[xRavenx]

Does anyone here get Migraines from any of your psych meds?

I am suspecting that maybe Lamictal is causing me migraines, but I am also on Seroquel, Latuda, and clonazepam as needed. The reason I am wondering if it is my Lamictal is due to the high dose I am on (400mg), but I've been on it for a long time. I had another dizzy spell where I wasn't seeing double vision, and the blurriness/lightheadedness led to a headache and fatigue. It was pretty scary today, because I ended up in the ER 2x before. The one time might have been from accidentally taking 2 Lamictal pills at once, but there were 2 other incidents where I had double vision or visual impairment when this was not the case. It is scary and makes me fear that it will happen again.

I am not positive if these symptoms are medication related, and I know most people here are not doctors, but I'm wondering if anyone else had Migraines or similar experience as a result of their Bipolar meds. Thanks.

[*Beth*]

I've had migraines since I was a little kid. I do know that, interestingly, people with BD are more prone to having migraines. There's quite a bit of information about it online. Whenever I start a new antidepressant, and whenever I start a new mood stabilizer I get bad headaches. I wouldn't exactly call them migraines, but they are very painful. I take Advil. The med headaches, for me, go away after about the first 10 days (then I return to having non-med-related migraines, although I have them much less in my 50's than I used to).

As for the 2x/blurry vision and fatigue, I have both daily from meds. It really sucks.

[BeyondtheRainbow]

I had severe headaches both times I started Lamictal. My memory is that they went away after a while. I didn't have migraines at the time but looking back they were probably migraines. I even had auras with them. Now I have migraines but I have no idea if they are med related. They seemed more hormonal as I went through menopause and did decrease after that process but I still have a few a month without a known cause.

Have you tried magnesium? It massively decreased the number I was having when I started it (started at 400 mg, now take 1000 mg daily).

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by BeyondtheRainbow

I had severe headaches both times I started Lamictal. My memory is that they went away after a while. I didn't have migraines at the time but looking back they were probably migraines. I even had auras with them. Now I have migraines but I have no idea if they are med related. They seemed more hormonal as I went through menopause and did decrease after that process but I still have a few a month without a known cause.

Have you tried magnesium? It massively decreased the number I was having when I started it (started at 400 mg, now take 1000 mg daily).

It's strange, because I've been on Lamictal for many years, so I would think my body would be completely used to it. I am considering making an appointment with a neurologist. I never tried magnesium; just a multivitamin and vitamin D. That's interesting that it helped. Maybe I'll try it. Thanks!

[sarahsweets]

Hey @xRavenx
I have been on lamictal for 17 years. About 8 years ago I got a migraine. I never had them and never knew what they were. I fainted in a store. For one year I probably had 4 more. I got a work up that had the usual tests and a neurologist. There was no diagnosis given and it was one year and that was it. How do you take the lamictal? What seemed to clear my situation up was having the dr prescribe 100mg tablets and split them. I take 3 in the morning and 3 at night. It was an off hand suggestion from the neurologist and he said it was something he had seen with other patients but its nothing anyone had any data on. I have no idea if its true or if its related or helps but thought Id share.

Originally Posted by xRavenx

Does anyone here get Migraines from any of your psych meds?

I am suspecting that maybe Lamictal is causing me migraines, but I am also on Seroquel, Latuda, and clonazepam as needed. The reason I am wondering if it is my Lamictal is due to the high dose I am on (400mg), but I've been on it for a long time. I had another dizzy spell where I wasn't seeing double vision, and the blurriness/lightheadedness led to a headache and fatigue. It was pretty scary today, because I ended up in the ER 2x before. The one time might have been from accidentally taking 2 Lamictal pills at once, but there were 2 other incidents where I had double vision or visual impairment when this was not the case. It is scary and makes me fear that it will happen again.

I am not positive if these symptoms are medication related, and I know most people here are not doctors, but I'm wondering if anyone else had Migraines or similar experience as a result of their Bipolar meds. Thanks.

[MickeyCheeky]

So Sorry you're experiencing these things. i don't have much particular advice to offer as i have never tried any of these meds. Just remember to contact your Pdoc and/or doctors as well if you need further information. Sending many Safe, warm hugs to BOTH you, @xRavenx, your Family, your Friends and ALL of your Loved Ones! Keep fighting and keep rocking NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, OK?!

