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
 
 3  migranes/weight loss tingling sensation in hands/feet, social withdrawel, ANXIETY, went from high aggitation, to feeling nothing, to crying, to feeling nothing again. strangely I always feel like I should up the dosage to see if it works better? don't know if thats a sign of maybe addiction in this drug? I'm kind of an emotional rollercoaster to begin with but the topamax seems to take it for its own set of random loops where I would normally be upset, I dont care, and when I normally wouldnt care I'm livid. Very strange. However, my appetite hasnt seemed to decrease I am 5'5 and about 130lbs but I am a distance runner and would like to lose weight (for running and myself) but my body calls for food. I havnt experienced any fatigue, except drinking wine gives me a HORRIBLE hangover. STAY AWAY FROM WINE, and be careful on birth control. it causes breakthrough bleeding/ makes it useless! F 20 4 months
12/5/2008
 2  Migraines My eyes felt like they were dipped in pool chlorine, hands and feet felt tingly, sometimes sharp pains in heel of foot, short term memory loss (very minimal), face twitching, and metallic taste in mouth when drinking carbonated drinks. For me, my eyes burning like they were on fire was the worst!!! After slowly working up to the dose, I was taking 2 25mg pills in the AM and 2 25mg (100 mg a day) in the evening and that's when I saw the bulk of the side effects. The doctor reduced it to 50 mg a day and most side effects diminished but still lingered every now and then. I went and saw the Doctor and she said the eye pain is a bad sign and so she switched me to Verapamil 80mg once a day...Hopefully this will help. F 24 2.5 months
12/4/2008
 2  Migrains Tingling, pins and needles in my face in hands. sensitivity to temperature. Fatigue. weight loss. Mood swings. It was too much to be put on, not worth the side effects. Did not help with the migraines much. F 16 6 weeks
12/4/2008
 5  Bipolar 2 Carbonated drinks taste flat, dry mouth, no appetite, weight loss. I LOVE TOPAMAX! I have gradually gotten up to 100mg twice a day. I take it with Cymbalta (60mg/day, which I have been on for 2 years). I had gained about 90 pounds through depression and binge eating and have already lost about 26 pounds in about a month in a half. I DO drink a ton of water to counteract dry mouth. I am sorry some people have such a bad reaction to this drug! F 31 7 weeks
12/3/2008
 1  chronic pain suicidal ideations...MAJOR...black black thoughts...total suppression of appetite...angry...baaaad attitude! the pain clinic had first "tried me" on neurontin, which i "failed" on too: same problem: at the therapeutic dose level i became extremely depressed and anxious. i stopped taking it and then they said "oh, here: try topamax"....i was only on that for ONE WEEK before i knew what was happening was NOT good....talk about suicidal thoughts.....OY VEY. F 51 7 days
12/3/2008
 4  daily headaches/migraines tingling in hands and feet, forgetful, short term memory loss, decreased libido,feeling "dopey", dry mouth For the past three years I've had tension head aches almost everyday that I've been taking Excedrin Migrain for until 4 weeks ago when I started taking Topamax. I've been really happy with the results. Since the day that I've started I've had only about five mild headaches. I'd reccomend this drug. The tingles in the hands and feet are realllllyy annoying though, F 20 4 weeks
12/2/2008
 4  migraine prophylaxis dry mouth, appetite suppression; ;word memory deficit; changes in word and ability to process reading and writing; mood changes; deepening depression; recurrence of anxiety/panic attacks This is my third round on Topamax with the best results on my migraines, which were becoming incapacitating: 3-5 days long, and not being able to take triptans more than 3 days a week to manage the pain. These last 2 rounds have gone much better with the side effects when I first went on the med; I can handle the tingling and crappy tasting Pepsi. But the depression, anxiety, and cognitive changes, though, are bringing me to the edge. I had no idea so many dealt with this; my neuro looked at me like I was crazy when I told him my "word bank was empty," and that I was having trouble functioning in my classes. (He needs to do some reading, I think. . ) . WARNING TO ANYONE ALREADY ON TOPAMAX-- don't wean yourself off. Talk to your doctor first and talk about alternatives. There is a trade off to all these great meds we have and anytime we mess with our brain chemicals, something is going to give. If I wasn't in school and didn't need to write, this might not make as big a dif F 49 8 months
11/30/2008
 1  migraines tingling,memory loss,dry mouth,tired sleepy,speech slurred, intestinal problems, ringing ears, dizzy, vision problems, eye spasms, upset stomach, weight loss, can not concentrate. Like most,I am uncomfortable putting this medicine in daily. I suffer 15 to 20 migraines a month. Can not say it has helped other than severity. Feel horrible. Started out 25mg a day moved up to 100mg a day. Feeling worse. Just learned that I must ween my self off. Going to do so in the next week. F 48 1 years
11/25/2008
