any experience with lamictal side effects?

[ImSad]

Hi everyone. So, in another thread the other day I posted about my new bipolar type 2 diagnosis. I got prescribed lamictal and I'm on a very small dose for now, slowly working my way up. I've only had 2 doses so far but my body feels absolutely awful. I can't tell if I just happen to be getting sick (my body has been feeling not great on and off for about a month or so), or if it has to do with the new medication. I've had a headache going on 2 full days now and my body just feels very generally crappy, almost like flu-like symptoms and I feel kind of fever-ish, but without an actual fever. I volunteered to pick up an extra shift at work today and had to take that back and call out because I felt so awful when I got up this morning. Tomorrow is my "Monday" for work and I'm debating not taking my third dose tonight because I can't call out tomorrow even if I'm feeling awful, and I don't think I can survive an entire shift feeling like this. Does anyone have any experience with similar side effects with Lamictal? How bad of an idea is it to skip one dose just to see if these body aches are due to the medication or just me being sick? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[Friday]

Flu like symptoms are both very common with lamictal, and one of those “report to your doctor immediately” ones. Because here are 2 versions, the “you’re going to feel like this for 2-6 weeks, and then be better than fine” or “discontinue Immediately &/or go to the ER”. It depends which flu like symptoms you have.

You’ll need to either ring your doc, or the 24/7 nurse advice line if they aren’t open.

It’s like a depakote rash. One is lethal, the other is just annoying. Which is which? Needs a medical professional to determine.

 

[ImSad]

@Friday thank you for your response. Ahh I'm nervous now. My prescribing nurse practitioner told me to watch out for a rash, but she didn't mention anything about flu-like symptoms. I will try to get in contact with her, although I know she isn't in the office on Fridays, so I'm not sure I can expect to hear back from her over the weekend. I also don't know if there is a nurse advice line I can contact... well, I'm sure there is somewhere, I just don't know where/how to find one. I'm going to send her an email since she said that's the best way to get in contact with her, and if I don't hear back I think I'll skip tonight's dose and then see how I feel. I can't exactly afford an ER bill right now so I would really like to try and avoid that at all costs if possible.

 

[Friday]

also don't know if there is a nurse advice line I can contact... well, I'm sure there is somewhere, I just don't know where/how to find one. I'

Every major hospital has one, and most smaller hospitals.

I would think your LPN probably has a triaging after hours service? IE, a person answers the phone, rather than just voicemail? Not qualified to GIVE medical advice, but trained in whom to take a message for, vs prompt to go to urgent care/ER, vs 911. If so, they should have an emergency number for you to reach out to.

 

[Bowierocks]

Hi everyone. So, in another thread the other day I posted about my new bipolar type 2 diagnosis. I got prescribed lamictal and I'm on a very small dose for now, slowly working my way up. I've only had 2 doses so far but my body feels absolutely awful. I can't tell if I just happen to be getting sick (my body has been feeling not great on and off for about a month or so), or if it has to do with the new medication. I've had a headache going on 2 full days now and my body just feels very generally crappy, almost like flu-like symptoms and I feel kind of fever-ish, but without an actual fever. I volunteered to pick up an extra shift at work today and had to take that back and call out because I felt so awful when I got up this morning. Tomorrow is my "Monday" for work and I'm debating not taking my third dose tonight because I can't call out tomorrow even if I'm feeling awful, and I don't think I can survive an entire shift feeling like this. Does anyone have any experience with similar side effects with Lamictal? How bad of an idea is it to skip one dose just to see if these body aches are due to the medication or just me being sick? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!!

I am on a decent dose of 100 twice daily. No real side effects but everyone is different. The deadly ‘ rash ‘ or toxic epidermal necrolysis is often talked about but not really seen all that often. Flu symptoms seem a little unusual but again everyone is different. I think a wise choice is to stop the med for now and see your prescriber. It could be coincidental but stopping wouldn’t be a bad idea. Otherwise it’s a good med from my perspective.

 

[ImSad]

Every major hospital has one, and most smaller hospitals.

I would think your LPN probably has a triaging after hours service? IE, a person answers the phone, rather than just voicemail? Not qualified to GIVE medical advice, but trained in whom to take a message for, vs prompt to go to urgent care/ER, vs 911. If so, they should have an emergency number for you to reach out to.

Okay, thank you! I’m not super familiar with any of this stuff. To my knowledge my LPN doesn’t have any after hours services; I’m sure if I called her voicemail would have info on who else to contact, but that’s about it. She’s said that email is the best way to reach her, so I’ve just sent one.

And thank you for your reply, @Bowierocks. I’m thinking it could just be a coincidence but I can’t be sure since these symptoms only started after I took my first dose. I’ve emailed my prescriber and plan to stop taking the meds until I hear back from her or can get in to see her, hopefully after the weekend. I just need to be able to feel well enough to get through work until then, so I’m hoping skipping my dose tonight will help me to feel better tomorrow!

 

[ImSad]

Just a little update; I was able to get in contact with my prescriber via email yesterday. She said it was possible that I was just getting sick, but since I just started she told me to stop taking the medication through the weekend and to update her on Monday or Tuesday to see how I’m doing and we will go from there.