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by sarahsweets

Hey @xRavenx
I have been on lamictal for 17 years. About 8 years ago I got a migraine. I never had them and never knew what they were. I fainted in a store. For one year I probably had 4 more. I got a work up that had the usual tests and a neurologist. There was no diagnosis given and it was one year and that was it. How do you take the lamictal? What seemed to clear my situation up was having the dr prescribe 100mg tablets and split them. I take 3 in the morning and 3 at night. It was an off hand suggestion from the neurologist and he said it was something he had seen with other patients but its nothing anyone had any data on. I have no idea if its true or if its related or helps but thought Id share.

Sorry that happened to you. It must have been really scary to faint at the store. I fear that something like that will happen to me if this isn't resolved. I take the Lamictal 2x daily (200 mg in AM and 200 mg in PM). The large dose could be causing me problems, but I've been on it for a while, so I'm really not sure.

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by MickeyCheeky

So Sorry you're experiencing these things. i don't have much particular advice to offer as i have never tried any of these meds. Just remember to contact your Pdoc and/or doctors as well if you need further information. Sending many Safe, warm hugs to BOTH you, @xRavenx, your Family, your Friends and ALL of your Loved Ones! Keep fighting and keep rocking NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, OK?!

Thank you Sending you and your family/loved ones best wishes as well. I made my pdoc aware of the recent ER visit. She didn't know about the most recent Migraine/dizzy spell, but I think I'll follow up with a neurologist next.

[Soupe du jour]

I have had a period of significant migraines. Not just the more typical type, but also what my doctor labeled as "silent migraines". The latter did not include the pain and nausea, but all of the other symptoms and triggers of the former. The former more typical type was one I only experienced for a period of about two years. Only. I haven't had one of that type since maybe five or so years ago (rough guess). The silent ones I started having a little while after, but they eventually stopped, too.

What caused my migraines? Honestly, I'm not sure. Could have been a medication. If so, I don't know which one(s). I take some of the same now that I took then. I took others at that time, too, that hadn't caused migraines before it. I speculated that mine started almost as a reaction to brain trauma from my worst episodes. At that time, it was also suspected that I had experienced Simple Partial Seizures. Having gone to a neurologist to investigate that, I also was prescribed a migraine medication that worked wonders for me. Wonders! When I would get the migraine (which was more nausea/vomiting than pain, for me), I injected myself with sumitriptan. Within seconds of the injection I would feel a coolness run through my brain, and then soon after both any pain and all nausea disappeared.

Someone already mentioned the link between bipolar disorder and migraines. Actually, there are an odd number of links between them, and some other conditions. Some are mentioned at Interesting similarities/links between bipolar disorder & other conditions – Bird Flight.

For reference, I currently take carbamazepine ER (Tegretol XR), Lamictal, Seroquel XR and Klonopin. When I had the migraines, I was also taking Geodon and possibly also Lithium ER and a third antipsychotic. I can't help but wonder if Geodon played a part. Or Lithium. But as I wrote, I had taken all further in the past without migraines. In any case, during my migraine period, I was on a mess load of medications. Maybe that was part of the problem.

I had mentioned in one of your other threads that I also experienced double vision in the past. In my case, it was from carbamazepine ER (Tegretol XR). The first times I had it was when my carbamazepine dose was being raised, but then it stopped even though I ended up on a huge dose of 1,400 mg. Then a few years later, the double vision started again. My psychiatrist lowered my dose to 1,200 mg, and it stopped. Nowadays, I only take 600 mg carbamazepine ER. The further lowering was because this medication caused significant clumsiness. My doctor became concerned about how often I would become accidentally injured (falls, slamming into to things, etc.)

Sorry if I wrote too much.

If you're interested in my experience with diplopia, I wrote about it Double vision – My experience with diplopia – Bird Flight

[xRavenx]

Originally Posted by Soupe du jour

I have had a period of significant migraines. Not just the more typical type, but also what my doctor labeled as "silent migraines". The latter did not include the pain and nausea, but all of the other symptoms and triggers of the former. The former more typical type was one I only experienced for a period of about two years. Only. I haven't had one of that type since maybe five or so years ago (rough guess). The silent ones I started having a little while after, but they eventually stopped, too.

What caused my migraines? Honestly, I'm not sure. Could have been a medication. If so, I don't know which one(s). I take some of the same now that I took then. I took others at that time, too, that hadn't caused migraines before it. I speculated that mine started almost as a reaction to brain trauma from my worst episodes. At that time, it was also suspected that I had experienced Simple Partial Seizures. Having gone to a neurologist to investigate that, I also was prescribed a migraine medication that worked wonders for me. Wonders! When I would get the migraine (which was more nausea/vomiting than pain, for me), I injected myself with sumitriptan. Within seconds of the injection I would feel a coolness run through my brain, and then soon after both any pain and all nausea disappeared.

