TOPAMAX Reviews (TOPIRAMATE)

Average Rating: 3.0 (1824 Ratings)

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 ANTICONVULSANTS

 Type: Rx Drug

  

TOPAMAX  (TOPIRAMATE):  Topiramate is used alone or with other medications to prevent and control seizures (epilepsy). This medication is also used to prevent migraine headaches and decrease how often you get them. Topiramate will not treat a migraine headache once it occurs. If you get a migraine headache, treat it as directed by your doctor (such as by taking pain medication, lying down in a dark room). Topiramate is known as an anticonvulsant or antiepileptic drug.   FDA Approval Date: 1996-12-24 (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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RATING  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR TOPAMAXCOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 1  Petit mals, migraine, pseudotumor I began taking Topamax at a low dosage and titrated up to 800mg/day over the course of 2 months. Initially I felt it had some good side effects . . . like evening out my moods, but as I went up in doses, I went through ranges of side effects. At 200mg I felt really REALLY dumb. As I went up and out of 400mg and into the stratosphere with 800mg, started to feel fairly normal, as though my wits had returned. Then the fog rolled in, heavier and darker than ever before. It was forgetting what I was saying in mid-sentence, being unable to basic arithmetic, exacerbated ADD/ADHD, generally disoriented and unable to follow most conversations. . . For several months I was in this state, barely keeping my head above water, and then things began to get really really dark and it scared the crap out of me. My judgement and sense of rationale had become fragmented, I split off from who I normally was with weekly wailing spells, spiritual crises, wondering if I was having what used to be called F 53 9 months
200 4X day
3/9/2014
 3  Migraines This did initially help my migraines, but even on high dose they slowly returned. Topamax gave me extreme fatigue, cloudy thinking- especially word retrieval, hair loss, weight loss - which was a +, my main concern was it flattened out my mood to a dull blah nothing. I couldn't seem to get off couch for much- not depressed just no feeling. I took it for a long time and the fatigue and flattening took time- I just quit it after reading more about the drug. Extremely serious side effects from this are possible / no dr not neurologist or internist told me to watch for vision changes- it can cause blindness. I was on high dose, too. Migraines are miserable! I will find another med w/ less serious side effects. I have taken many meds - have chronic illness- but this one scares me a bit. it made me crave sugar like crazy!, too. I am not sure why? Maybe the crushing fatigue? Almost as soon as I stopped I started eating normally again. I got rebound headaches, but they are tapering off. I tapered off this med too over about 2. 5 wks to quit and my legs went numb from the knee down a few times coming off it and I felt cruddy, but it wasn't hard to get off compared to other meds. F 49 3 years
200 mg
1/10/2014
 4  Migraines/bipolar/weight loss/pain A little hair loss but that seems to be subsiding. My face breaks out occasionally but even that subsides after a day or two. I feel rather dumb when trying to choose words but other than that I know it's beginning to work for the weight loss and my migraines are almost non existent now. It's great cause I've been fighting migraines all of my adult life. This has helped so much! F 42 2 months
50 mg.
1/2/2014
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 5  headaches prevention I started on 25 mg then after 2 week went up to 50mg I was feeling confused tired shortbrethe moody n tingles hands feet it stops all my headackes I then went to 25mg ather tgen beong bit sleepy n short brethe nothing else o decided to stop for a week still get short brethe which doc looking on to I no it aint the tabs even on small dose no head ackes n o feel much betsr plus lost bit weight I dont mind F 39 6 months
25 mg
1/1/2014
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 3  Depression I started with 50MG 2x per day and at first I loved it. It balanced or perhaps numbed my moods, I was losing weight and the other side effects were tolerable at first. I had very thick long hair but noticed I was shedding a bit more. Then over time, my body had gotten used to the drug and my dosage had been increased. I became ridiculously paranoid, irritable and then my hair was falling out in clumps. My weight was rapidly dropping. 8 months later, I had to go off of it. My hair was so thin, you could see my scalp which resulted me to chop it all off. I quickly gained all the weight back when I went off the meds. Not worth it. F 36 8 months
