[BNLsMOM]

I am on Trileptal. I have started developing hives that come and go each day several times. Tonight I feel feverish but I don't have a fever. I told my p-doc about tightness in my chest that I was having and the occassional hives and itchiness and he just said not to worry about it.

Nice. Tell a person with anxiety not to worry about something.

Anyway...Does anyone have any experience here with Trileptal and hives? It is really bugging me. I also got a new puppy on Sunday and the hives has worsened, but I also went up on the Trileptal and within an hour of taking the higher dose, I was broken out and itching.

Trileptal or puppy or both? Any thoughts?

[gravyyy]

Hives are typical of an allergic reaction but it would be virtually impossible to tell which they are from, the puppy or the Trileptal. To be honest, from my experience hives would be more typically seen with a medication allergy whereas a puppy allergy would tend to cause more of a stuffy nose, sinus drainage, itchy eyes, asthma flare (if you already have asthma). I personally took Trileptal for about a year and never had any side effects from it at all. If you are finding that you are consistently getting the hives when you take the Trileptal then you need to tell your pdoc that it's continuing to happen and you're not comfortable taking the Trileptal anymore. The only other consideration would be if you've changed anything else lately, ie soap, laundry detergent, dryer sheets, fabric softener, perfume, lotion, creams, any new foods or drinks, etc... Good luck getting to the bottom of this.

[VickiesPath]

Just looked up Trileptal and saw that it can cause rash, itching, and that dangerous Stephens Johnson symdrom. I would get back on the phone with our pdoc. It's a strange choice for a first line mood stabilizer. Have you been on others that didn't work? I had to quit Lamictal because I had the same problem. You definitely need to keep bugging the pdoc on this one.

[BNLsMOM]

Originally Posted by Vickie in Phoenix

Just looked up Trileptal and saw that it can cause rash, itching, and that dangerous Stephens Johnson symdrom. I would get back on the phone with our pdoc. It's a strange choice for a first line mood stabilizer. Have you been on others that didn't work? I had to quit Lamictal because I had the same problem. You definitely need to keep bugging the pdoc on this one.

I was concerned about weight gain so the first choice was Topamax which put me first into hypomania and the crashed me down into depression and I ended up in the hospital for having suicidal thoughts. Second choice was Trileptal because it is supposedly "weight Neutral" I have put on 7 lbs since starting it a month ago.

Hives are better this morning. They come at night usually. I still feel generally tired ans weak. I am going to try to work out and then shower to try to get some of this weight off me, but at the same time take it easy so that I don't overheat and get more hives.

Isn't this fun?

[VickiesPath]

What I mean is, if this is that serious kind of itching thing, it can escalate and you could end up in ICU. Not trying to scare you but please don't ignore it. ok? So, simply stay aware.

[BNLsMOM]

I actually decided not to work out, but I am going to take a shower and then maybe call p-doc if I don't feel better. He has been dismissive and amused by my questions so I am having a hard time feeling comfortable calling, even though he say to call whenever I need to. I have a phone anxiety anyway so I have to get my nerve up.

[paddym22]

I am with Vickie on this, if you ahve a rash after just taking a new medication is not a good sign, get advice as soon as possible.

[thinker22]

I agree with the others. You know your body better than any doc and although they can get smug with years of study, you have to call them on it. If they won't help you, taper yourself off of it slowly and **** them! If it becomes serious, definitely quit it and go to a hospital. Then the ***hole will pay attention.

I hate it when docs think they know everything just because they studied some cases. There's no such thing as general medicine. Every individual has their own chemistry and responses. Just because 90% of the population has no problem with a med doesn't mean you're not in the 10%. In fact, I'd wager that people with brain chemistry disorders are often in that smaller percentage because we're already unusual. This is not to say it's all in our heads (which the smug idiots like to use to dismiss us until it's too late).

Can you tell I'm pissed off at the medical profession right now? I'd like to give them a few of my symptoms and see how long they would last just "waiting" for things to magically get better with no change in meds!!

[BNLsMOM]

It came back and so did the weak, fluish feeling! I just left a message for my p-doc.

I am seeing my regular PCP tomorrow too so maybe she can help too.

[BNLsMOM]

Update:

So after taking the allergy pill last night, I now have these flat red dots that are smaller than hives, have uniform borders and are not itchy AND some hives. WTF???

My doctor told me to work it out with my p-doc and take the allergy pills in the meantime. What a pain. If I get more dots, I am calling the on call p-doc and if he/she doesn't take me seriously, I might have to go to the ER.

I still can't tell if it is from the meds or the dog, but is seems like the dog aggravates whatever it is.

Either that or I am making a big deal out of a little rash.

[thinker22]

In January, I went through the tiny yet dense red dots (went to drs and got antihistamines), then the clusters of red and normal skin patches in between and then things got better. They had me go off of all of my supplements, but it did take a full week after being seen for the itchy hives to go down. I suspect what caused the drug/allergic reaction was either Vitamin E or the blue dye in my bupropion tabs. Still don't know though. When you're on a ton of meds and supplements it's hard to tell, esp when you're starting and stopping things all the time. Stay in touch with your people, especially if things don't improve or get worse.

Hope you feel better soon.