![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 25 of 25. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by BarbaraCat on May 6, 2004, at 3:07:05
Here is a news article that hopefully will alert you to this very serious condition that no one is yet taking seriously enough. This article is about the Lamictal rash but realize that other anticonvulsants we take for mood disorders, along with other classes of meds) can cause Stevens Johnson Syndrome:
http://www.fox11az.com/news/local/stories/KMSB_20040504_drugburn_dsbp.18be1123e.html
You can stop here if you want and hopefully get the gist of WARNING WARNING!! But what follows is an account of my own case of Stevens Johnson which I am slowly recovering from after over 6 weeks of misery. It may be a long post but proves to be interesting and possibly life saving. So here goes.
It was not a 'serious' case like in this article (she had TENS, the most serious form) but bad enough so that I can't even imagine a 'serious' case. I was on Lam (and lithium) for over a year and a half stable at 75mg. It started pooping and I increased to 125mg over 5 weeks, which is a gradual titration. I started noticing an intense itching at 125 but didn't ascribe it to Lam. After all, we're warned about 'a rash' and not much else and I thought that maybe having 9 cats was finally getting to me. At 150mg my skin and inner ears started feeling inflamed, but still no rash. My pdoc told me to reduce back to 100mg and the itching subsided. I again attempted to slowly increase but the intense itching started again. I also had a few twinges of what I thought was my old nemesis of many years back, yeast infections!
Now, I've been on every antidepressant out there and after 25 years with every one pooping on me and not getting better, I decided enough was enough. I slowly weaned myself off all psych meds. My last lamictal/lithium was Jan 31 of this year. It was very difficult during the weaning off but I am very glad I did it and for the first time in so long began to feel 'normal'.
Here's where it gets interesting. I got the rash and much worse, but not while I was on Lam, but supposedly from another drug (DMPS, a sulfa based oral chelator of mercury which can cause SJS). Many meds can cause an allergic skin reaction, the mild form called 'erythema multiform minor', the serious form which also affects mucous membranes is 'erythema multiform major', or Stevens Johnson Syndrome. Even though I had stopped taking Lam over 2 months prior and even though this new drug was known to cause SJS in rare cases, I'm sure it was the Lam that primed me for it. Why? Read on, but be prepared to feel distress, especially if you're taking Lam, but also depakote, dilantin, tegretol, ibuprofen, narcotics, sulfas, or any of the others that singly, but especially if combined, are causing more and more cases of this thing.
The first week on DMPS I got the same intense itching as on Lam. I also noticed the pesky vaginitis/yeast infection and some slight blistering in my mouth but didn't think it was the drug. Never had a hemorrhoid in my life either, but dang, there it suddenly was! Three weeks later a rash started appearing but I had the God sent grace to stop taking the drug, go to urgent care where they told me to 'watch and wait' because there is NOTHING they can do for it exept hope it doesn't get worse. The rash continued to spread for the next 2 weeks until my torso, arms and legs were covered with what looked and felt like shingles, my mucous membranes were swollen, my mouth, vagina and anus were blistered and bleeding and I was in the emergency room for over 14 hours.
I was not admitted because it was not yet at the most serious stage (TENS) and in the words of my ER doc "There are resistant staph infections in hospitals and you do not want to be in here with a skin barrier condition unless there's no choice". She said Stevens Johnson was formerly a very rare condition but they're seeing more of it. They can do nothing but put you on life support in a burn trauma unit and pray that the offending agent was stopped early enough and your immune system will turn things around. My dermatologist/allergy specialist later said 'Once it starts affecting the mucous membranes, things can get very bad. You were very, very lucky'. I was also very, very sick but very lucky to not have my skin layer peel off. This is a very nasty condition and we must become informed.
So why do I think Lam had anything to do with it? One could say 'But she was off Lam for over 2 months and on another drug culprit', however, I have never, and I repeat -- have NEVER had any drug allergy until taking Lamictal and I've taken plenty of potentially offending meds in the past. I knew something was going on with the itches and such but didn't know enough back then. From my research I've since learned that there can be an early 'prodromal stage' in Stevens Johnson where an inflammatory condition is starting but a rash doesn't necessarily show up until later. Itching is one prodromal symptom, as was the burning sensation in my ears and skin. I believe that Lamictal put me into this prodromal stage, sensitized me and allowed a severe reaction to another drug. I'm probably now sensitive to a whole host of drugs that I never was before. I don't know if I can even afford to take an ibuprofen at this point. I also cannot go in the sun for a long time to come.
