DEPAKOTE ER Reviews (DIVALPROEX SODIUM)Average Rating: 3.2 (181 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare DEPAKOTE ER 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.) |
More on DEPAKOTE ER: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR DEPAKOTE ER | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 3 | migraine | hand tremors, constipation, and my hair became dry and very curly. The good news: headaches decreased in frequency and severity. | F | 42 | 1 years | 8/15/2007 | 4 | Bipolar | Some hair thinning,increased appetite,craving for carbs, 8 pound weight gain. | I really like this drug. I haven't had any real bad side effects with it so far. I was on Equetro, and all that did was make me want to slit my wrists. Depakote has made life worth living again. Even if I may end up bald and fat,lol | F | 41 | 47 days | 8/13/2007 | 1 | Bipolar/Rapid Cycling/Depression | 40lbs weight gain in about 6 months. And I thought I was depressed before... | I loved it other than the weight gain. And then when my insurance screwed me over and I had to come off cold turkey, the discontinuation of this and Effexor together was a hellish nightmare. | F | 24 | 9 months | 8/3/2007 | 1 | migraine | severe sleepiness during the day, lack of motivation, increased hunger (& weight gain) | I really hated this stuff. It may have helped with my migraines, but not enough to be worth it. | F | 35 | 2 years | 7/29/2007 | 2 | migraine prevention | Scalp rash, hair loss and almost daily headaches. | I took Depakote ER 500 mg. I am losing my hair by the clumpfuls. I have a rash on my scalp (psoriasis?) and I am finding no improvement in my migraines. I haven't had to go to the ER so maybe it lessened the severity. | F | 41 | 5 months | 7/12/2007 | 3 | bipolar. anxiety disorder | ive been on it for 2 days these are my side effects so far. feeling extremely euphoric. happy saying nice thigs to everyone. etc. then i got extremely cold. wich brought on whole body tremors. then the tremors led to me being completely drained physically and tired. | it helps with all the things goin on in my head. like im more mellow not as anxious. but this was supposed to help with my concentration. wich is so bad i space out so much i get panic attacks cuz i cant get out of the rut. and it scares me. but it hasnt helped at all. so im going to ask for maybe aderral with my depakote i think that would be a perfect combination. | M | 16 | 2 days | 6/30/2007 | 3 | Bipolar/Migrains | WEIGHT GAIN, Tiredness | Actually other than the extreme weight gain and being tired all the time I have to say it certainly worked for my migrains. I have debilitating migrains and they went away soon after taking this medicine. I also felt pretty evenly balanced when taking Depakote as oposed to others I have tried especially Abilify. However, I have 3 kids and was always tired during the day, I excercised, ate right and went from 100 lbs to 210 lbs and due to health issues from the weight gain I am switching to Geodon. I am scared because I know Depakote wasnt to bad a drug for me but I need to get the wieght off. My doctor recommended Gastric Bypass but if it is medicine weight I am not convinced it will work. Any sugestions? | F | 37 | 8 years | 6/29/2007 | 3 | Headaches/Anger Management | Insomnia - I am really, really tired but I can't sleep other than for a couple of fitful hours except every third or fourth day. My legs and arms feel like they need to be moving when I lay down. Really weird. Shoulder and Neck pain. Very hungry for sweets - I am eating too much ice cream and unable to exercise because of other injuries sustained in accident. I have gained 5 pounds so far. I have problems finishing sentences, usually just the last word. I know what I want to say but I just can't spit it out. I do not want to be around more than one or two other people. Not like me at all. I have always enjoyed parties. Tired. Tired. Tired. | My bike flipped and I smacked headfirst into the pavement. They tell me I have Post Concussive Syndrome. I am not sure this is the right drug for me. I am on 500mg ER. Some of my symptoms might be from the accident/concussion. | M | 46 | 21 days | 6/19/2007 | 4 | Bipolar 1 | Some hair loss. Moderate weight gain. Hard to get out of bed in morning. | I'm trying to get back on this. I tried Geodon and Lamictal and have extreme side effects. Don't know which one is causing the problem. I had good luck with this medication except for the depression that I had. I am going to try and stay on the Lamictal since it helps my depression quite well. | M | 33 | 5 years | 6/15/2007 | 3 | bi-polar | weight gain, lethargy, vivid dreams | i weighed 120 lbs my senior year in high school, went to college had a manic episode and was treated with 1000 mg of depakote ER and now weigh around 200, to me it's easier to deal with being depressed than it is being manic, so it helps with the manic side for the most part, i can't go out places alone because i usually have anxiety attacks, mild mind games or feelings of paranoia, i change sleeping patterns often b/c i haven't had a steady job in a while, i'm thinking of switching medications b/c i used to be a confident skinny kid with a lot of energy but now it's hard to get motivated, i'm going