 1  Severe Migraines After two doses: Drunken speech, Memory loss, Exhausted and Suicidal!!! Could not think or stay awake. That probably saved my life. I now know why people committ suicide. Had I been able to stay awake long enough to make a plan the second day on Topamax I would have killed myself. Never in my life have I experienced such a feeling. It was like being in hell with no escape. Couldn't talk, stand up or stay awake. I remembered every thing I did in my life that was wrong, when I ran out of those I started making things up that I might have done wrong. At 75 that is a very long list. NEVER EVER AGAIN would I take another Topamax. It is deadly given to the wrong person. F 75 2 days
11/24/2008
 3  bipolar soda taste flat, no others that I am aware of have not had weight loss that I have noticed but i am taking seroquel as well. I take 25 mg of Topamax in the am and 25 mg in the pm. I don't know if it is working or not. I think I need a higher dosage. F 37 2 weeks
11/23/2008
 4  Migraines Great loss of appetite while getting used to it (1st month or so). I take it as a prophylactic, which means it's to help prevent migraine attacks. It's doing it's job and I don't have any side effect I can notice, so I'm all for it! F 29 6 years
11/20/2008
 2  Bipolar I Initially I lost 8lbs in the first 10 days. I know a lot of people want to lose weight but I was 5'3 120. Now I'm down to 110 and I eat all the time. the first month I was prescribed 50mg but only took half; I felt nothing. I mean I emotionally was paralyzed. Nothing could effect me. This scared me so much I stopped taking the medication for a week and reality returned. I felt immediately that I was on drugs. Kinda of like being stoned. My friends said I was more mellow, which they like because I'm very high strung. Word loss, memory loss, slow recall... all that happened to. My body temperature rose to a steady 99.1 and has not come down. I have to drink lots of water and be careful at the gym because I almost fainted a few times. Don't drink alcohol. I call it the death hangover. While I drink I get a numbness in my face and ears. More like in my skull. The next day it feels like my face is paralyzed and razorblades are going through my veins. I will have hard to control racing thoughts which I have to talk myself through to calm down. I just keep repeating random phrases in my head over and over again. After 2 months of being on Topomax I find the drug has stopped working. I didn't mention before but it did stop my violent/angry mood swings and hyper mania. At least for awhile. I went from feeling nothing... to feeling level... to right back to where I started, with worse mood swings. I might have to have my dose increased. F 29 42 days
11/12/2008
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 1  Seizures Horrible anxiety attacks, confusion, brain fog, poor word recall, tingling, pop tasted bad for a while, very aggitiated, weight loss.. Now a year later I find myself highly aroused, tingling and throbbing in the clitoris that won't go away. and having multiple orgasms but still feel unsatisfied. I can't concentrate it is so bad. If it did not throb and I felt satisfied it would be welcome. I have been putting up with the sid effects but now we ahve to do something else. I was put on this when the took me off Dilatin because of liver issues. I have always had a low libido and orgasms have been something I had to work at. Not now. The last 2 months I am aroused all the time, so much that I can't concentrate because the tingle and throbbing disrupts my life and i can't think of anything but getting relief sexually. It is making me feel like a rotten parent and all I want to do is cry. When my husband and I are together it can be fun but the rest of the day it is torture. It has to be the Topamax. The only thing we have changed is added Flax seed to my supplements so we have now cut that out too just in case that did it. F 38 1 years
11/10/2008
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 1  migraines went from 140 lbs to 110 in 3 months, see every bone in my body. Weird eye spasm. Diarrhea every day. Extreme anxiety, can't think of a word when it is on the tip of my tongue, extreme acne. Shut myself off to my friends and family. Users beware, you might think it's a miracle drug at first, but like we have all found out in the past, there is no "quick fix" for anything. This medication almost ruined my life F 26 6 months
11/10/2008
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 3  trigeminal neuralgia nausea, abdominal pain and bloatedness, delayed gastic emptying, numbness and tingling from elbows to fingers, eye pain, tiredness, emotional instability, cabonated beverages taste awful, attitude of not caring about things, breathlessness The first time I took Topamax was for about 18 months. I had no idea all these things happening to me were from the Topamax. I had testing done and even went to a GI specialist. I had horrible invasive testing done! I was diagnosed with severe gastroparesis. I complained to my neuro doctor about the stomach issues, the numbness the tingling, the tiredness, everything. She never mentioned it could be from the topamax. It wasn't until I stopped taking it that I realized and everything stopped. But my agonizing pain from my trigiminal neuralgia came back in full force. I tried Tegretol and Lyrica. If you ever want to gain about 30 pounds just try taking Lyrica for a while. They never worked at all, so here I am back on Topamax with my fingers numb and my stomach hurting. I took a drink of a coke today and actually gagged. The topamax is really not working yet and I've been taking it for about a week now. Maybe it has to build up in my system again?? I'm taking 50mg of topamax in the am an F 36 18 months
11/5/2008
