[Musician1980]

Hi everyone,

Today is my second day on an upward dose of Lamictal and yesterday my index finger on my left hand was numb right at the tip of it and today both my middle finger and index finger are the same way. Has anyone experienced this and is it temporary?

Thanks,

Musician1980

[HolisticGal]

anxiety IMO

[Musician1980]

Originally Posted by HolisticGal

anxiety IMO

Luckily I haven't had anxiety in quite a while. It was pretty bad over Christmas when I was getting off Rexulti and taking Ativan to sleep then having surges of anxiety during the day. (Sometimes I think it's related to having taken Ativan the night before, cause it pretty much stopped once shortly after I stopped taking Ativan).

The numbness is real though, and now it's spread to the tip of my thumb.

[Nova567]

I would contact your doctor and ask if this is a known side effect, maybe your circulation to your hand is getting low? Have you tried looking at the med guide to see if this is a side effect if you can't call the doctor right away?

[Gabyunbound]

The only times I've experienced numbness in my fingers has been when it has had to do with my cervical stenosis -neck problems.

I think it can also be a symptom of carpal tunnel syndrome.

But who knows. I would ask your pdoc about that being a potential side effect, but it really could be coincidental -from something physical to nothing to worry about at all.

[Musician1980]

Thank you for the responses.

I know tingling in the extremities was a known side effect of Topamax, which I only took a little bit of in my life. Ugh, I hate med changes. I was starting to feel like myself in a good way on 50 mg and the move up to 100 feels like too much.

[Sad Mermaid]

Lamictal's smallest denomination is 25 mg. You could go down to 75 mg to see if the side effect goes away. Maybe 75 mg is your sweet spot. rxlist.com does list this side effect to lamictal. many side effects are dose dependent, which is why titrating down may make sense for you. As a separate note, if you felt like yourself in a good way on 50 mg, maybe you should stay on 50 mg. Does your prescriber observe you clinically and listen to your self-observations? dosage guidelines are on thing and clinical findings are another thing. I would definitely try 75 mg now. If you do not have 25 mg pills, you can cut a 50 mg in half.

[Musician1980]

Originally Posted by Sad Mermaid

Lamictal's smallest denomination is 25 mg. You could go down to 75 mg to see if the side effect goes away. Maybe 75 mg is your sweet spot. rxlist.com does list this side effect to lamictal. many side effects are dose dependent, which is why titrating down may make sense for you. As a separate note, if you felt like yourself in a good way on 50 mg, maybe you should stay on 50 mg. Does your prescriber observe you clinically and listen to your self-observations? dosage guidelines are on thing and clinical findings are another thing. I would definitely try 75 mg now. If you do not have 25 mg pills, you can cut a 50 mg in half.

Thank you for the response. I called the doc's office today and they said to try a few more days and see if the condition is transient. I did prefer 50 mg though each time I went up a dose (0 to 25, 25 to 50) I remember things feeling strange for a bit and then gradually feeling pretty decent by the second week. I suppose I'll give this some time and if the side effects don't remit (including occasional headache), I'll titrate down to 75.

My prescriber does listen to my observations and is very open to my needs and objectives. It was my suggestion to give Lamictal a try after two neuroleptics weren't working out.

[Sad Mermaid]

I understand and it is great to hear that the prescriber is attentive and enthusiastic about your treatment.

Lamictal in general is quite benign, compared to neuroleptics, and I am glad that it is helping you at a low dose. I hope you find your sweet spot with it soon.