Someone already mentioned the link between bipolar disorder and migraines. Actually, there are an odd number of links between them, and some other conditions. Some are mentioned at Interesting similarities/links between bipolar disorder & other conditions – Bird Flight.

For reference, I currently take carbamazepine ER (Tegretol XR), Lamictal, Seroquel XR and Klonopin. When I had the migraines, I was also taking Geodon and possibly also Lithium ER and a third antipsychotic. I can't help but wonder if Geodon played a part. Or Lithium. But as I wrote, I had taken all further in the past without migraines. In any case, during my migraine period, I was on a mess load of medications. Maybe that was part of the problem.

I had mentioned in one of your other threads that I also experienced double vision in the past. In my case, it was from carbamazepine ER (Tegretol XR). The first times I had it was when my carbamazepine dose was being raised, but then it stopped even though I ended up on a huge dose of 1,400 mg. Then a few years later, the double vision started again. My psychiatrist lowered my dose to 1,200 mg, and it stopped. Nowadays, I only take 600 mg carbamazepine ER. The further lowering was because this medication caused significant clumsiness. My doctor became concerned about how often I would become accidentally injured (falls, slamming into to things, etc.)

Sorry if I wrote too much.

If you're interested in my experience with diplopia, I wrote about it Double vision – My experience with diplopia – Bird Flight

Thank you for all the information. Sorry to hear about all you've been through. I really hope this isn't medication-related, because I do feel the meds help with my mood, and I fear that lowering my doses would trigger another episode. I'll definitely read up on this though. Thanks for the resources.

[Nammu]

I got horrible migraines from age 8 to menopause. They were so horrible our family dr sent me to the Mayo Clinic when I was 9 to rule out tumors and epilepsy. As it has been mentioned here they’ve found a correlation between migraines and people with bipolar. In my case there was no relation to medication. I did take strong migraine medicine but no longer remember the name of it. It was limited to like 12 pills a month and I took the max dose. My migraines went away when I went though menopause. Sorry I have nothing helpful.

[*Beth*]

Originally Posted by Soupe du jour

I have had a period of significant migraines. Not just the more typical type, but also what my doctor labeled as "silent migraines". The latter did not include the pain and nausea, but all of the other symptoms and triggers of the former. The former more typical type was one I only experienced for a period of about two years. Only. I haven't had one of that type since maybe five or so years ago (rough guess). The silent ones I started having a little while after, but they eventually stopped, too.

What caused my migraines? Honestly, I'm not sure. Could have been a medication. If so, I don't know which one(s). I take some of the same now that I took then. I took others at that time, too, that hadn't caused migraines before it. I speculated that mine started almost as a reaction to brain trauma from my worst episodes. At that time, it was also suspected that I had experienced Simple Partial Seizures. Having gone to a neurologist to investigate that, I also was prescribed a migraine medication that worked wonders for me. Wonders! When I would get the migraine (which was more nausea/vomiting than pain, for me), I injected myself with sumitriptan. Within seconds of the injection I would feel a coolness run through my brain, and then soon after both any pain and all nausea disappeared.

Someone already mentioned the link between bipolar disorder and migraines. Actually, there are an odd number of links between them, and some other conditions. Some are mentioned at Interesting similarities/links between bipolar disorder & other conditions – Bird Flight.

For reference, I currently take carbamazepine ER (Tegretol XR), Lamictal, Seroquel XR and Klonopin. When I had the migraines, I was also taking Geodon and possibly also Lithium ER and a third antipsychotic. I can't help but wonder if Geodon played a part. Or Lithium. But as I wrote, I had taken all further in the past without migraines. In any case, during my migraine period, I was on a mess load of medications. Maybe that was part of the problem.

I had mentioned in one of your other threads that I also experienced double vision in the past. In my case, it was from carbamazepine ER (Tegretol XR). The first times I had it was when my carbamazepine dose was being raised, but then it stopped even though I ended up on a huge dose of 1,400 mg. Then a few years later, the double vision started again. My psychiatrist lowered my dose to 1,200 mg, and it stopped. Nowadays, I only take 600 mg carbamazepine ER. The further lowering was because this medication caused significant clumsiness. My doctor became concerned about how often I would become accidentally injured (falls, slamming into to things, etc.)

Sorry if I wrote too much.

If you're interested in my experience with diplopia, I wrote about it Double vision – My experience with diplopia – Bird Flight

Thanks for sharing that, Soupe.

[Moose72]

I have read that people with bipolar are more likely to have migraines.

Is a family history of bipolar disorder a risk factor for migraine among affectively ill patients? - PubMed

Difficult to treat chronic migraine bipolar spectrum personality disorders

Are migraines and bipolar related?