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Keppra and its side effects
Fri, 01/27/2017 - 17:08Topic: Medication Issues
Hello,
So just a little backstory...
I have had only 3 grand mal seizures that i've known of. The first was in 2006 and was put on Dilantin. It didn't work because i had another seizure a month or so later. So then I was put on Tegretol. I was doing well for about 2 years then I had another seizure in 2008 so the doc raised my tegretol intake and have been seizure free since then. But while I was on it, my body would have the "electric shock" jerk once in awhile. So I asked my new neurologist to switch me to something else 2 years ago. I tried Lamictal but the side effects made me sick. So I was finally put on Keppra, 500mg twice daily. It stopped my body jerks and barely had any side effects until 2 months ago. I would get angry. I would just have that feeling of snapping. and I'm a normally calm and relaxed person so this was not me. I would also get depressed from time to time. I have that sense of depersonalization . More anxiety than normal. More tired. My short term memory isn't as sharp. I can't concentrate as well. I basically have no libido. I have read online of other people having the same side effects except they had them when they first started taking it.
So why am I having these side effects now than before? Is it just because of I'm getting older and my body is changing? Can people get side effects years after taking Keppra?
I have an appointment with my neurologist on Tuesday but I just wanted to see someone else's point view.
This has been bugging me.
Comments
I was on Keppra for about 4
Submitted by reika.bijou on Wed, 2017-03-01 - 18:17
I was on Keppra for about 4 months, and I was horrible to be around. I obviously don't have insight into longterm use of Keppra, but the emotional side-effects you are mentioning sound identical to the ones I had while on Keppra. Best of luck
Hi. I'm new to this site and
Submitted by MelissaAnn on Fri, 2017-02-03 - 23:03
Hi. I'm new to this site and wanted to tell my story and get some feedback. I'm 31 and was diagnosed with JME at 14. I have tried several different medications to see what works best (depakote, lamictal, zonegran, and keppra). Currently I'm taking a total of 700 mg of lamictal and 4000 mg of keppra daily. My employer recently got rid of the best insurance plan and was forced to take one of the worst because it's cheaper for them. I went to get both refills and discovered that I'd have to pay over $900 out of pocket (each mo). Who can afford that?! Anyways now I'm basically forced to switch to generic even though I've tried it and it didn't work. Now, I recently got a new job and I'll be on the generic when I start. Obviously I'm extremely nervous about having a seizure on my first day. My seizures are brought on by my sleep patterns and stress. I have auras quite frequently and haven't had a full out seizure since last year. Oh, on a side note I have son that is now five and I had to take meds while pregnant. I had 1 seizure while I was pregnant and he was born with 3 heart defects. I blame my medications but my neurologist assured me that my medicine was not to blame. Has this happened to anyone where the generic hasn't worked? Or where there child had a birth defect while on seizure meds? P.s. his heart surgery was extremely successful and is running and playing with all the kids. He has no signs of a heart problem except the scars. Nothing slows him down. He is perfect. I thought I'd mention that my sister also has JME and my mom had 1 grand mal.