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Topamax Side Effects

Sun, 08/31/2008 - 09:44

i've been on Topamax for two months now 50mg a day.. first month was great(no seizures YAY) and no side effects.. this second month though i've been having really bad side pains, constipation this whole month, back pain, and abdominal pain constantly.. i saw an internest they said i wasnt having an "infection" so that wasnt the problem so they wouldnt do anything for me so i went to another hospital and they said maybe my colone was irritated from eating lots of hot food lately so they gave me a laxative and stuff (sorry for the details) and it helped for a few days but i was still having the pains and after i stopped the meds the constipatin came back.. and its just worse.. i've also lost 10 pounds this last two months.. could these all be side effects?? i'm also on Keppra 1500mg a day but i've been on that since january and havent had any side effects from it.

Comments

Re: Topamax Side Effects

Submitted by snoviasif on Thu, 2008-11-27 - 16:13
Weight loss is normal with Topamax. If it's a lot and your worried check with your neuro. The Rx can cause kidney stones if you have high intake of calcium or low intake of fluids. So that is something to watch for. If your family is prone to this that is why they normally won't put you on Topamax.

Re: Topamax Side Effects

Submitted by sabbo on Sun, 2008-12-21 - 15:11

Hello.  I've been on Topamax since around 2001--a little while after I began having CPs.  I hate it with all my heart.  It hasn't (unfortunately) caused the weight loss side effect for me, but some of the ones it has make life MISERABLE.  I am having lots of short term memory problems, and often have trouble saying what I need to.  There are times when I can see the word I want to say in my head, as if it were on paper, but can't get my brain and mouth to connect.  It is also causing constipation--another listed side effect.   All the water I drink because io the chance of kidney stones along with the constipation make me feel bloated all the time.

   The WORST side effect for me, though, has been hair loss.  I had lost most of my hair (85-90%) in an allergic reaction to Tegretol. Now, what little I had left is nearly gone, too.  I wear scarves whenever I leave the house.  Before I took any AED, my hair was so thick that it wouldn't fit into holders made for extra thick hair--now barely 2% is left.

Sabbo 

 

Hello.  I've been on Topamax since around 2001--a little while after I began having CPs.  I hate it with all my heart.  It hasn't (unfortunately) caused the weight loss side effect for me, but some of the ones it has make life MISERABLE.  I am having lots of short term memory problems, and often have trouble saying what I need to.  There are times when I can see the word I want to say in my head, as if it were on paper, but can't get my brain and mouth to connect.  It is also causing constipation--another listed side effect.   All the water I drink because io the chance of kidney stones along with the constipation make me feel bloated all the time.

   The WORST side effect for me, though, has been hair loss.  I had lost most of my hair (85-90%) in an allergic reaction to Tegretol. Now, what little I had left is nearly gone, too.  I wear scarves whenever I leave the house.  Before I took any AED, my hair was so thick that it wouldn't fit into holders made for extra thick hair--now barely 2% is left.

Sabbo 

 

Re: Topamax Side Effects

Submitted by wonderwoman on Fri, 2009-03-27 - 18:53
Hi Sabbo You have no idea how what you said just helped me just then - I can also see the word in my head and I can't get it out! I have tried to explain that to people, but they just say, 'well, I can't say I see words in my head.' They don't understand that I am trying so hard to make the word come out of my mouth that I can visualise it, but it just won't come. Great chunks of my life are missing because I can't remember them - my honeymoon, things my kids have done (and they are still only young, and so am I), movies I have seen, places I have been. I say to my husband, 'hey you know I've always wantd to go there,' and he says, 'we've been there, we stayed the night, you liked it.' And I can't remember any of it. Those are the two worst - the words not coming, and the memory loss. Mix it with Dilantin and I feel like I am from another planet. I wish I was never diagnosed and could go on thinking I was having panic attacks - easier than feeling like my brain is disappearing out of my ears. WW

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