Please Lamictal folks, I realize we're only trying to feel better and scaring you doesn't make me feel good. But many if not most docs prescribing it don't seem to have enough experience with actual cases of SJS and don't think that minor symptoms are cause for alarm. A few on this board have reported slight rashes and other seemingly mild symptoms and are told to continue to take it, perhaps reducing it, maybe getting a cream to rub on the rash. I'm here to sound the warning that a slight rash, an annoying itch, a wildly tingling scalp, might be just the start of the tip of an iceberg.
Maybe Lamictal is helping you and you will never get anything but good results from it. It helped me for awhile but in retrospect, really not all that much and with every increase I felt unsettled and anxious. I'm not suggesting you get off meds. In my case it was right for me and I was more than ready, but it was still hard. But please, become informed. Don't leave it all to your docs. They're way too busy to bear all the burden of responsibility. Find out all you can about Stevens Johnson Syndrome and other possible med reactions. One never thinks it's going to happen to them. I sure didn't. Take care, all. BarbaraCat
Posted by T_R_D on May 6, 2004, at 14:07:10
In reply to Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!!, posted by BarbaraCat on May 6, 2004, at 3:07:05
Hi BarbaraCat, I was just wondering, did you have a fever at all in conjunction with the rash/itchiness? That is another factor that should send folks running to the emergency room.
I had a weird *scare* while on Lamictal with my first dose. I developed a rash but it turned out to be a viral rash! What timing though...I had only been taking the Lam for a few weeks so I was sure it was a drug reaction. I went to my doc two days later (happened on a weekend) and he asked if I had any other odd symptoms. I said chills but no fever, sore throat, canker sores..."general malaise." I had been taking Benadryl like candy over the weekend and it had given significant relief.
Since I was scared it was the Lamictal I went off the drug immediately but the doc said to go right back on it. I had only missed a day (Sunday) and I was concerned but then I thought: "Well, this will certainly prove it one way or the other!"
I have been just fine ever since (been about 3 weeks, I think?) I think nature just played a cruel joke on me.
I do know that allergies (to anything) can develop at any time so it's always on my mind and I am forever vigilant. Anticonvulsants can make one prone to rashes in general so it's always something to bear in mind. I'm not going to get all paranoid though. It creates too much anxiety. I'm happy to trust my meds.
Posted by BarbaraCat on May 6, 2004, at 15:43:20
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!!, posted by T_R_D on May 6, 2004, at 14:07:10
> Hi BarbaraCat, I was just wondering, did you have a fever at all in conjunction with the rash/itchiness? That is another factor that should send folks running to the emergency room.
***I had a slight fever of 100degrees interspersed with chills during the whole time of the spreading rash. But at the early prodromal stage, all I had was itchiness and tender mucous membranes - no rash, no fever or malaise.
>
> I had a weird *scare* while on Lamictal with my first dose. I developed a rash but it turned out to be a viral rash!***What kind of viral rash?
>>I went to my doc two days later (happened on a weekend) and he asked if I had any other odd symptoms. I said chills but no fever, sore throat, canker sores..."general malaise."
**Chills, definitely. Real bad at night during the worst of it. I could only warm up by soaking in the bathtub. Then I'd get the low-grade fever during the day. But I run a low body temp normally so my case might present differently.
** I had been taking Benadryl like candy over the weekend and it had given significant relief.
>>Yes, Benedryl was the only thing that helped me.
>
> Since I was scared it was the Lamictal I went off the drug immediately but the doc said to go right back on it.
**One wonders of the wisdom of this advice. When it comes to erythema multiform (the medical term for allergic skin reactions to drugs) there are no carved in stone symptoms. A skin rash can look different and symptoms vary from case to case. If the drug is continued in the presence of a reaction, the inflammation can get out of control. When the mucous membranes get involved it becomes Stevens Johnson. Our immune systems can only take so much in the presence of an ongoing assault. The trick is to let it recover.If I were your doctor I would have had you decrease the dose until the rash cleared up, better yet, stop immediately and then ramp up again. That's the word from ER personnel these days.
