Posted by Cairo on May 8, 2005, at 8:32:58
In reply to Re: Topamax and panic attacks » ed_uk, posted by Bob on May 7, 2005, at 13:40:21
I tapered rather quickly from 50mg BID to 75mg for two days, then 50mg for two days then 25 mg for two days. Now I'm planning to increase the time between 25mg doses. Can the 25mg tablet be split? I'll ask the pdoc on Tuesday for the 15mg sprinkle caps.
I definitely notice that my symptoms improve a little as the dose wears off, and kicks up again when I take another dose. I'll need to ask him what else he can give me to reduce this. I dread taking the next dose as I know what will happen- probably now there is some anticipatory anxiety kicking in, in addition to the real side effects.
I bought some pH strips and did a urinary check. I know, not indicative of anything, but it's interesting that it was 5.2 after I had already lowered the dose to 50mg and now it's rising as I taper the dose. Do you really think having bicarb checked will help? Everyone is just telling me to taper off.
There's also a post above http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050504/msgs/494466.html
which says "increasing GABA indiscriminately is not necessarily anxiolytic at all; ask the many people for whom gabitril made anxiety worse." Couldn't Topamax do this?You would think that by lowering my Topamax dose, my symptoms should abate much more quicly, but they continue. Could this be not just the acidosis, which the body should correct rather quickly, but some other mechanism of neurotransmitter overcompensation/ receptor oversensitivity going on? Cymbalta at doses above 5mg (or I should say below 30mg as I started there and tapered down) also caused panic attacks, and caffeine and even chocolate can make me nervous and disturb sleep if I am in a sensitive mode.
And I still think dopamine is a factor here. Could depletion of dopamine, followed by administration of these drugs cause these idiosyncratic reactions? There is a history of Parkinsons and dementia and Fibromyalgia in my family a newer theory of Fibro involves dopamine. No doc wants to discuss this with me. They all say Wellbutrin causes anxiety or doesn't do much for their Fibro patients. But I'm the oddball who can't take SSRIs because they give me severe muscle tremor and tightness at very low doses and who looks "addisonian".
I REALLY want to try pregabalin as Neurontin helped with muscle spasm, anxiety and a tiny bit with pain, but weight gain, fogginess were a big issue. And I needed to keep upping the dose. I fear that the same might be true of pregabalin, however.
Cairo
poster:Cairo
thread:494112
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050504/msgs/495144.html