Lamictal, 250 mgs: So Far, So Good

Two weeks ago, I dropped from 300 mg to 250 mg. In the past few days, I've noticed that I'm feeling a bit sharper, mentally. I've begun craving healthy food again, after several years of craving salt, fat, and sweets (normally, I'm one of those lucky people who can normally look at a plate of cookies dispassionately; not so on Lamictal). Best of all, there's been no drop in my mood whatsoever!

The downside: I've had some GI issues (constipation and gas). My muscles are stiffer. I've also been really tired, but this might be my body's way of telling me it's OK to lower my Ativan dosage as well :)

Lamictal 300 mgs: Side Effect #3 -- Digestion Issues

The third post in my series of the most bothersome side effects of lamictal concerns the third largest tag in my list of side effects: GI issues.  GI issues with brain meds are pretty common.  Ever med I've ever been on has warned of nausea, for instance, but I never had this problem.  And for the first couple months of titration, and then only after titrating up to a higher dose, but it always went away after a few days.

Then I went up to 150 mgs.

In general, I'm not prone to digestive problems.  I've thrown up only twice since I was ten or twelve years old.  I can eat just about anything without getting heartburn, stomachache, or nausea.  But at 150 mgs, I found myself gassy, bloated, and constipated -- to the point where I bought a huge bag of prunes.  Not that they helped much.

Lamictal 200 mgs: Electrolyte Imbalance Causing Constipation?

I've been bitching for several weeks about the sudden constipation that accompanied my titration up to 150 mgs of lamictal, and that seems only to have gotten worse when I went up to 200 mgs.  This side effect has been particularly distressing because I basically can't do anything about it.  When you're constipated, it's usually because you're not getting enough fiber, right?  So add fiber to your diet and you'll be fine.

Problem is, I was already eating a high-fiber diet, with plenty of greens, fruit, and whole grains.  I tried adding prunes, water soluble fiber, and laxative tea (the last one doesn't help much, since you aren't supposed to take laxatives for more than a week at a time).  Then I tried adding Cheerios, which I really can't stand, but decided to try because they've always been my personal Laxative of Last Resort.

Each of these interventions has helped ... sometimes.  And only slightly.

Lamictal 200 mgs: Cheerios, the Laxative of Last Resort

After experiencing some relief from bloating and gas (but not the constipation) that emerged when I titrated up to 150 mgs, I landed right back there when I hit 200.  My stomach hurts, my pants don't fit, and -- I'm sorry if I'm being gross here -- I just want to take a godsdamn shit.


This has brought me to my Laxative of Last Resort: Cheerios.

Since I was a teenager, Cheerios have gone right through me.  This is one reason I hate them.  The other reason is that they were the only cereal deemed to be "healthy enough" by my parents, so I ate them every effing morning until I was eight years old.  My friends, of course, got to eat Fruit Loops or Frosted Flakes or Lucky Charms.

My parents told me that my suffering was due to the fact that they loved me enough to make sure that my teeth didn't rot and I developed healthy eating habits.  Like most young children, I didn't believe them.  They made me eat Cheerios because they were mean!

Then, O glorious day!  Special K made the cut!  It was so exciting compared to those effing Cheerios!  I swore I would never eat Cheerios again.  And for the most part, I stuck by this promise to myself.  The exception was if I went to Girl Scout camp.  Cheerios got put in our gorp for some reason.  I noticed that not only did they made me run for the latrine, but they gave me mild heartburn.  I started eating around them.

Lamictal 150 mgs: An Overview of Mood and Side Effects

Today is my last day on 150 mgs of lamictal.  I've been at this dosage for a month, and tomorrow I'll be going up to 200 mgs.  This month has been difficult for several reasons -- life stress, mood stress, and side effect stress.  I guess I hit the trifecta.  Lucky me.

Being on 150 mgs has definitely improved my mood, but my mood suffered with the shift into autumn, so I started using my sunlamp.  In spite of this, during my third week on this dosage, I experienced more 4 to 8 pm troughs than I had in the previous two weeks.  The fourth week was much better.  What was different during the fourth week?  I had my period.

Yeah, I know that's not the stereotypical way for things to go.  And strictly speaking I don't have periods because I'm on hormonal birth control.  But this past week has been my "off week".  For some reason, hormonal birth control (this includes both The Pill and the NuvaRing, which is awesome) interferes with lamictal.  When you take your "off" week you have more of the med in your system.

Anyhoo.  My mood has not been high enough or stable enough for me to stay at 150 mgs.  It suffered with the waning light, it suffers when it's cloudy, and today, gods help me, it's raining.  The light will continue to wane, and my mood along with it.  When daylight savings time ends, it will suddenly be getting dark an hour earlier, and that's the point at which I started to crash last year.  In light of that (haha!), I'll be asking my doctor if I can ultimately go up to 300 mgs.  I just don't want to take any chances.

But the most remarkable thing about titrating up to 150 mgs has been the side effects.  Whooboy, the side effects.

Lamictal 150 mgs: Investing in Prunes, Gas-X, and Ginger Tea

I used to enjoy the stomach of a concrete elephant.  I never get the stomach flu.  Hell, I never even throw up.  Haven't since I was 12.  OK, there are two exceptions to this; the first was after three strong drinks, several clove cigarettes (I don't normally smoke), and a stack of strawberry pancakes.  The second was a few years ago when my husband's two-year-old cousin had the plague and every singe person who even touched her was knocked down flat.

I am now 36.  I have barfed exactly twice in 24 years.

As for other digestive complaints, I don't have 'em.  I'm not prone to indigestion, acid reflux, diarrhea, or constipation.  When I start a new med, I pretty much ignore the GI tract side effects because I know they won't bother me.  As I said, concrete elephant.

Until I went up to 150 mgs of lamictal, that is.