50MG 2X day
12/13/2013
 2  Migraines/Weight Loss Extreme tingling of feet - constant, like they've "fallen asleep" - also feel as if something is squeezing the top of my head; imsomnia - will sleep for 1-2 hrs then wide awake for hrs to the point that benedryl doesn't even help me sleep F 38 2 months
50 mg 1X day
12/13/2013
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 2  fibromyalgia High intense sugar cravings, lost 30 pads but I was already thin due to anorexia. Then I was on another med that made me binge 6 to 8 hrs per day which this was making thing worse cause it stopped working. So I stopped this drug cold turkey. F 36 3 months
200mg
12/13/2013
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 3  BiPolar Disorder tingling in hands and feet. Almost constant headache and heartburn, Also feeling quite tired yet not sleeping well. I've just started on this med and I'm adding it to my Lamictal and Lorazapam. I feel a slight decrease in appetite and mental clarity. I'm hoping to lose the weight but not my job. I already have very thin hair due to menopause so I'm hoping my strong multivitamin will help prevent that. F 53 10 days
25 2X day
12/5/2013
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 2  Migraine Metabolic acidosis leading to massive kidney stones that were frequent (more than 3 per year); continued migraines; weight loss; drop in blood pressure; unable to walk for over a month due to dizziness F 44 8 years
200mg BID
11/28/2013
 1  Lose weight Depression, extreme fatigue, phantom smells, loss of appetite. F 59 6 months
100 mg
11/18/2013
 2  Migraines/Bipolar Ummmm...no differrent than Zyprexa. My sweet tooth has come back 3 fold and I have lost 120 pounds off LI2CO3. Getting off of of it immediately. Not good with my chemistry. Rather have the thirst and dehydration versus the intense sweet hunger with and cognititive dysfunction witith topamax. Jeez. Try it out for yourself. You have to decide. 2 days was more than enough for me to know how bad it was gonna be for me. M
100 2X day
11/10/2013
 4  Migraine Prevention Dizziness/Faint, Nausea, Extreme Joint Pain, Muscle Spasms, Headache, Complete Loss of Appetite, Dry Mouth, Loss of Concentration, Word Loss, Memory Failure, Spaced Out My dosage was upped too much too quickly and my body couldnt handle it. I'm now only on 30mg per day and even on this low dose I am affected by a multitude of side effects. Topamax has however been amazing for decreasing the frequency of my migraines so I will stick with it F 20 10 months
15mg 2X day
10/22/2013
 3  Migraines All of the usual: altered taste, tingling when I was on 100 mg, but that stopped when I dropped to 50 mg., forgetfulness, cloudy thinking, HAIR LOSS!!!, extreme anger, feeling DUMB, weight loss. This was a miracle for ending my migraines. It initially changed my life. However, after being on it for 2 years, I was sick of being so stupid all of the time. I also lost quite a large amount of hair...used to be super thick, but it really thinned out. I have been off of it now for 6 months. Unfortunately, the migraines are back in full force...getting several each week just like before. However, my mental acuity has returned; my hair is getting back to normal, and WOW does stuff taste good again. I have put on a few pounds, but not bad. I wish SOOOO much that topamax would work without the DUMB feeling and the hair loss. I have an MS in Math, and I would just sit and STARE at numbers, not being able to THINK about what I was supposed to do with them. I don't know if I should go back on it for the migraines or not. It is a REALLY tough trade off. :( F 44 2 years
100 1X day
10/21/2013
 3  Concussion Headaches First night taking it was bad. Very, very, bad. Became randomly very suicidal all night until I fell asleep. Split personality the first night. Was out of it. Not good. The next night, and following nights have been fine. No more split person or bad thinking. Numbness and tingling often. Dry mouth, loss of appetite. This has not made me sleepy after the first night, which makes me sad because I have difficulty falling asleep now since taking it. But, I can think!!!! Before taking this I could not even think and now I can actually look up the medication I am taking!!!!! The only reason I am not satisfied is because of the first night and constant forgetfulness, difficulty with speech and most of the other side effects. Overall I am very glad for this drug and to write this review that no one cares about, lol. I just want to say to anyone looking up this drug or reading this, I fully encourage you to take it by all means- but make sure you have a person with you the first night. Not a F 17 2 weeks