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 5  Bipolar I Short term memory loss, appetite loss, weight loss, bye bye binge eating, anxiety (went away with low dose Abilify)... This drug saved me from a terrible hypomanic episode that was rapidly turning into mania and sent me to the ER yesterday. My doctor tried it as a last resort because I have a history of an eating disorder and I refuse to take meds that will make me gain weight. It really slowed me down, but to a point where I could FINALLY function. Granted, I did have short term memory loss, but I was already experiencing that from the Abilify she put me on a few weeks before. I couldn't read the page of a book, which sadly, was one of my favorite activities. Once she added Topamax, however, I could zone right in. I was reading Dostoyevsky's "The Brother's Karamazov" within days of switching over. Now, that's not going to happen with everyone, but it did with me; I was out of control. I adjusted quickly though. My doctor started me at 50 mg to stop my binge eating/ to help with sleep, but my body revved up again and she wouldn't return my calls, hence my panic-stricken visit to the F 24 2 weeks
10/26/2008
 4  migraines severe, chronic pain same as everyone.. metallic taste at first, hair loss, tingling. all have gone away except chronic dry mouth and thirst. i do have some word drop and fuzziness but could be attributed to another med (also on percocet and methadone for chronic spinal pain) i am on 100mg BID. funny i didnt know about hair loss as a side effect but in retrospect i definitely lost some hair! just thinned out is all. i started taking this medication for migraines mainly and WOW it works. i am on a birth control pill which you take continuously for three months so i am only getting migraines during PMS for those four periods per year. if i miss birth control pills or topamax, even for a day, the headaches come back right away with a vengeance though! i wanted to assure people that have only been on this for a short time that the tingling and aversion to taste is short lived, as well as the hair loss. my fuzziness im sure is a mix of all my meds. the dry mouth unfortunately you have to get used to (at least in my case) IMPORTANT: DRY MOUTH MAKES YOU VULNERABLE TO GUM DISEASE AND CAVITIES. GET A MOUTHWASH WITH FLUORIDE ... MAKE SURE IT HAS FLUORIDE IN IT AND USE BEFORE BED. SALIVA HAS GOOD BACTERIA TO FIGHT PLAQUE. MAKE SURE TO TELL YOUR DENTIST THAT YOURE ON F 27 2.5 years
10/26/2008
 4  migraines some tingling initially; hair loss (noticeable in sink only); definitely periods of depression when dose started & upped; dizziness; extreme thirst has cut migraines from 16/month to 8/month which is great but I worry about increasing dose due to the mood problems, dizziness, and hair loss side effects. Am only on 25 mg. AM and PM at this time. F 54 7 months
10/24/2008
 3  weight loss taking with wellbutrin. cannot spell, aggression seems to have increased which is odd because the WB evened me out. I get angry VERY easy. I will be typing and want to write Fixed but type "Phixed" and have to correct it. Very strange. It happens VERY often! I feel more hungry at times. No appetite loss really. No weight loss at all. Possibly more bloated. no tingling or word recall issues i heard people talk about. I don't feel dumb. I have had a few moments where I have slight memory issues, but nothing out of the norm, i think it's happened before. I started at 25 mg at night for 3 days, moved up to 25 morning/25 night, now am taking about 50mg morning/50 night - I will continue until at 200 mg but refuse to go any higher than that because of hairloss and other reasons. Every once in a while there are 5 minute periods where I feel depressed...and I have even had moments at night where I have pretty dark thoughts in bed but I shut them out very easily, just don't know how or why they come. Not very like me at all. I'm a happy person with two beautiful kids and a husband. I just hope to see some results. (FYI wellbutrin has helped me with 15lb weight loss) F 27 2 weeks
10/23/2008
 5  Migraine headaches & numbness spell Initially I had foggy thinking, name recall was so bad I just didn't call anyone by name for a couple months including close co-workers, daughters' coaches, etc., tingling in hands & feet, minor weight loss, fatigue. All of this went away after then first couple months other than occas. feet tingling and fatigue. I have other reasons to be tired, so overall I am pleased. Topamax has been great for me so far. It is my only regular med. I take only 25mg per night. I was initially instructed to increase gradually but my migraine headaches & episodes or "spells" (numbness, tingling, slurred speech, dizziness) completely went away and did not return! Before Topamax they had increased to 5-6 or more a month instead of 1-2 a year, likely a peri-menopause thing, I've been told. I feel lucky because this is the first regular med I've taken to prevent migraine rather than just managing symptoms like Immitrex. I've had only 2-3 migraines in the past TWO YEARS, and each time I had forgotten my Topamax. These were also more manageable spells than in the past. So, not sure what the future holds for long term use, but maybe try staying at your intro dose longer to see if it is enough to help you. It worked and is working for me. My doctor & I do joke that if 25 mg is just placebo and not what the drug companies call a "therapuetic&quo F 47 2 years
10/22/2008

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