The downside? Where's my list... When I started taking Topamax in September of 2005, I weighed 148ish and by April of 2006, I weighed 97 pounds. I have 5 kidney stones (3 in the left and 2 in the right), I am prone to UTI's, I have tingling in my hands and feet, my short term memory is not so hot, my eye sight has diminished, my hair is falling out in handfuls(at least 1/3), my internal thermometer does not work correctly so I need to avoid extreme hot and cold (especially hot), certain food smells make me want to throw up, words are on the tip of my tongue but I cannot recall them, my libido has left town... Oh - they don't call it Dopamax for no reason.

These side effects don't happen to everyone obviously... but a lot of people suffer the majority of them. Some effects lessen, some go away, some just stay. It's a harsh drug. I hope that helps.