LAMICTAL Reviews (LAMOTRIGINE)

Average Rating: 3.4 (1917 Ratings)

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 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)

  

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

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More on LAMICTAL: Reviews Summary  |  Drug Safety Information

RATING  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR LAMICTALCOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 5  bipolar II /major depression have had no recognizeable negative side effects so far it has been a wonder drug. after more than ten years of depression and mood swings i am finally feeling more stable than i ever have. not feeling suicidal almost all the time is a wonderful feeling. the depression is much more managable. it all feels new. not being depressed is taking some adjustment but i love it and my husband appreciates the return of my sex drive. it hasn't done a lot for my occasional confusion and "dumbness" but i'm used to it and i haven't been on it long (still on titration pack). hopefully this is the drug i've been looking for. F 31 4 weeks
11/7/2007
 5  Bipolar At first, I experienced dizziness, clumbsiness, weird vision (black and spotty), also made the room spin. These all went away. The side effects that still stick around are: some numbness, definitely increased libido, difficulty concentrating and focusing, some nausea, maybe some hair loss, and I'm tired and lack motivation more often. I'd take these side effects any day in comparison to the symptoms of my bi-polar episodes. I've been taking Lamictal in conjunction with zoloft for 1 year and 9 months. The dosage of zoloft has steady remained at 100mg and definately helps with my depressive moods...but aggravates manic episodes to a dangerous degree. That's were lamictal comes in to the picture. I began taking lamictal at a small dose and titrated up slowly as reccomended. Currently, I am prescribed 400mg of lamictil (plus the zoloft) and it seems to be the perfect coctail of medications for me. Right now, I feel better than I ever have. The medication isn't exactly a miracle drug, but it has enabled me to escape the destructive lifesyle choices of a reckless street addict, homeless commen criminal. Well, the medication and a year long rehab. My psychiatrist, who specializes in addiction, prescribed me the lamictal and the zoloft and so far, so good. My life is normal...job, house, school, car. I've been on other things in the past including wellbutrin, effexor, celexa, seroquel, but the lamictal F 32 2 years
11/6/2007
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 4  Bipolar II While increasing dose: mental fog, tired, neck ache, headache, memory impairment. Now at 150mg for 1mo. and most side effects have subsided. Much less mood fluctuation throughout the day. Allowed me to decrease Lithium from 1200 to 900mg w/out adverse effects. Things don't bother me or affect my mood as much as they used to. Feel much more emotionally stable. F 27 1 months
11/6/2007
 4  Bipolar 1 I had been taking lamictal for several months when I noticed extreme difficulties focusing. Since driving is so important to me I stopped cold turkey. Within days a very heavy depression asaulted me. I tried 100 mg of it (I was taking 300mg) and within hours I was actually getting off the sofa.I did this on my own, without my MD, which I don't reccomend. I've been taking 100mg in am and 100mg in the evening. No vision problems. F 54 6 days
11/5/2007
 3  Bipolar Disorder Swelling of lips, face, ankles, forearms. Tiny bumps on face (not itchy or painful). Occasional bouts of nausea and diarrhea. Strange dreams. Red, hot, blotchy skin. I did feel very stable after two weeks at 25mg. A bit flat, but the calmness was nice after a rocky year. After upping the dose to 50mg, I ended up in the ER with an allergic reaction. Good drug for those who can tolerate it. F 37 16 days
11/5/2007
 5  bi-polar Slight memory loss, blurred vision. Lamictal has helped me tramendously. My mood has stabalized and i'm actually in a good mood most of the time. It has been worth the side effects. I have also lost over 30lbs. and have not changed my eating habits. I actually started to eat more to see if I would gain weight but my weight remained the same. M 42 9 months
11/4/2007
 5  Bipolar , Paranoia calmness, blurry vision, burning eyes, stiff muscles I have been on various psych drugs for the last 15 years and nothing seemed to work. I have felt more wellbeing and stability on Lamictal than I have felt in my whole life. I am slightly concerned about the effect on eyes long term, but I am going to give it a shot for a while, and research it more. I don't want to give up the lack of emotional chaos...I haven't had hair loss or weight gain or rashes like some people have here...i hope i never get those, I would be sad if I had to stop the drug. F 28 2 months
10/31/2007
 5  Complex & Simple Partial Seizures None that I have noticed so far :) I was just diagnosed with seizures so this is my fist medication. I've had maybe 10 seizures since I was 18 but wasn't aware that they were seizures. So far, I feel fine but have only been on this med for 7 days (25mg per day). My mood seems to be better as well. I really hope it works for me. I was very nervous about taking anything. I also hope I get the "loss of appetite" and/or "weight loss" as an added bonus :) F 31 7 days
10/31/2007
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 4  Bipolar Borderline Personality In the beginning at 75 to 100 mg major headaches but they subsided. hair loss. I did not feel effects until 200 mg and it takes a long time to get to that point since you have to go slow. No rash but you have to again go SLOW... It is a wonder drug for you if you can tolerate it. M 32 60 days
10/30/2007
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 4  Bipolar 2 A fair amount of dyslexia, both verbal and written. I've never had problems like this before, and it is clearly from the medication. It seems to subside after I get used to the dosage that I'm on. Insomnia when I take the pill at night. Also nausea, dizziness, and fatigue, but like the dyslexia, this seems to be getting better. To answer the 10/12 poster's question about Birth Control Pills, I take Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo. My doctor told me that it does cut the effectiveness of the medication in half, but said that we can just put me on a higher dosage if necessary. (For example, if I need 100mg, I'll take 200mg.) It didn't seem like it would be a problem. Also, I'm a small person, which means that a smaller amount affects me as well as a larger amount might for a bigger person. The same may hold true for your daughter, given that she is still in her teens and may have a more sensitive body chemistry than an adult. Talk to her psychiatrist if you have concerns about which BCP to use, but the impression I got was that it was in no way a problem. F 30 6 weeks
