I’m Currently taking keppra and the depression, anxiety and crying everyday is so bad. My dr wants me to transition to Aptiom. What seizure med works for you and what side effects do you have?
Carbemazepine has worked for me since I started to have partial complex seizures in the 80s. It stopped the seizures dead in their tracks. There were no side effects. When the seizures started to come back, I was sent for an MRI, and that’s when my aneurysm was discovered. Since the clipping surgery there have been no seizures. But I’m still on Tegretol (Carbemazepine).
David Andrus, Hamilton, Ontario
Chris, everybody and every body is different. There may be a lot of people who share what worked for them and what didn’t. What I learned is unless you have adverse reactions, it usually takes a couple weeks for medications to work right. Know the side effects of whatever you take and let your doctor know asap if you have any of them. Side effects can be found by a goggle search of course, but I lean to a few favorites - webmd.com, the FDD site for starters. Good luck in your journey.
Although I'm on depression and anxiety medications, I'm taking Lamotragine for mine.
Lamotragine is an amazing med. We switched to it a while back for my granddaughters seizures. At the urging of her neurologist we able to wean her off her Abilify. It was like getting a new kid. You do need to have your blood levels of the med checked fairly frequently if you are female and especially if you are taking any birth control pills. Lamotragine isn't the only one of the anti seizure meds similarly effected.
Wow…I’m on lamotragine to as lamictal. I am on it as an anti-seizure med but it does help with my depression too. Only need to get blood tests every 6 months or do to make sure the kidneys and liver can handle it.
Our experience is quite the opposite Louisa. The psychiatrists are using it quite a bit for those issues actually. They are also pairing it with seraqoul. Why all of these meds sometimes have the OPPOSITE effect is beyond me.
I personally use a tricyclic (amitriptyline) for pain control and sleep when I am flaring badly. It makes my ordinarily sweet gentle personality mean...........
Husband has been taking a generic anti seizure of Keppra. His Neurologist just left and they gave him a new one to see. I told him to make an appointment before his anti seizure meds runout. Ask for a Generic . They are cheaper.
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Levetiracetam 2000 MG a day. If there are any side effects, I don’t think I have them. Taken for 1 1/2 years now since min ruptured.
For the last 6 years since my craniotomy for an unruptured Annie, I’ve taken levetiracetam XR ( time release) 1,000 mg daily. I don’t think I have side effects… Maybe sleepiness. Still have disturbed brain waves so doc wants me on it.
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I take Keppra and topiramate (topamax) and have been seizure free for 3 years. I also take an anti-depressant, which may be a forever thing because of messed up neuro transmitters.
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I was taking Keppra and had more issues with it than help. Did some research and found out it has a several negative side effects including causing seizures and something called Keppra rage. I quit taking it and had no more rage and seizures. I would take your docs advice. But any medication will have side effects. It depends on your body and how it reacts to it.
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I started out on Keppra but it didn’t work for me. I have been taking Trileptal which is working great!
My Neurologist and Psych Dr. said it is also a Anti-Depressent
Louisa C said:
Tj1....Do you know anything about whether Lamotragine causes depression, anxiety, etc?
Same here
Alice said:
I take Keppra and topiramate (topamax) and have been seizure free for 3 years. I also take an anti-depressant, which may be a forever thing because of messed up neuro transmitters.
I've had great success with Neurontin (Gabapentin). My pain is under control, and anxiety is at a manageable minimum, and I've had zero depression.
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I have been on phenobarbital for many years…40 or so. It is a barbiturate…but has worked. Might be calming…so might help if depressed?? Or not?? I started on Dilantin(sp?) at first which I thought made me kind of nasty… .?? I know I was just mad that I needed to take anything, that I had something wrong with me. You shouldn’t become pregnant on either one…dilantin causes birth defects… I was just told I’d be on phenobarb for the rest of my life and doctors aren’t disagreeing. I know nothing about the newer drugs/the drugs others are mentioning here.
Louisa call the pharmaceutical company and see if you can get a better deal. Many have programs for people who need or will be on the medication a long time. I tried looking for my list but couldn’t find it, perhaps your local DSS would have the information. I will try searching right away
This is what I found so far on the Patient Assistance programs. I chose to get the frequently asked questions but from there you can go to,the home page and type in your medication. If this doesn’t help let me know and I will keep searching.
http://www.rxassist.org/faqs#12
http://www.ssa.gov/medicare/prescriptionhelp/
Hope this helps
I'm on time-release, brand-name Lamictal and haven't had a grand mal for 2 years. No side effects unless I take them at the end of day and then it affects sleep. I still have absence seizures (my brain leaves the room for a half a minute or so) and partial seizures (smell hallucinations), but I can live with them. I had a grand mal seizure and had to be hospitalized for 2 days when taking the generic lamotrigine and my neurologist said that some people do not respond well to generics. Lamictal is also prescribed for bipolar depression and I haven't needed a depression med. I took Keppra for a few days and had a psychotic episode on it (thought I was being chased by dogs). So I stopped taking it and changed neurologists.
Louisa: Don't let them make you pay that much! The drug companies have assistance programs if you qualify (Partnership for Prescription Assistance. If you have Medicare, there is a Medicare Rights Center that is supposed to help you get drugs that are too expensive for you.