>
> I have been just fine ever since (been about 3 weeks, I think?) I think nature just played a cruel joke on me.**Nature doesn't play jokes, just follows natural laws. I'm glad you're fine, though, and hope it continues.
>Anticonvulsants can make one prone to rashes in general so it's always something to bear in mind.
**I had no idea how many things can cause erythema multiform!
>>I'm not going to get all paranoid though. It creates too much anxiety. I'm happy to trust my meds.**Yep, anxiety sure isn't the answer - makes you more prone to things. Glad you're on the ball about this. If any red flags pop us, trust your inner gut rather than your meds. The best bet is to get informed without getting paranoid.
Posted by Kirsty Douglas on July 15, 2007, at 6:11:04
In reply to Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!!, posted by BarbaraCat on May 6, 2004, at 3:07:05
I have recently had a bad experience while taking lamictal and wanted to find out more. After about a month, before i reached required dose, I had very bad burning in my mouth and vagina. I stopped te medication. My doctor has tried to tell me that it was a virus, but I'm not at all convinced. I spent a week almost inserting ice blocks in my vagina to cool it down. Since then my periods have stopped. I am of menopausal age, but there was no warning. Suddenly they stopped and suddenly I have lost all interest in sex etc. I'm trying to find other information
Posted by KayeBaby on July 15, 2007, at 10:17:53
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » BarbaraCat, posted by Kirsty Douglas on July 15, 2007, at 6:11:04
Soreness and sores on your mucous membranes is a classic sign of SJ syndrome.
I hope you have a new Dr.
I also hope you are getting better.
Kaye
Posted by Kirsty Douglas on July 20, 2007, at 23:12:20
In reply to Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!!, posted by BarbaraCat on May 6, 2004, at 3:07:05
Dear BarbaraCat
Are you still there? Did you have any long term consequences from your SJS, especially from the blistering in the vagina. My GP has referred me to see this doctor but my guess is that he or she will never have heard of SJS.
I live in small town and choice of doctors is small.
I reckon this sort of stuff should be notified to some sort of central register. I'm pretty distresssed.
Posted by Kirsty Douglas on August 19, 2007, at 21:24:50
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » Kirsty Douglas, posted by KayeBaby on July 15, 2007, at 10:17:53
I'm not getting better. At least the burning has stopped. I seem to have hit the worst symptoms of menopause very suddenly. I'm convinced the lamictal was the culprit. I'm not getting much help from the medical profession either. Would be glad of any information or experiences.
Posted by barbaracat on August 19, 2007, at 21:42:05
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » BarbaraCat, posted by Kirsty Douglas on July 20, 2007, at 23:12:20
Sorry, I've just emerged back into the PsychoBabble community. No, I haven't had any long-term ill effects from what was a moderately severe case of Stevens Johnson. That was about 2 years ago, I guess. It took me a good 5-6 months before I was back on my feed, however - tiredness, muscle aches, but not the blistering from every oriface.
If you're still on the problem med and having any kind of mucous membrane blistering, get off it as we speak. If it's just vaginal, well, who knows, it could be the yeastie beasties. But I had itchy ears and swollen lips and oral cavity along with it. Oh, and let's not forget the bleeding from the bum.
- BarbCat
Posted by cloudydaze on August 20, 2007, at 15:31:43
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » Kirsty Douglas, posted by KayeBaby on July 15, 2007, at 10:17:53
Okay so now i'm a bit freaked out.
I've been on Lamictal for about a week now.
My doc did warn me about the rash, and told me if I had any sign of a rash to stop taking the drug immediately.
But now I'm worried for a few reasons:
1. I have very sensitive skin, and it tends to be a bit itchy anyway.
2. the day before yesterday I had a headache that wouldn't subside, even after sleeping all night. I took two doses of ibuprofen that day. Maybe I shouldn't do that anymore.
I almost always take ibuprofen for pain, because it works better than tylenol for me. Maybe I shouldn't take it anymore.
