LAMICTAL Reviews (LAMOTRIGINE)

Average Rating: 3.4 (1917 Ratings)

Filter Results

Compare LAMICTAL with similar:
 ANTICONVULSANTS

 Type: Rx Drug

  

LAMICTAL  (LAMOTRIGINE):  Lamotrigine is used alone or with other medications to prevent and control seizures. It may also be used to help prevent the extreme mood swings of bipolar disorder in adults. Lamotrigine is known as an anticonvulsant or antiepileptic drug. It is thought to work by restoring the balance of certain natural substances in the brain. This drug is not approved for use in children younger than 2 years due to an increased risk of side effects (such as infections).   FDA Approval Date: 1994-12-27 (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)

  

Results are sorted by Date added.

Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.)
5=HIGH (this medicine cured me or helped me a great deal.)

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  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR LAMICTALCOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 3  bi-polar II sudden fits of rage, diminished patience/tolerance extremely unstable moods during and preceeding mentrual cycle; constant, underlying hostility and frustration alternating with obsessive thinking and sadness I felt great on 30 mg Cymbalta & 25-50mg Lamictal. Once I came off the cymbalta things went rapidly south. I have difficulty sleeping through the night. I have been exceedingly clumsy (more than usual). I feel far more self-pitying than my usual problem-solving self. Reluctant to leave the house due to clutzy jag and sudden bouts of hostility. In fact, I think I ruined a friendship recently due to a random, uncharacteristic out-burst of verbal cruelty. I am a little sick of myself right now, but I'm all I can seem to think about the past 2 weeks. Doctor appointment is two days away. F 33 4.5 weeks
12/2/2007
 4  seizure disorder headache, nausea, dizziness, hair loss! felt like the room was spinning really slowly, impatience, a little sleepy, slight weight gain Have to take the pills exactly 12 hours apart or I get super sick. Somewhat withdrawn emotionally for a few weeks, but this improved. 5-10 lbs gain is probably because starting this after Topamax meant food actually tasted good again! All side effects subsided except hair loss. My hair is everywhere! My dr titrated me up really quickly and I developed the rash, so in a few days I'll be titrating off and start a new med. F 21 3 months
11/28/2007
 4  "bi polar" Overtime had to increase dose for any relief of depression - finally pulled the plug on the med at 5 years when my dose had reached 600 mg daily - the zombie was in control. I took Lamictal for over 5 years. I even took lamictal 300mg daily through pregnancy and have a healthy 4 year old. F 35 5 years
11/27/2007
 5  bipolar type II I haven't had any. But I have been reading a lot of comments about HAIR LOSS AND FATIGUE. YOU MAY BE HYPOTHYROID. 60% OF BIPOLAR AND UNIPOLAR PATIENTS HAVE T3 RESISTANCE AND A HIGH REVERSE T3/T3 RATIO. YOUR T3 WILL BE LOW NORMAL, REVERSE T3 HIGH NORMAL. IF SO FOR YOU,TRY ARMOUR THYROID- IT'S WORKED MIRACLES FOR ME. Synthroid won't work- you need the T3. The only drug in 30 years that's helped me. F 52 5 days
11/23/2007
 3  manic-depressionperiods I can only take 150 mg, if I take more I get in a very anxious state I´m not sure if it have any good effects. I got in a depressed peiod for 6 months anyway. After startin to take Lyrica the depression and the anxiosness got away. F 55 2 years
11/23/2007
 1  bipolar disorder This drug worked great for about the first month, until I realized my personality went totally flat. (someone else here mentioned this too). Not only did my personality go flat, but it only worked for a limited time and then my symptoms for the disorder came whirling back just as bad as before. I hated this drug and felt my relationships suffer as a result. F 21 6 months
11/22/2007
 3  Bi Polar 2 I posted 2 months ago. I have had a dosage increase to 75 MG in the AM and 100 MG in the PM. I now have random flu-like symptoms but a bit more painful in the muscles with no stuffy head. The benefits of the medication are so great for me that I just try to slug through it...since it only tends to last a few days. I am on on Seroquel as well, but was having these side effects before adding Seroquel. Email me if you have any questions. M 30 9 months
11/19/2007
 2  bipolar, gen anxiety disorder Extreme irratibility over the smallest things. Small bumps on my face (seem to be going away now). Rapid mood swings from calmness to anger to depression & suicidal thoughts. I was & still am on Wellbutrin. I saw a prior post that also described extreme irritablity and they too were on Wellbutrin. I'm normally a pretty laid-back person who really tries to keep things in perspective. This totally floored me, but I think this is NOT a common side effect after doing some research. F 34 30 days
