[Cocinella]

Hello to you all!

I am experiencing some weird stuuf with my Lamictal which I take for cyclothimia as a monotherapy and want to share it with you, if anyone has some similar exerience.

Also at my last PDOC appointment I mentioned this weird feeling but she didn't seem to take it too serious. I said I feel like I am in a bubble and can't get out. Like the world outside is hapenning but I am not "feeling it". Like I am a bird observing the surroundings. Does that make any sence?

Mind you, I've been on my therapheutic doze for approximately 22 days now (which is 100mg per day). I take it in morning, it makes me sleepy and dizzy, so I am thinking of taking it before night.

Also I am experiencing lack of emotions. Sure before I had emoitons that were so strong and frustrating. But this is also frustrating, since I don't feel anything. Anger, love, affection, nothing. Will this go away?

Thanks for all the support and take care!

[ManicIcarus]

Sounds like it would be a good idea to discuss taking it at night with your PDOC. Also sounds like you're on a bit too high of a dosage. I'd be curious to know if you started out on 100 mg and if not if these are new symptoms with a new dosage.

[Cocinella]

Originally Posted by ManicIcarus

Sounds like it would be a good idea to discuss taking it at night with your PDOC. Also sounds like you're on a bit too high of a dosage. I'd be curious to know if you started out on 100 mg and if not if these are new symptoms with a new dosage.

Hello and thank you so much for your quicky reply
Well no I've been taking Lamictal a bit over 2 months, cus I was increasing dosage slowly (25mg per 2 weeks) and I experienced derealization before as well, but didn't know if it was my depressed or better melancholic mood. Now I am experiencing this pretty much all the time and it is annoying.

Yes I was thinking of taking my med before going to bed and see how it goes. I have doctor's appointment after two weeks and I'll surely mention this cus it's annoying. Also today (dunno why) I woke up and felt a bit of anxiety out of the bloom.

I guess my Lamictal didn't "kick in" yet. As far as I know 100mg is the lowest dosage, but maybe I am very sensitive to all types of meds. Before I was taking SSRI and it was HORRIBLE.

Once again thank you so much for your help and advice

[Victoria'smom]

The lamictal has a long enough half life that you can take it at night. Do you have anxiety? Not feeling may be a symptom of something else or your lamictal is to high. Are you in therapy? There's been a lot of work in therapy of what is considered normal rang of feeling. I always suggest a event/thought/mood chart as it helps identify sutal feelings. You could also try a new med

[pawn78]

It sounds like you are taking too much. Lamictal made me feel like in a bubble, but it was great, as I was less sensitive and irritable on it, but I imagine if I took to high a dose, it could cause effects like you describe.

[Cocinella]

Thank you so much for all your responses.

Well I was on theraphy when I though I only had panic attacks but I guess didn't help me much cus when I stopped the meds I was even worse lol and to tell you the truth I was more like myself then AFTR theraphy so I don't think that's for me since you have to analize a lot, and I am a sort of person that think and analize WAY TOO MUCH without theraphy and so theraphy only freaks me out I guess....

Well as for taking too much, I wouldn't know. Like I said I have cyclothimia, I am taking it to stabilize my mood. I was on Zolofit before and was going pracvticly insane so they took me off it and only gave me Lamictal and in case I'll ge anxyeity and couln'+t relax a bit of Torendo (but so far didn't take any pill yet and hope it stays that way).

I do think that the dosage couldn't be too big, I eman I am ONLY taking Lamictal, and everything else seems to have disapeared. True I'll soon get "those days in the months" and last few days I feel even more derealization and small depression, melancholie I guess.

Isn't the smallest dosage of Lamictal 100mg? Correct me if I'm wrong but people that have cyclothimia take up to 400mg of Lamictal + a lot of ifferent kind of drugs to go with it. So am I really so sensitive and don't actually need so much meds?

Confused :/

[Cocinella]

Forgot to mention, well experiencew in my case is, that any change of routine messes with my mood, first I get anxiety, then I start crying.

But I guess it's better now, but I hate the feeling of seing everything in two dimensional world, and that nothing that used to make me happy (traveling, being with my bf) doen'st make me feel anything. Along with that of course bad sex life as well, since I don't feel anything, I don't feel the desire as well. Weird and I hope it'll pass and that this is just...a side effect and me still not being used of the dosage.

Luckily I have PDOC appointment soon enough I gues hope I'll get some answers. As for changing the drugs...well I don't know. I mead AD is out of the question, lithium also, since I don't have bipolar and I just need to "calm down" my mood. I am putting everything on Lamictal, since I heard it's a safe med, but I really hate those feeling (or not feelings) I am experiencing :/

Thank you once again!

[Cocinella]

I'm sorry, also one more impotant thing I forgot. I had the bubbly feeling of derealization earlier in my treatment as well but I guess now it's getting annoying. I already mentioned it once to PDC but she didn't give much attention to that.

Okay now I think I said everything :P waiting for any replies

[Broken Robot]

I had depersonalization on Lamictal. I forget the dosage but it began after an increase. It was bad enough that I didn't feel safe driving, etc, when it came on. I ended up going off it.