Posted by Kirsty Douglas on August 20, 2007, at 22:21:17
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » Kirsty Douglas, posted by barbaracat on August 19, 2007, at 21:42:05
Thanks BarbaraCat for followup message. No I stopped taking the Lamictal back in April. That's four months ago now. I had burning in the mouth and an ulcer of some sort in my mouth. I may well have had blisters in the vagina, i couldn't see! The burning in my vagina was definately not of the yeast infection type. it was like a chemical burn. Something like when you have chilli on your fingers and then accidentally put your fingers near in your eye. I didn't have any external rash. There really was not much to see.
I spent more than a week putting ice in my vagina to try to sooth the burning. It took quite a while for the burning to stop even after i stopped the medication.
I'm not trying to frighten other people. I'm trying to work out what has happened. My GP is still trying to tell me that it was a virus. He is not saying so, but I'm sure he thinks I'm quite nuts. He was quite annoyed that I stopped taking the lamictal. I think it was the most sensible thing I could have done!
The whole thing has effcted my sexual functioning, which I suppose is not surprising given the pain involved. I just need to know if and when I will ever return to what I regarded as normal a few months ago.
If it was Stephen Johnsons, I want it confirmed. It was obviously an unusual presentation and all a bit embarrasing!
I don't want to frighten anyone else, if lamictal has worked for them. It really might have been coincidence.
I live in a small and fairly remote country town, so it is difficult to change doctors.
Kirsty
Posted by barbaracat on August 21, 2007, at 0:20:17
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » barbaracat, posted by Kirsty Douglas on August 20, 2007, at 22:21:17
Something I forgot to mention was the maddening itching. It was like red ants were munching away at my scalp and I probably looked like a dog with fleas scratching everywhere. This I now know is due to an inflammatory reaction and was the forerunner of the other nasty stuff.
You don't have to break out in the rash to know something's not right. It sounds to me like you were in the beginning stages and it's good you stopped.
I recently thought I'd try taking it again - silly me. I had a bunch left over and was in need of something (eventually went with Cymbalta). Sure enough, two weeks into it and I started getting the burning pinprick itchies, especially on my scalp. Threw those suckers away.
Glad you're better.
Posted by gardenergirl on August 22, 2007, at 15:09:55
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!!, posted by cloudydaze on August 20, 2007, at 15:31:43
I've got fair, sensitive skin, and I developed itchiness with Lamictal. I take 150 mg twice a day. The itchiness eventually went away. It was more like dry skin itchiness than any kind of rash, and it wasn't terribly bothersome. I did have a headache for a few days at each dose increase. That eventually went away, too.
Good luck.
gg
Posted by rskontos on August 23, 2007, at 14:51:33
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » Kirsty Douglas, posted by barbaracat on August 21, 2007, at 0:20:17
My daughter took lamictal many years ago but was prescribed it by a neurologist and the FIRST thing she told us was to WATCH for a rash as a warning that her body was not handling the drug. It is scary to me that doctors that don't seem to know this is prescribing a drug they have no business prescribing!!!!!! I am glad you stopped. Just the other month when I went to my nuerologist for my cymbalta issues she stressed how rashes for her are a WARNING sign that the liver isn't happy with the drug and to stop taking it. She said a neurologist sometimes that is the only sign you get.
Posted by Kirsty Douglas on August 23, 2007, at 21:47:58
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!!, posted by rskontos on August 23, 2007, at 14:51:33
The thing is that I was warned by the prescribing doctor to look for a rash. I even went to the GP to check for a rash and there was at that stage no sign of an external rash. I had other symptoms that I wasn't told to look for. Severe headaches, changed sexual functioning and burning skin inside the vagina. I didn't initially connect this to the lamictal although I do in retrospect. I didn't tell the GP about these because it wasn't what i had been told to look for. I feel silly about this in retrospect but I didn't realise that they were important.
I stopped taking the drug four months ago and had only taken it for four weeks. Since stopping the drug, I have developed extremely itchy skin, particuarly on my face, arms, hands and trunk. There is still no visible rash. I wake up in the middle of the night and just want to scratch. I don't know what is causing all this itching. I am suspicious of the lamictal but I have no proof. I have no confirmed explanation. As I have stopped taking it, I just wonder if i have somehow become sensitized to other things. I've had minor skin rashes before but never overall itchiness like this.
That's why i am interested in other people's experience.
Posted by Jeroen on August 24, 2007, at 11:17:12
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » T_R_D, posted by BarbaraCat on May 6, 2004, at 15:43:20
hi, lamictal destroyed my summer and got me emergency hospitalized
i think i have a viral rash too
i have fever like you described, can you please tell me how it resolved in your case ? and how long?
