[Shakti]

I don't know where else to ask this. I've google and googled and googled, but I couldn't find anything at all about any of this except that this was a very serious side effect that should send you off to the doc asap. I've had four appointments this month so far. At two of them my heart rate was 120. At another is was 95. I don't know what it was yesterday (I should have asked but I figured they'd tell me if it was all out of whack...right?). I have another with my GP tomorrow and I'm going to mention this heart rate problem.

I'm not as athletic as I used to be--my resting heart rate was 50-55 then. Now it usually sits at around 65-70.

When I went to the these appointments I assumed it was anxiety. These appointments (that I won't go into) were the kind that would cause high anxiety. At the first one they had me take 2 mg of my Klonopin and took it again. Still 120. They gave me water to try to help bring it down and waited a while and had me take ANOTHER 2 mg klonopin. Still 120. I chalked it up to anxiety and they had to refer me to a major medical center because they could not treat me with that heart rate.

So we go to the major medical center TWO WEEKS LATER and again: 120. After a while it went down to 90 (after they eventually got SIX mg of Klonopin in me, which was scary in and of itself and seemed not to feel like anything at all), but they had to get permission to treat me. And they did.

I chalked it all up to anxiety.

Fast forward to today. I've been on the brand name Lamictal (150 mg) but my insurance won't cover it. So, I am once again on the generic. Since the generic appears to be much weaker and since my doctor wanted me up at 200 mg (which I did not agree to), I took 200 mg of it this morning (thinking how much crappier and weaker the generic is) by breaking one in half. I know it says not to but I did. I remember starting Lamictal and the side effects were drowsiness, dizziness, etc....but today my heart rate has been 120 again all day. I'm terrified. I've googled and can find nothing about this. I wasn't anxious at all today, but I noticed my heart pounding and first checked my pulse (about an hour after I took my meds). I was just sitting around on the internet. I've been checking every 20 mins for two hours and it won't budge from 120. I'm terrified. Anything over 100 resting heart rate can be serious trouble. But the only reason I could find for not crushing or breaking was due to a horrible bitter taste that most people can't stand.

I'm seeing my GP tomorrow and will address this with her. But this afternoon I have another appt I have to go to. I'm scared of what my pulse will be there. I'm scared of having a heart attack. I took a Klonopin, hoping that would bring my heart rate down, but that was just a few minutes ago. And of course now I am anxious and upset and in tears.

So my question is, has anyone here ever experienced a high heart rate on psych med? On Lamictal? I'm so scared. What I was chalking up to anxiety seems to be just a norm for me. If anyone has any input, please tell me. I'm so scared. I know I could go to the ER, but I literally CANNOT miss this appt I have today. I could go after, but they are starting to know me there on a first name basis. And I do have an appt with my GP tomorrow.

I've never in my life had a resting heart rate like this. This is crazy. And really scary.

These are my meds:

Lamictal (150 mg 1x daily)
Wellbutrin (150 mg 2x daily)
Metformin for diabetes (500 mg 2x daily)
Levothyroxine for a low thyroid (125 mcg 1x daily)
Klonopin (as needed and I don't take this often at all 2mg)

I've been on all of these for a while. I'd really prefer not to have a heart attack (I'm only 33). Anyway, I'm just curious if anyone else has had a similar problem while on psych meds.

The idea that I might just have a heart problem is really really scary.

[Shakti]

I also could not find anything about Klonopin bringing down heart rate, but I figured it does that when I have a panic attack...

Incidentally when you search Klonopin via google almost all that comes up is Xanax. Dumb.

[BlackPup]

The adverse effects listed in MIMS does not include any cardiac symptoms. However as I am avoiding writing my thesis today I did a literature search and came up with:
Increased HR in 4.3 % of patients presenting with a Lamotrigine overdose.
Increased HR in a patient presenting with Venlafaxine and Lamotrigine overdose, attributed to the Venlafaxine.
Increased HR associated with an abrupt cessation of Lamotrigine in one patient.
A patient on Lithium and Lamotrigine with a pre-existing condition exhibited increased HR. However this was attributed to the lithium.
So it's not particularly convincing...

I am so procrastinating to avoid writing my thesis!!!!!

[sugahorse1]

Xanax is Alazopram and Klonopin is Clonazepam - both are benzo's, both apparently equally strong mg for mg.
The Xanax is slightly faster acting, while Klonopin has a longer half-life (Will take a little while longer to kick in)

I used to have low Blood P every now and again, and the other day it went up to 103/x (I was told this was too high). Now I'm thinking of investing in a heart-rate monitor to check myself daily.

