Posted by Emme on November 24, 2003, at 21:57:22
In reply to Lamictal dosage increase intervals, posted by lepus on November 24, 2003, at 19:47:55
> My pdoc has me starting on Lamictal for monotherapy for BPII (or at least that was the last dx I remember). He has me starting out at 12.5 for two weeks, then 25 for two weeks, and so on. Isn't this a little slow?
That's not unreasonable. 12.5 mg per week is a common rate of increase. Your doctor's just being a bit cautious. Better that than the reverse. You might ask him what he thinks about a faster increase.
>I really don't trust this pdoc to be honest and am searching for another one. He seems to be in the pockets of the pharm reps and rather uneducated.
Is this your first pdoc? How does he seem to be in the pockets of the pharm reps (more so than other doctors)? How does he seem uneducated? Does he not answer your questions or give you enough information? Good luck with your search.
> Also, how long does it take for the side effects to go away and to notice some improvement? I thought I was noticing some improvement but now (at a week and 3 days into therapy at 12.5) I am feeling depressed and anxious. Will this go away or do I need to stop the medication? Honestly, right now I feel worse than when I started it. I am tired, anxious, feeling down having difficulty concentrating, etc. Any thoughts?Way way too soon and much too low a dose to tell anything about whether it's going to help your depression. The therapeutic dose is highly variable. For some, 75 mg will do it, others need to go into the hundreds. Monotherapy would be great, but don't be bummed if you should end up needing to augment it.
I found it activating at first and was jittery, but that wore off with time. I also felt fluish and generally unwell when increasing the dose, but that also wore off within a few weeks and hasn't been a problem at higher doses. It didn't hinder my concentration, but if you are experienceing that, it may wear off. Keep contact with your doctor and try to stick it out for a longer trial before ditching it unless you start to feel really bizarre or intolerable side effects.
Emme
poster:Emme
thread:283384
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031121/msgs/283431.html