[JonB]

For those that take Topamax for bipolar, what is your standard therapeutic dose? And, if you experienced weight loss, how long was it before you noticed that? Did you steadily lose weight or did that side effect stop after you adjusted to the drug? Was it a rapid weight loss? Does the brain fog get worse at higher doses? Does it go away after you adjust or is it always there? Thanks.

[JonB]

One more question... Has anyone found that Topamax made their sense of taste change? I wondered if that was the reason for the weight loss...who wants to eat when everything tastes funny

[tracy33]

My standard dose was 100mg. I lost 25 lbs. over 2 months maybe. I thought I would lose more weight on a higher dose, so my pdoc bumped it up to 125mg for me, but I did not lose any more weight from it. The brain fog goes away. The tatse of food really didn't change for me too much. I just wasn't hungry. And I tried not to eat so I could lose the weight. Soda tasted flat and I couln't drink coffee anymore. I have noticed that after my weight loss, I started to eat my regular diet again which was alot of food, and I was able to maintain my weight.
Hope this helps.
Tracy

[(JD)]

I'm not suffering with bipolar disorder, but did try Topamax.

I gained weight unbelieveably and that was over a year ago and I still can't lose it. I wasn't on the drug long, as it was nasty. I won't go into all the details, but it did give me a gross sense of smell and taste of things. (And I lost my sense of taste and smell in the accident.) It nearly killed me, this drug.

[blondawn]

hi jonb,
i have been taking topamax for almost five years now. i started at the low dose of 50 mg for migraine prevention (which it works very well for ME for THAT), but am now up to 100 mg AM & 200 mg PM daily for mood stabilization. i have lost some weight on this medication, but not a substantial amount, and it has been over quite some time. BUT, from what i understand, it is different for each person. i have noticed my sense of smell is a bit different and my body odor has seemed to change (in what seems to ME an offensive way). as for the brain fog... it has gotten much worse for me at the higher dosage. so much so that i had to drop out of school. i seem to lose words during conversations that have been in my vocabulary for years, only for them to reappear when i don't need them. terribly frustrating and embarrassing for me, to say the least. unfortunately, topamax helps me so much with my moods that i dare not discontinue it. sure hope this helps you! dawn

[sniffles]

i was on topamax and i had a bit of weight loss, but not as much as i would've liked. my sense of taste became so irritating to me. most everything had a metallic taste. it was so gross. i hope you find that this med works for you.