[sugahorse1]

I see hypotension (Low blood pressure) is listed as a RARE side-effect of Clonazepam - maybe the doctor was hoping this would happen??? And also if the high blodd pressure was related to anxiety, this would be lowered due to the use of the clonazepam

[Shakti]

My blood pressure is always absolutely perfect. It's never once been at all high or low. Just my pulse seems to be going crazy. (There's no correlation between blood pressure and heart rate. http://www.americanheart.org/present...tifier=3025168)

Yesterday at the doc appt, my blood pressure was perfect, pulse was high (90). I called my GP yesterday to see what it was day before yesterday (when I didn't ask) and they said 68. So maybe this is just anxiety? I'm not really as nervous at my GP because I see her often. 68 is still a bit high for me to be happy with, but it's ok.

I'm going to talk to her about it this afternoon when I see her. Disability informed me two days ago that I had to see her too for an eval. That will make 4 disability evals. Sheesh.

Better safe than sorry. I think sometimes I get really anxious about taking all these pills. Seems unnatural, even though I know it's necessary.

Maybe I'm just more anxious about all the crao going on my life than I thought.

Thank you for your replies. You shoulda seen me yesterday writing, tears running down my face and sobbing like my dog died. It make me think about the times when I think of sui....I kind of chuckled actually. When I have an actual health scare and think I could die I panic because I don't want to die at all. I think I have a new view on the idea of killing myself after these health scares and after facing down that cliff and being terrified of not having life in me if I just took one single step. I hope this has really brought it home to me (and I think it has) that I do NOT want to die, no matter how bad it gets.

[StarryNight]

I've never been on Lamictal, but when I first started taking Seroquel, an hour after I took it my heart rate was 144! My doctor did an EKG just to make sure my heart was ok, and it came out fine. She switched me to Seroquel XR (extended release), and I haven't had any problems since.

I checked the internet and there is a Lamictal XR. If you are on the regular one, then maybe if you switched to XR it would help. Also, my Seroquel prescription insert says that crushing or breaking will cause all of the medicine to release at once- hence, the high heart rate. You should never do that unless the pill has a score line, and your doctor says it's ok to cut that type of pill.

If you're already on the XR, and if it has happened even when you take the pill whole, then I would say your body doesn't tolerate it, and I would ask about switching to another med.

Your heart rate isn't at a dangerous level (if it's occasional), but it's like you're exercising all the time. Keeping it at that rate for an extended period of time is definitely not good. Good luck and blessed be.

[Shakti]

Mine has a score line...

I'm off to the doc in 45 mins so I'll mention it then. This kind of stuff is scary. I think I actually don't want to die. Maybe this will add new perspective when I get sui thoughts.

[aggies01]

Did you ever try the Lamictal XR? I'm having the same high heart rate, 109 etc. and I'm only on the starter pack week 4 at 50mg.

[sugahorse1]

What are physical signs of a high heart rate? I'm working my way up the Lamictal dosage, and am currently on 37.5mg - I'm petrified something like this can start to happen to me?!?

[Shakti]

I think I'm not in the norm here. For one thing, I have OCD and one of my obsessions (well, really maybe the only one) is my health/diseases/dying. I get very alarmed when maybe others wouldn't. When my stress is up an I get anxious, here come the irrational thoughts about my health and dying etc.

The thing is, I have a high heart rate, but I don't know what's causing it. It seems to be lower by a little bit the last few days (and coincidentally I've reduced my Lamictal by 25% because I want to be off of it and on Lithium), but who knows why? It's still too high. Today I took 112.5 mg of Lamictal (pill splitting my 150 mg pill). I just want to lower the dose a bit. I'm seeing my new pdoc on the 31st, so I figure reducing the dose by a quarter now and by half next week won't hurt and if I get mind-wobbly-moodswingy then I'll just take the regular dose. I also have thyroid issues and diabetes. It might just be the combo of meds I'm on raises my heart rate. I'm taking a lot of pills. So don't worry! It's probably not the Lamictal. Could be, but it could be anything really.

If you get concerned just take your pulse, but I could feel my heart pounding well before I started checking my pulse...I just didn't realize how high it was and thought it was just a side effect of starting this or that new med.

I worry like mad about every disease that I just KNOW I have. (And likely don't.) Truth is, Lamictal has been a wonder drug for me, for the most part. I've been on it for almost a year with a small break at one point when I had no insurance or doctor.