to look more into lamictal probably any other suggestions? | M | 21 | 2.5 years | 6/14/2007 | 5 | Bipolar | Heartburn, slight increase in appetite. | So far, so good. Taking w/ 10mg of Lexapro and all seems good so far. Just hope I don't loose my hair! | M | 34 | 14 days | 6/13/2007 | 3 | OCD, Bipolar, mood disorder | was doing great with this and my other coctails until hair started faling out in clumps! Can anyone tell me how long it took off the Depakote for your hair to stop falling out? | I have been off it for about a month now, and I still have a ton of breakage and hair loss by the handful. Psych wants me to have a Dermatology consult. I am taking Selenium and Zinc as he suggested, I just don't know if the hair loss should last this long. Help please would be really appreciated! | F | 43 | 2 years | 5/27/2007 | 5 | Bipolar: Impulse-control, anger. | Slower mental function. Heartburn, bad breath. A possible cause of my new rosacea, eczema & extreme photosensitivity? | In spite of the side effects, I found that this medicine changed my life by reducing my anger & aggression so much. However, now I've gotten rosacea, I wonder if I should switch-- rosacea is a tremendous handicap in itself. But having been on just about everything else, I don't know what else to take. Query: has anyone else gotten rosacea/eczema from Depakote? | F | 54 | 8 years | 5/17/2007 | 1 | Bipolar (also ADHD and Anxiety) | Diffused Brain Atrophy (loss of brain's gray matter), confusion and inability to concentrate | I am filling this out for my 9 year old son. I wish I had found this site earlier so I could get the word out. He has been taken off the Depakote due to it causing the Atrophy. Not only did it cause concentration problems,it also dropped his IQ by 17 points. This is a "new" side effect that is just being discovered. Most doctors don't know anything about it. The main study groups were in Europe, with only one here in the US. If you are having this symptom, please notify your doctor and get off the medication. Fortunately, the gray matter will grow back but it can take 3-12 months for a person to get back to "normal". | M | 9 | 18 months | 4/17/2007 | 4 | 2 types of migraines-1 daily | Always hungry. Must be careful to not overeat. | Topamax was awful. I was having horrendous nightmares and panic attacks from it so quit it and started Depakote ER. I have been VERY happy with it. Nothing like the Topamax. It is wonderful to wake up in the morning without a daily migraine. Have only had 2 since I started about 2 months ago. Nice to have my life back. Hope it continues. | F | 54 | 2 months | 4/11/2007 | 4 | BP | WANT TO EAT AND EAT AND EAT, BUT I EXERCISE ALOT, AND I THINK IF I JUST HAVE SELF CONTROL I'LL BE OK. HAVE HAD QUITE A FEW VIVID NIGHTMARES, BUT I NOTICED MEDITATION/RELAXATION, AND PRAYER BEFORE BED FIGHTS THEM OFF. | %%%%ONLY BEEN ON IT A RELATIVELY SHORT TIME. SEEMS TO HAVE DECREASED MY MANIA WHICH IS WONDERFUL BECAUSE I CAN BECOME VERY AGGRESSIVE, AMONGST THE OTHER SYMPTOMS OF MANIA. ON THE OTHER HAND IT SEEMED TO INCREASE THE DEPRESSION, BUT I DO BELIEVE THAT SINCE THE MANIA IS BETTER I'M DEALING WITH THE SAME DEPRESSION THAT'S ALWAYS BEEN THERE. IT'S NOT DEPRESSION THAT SUDDENLY SHOWED UP, THE ABSENCE OF MANIA HAS JUST PUT THE SPOTLIGHT ON THE DEPRESSION NOW, WHICH EXERCISE, AND OTHER ACTIVITIES CAN HELP. MEDICATION HELPS, BUT WE MUST ALL BE PROACTIVE IN OUR HEALING. I WILL UP DATE AGAIN LATER. (CURRENTLY ON 500 MG OF THE ER, NOT IN COMBINATION WITH ANY OTHER DRUG.) =KENDRA | F | 25 | 6 weeks | 3/29/2007 | 4 | BP | %%%%OH YEA, AND CLINCHING OF MY JAW LIKE THE LADY BELOW ME.. HOPEFULLY MEDITATION WILL RELAX THIS AS WELL. -KENDRA | F | 25 | 6 weeks | 3/29/2007 | 3 | bipolar 2 disorder | cant sit still, clenching my teeth, irritability, some weight gain-but i kinda like my new badonkadonk butt. I was underweight before the depakote. Difficulty concentrating and finishing sentences, like right now. | Just hope I feel better soon. I sleep fine but I always did, it was getting out of bed that was the hard part. | F | 35 | 6 weeks | 3/23/2007 | 3 | Bi-Polar II / Migranes | Significant weight gain ( 40+ lbs ), very noticible tremor in left hand. | My wife says it is working great. I didn't realize how well it was working on my Bi-Polar until my doctor tried to switch my meds due to the weight gain. Significantly helped to reduce the migranes. I had one set which literally lasted for over 3 months before the medication. I am taking 1500mg daily. | M | 38 | 3 years | 3/19/2007 | 5 | partial seizures | groggy and nauseated in the beginning. Stated taking whole dose of 1,200 (even tho it was ER) at night and that eliminated the nausea, but worsened the grogginess in the morning. Overall, this drug probably saved my life. I was comorbid with epilepsy and bipolar 2 and able to have monotherapy for both disorders with this drug. It's not perfect, but it has helped me to live a normal life. Someday I would like to be medication free, but am not willing yet to experiment by going off Depakote. No weight gain whatsoever, btw, nor have I had any hair loss in 4 years. | Overall, saved me. Works like a miricle drug for some, a living hell for others. I was one of the "lucky" ones. | M | 20 | 4 years | 3/14/2007 |