There is no cure for it so I just have to take medication to help with the symptoms. Don't get me wrong my days are a heck of a lot better on medicine than off. I still have some mood swings but they are teenie compared to where I was a little over 10 years ago! Every person is affected differently by this illness and you should follow the advise of your doctor! I had a multitude of medical testing before Bipolar Disorder was diagnosed. I have a much better outlook on my life! | F | 52 | 8 years 200 mg 1X day | 6/5/2011 | 5 | Bipolar/anxiety/migraines | Insomnia (went away after 2 weeks), hair loss (about 25-30% of my hair fell out), creepy skin feeling (like the way it feels when you hear fingernails on a chalkboard), aching teeth, strange headache when I first started taking it & also when my dose was increased, slight case of hives on various spots of my body (especially noticeable right after I get out of the shower), acne on forehead, wrinkles on face seem to be more pronounced, fatigue/excessive yawning during first half of day. | I still love this drug. Most of the side effects have lessened. I also take Lexapro 10 MG 1xD and Valtrex 500 MG 1xD. Feel great for the first time in my life. My hair seems to be growing back, and I've helped the wrinkles by putting a heavy face balm on at night. Also, I was having the fatigue/excessive yawning when I was taking Lamictal in the morning. I now take it at night & no longer feel tired during the day. The "hives" have gotten better, and I use a toothpaste & mouth-rinse for sensitive teeth. Also, I got a nightguard which REALLY helped the aching teeth & jaw-clenching. I bought one of those cheap ones at a drugstore and it works great. I suspect that taking Valtrex plus Lamictal might have increased my hair loss, but I've had shingles 4 times in the past 10 years so I cannot stop the Valtrex. Please feel free to email me. | F | 44 | 2 months 150 MG 1X day | 5/29/2011 Patient History | 5 | bipolar disorder | muscle twitching | it's been great so far. i was ragingly psychotic at one point, being on lamictal for the most part brought me to a much safer place. i still take other medications too, so i'm not sure i can contribute the success purely to lamotrigine, but it was a much better alternative than lithium (which made me feel so stupid) | M | 23 | 5 years 400 1X day | 5/29/2011 | 4 | Back Pain from Herniated Disk | Numbness, tingling, in face and jaw, (normally have it in body from herniated disc), nausea, dizziness, maybe headaches, tiredness, fatigue, memory loss. | I was surprised to read the other person's review who was prescribed Lamictal for back pain. I did not experience that with Lamictal, but I did have a similar experience with amitryptline and zanaflax or something like that. I didn't feel I had any emotional side-effects with Lamictal, which is one reason I liked it. (With others I can notice a sharp descent into depression.) It's very important that readers know that each individual will react differently to medications. I tried lots of different meds for back pain, but when I combined lamictal with ultram, I was able to tolerate my pain and yet be able to function. I think the idea is that it controls muscle seizures in your back or something (and of course the effect on the brain chemicals). Everything else just made me feel depressed or way too tired. I like to be alert and awake, and will tolerate some pain in exchange for being able to have a life. It's interesting that I've read about lamictal and hormones, because I'm just starting pre-menopause and I feel like my lamictal side effects of the numbness and tingling are getting stronger. I'm considering having my doctor wean me off this to see how I do. Probably will. But, I did want to post my positive experience with this drug and back pain so other might consider it. I would recommend giving it a try - and if it doesn't work - just go off it. But make sure you wean yourself on and off, it makes a difference. I'd also like to tell readers to trust your judgment more | F | 46 | 5 years 50 2X day | 5/25/2011 | 2 | Bipolar II | Increased moods, stayed irritated, higher dose gives me irregular heartbeats. | After being on this drug for 3 years I decided to stop taken them, I was not getting any better, seems over the years I was getting much worst. Now that I've been off for a month now, I feel great, mood and irrtibility is fine, the chronic pain I live with just makes my mood bad, a mood stablizer can't change what pain does to our body, I also became a Diabetic unaware of it and went into a Coma for a week and hospitalized for a month, loss majority of my vision, kidney problems and now living with nerve damage. I do not recomend anyone to stop taking there meds without your doctors recomendation, I did because I was tired of my Psy taking me around in circles. Had to be in charge of my own body and how I felt. | F | 46 | 3 years 150 2X day | 5/16/2011 | 1 | depression(with aggitation) | hair loss, memory loss, flat personality | This was the first psych med I ever took. My doctor gave it to me because it worked great for a lot of people and I could have angry spells with my depression. Overall, I felt like crud. But I didn't know much about meds and wasn't really aware that you could ask to change them. My hair thinned badly, and that was hard because I was very meticulous about my appearance. And now, in retrospect, I had memory issues. Not short term, but overall. People reminding me that I DID see that movie or read that book. My two best friends who didn't know about my depression or medication sat me don't to ask why I wasn't smiling or happy. That said, I didn't have insomnia or fatigue, get a rash or gain an ounce. A few years later, I'm really glad I switched things up and found the right medicine for me. | F | 32 | 1.5 years 100 2X day | 5/2/2011 | 5 | Bipolar 1 Disorder | acne | I have been taking this medication and i love it. i highly recommend this to anyone suffering from bipolar disorder. it has its downfalls but so does everything else. withdrawls......are horrible! dont go without your meds! | F | 21 | 1 years 300mg 1X day | 5/1/2011 | 4 | Bipolar Disorder/Mania | It makes me really tired and I always take it at night. This combined with Prozac has done absolute wonders for keeping my Bipolar under control. | It is PRICEY, but there are patient assistance programs out there. Also, buying the generic costs considerably less. | F | 23 | 1 years 100mg 1X day | 4/30/2011 | 2 | Bipolar | Bruise on outer left thigh which continued to spread. Dark and light spots. Embarressing to wear shorts in the summer. Moods were still not stable. High doses gives me irregular heartbeat. | Lamictal does not seem to be effective in controlling my moods, I can't remember things, problems concetrating, can't describe things I want to say, seems I can't find the correct words to use like a brain freeze. Continue to have 2-3 nights without any sleep, went 5 nights straight without sleep before and Lamictal is suppose to help with these cycles and don't. I continue to be on a rage and doctors have difficulties perscribing me anything else due to my body rejects numerous of these medications. The depression and insomina is ongoing. I take Ambien for sleep and tried over 20 anti-depression meds that I reject or get terrible side effects to the point I have to discontinue them. Lamictal is the only drug that gives me less problems only if I stay under 200mg. The bruise that occured on my outer thigh, doctors states they have never heard of it or seen such thing. I have proved it as in when I was hospitalized for a month, I was not given any Lamictal at all, the bruise went away, I began taken them again and next thing I knew the bruise came back. Now my doctor is saying I need to go see a Derm doctor and see if they can give me some type of cream, lol yeah ok. Not recomended but I stopped taking them about a week ago and I seem to be fine thus far. | F | 47 | 2 years 75MG 2X day | 4/27/2011 | 5 | mood stabilizer for bipolar II | None. | Lamitcal has been a lifesaver for me!! I am so grateful to have a mood stabilizer that has no side effects. It has really helped with my depression too--better than antidepressants at times. The rash is rare (<1%) and if you titrate slowly you can help avoid it. | F | 31 | 4 years 200mg 1X day | 4/26/2011 |