40mg 1X day
10/16/2013
Email
 4  Migraines w/Aura, Tremors Tingling in feet and finger tips, forgetfulness, drowsiness Has helped tremendously with my migraines. Not so much with my tremors. The tingling comes and goes so it is not too bad. My appetite has decreased and I have lost abt 5lbs. Hopefully I will lose more as I can stand to shed abt 20 lbs. I sleep better at night and recommend taking this at bedtime as it knocks me out cold. F 36 15 days
25 mg 2X day
9/11/2013
 4  migraines tingling in hands and feet if arms or legs crossed for just a few minutes. Cannot drink carbonated beverages because the fizz is increased almost like there is too much fizz in the drink. Migraines haven't reduced yet, still at least 2 per week, but now are coming back to back days rather than two to three days apart. Has helped with depression and anxiety, have not noticed weight loss yet, but appetite is decreasing. F 34 2 weeks
25mg 2X day
8/16/2013
Email
 1  Migraine prevention Severe nervous system overstimulation after one dose. Generalized tingling, severe agitation, shaking, feeling of pressure and muscle tension, symptoms that were extremely anxiety provoking. I am unusually sensitive to pharmaceuticals, but have rarely experienced such a dramatic adverse effect from the first small dose of a new med. Reactions are of course highly individual. F 61 1 times
25 mg 1X day
8/4/2013
 3  Migraines The tingling in my hands and feet was annoying, but tolerable. I didn't mind the loss of appetite and slight weight loss. But all of a sudden my personality totally changed. It was like I became a completely different person. I'm having crazy crying spells for no reason, screaming at my fiance over the stupidest things (and we're supposed to be getting married in less than a year). I'm even considering moving out because I feel so lost, like I don't even know myself anymore. Here's what REALLY bothers me: Up front, my neurologist warned me about the "very, very small" chance of developing kidney stones. He said to drink plenty of water to avoid getting them. At my 6-week follow-up I told him I was getting tingling in my extremities; here was his solution: Eat a banana, take 500 mg of Vitamin C and chew 1-2 Tums every day. When I began researching Topamax because of my severe mood changes, I discovered several warnings about kidney stones that said: AVOID ANTACIDS. AVOID EXCESS VITAMIN C. THESE WILL AID IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF KIDNEY STONES. I have left several messages at doc's office and - surprise, surprise - I have yet to receive a call back. I'm tapering off this crap drug ASAP! I wish I had found this website before starting the medication in the first place. F 27 8 weeks
50 2X day
7/26/2013
Email
 5  for migrainea few Get cold easier, tingling, weight loss and the dreaded hair loss and damage F 47 4 years
200mg
7/25/2013
Email
 3  Migraines due to menopause At first, had typical side effects--don't remember them all due to this being ages ago when I went on Topamax. I do remember almost having a head-on collision with an oncoming car due to these side effects, so be careful at first when you drive! I may have lost weight at first but like I said, it was yrs. ago when I first took this drug. I think people need to hang in there--the side effects do go away eventually. And then this will work. Topamax was eventually the only thing that ever took my migraines away, and for a long time it worked well. Over time, I began to see why people call it "dope-a-max!" I thought I was going prematurely senile since I just couldn't think straight any more. I couldn't make words come out of my mouth when I knew in my head what I wanted to say. A lot of physical stuff began happening, such as kidney stones, which was worse that childbirth in my case. I couldn't do a thing, I was in so much pain from them. It totally ruined an entire spring/summer for me. No one in my family had ever had them, either. Long term users, I'd recommend getting off this drug. I've felt so much better since being off it, I had no idea I'd feel this great, and I've been taking Excedrin Migraine now to quell any first-feelings of a migraine coming on, and that has worked fine. So far so good, knock on wood. F 62 10 years
100mg 3X day
7/25/2013
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