11/19/2007
 1  PMS & Bi-Polar Weight gain, bloated feeling, sexual disfunction I am very sensitive to medications so I started out at 25mg. It seemed like a great thing for maybe 2 months...then at the 3rd month I realized that I had gained a LOT of weight (2 bra sizes, I feel like I had a boob job!). The weight came on almost overnight...all of a sudden my clothes didn't fit. Then I realized I had loss of libido as well and linked it all to the Lamictal. I actually went down to 1/2 a pill (12mg) for about a month but it hasn't helped so I quit taking it this week. It did help me feel better...I felt like I had a cloud in my head, kinda a fuzzy feeling, not a bad thing...but I cant take the side effects anymore. F 40 4 months
11/19/2007
Email
 4  BiPolar II I have had more bowel movements than is typical for me. I have been very hungry and tired as well. So far the medication seems to be helping my moods. I still feel depressed at times, but I'm not feeling as down and I haven't had any anger outbursts in a while. F 48 7 weeks
11/18/2007
Email
 2  Bi polar Insomnia, extreme dry mouth, slurred speech, lack of concentration or inability to concentrate when others were talking, trouble writing. Possible hair loss when I saw the comments of others and realized lots of my hair fell out after I washed it. The insomnia was the worst. Had difficulty falling to sleep if I fell asleep at all. If I did fall asleep, woke up several times during the night. The slurred speech might have been caused from being on lamictal, geodon, clonzapam, zyprexa and zoloft at the same time. F 52 3 months
11/18/2007
 1  seizures (3 in lifetime) Rash, itchy/crawling sensation on skin, dry/scaly/peeling skin (mainly on hands/fingers), crying spells for no reason, negative thoughts, lessened sexual desire, brittle nails, neck/shoulder/lower back pain, joints/muscles ache, hand shaky/tense when writing, spelling/math problems, panic attack, heart beating fast/hard, bruising, unable to think clearly, vision not clear.......need I say more? Started taking Lamictal's trial pak along with Gabapentin (had been on Gapentin 300mg three times per day). Dr wanted to slowly taper me off and only take Lamictal. When finished with pak started taking 150 mgs AM and PM and one 300mg Gabapentin (still tapering off). At that dosage had a panic attack with heart beating fast/hard. Lowered dosage to 100mg AM and PM and one 300mg Gabapentin. Calling dr tomorrow to go off immediately and take the Gabapentin 300 mg three times per day. Worse medication I've ever taken and would not recommend it to anyone (will discourage use of it). Would rather have a seizure than these side effects!!! F 57 4 months
11/18/2007
 4  bipolar 2 short-term memory loss, weight loss, confusion, fatigue, acne, muscle aches, headaches. Just starting my second time around with lamictal. I can't remember how it affected me the first time around except that I did feel better and was able to get through my days without feeling overwhelmed. I do remember experiencing a weird type of acne breakouts, not all over my face, mostly my chin and around my nose, big type of pimples, hard and under the skin, very irritating and didn't go away for months! Also, the memory loss; very frustrating. Would get lost in places I have been millions of times, lost car several times in parking lots, forgot appointments. Sleep patterns improved tremendously! As did moods overall. My cycle of hypermania improved as well, but I seemed to level off with my mood swings and depression over a period of the first month. Was up to 300 mg per day (am and pm doeses). But as we do, I felt better and quit my meds a few months ago. (Was taking Lamictal with Wellbutrin and Xanax). So I stopped taking meds because I was better, right? No. Afte F 42 8 months
11/16/2007
Email
 3  manic side effects from concerta. Felt a sense of "flatness". Did anyone else feel this way? At first, after taking 25 mg for 2 weeks (starter pack) I was feeling amazing, but then I noticed a sort of blanket flat-line feeling. My doctor told me to keep on taking only 25 mg and not move on to the 50. Seems like a miracle drug, but concerned that it is not only helping my moods, but adjusting my overall personality and brain functioning. F 25 3 weeks
11/15/2007
 3  bipolar II my anger went from passive to aggressive and i wake many times during the night. i cry a lot more than i used to, a couple times a day. it seems to have helped majorly with my depression, but might have made the mania worse. i think that i am gaining weight from it, but its only been 3 weeks or so, so i am not sure. I take 50mg in the morning and 50mg at night, i am sixteen so i dont know if it has different effects on differently aged people. M 16 3 weeks