Posted by rskontos on August 25, 2007, at 20:10:48
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!!, posted by Kirsty Douglas on August 23, 2007, at 21:47:58
You know my daughter took lamictal for 4 years and she is still very itchy. Maybe it is the lamictal. She doesn't have an external rash either. She is now on topamax. We both are and are always very itchy. I wonder if anti-seizure drugs which is what lamictal started out as and topamax although we take it for migraines at the present have this side effect and it isn't documented because they don't take it seriously. It is very hard to deal sometimes.
Posted by BarbaraCat on August 27, 2007, at 17:25:49
In reply to To barbaracat, posted by Jeroen on August 24, 2007, at 11:17:12
Sorry to hear you came down with this. I eventually went to the emergency room. I had chicken-pox-like blisters all over, mainly on my torso but plenty everywhere else. My lips were black and swollen and cracked, every orifice was blistered, especially 'down there'. I was terrified that it was progressing into TENS, which is the stage that is deadly.
I was told by the Doc at the ER that there was absolutely nothing they could do for me except provide life support (fluid IV, antibiotics) and wait and see. She said that a hospital is no place for someone with an open skin condition because the place was crawling with staph aureolis 'and you DON'T want to get that', so the safest place was at home. I was told it would either get worse or not and all one could do was stop taking the offending substance and pray.
My prayers were apparently heard and after about 2 weeks of active progression, it turned around and began to subside. It took about a month for the blisters to clear up, but I had discoloration for about a year. I was absolutely wiped out for about 3 months but gradually everything came back to normal.
Now, you have to realize that this was a severe case that had progressed to a dangerous level - not a mild case with fewer side-effects. Also, it was NOT caused directly by Lamictal, but by another drug, DMPS, which was used to chelate mercury out of my system. It's a sulfa-based drug and it was the offending substance, not Lamictal. However, I know in my gut that Lam was the precipitating factor. Ever since I reacted to Lam with itching, red inflamed skin, I know that it set up an inflammatory condition and sensitized me. In this state, things that I had never reacted to before bothered me. I never had a problem with sulfa drugs before (Lam is sulfa-based), but now they're all deadly to me.
For instance, I had brochitis and was prescribed the same antibiotic I'd had many times before with previous conditions. Started getting the same symptoms and had to stop. I seem to be permanently allergic to many drugs I could take with no problems before this adventure.
I did much web research on this and found that this kind of thing is not uncommon with Lamictal, but not everybody reacts. There's much in the way of certain gene markers that determine one's reactivity.
So, that's my update. I'm feeling fine now, and that's saying something since I also have fibromyalgia which is getting better and better. If you don't have health (mental and physical), you don't got nuthin'.
Peace,
BarbCat
Posted by rskontos on August 27, 2007, at 19:16:45
In reply to Re: To barbaracat » Jeroen, posted by BarbaraCat on August 27, 2007, at 17:25:49
BarbCat, It is amazing you recovered and it is frightening that now so many drugs are off limits to you. I too react to sulfur drugs but I always have. Lamictal is a strange drug. As stated my daughter took it as a 10 yr old and became quite zombie like in her demenor. I was very frightened by it and it took a lot for the doctors to take notice. It took me, husband and the school to reinforce that it was not working for a child to be in this state. My husband and I insisted on taking her off against all the doctors opinions. Thankfully she is ok today. But she got bad. She was always asleep or just out of it. Scary for a parent. I am sorry you went through this. I was told depakota and lamictal are the same drug just a slightly different strength if you will so be careful of that one. As least my daughter's last neurologist told us that. Anyway, I am glad you recovered for the life=threatenly rash of lamictal. That is something we were told about when she began the drug. I was told that lamictal can cause this but I guess in your case the other drug DMPS did. You probably are very careful now what you take. Who do you check with to make sure of no drug interaction? RK
Posted by martini84 on December 5, 2007, at 0:45:57
In reply to Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!!, posted by BarbaraCat on May 6, 2004, at 3:07:05
wow, that is really terrible.
i had a similar experience.