[pawn78]

Lamictal might not be a good solution for you. For my bipolar disorder it works, I like the "bubble" because I am normally way too sensitive and my mania causes me to feel too much!!! But for you it might be the wrong approach,

[r010159]

Originally Posted by pawn78

Lamictal might not be a good solution for you. For my bipolar disorder it works, I like the "bubble" because I am normally way too sensitive and my mania causes me to feel too much!!! But for you it might be the wrong approach,

Compared to mania, the "bubble" IMO is a good thing. For the OP it may not be a bad place to be as a starting point. Being functional is of paramount importance. This seems to be underrated by allot of BPs. But Cocinella can work on further changes to the cocktail which can help to feel differently.

[Cocinella]

Thank you for all the good replies. Well I also noticed one more thing,

I am currently going into PMS actually am in it already. Yesterday was a horrible afternoon and today a horrible morning. Yesterday before going to bed I bursted into tears and cried like hell, couldn't calm down, even my bf was shocked. Then this morning I woke up like 5am and was all nervous!! It was only in late morning when I started feeling a bit better but not ok.

Even when writting this to you I feel anxiety coming out. And I think all of the bad feelings is actually PMS cusd everything is confused then.

Well I dunoo. Maybe you are all right, maybe this isn't a med for me. But to tell you the truth I don't wanna take any more meds. Since I have cyclothimia which is not nearly as bad as bipolar (they say) I don't wanna be on so many meds. I am also thinking that meds made me all confused and weird like I am now.

I don't know anymore. I am just waiting for better times, when I will feel a normal emotion at a normal time. When I won't be afraid anymore and when I will be happy when thinking about travelling, shopping, going on a cup of coffee, dress nice and hanging out with my bf and family (all of that is somehow gone now ) I even lost my sence of clothing, what I like and don't like, I don't care how I look and I was never like that.

Maybe my meds aren't addapted yet in my body, cus I do feel a change, I don't analize that much and I am calmer, my thoughts aren't racing as much as they did when they put me od SSRI (IDIOTS!!).

I presume I must be very sensitive on this kinnda meds, they all make me even weirder. My father once said, you shouldn't take any meds at all, they are making you all "weird". Maybe he is right...

Waiting for your reply

[Cocinella]

So I guess anhedonia lack of motivation and things that I was happy about them usually, don't fascinate me anymore. Also this derealization...

I found it bizzare though, I thought Lamictal was a mild med and usually given to people that don+t react well to any other med??

Weird is all I can say...

[Hbomb0903]

Originally Posted by Cocinella

So I guess anhedonia lack of motivation and things that I was happy about them usually, don't fascinate me anymore. Also this derealization...

I found it bizzare though, I thought Lamictal was a mild med and usually given to people that don+t react well to any other med??

Weird is all I can say...

I am back on lamictal and I can't say its helping but I feel like I have to give it more time. I'm at 100 mg and the doc wants me at 200 mg. I was going to try latuda....actually did for a few days (not much effect I noticed) and realized I couldn't afford it once the samples ran out.

Anhedonia is so strong. Lack of motivation and hopelessness are where I'm at right now. It's frustrating because just a few weeks ago I was feeling pretty baseline and functioning again after a month long episode of much the same feelings. I just don't feel comfortable with society and even when I'm with friends, my persistent negative thoughts plague me. Lamictal is supposed to be good for depression. I honestly don't know what I am anymore. So yeah I am not sure about Lamictal. I'm taking the generic by the way.

[Victoria'smom]

You know your therapeutic dose may be 75 mg or 50 mg.

[Skitz13]

Originally Posted by Cocinella

Thank you so much for all your responses.

Well I was on theraphy when I though I only had panic attacks but I guess didn't help me much cus when I stopped the meds I was even worse lol and to tell you the truth I was more like myself then AFTR theraphy so I don't think that's for me since you have to analize a lot, and I am a sort of person that think and analize WAY TOO MUCH without theraphy and so theraphy only freaks me out I guess....

Well as for taking too much, I wouldn't know. Like I said I have cyclothimia, I am taking it to stabilize my mood. I was on Zolofit before and was going pracvticly insane so they took me off it and only gave me Lamictal and in case I'll ge anxyeity and couln'+t relax a bit of Torendo (but so far didn't take any pill yet and hope it stays that way).

I do think that the dosage couldn't be too big, I eman I am ONLY taking Lamictal, and everything else seems to have disapeared. True I'll soon get "those days in the months" and last few days I feel even more derealization and small depression, melancholie I guess.

Isn't the smallest dosage of Lamictal 100mg? Correct me if I'm wrong but people that have cyclothimia take up to 400mg of Lamictal + a lot of ifferent kind of drugs to go with it. So am I really so sensitive and don't actually need so much meds?

Confused :/

I found your post very interesting. I've been on Lamictal for a year now. 250 mg at night. I found it worked really well for my depressive states but I always had a floating feeling and thought I was symptomatic but now I'm wondering if it's the drug that makes me feel this way. Thanks for your post

[Beana77]

This is an old thread but I just wanted to chime in and say I experienced derealization and depersonalization on Lamictal. I started googling it again because it's been a really long time since I was on it and I was actually thinking of trying it again since it is weight neutral. I'm Bipolar II and I'm not currently on a mood stabilizer. I take Abilify but that's not really a true mood stabilizer and antipsychotics are bad for weight gain.

So... I just talked myself out of trying it again. I also had a scary episode of hearing voices which is also a rare side effect.

No thanks.