I didn’t take the medication last night and I woke up feeling fine today. Well, better than before. I woke up at 3:30 in the morning from a nightmare and couldn’t get back to sleep, and I’m stuck at work today so I feel pretty groggy and crappy from that. But the flu-like symptoms (mainly headache, body aches, and chills) have subsided. I’m glad that I don’t feel so awful, but nervous for what this may mean in terms of being able to stay on this medication long enough to see if it will work. Ugh. It’s been so long since I’ve been on any kind of psych meds, I forgot how terrible it can be on your body while getting adjusted to it.

 

[joeylittle]

I’m glad that I don’t feel so awful, but nervous for what this may mean in terms of being able to stay on this medication long enough to see if it will work. Ugh. It’s been so long since I’ve been on any kind of psych meds, I forgot how terrible it can be on your body while getting adjusted to it.

If you can, just know that you're about to get the flu, essentially...try and plan it as best you can - if you don't work weekends, say, then start on friday (and know that friday at work will suck), and see if you can take off part or all of Monday.

I had fairly rough start-up effects with Lamictal, but it went away after about 6 days. And, as @Bowierocks pointed out - the rash is a rare reaction, but it's extremely dangerous. That's why they emphasize it, when giving warnings on the medication. You should ask your doc about at which point you can stop looking for the rash...I honestly don't remember, but I do remember getting up to a certain dose and my prescriber telling me that if I hadn't had that reaction by now, I probably wasn't going to.

The titration period for lamictal - both up and down - is extremely long. You really need to plan to give it a full month to see if it's helping you. The best thing you can do is mentally prepare for those side-effects at the start, and expect them to last a full week.

 

[ImSad]

If you can, just know that you're about to get the flu, essentially...try and plan it as best you can - if you don't work weekends, say, then start on friday (and know that friday at work will suck), and see if you can take off part or all of Monday.

I had fairly rough start-up effects with Lamictal, but it went away after about 6 days. And, as @Bowierocks pointed out - the rash is a rare reaction, but it's extremely dangerous. That's why they emphasize it, when giving warnings on the medication. You should ask your doc about at which point you can stop looking for the rash...I honestly don't remember, but I do remember getting up to a certain dose and my prescriber telling me that if I hadn't had that reaction by now, I probably wasn't going to.

The titration period for lamictal - both up and down - is extremely long. You really need to plan to give it a full month to see if it's helping you. The best thing you can do is mentally prepare for those side-effects at the start, and expect them to last a full week.

Ahh. This sucks. I work Sat-Tues, so luckily I get 3 days off. And because of the shifts I work I’ve decided to take my dose at night instead of the morning. I’m going to contact my prescriber on Monday and update her that the symptoms stopped when I stopped the medication and see what she says, but knowing that I can expect the symptoms to last up to 6 days I’ll be better able to prepare. Unfortunately my job isn’t one that I can easily call off of or take a half day — I’d have to find coverage since I work alone and that’s pretty difficult to do with my job. Plus I can’t really afford to take a day off right now, and I since I just hit the 90 day mark at my job I don’t have enough sick pay accrued yet to cover an entire shift.

Depending on what my prescriber says, I think I will plan to start again on Monday night, power through Tuesday feeling crappy at work, and have an extra 3 days to rest while my body is adjusting. Then hopefully it won’t be so bad by the weekend when I have to work again.

Thank you for your reply. It’s helpful knowing what others have gone through and what to expect in terms of side effects.

 

[whiteraven]

I hope you are able to figure something out, @ImSad. I know how hard it is to have to go on an off your meds to figure out side effects.

I'm on 150mg/day Lamictal for seizures. I always feel like crap, so I'm not sure if it's the drug or just the way I am.

 

[ImSad]

I hope you are able to figure something out, @ImSad. I know how hard it is to have to go on an off your meds to figure out side effects.

I'm on 150mg/day Lamictal for seizures. I always feel like crap, so I'm not sure if it's the drug or just the way I am.

Thank you, @whiteraven. I’m sorry to hear you always feel crappy. I hope it’s not due to the lamictal, but regardless of the cause I hope you can find some sort of solution or relief soon.

 

[TruthSeeker]

Hi everyone. So, in another thread the other day I posted about my new bipolar type 2 diagnosis. I got prescribed lamictal and I'm on a very small dose for now, slowly working my way up. I've only had 2 doses so far but my body feels absolutely awful. I can't tell if I just happen to be getting sick (my body has been feeling not great on and off for about a month or so), or if it has to do with the new medication. I've had a headache going on 2 full days now and my body just feels very generally crappy, almost like flu-like symptoms and I feel kind of fever-ish, but without an actual fever. I volunteered to pick up an extra shift at work today and had to take that back and call out because I felt so awful when I got up this morning. Tomorrow is my "Monday" for work and I'm debating not taking my third dose tonight because I can't call out tomorrow even if I'm feeling awful, and I don't think I can survive an entire shift feeling like this. Does anyone have any experience with similar side effects with Lamictal? How bad of an idea is it to skip one dose just to see if these body aches are due to the medication or just me being sick? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!!

I was tired and got a rash- then off of it immediately!