i was prescribed lamictal and it was fine for the first week. the second week, they upped my dosage and i still felt fine but i started noticing little small itchy bumps on my hands. i didn't think anything of it, but stopped taking the lamictal a couple days later after it started spreading across my hands. within a day i was covered with hives. i went to urgent care and they gave me steroids and sent me home. the next day i went back because it had gotten even worse and the pain was really bad. they sent me home. the next day i went to the hospital, at this point it had progressed into erythema multiforme minor but the doctor basically just sent me home again. by the next morning my throat had started to swell shut and i was covered from head to toe in blisters. my mouth and tongue had swollen so much i could barely swallow, let alone breathe. i went to a different hospital where i was in the ER for a couple hours before i got admitted to the hospital. i spent five days in the hospital drugged up on morphine, unable to eat, and on antibiotics. worst experience of my life. after being sent home, it still took me a couple weeks to be able to really function and over a month for all the scabs to fall off and my lips to basically regenerate! i'm still very sensitive to the sun and will be for the next year.my skin resembles a cheetah! this was 5 months ago already. i'm only 23 and i hate that someting so stupid almost took my life, not to mention made me paranoid to touch just about anything. i recently learned of two other cases of SJS to lamictal. i thought this was supossed to be rare.the main thing that makes me so angry is that i cant do anything about it. i retained an attorney but they said i had no case because the warning label is enough warning. the only case i would possibly have would be against my psychiatrist which i dont really think is fair.
i just wish i could do something.
Posted by Jeroen on December 5, 2007, at 5:11:19
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!!, posted by martini84 on December 5, 2007, at 0:45:57
hi, i've been reading your first post since the summer about this, my lamictal experience made me very sick too
i hope you will recover fully too, since i am doing that now atm
Posted by Buddhistboy on January 2, 2008, at 21:03:51
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » BarbaraCat, posted by Kirsty Douglas on July 15, 2007, at 6:11:04
Posted by yxibow on January 5, 2008, at 1:39:26
In reply to To barbaracat, posted by Jeroen on December 5, 2007, at 5:11:19
Lamictal does carry a chance of SJS but as noted so do other agents.
I would like to know how your doctor(s) dosed it.
My doctor is titrating 25 mg every two weeks until I reach 100-200mg to avoid SJS, very cautiously.
Now I'm not trying to say that your doctor didn't have your care in his or her hands, but I would be interested to know the rate in which these titrations occurred.
Posted by lostsailor on January 8, 2008, at 15:37:46
In reply to Lamictal, posted by yxibow on January 5, 2008, at 1:39:26
>> Lamictal does carry a chance of SJS but as noted so do other agents.I would like to know how your doctor(s) dosed it.
My doctor is titrating 25 mg every two weeks until I reach 100-200mg to avoid SJS, very cautiously.
Now I'm not trying to say that your doctor didn't have your care in his or her hands, but I would be interested to know the rate in which these titration's occurred.<<
yxibow--<<
hi ya,ditto here on the titration. i started at 25 and moved to 50 the, i think third vveek, rising to 100 and next--200-- he had me come in tvvice a vveek to just let his nurse take a peak at my skin and ask a fevv simple questions re: mood changes ect.
I am taking 300 novv and NEVER really cycle anything more than a little manic and "typical "lovv mood state", but that is due in part to sleep issues--the mania--I'd call them hypo episodes or just feeling GREAT. As for depression, it has been steller . Sure I have had my dovvn times but not like the past, aside from the past fevv months vvhich have been hard for me but for reactive reasons, not just "typical" cycling so I am taking 350 for a little bit (400 is the max he vvrites but I think others go a bit higher.
Interesting, too, he is beginning to use it as a first course treatment for those vvith major depression vvhere he suspects a bi-poler diagnosis may be made in the future.
Sorry to all that read my posts but my laptop 'VV" key is broken and I'm using to v keys and I guess it doesn't look all that bad.
FOR me, Lamictal has been a Godsend. After about 5 mood Stabilizers, this "stuff" is . to anyone that has not had luck vvith the "usual suspects" (though I have never tried lithium do to a family history of thyroid problems and me not being to keen on taking something they make fantastic batteries from should ask to try this, but, like mine did , your PDOC might vvant your primary doc to give you a vvorkup.
