[JigssawFeeling]

Helloes, is there anyone who has stopped Lamictal or knows specifically about stopping it. How long did you take it and how did the stop affect you? Being honest, I'd ask this my doc, but I don't want any ******** 'cause I've got this feeling she's always trying to keep me on Lamictal even though I've told her I want to get off it.. Nowadays I don't think the meds is even working, probably due to my drinking (it's ****ing university), but I know I'm not giving that up so I just wanna quit the meds because I feel like they're really dumbing me down
/end of rant

[LastQuestion]

Lamictal has the possibility of causing cognitive deficits as a side effect. What is thoroughly understood to lead to cognitive deficits is excessive drinking, insufficient sleep, poor diet, lack of exercise, and destabilizing into mania or depression - such actions lead to the atrophy or physical damage of brain cells, even neuronal cell death and neurodegeneration. Medications like Lamictal are known to be neuroprotective.

So, before you decide to go off your mood stabilizer I think it would be prudent to be completely honest about which things most affect your intellectual capacities.

Furthermore, withdrawal from psychotropics can be extremely difficult for some individuals to the point of being completely disabling both physically and mentally. If you were to discontinue Lamictal it would be critical to stop drinking during the withdrawal period (which when safely done requires months). Failure to do so increases the risk of neuronal cell death.

I really think you need to have a detailed discussion about this with your pdoc, however unpleasant that may be.

[sui generis]

You're not supposed to be drinking (or at least limit your drinking) when on lamictal. Honestly, having bipolar is a good enough reason to limit your alcohol consumption just because it can mess with your moods.

I'm at university too and even though I don't go out and party much, it does suck when my friends go out and I can't drink but honestly I'm WAAAY better for it. If I drink I get depressed for a week lol, especially on lamictal!

I've actually tried coming off lamictal and it was impossible lol. I cut down by 25 mg and the next day I felt soooo depressed. I could barely move and I couldn't function properly at all. I'm going to try again at some point with the help of my pdoc because I also don't feel like it is helping me.

Talk to your doctor and insist that you want to come off. It might help to compromise with her, maybe suggest you try something else if it's not working for you? There is no point being on a drug that does nothing for you.