Long Term Lamictal Use and Side Effects

Ive been on it for like 3 months after switching from topomax for complex basilar migraines(they dont hurt. I go numb and then it looks like a seizure). It has kind of given me my life back. Im only on 100mg and I havent felt this clear or confident that i wont collapse during a night out with friends (again) in years. I really hope this doesnt happen:/ Im a nurse. I need my brain. Without meds my migraines take away my short term memory and make me exhausted all the time, with topomax i couldnt wake up to alarms or speak properly and my back felt like glass plus i was a total space cadet. I have a hx of eating disorder, hypotension, and tachycardia so i cant do the beta blockers and wont do the crazy weight gain ones(i know myself enough to know that would cause a relapse). I kind of need this to work. 

Skip to main content<ul><li>&nbsp;SIGN IN&nbsp;|&nbsp;REGISTER</li>&nbsp;<li>&nbsp;FIND US&nbsp;</li>&nbsp;<li>&nbsp;DONATE</li></ul>Search form<ul><li>LEARN&nbsp;</li><li>LIVING WITH EPILEPSY&nbsp;</li><li>MAKE A DIFFERENCE&nbsp;</li><li>CONNECT&nbsp;</li></ul>Community ForumSee all Posts in This TopicConnect&nbsp;<ul><li>Chat</li><li>Community Forums</li><li>Terms of Use, Disclaimer for Warranties and Liabilities, Privacy Policies</li><li>Join our Grassroots Advocacy</li><li>Contact Us</li><li>Get Social!</li><li>Do-It-Yourself Fundraising</li><li>My Seizure Diary</li><li>24/7 Helpline</li><li>Share Your Story</li><li>Hallway Conversations</li></ul>coolcanadian&nbsp;Long Term Lamictal Use and Side EffectsTopic:&nbsp;Medication IssuesHi All, who among us has had to give up Lamictal after taking it a pretty good while? When I went on it around two years ago, I thought it was just the right med for me. Now I've started to struggle. My short term memory has gotten so bad, it's cost me two jobs. I'm always so dizzy, I feel as if I've had four or five beers. I've gone from the local Tabasco Kid to a diet so bland it would bore a baby. Go ahead and add in absentmindedness and clumsiness. Top it off with some plain old profound disorientation and major depression. In four or so months I'm a mess where I was a model. My new neuro just wanted to throw some Dilantin back in the med mix. (I'll die before that happens!) Help me out here folks. Anyone had Lamictal go sour on them? Or was it last years' brain surgery taking me for a roller-coaster ride? It's been a long time gone for me. I hope my Family of Buddies are all doing well. I'm happy to be back. Peace- marko&nbsp;<ul><li title="Rich-text formatting"></li><li title="Tag commenters"></li></ul>Yes!! I am trying to figure this out myself. I didn't put together the spicy food problem but I'm on the same diet. Do you have problems with&nbsp;Aphasia also. I'm with you all the way!&nbsp;PostShare:120 Comments<ul><li title="Subscribe">Subscribe</li><li>RSS</li></ul>224 days agoerin MonacoOh my gosh thank you so much for posting this. I know it's old but I have developed insomnia, panic attacks, severe anxiety.. to the point where I am afraid to be alone and have to call into work because I'm so exhausted and anxious of seizures. I was paranoid i was going crazy, hopefully they switch me at my appointment monday. I've been on this for 7 years!<ul><li>Like</li><li>Reply</li><li>Share</li></ul>0232 days agoMatt DeanI have been on it for 15 years now. I am 51 years old and feel like I have dementia. I keep trying to get off of it but I get monstrously sick when I do. Currently looking for medical help and guidance to bring me off of it. I went from 300mg down to 137mg, but I don't seem to be able to go any lower without major sickness.<ul><li>Like</li><li>Reply</li><li>Share</li></ul>0273 days agoSheri HarabedianI've been tested for memory and cognitive mpairment and everything came back negative. My memory was so bad my boss pulled me into her office and talked of her concern regarding my forgetfulness which I secretly noticed. I made an appointment with my doctor because I was on lamictal for 15 years and wanted to ask if that could be the culprit. She said lamictal doesn't cause short term memory loss and did a cognitive test and failed with mild results.&nbsp; She then referred me to a nuroligist hence all the testing. My job is at risk and I'm on leave until I can get a diagnosis. I still believe the lamictal has something to do with my impairment and will go through the motions until everything is exhausted.&nbsp;<ul><li>Like</li><li>Reply</li><li>Share</li></ul>0318 days agoDanielle GrattonI've been on Lamictal for 15 yrs...&nbsp;I've been on every med!!!&nbsp;It feels like it's eating my insides and since there's no other med I have no choice!!!&nbsp;Lamictal doesn't control my seizures only lessens them. I've also had the VNS implanted and removed; didn't help!!!&nbsp;I don't qualify for surgery...&nbsp; They said they would have to remove my whole brain, obviously won't happen. I have all 6 types of seizures and a specialist at MICEP said there is a 7th type they are studying. So...&nbsp;<ul><li>Like</li><li>Reply</li><li>Share</li></ul>0399 days agoLinsey SummersI've been on Lamotrigine for 13 years, which was when I last had a seizure. Since then I've been diagnosed with anxiety and agoraphobia. I have managed to get over the agoraphobia but the anxiety remains, but I'm used to it now and know how to cope. I just decided to google lamotrigine today and noticed that some of the side effects are relevant to me. For the last few years I have started to notice that my memory is getting bad. I can be having a normal conversation when a word I was going to say will just fall out of my head. I initially thought it was from lack of stimulation as I have basically done nothing for the last 8 years except watch TV and play the occasional video game. I have decided to go back to writing though and I bullet journal to try and keep my mind active. My Mum went through memory loss due to brain tumours so you can imagine all the wild thoughts that were running through my head! I do get paranoid about things and slightly hypochondriac at times, although I don't rush to the drs when my nose starts to run. I'm also really low on energy and hate going out. I put that down to me currently having gallstones, but now I'm starting to wonder. I can be clumsy at times and sometimes think I'm my own worse enemy. I recently have worried that I'm suffering from de<ul><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li></ul><ul><li></li></ul><ul><li></li></ul><ul><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul><ul><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li><li></li></ul>

I have only been on Lamictal for about 9 weeks and I'm getting off of it in the next two. I had about a 2 week period when it was really pretty nice. Then, I progressively developed a speech impediment, became more and more dispondent, blurred vision, clumsy, muscle twitches over the last twelve days. I saw my neurologist yesterday &amp; she's pulling me off the lamictal over the next two weeks &amp; titrating me up on trileptal over the same period. Wild ride. So, you've got a lot worse situation than I (no brain surgery and I have temporal lobe seizures), but the lamictal really went sour fast for sure. Good luck. cool.