[BrandonSS90]

Hello,

I went to my appoitment yesterday, and I told my nurse that Depakote ER was not working whatsoever. And she told me that my Vicodin (for my side pain), interfeers a lot with my depression, and can make me sad or tired feeling. So, she wants to try me on Lamictal. She said alot of patients have had success with it. And it's worked out good overall for patients.

Anybody have any experiences with it?

[Schatje]

I love my Lamictal. Just keep in mind that it takes a while to slowly increase to a theraputic doseage and build up in your system. I think it was 7 weeks before I started to feel a real difference and then it still improved from there. I actually almost cried when my pdoc told me that I may have to stop taking it because I was dealing with rashes, just not -the- rash, but it was slowly worsening for awhile. I was also having memory retreival problems and he wanted to lower the dose by 25 mg and that had me in a panic. This is truly the first and only drug that has returned me to me. When I have hypo-mania it is like just having a good day, but since I was 13, 17 years, I've been dealing with mild to severe depression. Lamictal gave me back my life.

[BrandonSS90]

Thank you so much! I am actually kind of excited about starting it now! My nurse had to talk with my psychiatrist first. But, I hope it works as good as it did for you; for me.

[AnnHertel]

Originally Posted by BrandonSS90

Hello,

I went to my appoitment yesterday, and I told my nurse that Depakote ER was not working whatsoever. And she told me that my Vicodin (for my side pain), interfeers a lot with my depression, and can make me sad or tired feeling. So, she wants to try me on Lamictal. She said alot of patients have had success with it. And it's worked out good overall for patients.

Anybody have any experiences with it?

I love my Lamictal! I hope you do not get the rash from it, because then you will not be able to use it. At first it made me very tired and forgetful... but after about 2 weeks that wore off. The higher doses (250mg+) gave me terribly vivid nightmares so I keep my dose at 200mg in addition to the lithium. Give it some time to work and I hope you have as much success with the drug as I did!!

[BrandonSS90]

Thanks again. They wanted me to try me with the Depakote possibly, and Lamictal together. But because of my health, my nurse said Depakote potentially does increase the dose of Lamictal. So she is going to talk to my pscyh, first. I am probably going to call her Monday and see if she has spoken with him yet.

[Zen888]

I have been on Lamictal 75mg for a long time and it has worked for me.

[heath22]

I have tried effexor, depakote, topomax, and so on. Lamictal is it for me. It is what helps me. It was so expensive for awhile until this last time that it now has a generic brand. Without insurance my lamictal cost me over $600 a month. But it was worth it....I need it.

[Josana]

Originally Posted by heath22

I have tried effexor, depakote, topomax, and so on. Lamictal is it for me. It is what helps me. It was so expensive for awhile until this last time that it now has a generic brand. Without insurance my lamictal cost me over $600 a month. But it was worth it....I need it.

I have been gradually increasing my Lamictal from 25 to 50 and just started on 100 - it has been about 5 weeks, and I still don't feel the effects, unfortunately. Well - maybe I'm just meant to be depressed all the time and that is my general mood - which wouldn't really be very helpful. I'm wondering if bi-polar disorder is sort of being tossed around too much these days, and whether I am just destines to be depressed for the rest of my life...grim outlook - but I just am not feeling as well as you all. Any thoughts?

[Schatje]

Originally Posted by Josana

I have been gradually increasing my Lamictal from 25 to 50 and just started on 100 - it has been about 5 weeks, and I still don't feel the effects, unfortunately. Well - maybe I'm just meant to be depressed all the time and that is my general mood - which wouldn't really be very helpful. I'm wondering if bi-polar disorder is sort of being tossed around too much these days, and whether I am just destines to be depressed for the rest of my life...grim outlook - but I just am not feeling as well as you all. Any thoughts?

It took me getting to 200 mg and maintaining that level for a week or two before I felt better. I think I only just started to feel some of the effects at around 7 weeks and 150 mg. Don't give up hope yet that this med will help. It takes a while, but for a lot of people, me included, it changed our lives. It is also possible that this isn't the med for you, but it is too soon to really detremine that as usually a theraputic level isn't reached until around 200 mg. You have to have patience and you will find the one that works for you.

[AnnHertel]

Originally Posted by Josana

...just destines to be depressed for the rest of my life...grim outlook - but I just am not feeling as well as you all. Any thoughts?

I believe your first step is to change your thought patterns. Do not give credence to the option you are "destined to be depressed". That should not be an option for you. Try to restructure your thoughts, and find a different, more optimistic way to view the situation. It's terribly hard to do and it is a conscious process I force myself to do each time I begin to get discouraged.