11/15/2007
 2  mood stabilizer frequent vomititng, poor vision, memory problems, tremor, a sense of overall "blankness" I've just discontinued this drug after taking it for 18 months, and trying all different dosages with the help of my doctor. It was taking to help me with mild depression, and anger outbursts. I know that when it works, it works well, and is a godsend to many people. But if you are one of the few where the day to day side effects make you feel terrible, please be sure to press the issue with your doctor, and get your blood work done. It's been a few weeks since I've stopped, and I feel like me again:) I'll continue to work on my treatment another way. F 32 18 months
11/14/2007
 1  Bipolar Short term memory loss, dizziness, off balance, clumsy, short tempered, foggy, unfocused. Now going through withdrawl after trying to come off the drug: nausea, achiness, chills, grinding teeth, irritated, flat emotions, insomnia. I have been taking Lamictal for over 10 years. I was originally diagnosed with biplor, although since then I think I have been diagnosed with pretty much every mental disorder you can think of at one time or another. My symptoms aren't that bad...mood swings, addictive personality, impulsivity, assumed manic episodes. Lately there have been some reasons I decided to get off it. First, my short-term memory seemed to be getting worse, and I have been having problems with speech and my head is not as clear as it used to be. I am a successful business woman and not being able to speak correctly and be articulate is not an option. I also have been loosing everything - keys, phone, etc. I knew something wasn't right but my doctor insisted that it was all in my head and not due to the medication. Then I started my own research and here I am - with all these comments on this website referring to memory loss and cognitive difficulties. Guess I was right. Also, I am a serious technical scuba div F 32 10 years
11/14/2007
Email
 1  treatment for autism/tourettes My 17-year old son (who has autism/tourette's)experienced a dramatic increase in verbal and motor tics when put on this medication. He was unable to sleep at night. He was unable to function at school due to extreme lack of attention. Was unable to respond to simple instructions or cues...he was so "out of it". He is now tapering off the lamictal until totally off of it. Teacher reports significant improvement and he is almost back to "normal" functioning. We are still researching effective medications to assist with verbal tics (does anybody know of any)? He is on a high dose of Geodon which has been a wonderful medication for him. Doctor is concerned about the high dosage (260 mg over the course of 24 hours) and is tinkering with other meds which is how we wound up with the disaster with Lamictal. BEWARE OF LAMICTAL! This medication is over-rated. Physicians love to prescribe it and I believe it is because it is highly marketed and visible in the media as a medication for conditions other than seizures. For example, it is marketed as a medication for bi-polar disorder. This medication was not helpful in the treatment of autism and tourette's in my son. In fact, it was detrimental. I am extremely angry that it was prescribed for my son. We went through a lot of unnecessary turmoil with school/home issues because of this experience with Lamictal. F 51 12 weeks
11/12/2007
Email
 2  Bipolar I Itching, tired, fingers swollen, dry mouth, irritable and acne. I am so tired. I get up from a nap and want to take another one within an hour. My husband doesn't understand why I am itching all the time, and I don't either. Did not know of some side effects until reading this. Also, got acne which was very strange for me. My fingers have been hurting at the tips and read someone else had this side effect too. I do not feel any better so I think I am going to have to quit and I am actually very frightened to be on it now after reading so many of the side effects. Glad it works for some though, just not for me. I have to start a new job in 2 weeks, so very concerned about taking this anymore. F 36 28 days
11/11/2007
Email
 3  Bipolar I I have only been on it for 5 days but I am experiencing: muscle and bone aches and pains, easy to bruise, irritability, aggression, mania, a feeling like I have taken ecstasy, swimming headiness, anxiety attacks that didnt exsist before, fatigue Im still trying to decide if I should discuss side affects with the doc. I havent been on the starter pack long, but am afraid of getting more side effects. F 26 5 days
11/9/2007

Previous Page       Next Page

BACK TO TOP