Also it's a salt and salt isn't the best thing for those vvith hypertension.;)
good luck,
t
Posted by yxibow on January 9, 2008, at 3:17:00
In reply to Re: Lamictal--slovv dosing is the key., posted by lostsailor on January 8, 2008, at 15:37:46
>
> >> Lamictal does carry a chance of SJS but as noted so do other agents.
>
> I would like to know how your doctor(s) dosed it.
>
> My doctor is titrating 25 mg every two weeks until I reach 100-200mg to avoid SJS, very cautiously.
>
> Now I'm not trying to say that your doctor didn't have your care in his or her hands, but I would be interested to know the rate in which these titration's occurred.<<
>
>
>
> yxibow--<<
>
>
> hi ya,
>
> ditto here on the titration. i started at 25 and moved to 50 the, i think third vveek, rising to 100 and next--200-- he had me come in tvvice a vveek to just let his nurse take a peak at my skin and ask a fevv simple questions re: mood changes ect.
>
> I am taking 300 novv and NEVER really cycle anything more than a little manic and "typical "lovv mood state", but that is due in part to sleep issues--the mania--I'd call them hypo episodes or just feeling GREAT. As for depression, it has been steller . Sure I have had my dovvn times but not like the past, aside from the past fevv months vvhich have been hard for me but for reactive reasons, not just "typical" cycling so I am taking 350 for a little bit (400 is the max he vvrites but I think others go a bit higher.
>
> Interesting, too, he is beginning to use it as a first course treatment for those vvith major depression vvhere he suspects a bi-poler diagnosis may be made in the future.
>
> Sorry to all that read my posts but my laptop 'VV" key is broken and I'm using to v keys and I guess it doesn't look all that bad.hope you get your w fixed :)
> FOR me, Lamictal has been a Godsend. After about 5 mood Stabilizers, this "stuff" is . to anyone that has not had luck vvith the "usual suspects" (though I have never tried lithium do to a family history of thyroid problems and me not being to keen on taking something they make fantastic batteries from should ask to try this, but, like mine did , your PDOC might vvant your primary doc to give you a vvorkup.
>
> Also it's a salt and salt isn't the best thing for those vvith hypertension.;)
>
> good luck,
> tYes, lithium carbonate requires some monitoring of lithium salt levels -- but it has been around the longest for what used to be called "manic depression" and was a discovery by Dr John Frederick Joseph Cade AO (Australia). It wasn't allowed in the US until around 1970. Lithium in general actually used to be used as a salt substitute in the 40s (LiCl) until well... the FDA pulled it immediately.
Posted by ash1982 on July 23, 2011, at 16:10:17
In reply to Re: Lamictal SJS rash - READ THIS!!!!!! » T_R_D, posted by BarbaraCat on May 6, 2004, at 15:43:20
I took Lamicatal 25 mg for a week after being prescribed it for bipolar disorder. previously i had taken every SSRI in the book being treated for depression. After quitting Prozac i went 6 weeks with no meds during which time i became very irritable and hostile towards my husband and anxious and depressed to where i was crying on and off all day at work. The first 2 on the lamictal days were incredible, i had energy and i could focus at work for the first time in a while and i felt like i was in a great mood for the first time in a while also. I noticed that I had headaches not severe but they felt different than regular headaches somehow. I also could not sleep i felt like i was half asleep and half awake all night and woke up alot, but my doc had anticipated that and prescribed me ambien which did the trick. I also suddenly had what seemed like a yeast infection. Then day 3 the anxiety started creeping in, the worst kind where you have air hunger. It just kept getting worse from there on, i started feeling like i was shaking inside, paranoid, and drowning. plus my toungue swelled and a whole bunch of bumps popped up toward the back of it and it made it harder to swallow and it looked white, my eyes got red and stayed that way and after 2 diflucan pills i still had the burning "yeast infection". At that point I was full blown panicking and i called my doc and said i thought i was allergic to it. I never had a rash, but still there is no way all of that was a coincidence. I quit taking it and the first day was horrible with alot of dizzy spells and forgetting what i was doing 20 seconds after starting to do it... blanking out and staring at the computer for minutes at a time like i had no idea what was going on. I never had a rash but what I experienced was enough to scare the crap out of me. its been a couple days and i can say i do feel much better, the anxiety has lessened and all the other allergic type reactions went away so I am glad I stopped it when I did!
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