Perhaps Lamictal really isn't the drug for you, but keep trying. Keep searching, keep working with your psych doc adjusting doses and combinations of different meds. But you must not give up on hope. Once you mentally give up and succumb to the idea you are meant to be sad, then there isn't any amount of medication that can make you better. You have to believe in it.

It' a long and tedious process which gets worse before it gets better... but don't give up. Once you have given up... only then is all lost.

[BrandonSS90]

Just spoken to my nurse and said she would talk to my pscyhiatrist Wednesday, to see if it IS ok to put me on it. Really anxious.. and ready to begin taking it.. .

[HALLIEBETH87]

ive tried nearly a dozen meds and lamictal is the one that gave me back my life. 400 mg and im good.

good luck.

[Kitteh]

I too take lamictal. I am on 200mg. weird thing though, my pharmacist pointed out, my birth control pill actually lowers the amount of lamictal my body absorbs. I talked to my psych doc about it an he didn't seem to think anything of it. nor did he inform me that if i stopped my bc pill it could double the amount of lamictal in my system. Then i spoke to my obgyn an he warned me of the same thing the pharmacist did. I heard i should have my blood tested to see how much lamictal i am actually getting in me, but again my psych doc doesnt seem to think it is a problem. I am tempted to go to my pcp an get my blood tested but i hate to step on my psych doc's toes. That an the psych doc says i am bi-polar when i think i fall more in to the borderline personality disorder catagory. once again, i dont know how to talk to my psych doc about this. Bottom line to the babble, Lamictal.. so far so good.

[JourneyUpward]

Hi Everyone,

I have Cyclothymia (a mild form of Bipolar II) and Major Depression. Pdoc has me on Cymbalta 60mg, Lamictal 100mg, and Seroquel 50 mg with Ambien CR 12.5mg--at night.
Life didn't even out until we added Lamictal to Cymbalta. When we added Seroquel I began having mild mixed up moods. We stopped the Ambien and I can't sleep much so after a few days started again. See the pdoc on the 18th. I'd rather just have the Cymbalta with Lamictal--the depression was gone and I lived with mild hypomania--I felt Soooo good. I guess I need to sleep so maybe we should try something other than Ambien. I don't think the seroquel is good unless we up the Lamictal. Lamictal is very good, at least for me. Tell your doc if you have any issues with it. Good Luck

[theama]

Lamictal has helped me tremendously, I don't understand why I wasn't prescribed to me sooner! Apparently it's considered to be the first choice for bipolar type 2's. Coincidentally, Lamictal is an epilepsy medication - and the only other medication that has helped me as much as Lamictal was Toperimate; which is also an epilepsy medication.

[Bonkers08]

Originally Posted by BrandonSS90

Thanks again. They wanted me to try me with the Depakote possibly, and Lamictal together. But because of my health, my nurse said Depakote potentially does increase the dose of Lamictal. So she is going to talk to my pscyh, first. I am probably going to call her Monday and see if she has spoken with him yet.

I have been on 100mG 2X daily. No problems on side effects. It is used as a mood stabilizer for me.

[Manda83]

Hello. I been on Lamictal 100mg. for like 2 year's now. It has helped me so much and I take it twice a day and I feel so calm and relaxed. Even though, I have to be reminded of taking my medications because when I forget to take them then you better watch out because I'm a total ***** so yea. Just make sure you take it when you're suppose too because I realized that you need to so you can stay calm and relaxed.
I hope it works out for ya.

[bizi]

Originally Posted by JourneyUpward

Hi Everyone,

I have Cyclothymia (a mild form of Bipolar II) and Major Depression. Pdoc has me on Cymbalta 60mg, Lamictal 100mg, and Seroquel 50 mg with Ambien CR 12.5mg--at night.
Life didn't even out until we added Lamictal to Cymbalta. When we added Seroquel I began having mild mixed up moods. We stopped the Ambien and I can't sleep much so after a few days started again. See the pdoc on the 18th. I'd rather just have the Cymbalta with Lamictal--the depression was gone and I lived with mild hypomania--I felt Soooo good. I guess I need to sleep so maybe we should try something other than Ambien. I don't think the seroquel is good unless we up the Lamictal. Lamictal is very good, at least for me. Tell your doc if you have any issues with it. Good Luck

try a small dose of klonipin... like .5mg for sleep.
I too was on 12.5mg of ambien and that can have terrible side effects and is expensive.
The klonipin I only take at night for sleep and is very cheap, $2 for a months supply!
and you would not need the seroquel at all!
bizi