[travelingpanda]

i'm new to the forum so hopefully im doing this right...

i am currently on lamicital, and ive gained a considerable amount of weight (for my height) i am by no means overweight, but i cant fit into my jeans anymore and i still have a substantial amount of anxiety and mood swings. i also have adhd, as well as idiopathic hypersomnia (basically a low grade narcolepsy), so i take high doses of adderal IR and XR. and i have OCD.

I am considering switching meds, and ive searched high and low on the internet and read everything there is to know about this medication, but i cant find specific opinions about certain things...

1. i have heard that it really "dumbs" people down- i am a neuroscience major and i cant afford to have my brain affected like that, but i know everyone is different. is there anyone out there that hasnt had this experience ? and when i take adderall with it, will that help with the "dumb" aspect of it ?

2. i am an emotional eater, and i heard that it can really help with this. i am not overweight, so its not like i need to lose weight, but is that going to be a problem that i dont need to lose a significant amount of weight ? although it would be nice to lose the weight i gained on lamicital.

3. will it help with the OCD like checking behaviors and recurring thoughts ?

4. is there another similar med out there that will help me lose the weight i gained or not have a weight gain side effect ?

ive basically heard all the terrible things about it and less about the positives. i havent talked to my psychiatrist yet, i am going in on monday, but i like to do research beforehand so i dont waste time debating back and forth about side effects and such.

thanks in advance for your input !

[kaliope]

i cant answer all your questions but i have been on topamax for a few years now. i have never felt dumbed down on it. i am highly intelligent and highly functional. i lost 50 lbs on it but havent lost any weight on it for well over a year. i am on a high dose. it helped with my impulsiveness associated with mania so i dont know if that would help with the ocd. that is about all i can tell you. i havent experienced any bad side effects on the drug.

[travelingpanda]

Originally Posted by kaliope

i cant answer all your questions but i have been on topamax for a few years now. i have never felt dumbed down on it. i am highly intelligent and highly functional. i lost 50 lbs on it but havent lost any weight on it for well over a year. i am on a high dose. it helped with my impulsiveness associated with mania so i dont know if that would help with the ocd. that is about all i can tell you. i havent experienced any bad side effects on the drug.

thanks so much, that makes me feel a lot better. appetite wise, did you notice a considerable decrease when you first went on it ?

[Wren_]

I went on this recently for migraines and only have a low dose; so far my experience has been
* it makes me hungrier (which is the opposite of what most people seem to experience)
* it has a sedative effect but after a few hours, or less, sleep I'm wide awake - and getting very tired from that happening
* my mind is more alert and functioning more clearly than it was before starting the topamax (other than the lack of sleep)

I'm not sure about high doses, but that's after a few weeks on a low dose

[Odee]

Is Lamictal working for you? And are you planning on adding Topomax or switching?

If I were you, I'd try a MONTH of a strict diet with exercise and see where things go. If you lose a few pounds I think you should stick with it. If not, I won't blame you -- weight gain is a severe side effect that is deleterious to your health. This is if you are stable and lamictal is working with you. If not, well, quit that ****.

I know that intolerable side effects are a good reason to quit a med, and I have had my own extremely frustrating experiences with weight gain (twice in my life I have gained 40 lbs beginning with a normal BMI.)

After gaining weight on Effexor earlier last year (went from 135lb to 175), I did not lose any of the weight for several months after I quit. Earlier this year I tried out a low card diet and lost 20 pounds in two months. I quit religiously dieting but still ate healthy and for the next 4 months I lost an additional 10. I am 140 now.

Sorry, no advice about Topomax!! lol

BTW, you are in an incredible field. My adoptive mother, who is extremely supportive of my MI struggles, in a neuroscientist. She works hard and is doing extremely well. Her doctorate is such an incredible achievement. She got pregnant with my little step/legal sister at 17 and her father died a couple years later but continued with college. No, she has not faced mental illness, but that that was a struggle in itself!

I hope you make it through and find yourself in an incredible career.