10/29/2007
 3  bipolar depression i had previously posted how wonderful this drug is at 25 mg. when i moved to 50 the muscle aches came. I thought I was sick, even went to my family Doc. Found info that leads me to believe it's the lamictal. My psych said he has never heard of this side effect, I'm begining to wonder if I need a new psychiatrist. It was wonderful at first at helping my depression but I couldn't stand the aches and headaches. As soon as I stopped, they went away. Psych asked me to go back on 25 mg, so we'll see how that goes. F 33 2 months
10/29/2007
 3  seizures - but very few I did not realize that acne could be caused by Lamictal and I am kind of glad to see that it is not just me. I also have concentration and memory problems, but it is hard to pin down to Lamictal. I stopped taking lamictal without the doctor's knowledge. I had no withdrawl symptoms that I noticed, but I had a seizure a couple of months later. Then I started taking the last prescribed dose, knowing that there could be problems. They were much worse than I expected. I had nausea, blurred vision, extreme fatigue, vertigo... I went back to the neurologist after that and worked up to the normal dose. Please be ware of starting lamictal by yourself after going off of it. Another note - the nuerologist will not admit that tegretal and lamictal have given me an irregular heart beat, but the cardiologist and my endocrinologist agree that it must be. It is not concerning enough to treat though, so I guess benefits outweigh the costs. F 34 2 years
10/29/2007
 2  daily migraines Everything was ok until I started taking 150 mg from 100 mg. I had a horrible nightmare that seemed so real that I was crying uncontrollably and was terrified to go back to sleep. Never has something like that happened to me. I am still taking 100 mg to see if it helps my headaches but I will NOT up the dosage to 150 mg again. My dr. had asked if I had any weird dreams before the dosage change and I hadn't at the time, but now I know that it did cause that dream incident. F 31 7 weeks
10/26/2007
 2  Bipolar II Rapid Cycling Aggitation, Anxiety, Nausea, Insomnia, and ultimately Hypomania This drug was a blessing initially, but turned out to be a disaster. It had a great calming effect when I started it or increased the dose, but then there was a huge antidepressant push with increased anxiety and aggitation as time went on. It ultimately gave me pretty bad hypomania. Has this happened to anybody else? Help! I want to take it but can't. M 33 9 months
10/26/2007
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 1  bipolar the side effects are that a 30 day supply costs $396 if you don't have insurance. Lamictal seems to work fine, but I would rather go manic and have money than spend every f'ing dime I have on medicine like this. I am so upset right now because I feel like I am being raped by these drug companies. F 31 2 months
10/26/2007
 1  Depression/Anxiety Headaches, fatigue, major irratibility, mood swings, increased anxiety, major weight gain, loss of concentration, joint and muscle pain, irregular periods, loss of sexual desire When I first started the "starter" pack, I thought this stuff was great. I had been on Wellbutrin and it had puttered out and wasn't effective anymore. My Lamictal was increased to 150mg about 4 months ago and I have had a terrible time ever since. I kept trying to give it time to do it's thing, but I'm going to request that my doctor take me off of it ASAP. I'm miserable and the side effects are not worth it at all! I don't recommend this drug to anyone who has had luck with Welbutrin before. I was told that it would be basically the same thing and it hasn't by any stretch of the imagination. I go through terrible mood swings and my boyfriend thinks I'm losing my mind sometimes. I'm on a Lamictal/Paxil cocktail and so at first we thought the weight gain was from the Paxil. We lowered that dose and I'm still gaining weight. My psychiatrist assured me that weight gain wasn't a side effect but after reading several of these posts, I know that I'm not crazy anymore to F 33 6 months
10/23/2007
 5  Bipolar/ Major Depression none This medication saved my life. I take this with Effexor and Seroquel (sp?). My doctor has incresed it when I start going down. I'm currently taking 800mg a day. F 31 8 months
10/22/2007
 4  ipolar,primary deep depression loss of appetite,running into thgs and being tired. No anti depressant has worked for me for several years.I have been ina very black epression for 1 and a half years.I also have ptsd.this medication is giving me my life back. 100mgs. F 1 months
10/22/2007
 4  Bipolar/Depression loss of words, memory loss (i have an excellent memory)-i cannot remember simple things like names of things works great for my bipolar/depression. i feel better than i ever have and am able to be more positive about things than ever. my jealousy and rage have subsided a LOT and i am so much more rational. the only downside is that this medication MUST be increased while on it. F 25 6 months
10/22/2007
 2  Bipolar II Increased slowly dosage and have been at 300 mgs for 9 months and I have slowly increased the following side effects; hair loss, severe memory problems-I think the person I am talking to is someone different and I confuse people's names. Horrible concentration, anti-social, severe anxiety, have trouble driving, feelings of unsteadiness, mania, irritability, paranoia As time wears on this medicine is actually starting to scare me. If my irritability increases any more I fear of regaining sanity. The gradual increase of these side effects almost makes one think it is my imagination, but talking to other professionals it is not my imagination. Driving is the scariest. F 40 18 months
10/22/2007

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