Question about Lamictal

[BigSamlkpt]

Hey, folks, has anyone ever heard of a problem of Lamictal
causing liver problems? I was on it a month, on a very small
dosage, about 50 mg at most, and my blood workup showed
seriously elevated AST/ALT levels, which, as I understand it,
is rare for Lamictal, since it's touted as the antidepressant/
anti-BP medication that doesn't need blood tests. Anyone
have any ideas? (If you're interested in my case, I don't
actually have BP, but endogenous depression/confusion/
fatigue the cause of which I haven't yet, nor have my doctors, definitively
pinpointed, a description of which is provided in some other
posts. I'm one of those tormented louts that has had a core set of
symptoms for a couple years, with different doctors testing
for many different things, with no real headway made. If it
was one thing conclusively, including BP, I'd be much happier, but it's
clearly not, and alas, the quest continues. The only thing that
really helps is no caffeine use, but I digress.) So, if anyone has
had to come off of Lamictal for reasons of liver problems, let
me know, if you could. (My family practice doctor ever so wisely
suggested I drop the Lamictal abruptly, until I discovered, well,
that, you know, that might cause seizures.) So thanks. Sorry
for boring you, if I did.

[kris123]

Lamictil is one of the best drugs i have ever been on and with no problems - i guess everyone is different - i take 300mcg - i had no blood work but have last week for lithium (sp) and everything is great and i have been on lamictal for almost two years

[Sinden]

Hi there. I know exactly what you talk about. I've been on Lamictil for 4 years now and it got a lil better, but now my body functions started to gave problems. I am stopping the Lamictil very slowly. One thing I'm onto which is startling to make a lot of sense, is my diet. Sugar is playing a big roll and too much carbohydrates. I never realized it till I started getting a sweet taste in my mouth real bad. I then talk to a friend of mine. He has been diagnosed with just about every mental condition you can think of and in the end of the day the found out he has serious hypoglycemia.

On the one side it can be an answer for me, on the other side bad news, but I'm so tired of being labeled "mentally disordered" while I know there is something else wrong. Mentally I function better than anyone at work, thought I learned to control my bipolar over years. Since I eat better my bipolar is much better!

My friend get so bad when his sugar is not right, his speech start to slur...sometimes he gets paranoid and totaly loose it and sometimes cant even remember it. For a shrink he is a total nut case, but with the correct diet he is totally normal and has no problems at all.

I just know Lamictil is making me physically sicker and sicker. Since I started to take lesser dosages, I feel much better. I nearly died when they started me on it, but it also changed my life for the better for a while...maybe it was because I started to eat better. I dont know, but something is wrong. They tested my liver functions and blood work and everything is normal, yet I started to get blemishes all over my face and have constant headaches....and so the list goes on and on!!!

I heard of too many people having the same problems as me with Lamictil and it started after a period of 2 years of taking it....a lot of them ended in diabetes and that's what I'm afraid of now. I know sugar can drive me totally nuts and give anxiety attacks. Well...the shrinks liked it...they made money out of it!!!

Take care and hope it will go better soon. I can relate.

[BigSamlkpt]

Anyone considering dropping Lamictal should do with it serious
forethought, and with the advice of their doctor. When I went off
it, I felt crazy for a good solid three days. I wasn't manic, or
psychotic, but I felt vaguely delusional and thoroughly out
of it. It's a powerful drug. I'm extraordinarily frustrated with the
course of my medical treatment - I've had to brave some very
disheartening experiences in doctor's offices, asking for
blood tests. Before the age of 22, I had no mental illness, and
suddenly I have a set of physical and mental symptoms day
in and day out. I've given the college try what seems like dozens
of times trying to find an accurate diagnosis, and all roads have
lead to nowhere. I've been summarily labeled schizophrenic,
depressive, bipolar, and just about everything else. However,
my disease is none of these things, and all of these things:
I've had symptoms of nearly every mental illness, including paranoia,
OCD harming thoughts, suicidal ideation, panic, depersonalization,
derealization, slurred speech, racing thoughts, and the rest. Another
day, all of this is gone, and I have only one symptom the next,
and three the day after. And yet: some small portion of myself has always been awake watching as all this happens, realizing how odd and aberrant it is. I've had a confusion, a "brain fog" that has settled in for days at a time and cleared just as quickly, for no clear
reason. I feel fatigued at times, but not fatigue that I settle
in to sleep off, but fatigue that causes me to become delirious
and I feel close to death.  Many days, I feel fine sitting down,
and like **** standing up. There's nothing I haven't tried, and
I was a Ph.D. student in college when this happened, when
my body rebelled against me, and so I was fully plugged into
the middle-class safety net, and talked to five doctors (two psychiatrists, two family practice M.D.s, and a neurologist). And two
CBT therapists to boot: I conveyed to them what I convey to
you, that my symptoms are entirely, entirely endogenous.
My latest round of tests, my doctor found something amiss with my liver
and thought it was the Lamictal I was trying. The best evidence
I have right now, the only discovery I've ever made to understand
this, was that caffeine use exacerbates the condition about
ten times over; the same is true with any stimulant, for that
matter. A diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome might be
most apt, but I've never felt the need to sleep for more than
twelve hours at a time before I'm fully awake, and don't feel
sleepy. B vitamins seem to help, and eating oranges constantly
aids quite a bit (I know that sounds strange folks, but it comes
with the territory.) I've been tested for hypothyroidism, brain
tumour, Lyme Disease, B12 deficiency, and a lot of other
things too. If anyone here  has ever been rejected because of
something that has bothered them that no one else
understands, I am your brother, and your pain is mine.
It sounds weird, but I've been kind of blessed/cursed: I'm
convinced that there is an answer by everything I've consistently
experienced, that a correction of an underlying physiological
problem is indeed possible, short of death. In short, I have
chosen not to "live with it."

[xanweaner]

First off, did you have a blood workup prior to starting Lamactil? 50 mg. is actually considered a low dosage, but I hear that the research is showing that it is effective for many patients with BP disorder to help maintain them. I have been on it since 2004 - my psych. did not and has not ordered any blood work for me - perhaps he should. I, too, take a very low dose - around 50 mg. or a bit less.

For a true causal relationship to occur, you would have to have the blood work-up prior to beginning therapy, then do another for comparison. Then, the question is - would the patient have developed liver problems at this point in time even if they had not taken the lamactil?

I obviously don't have the answers, but I did want you to know that your dosage is on the lower end - I'm sure you read the package insert or prescribing pack and many patients who take it for seizures are on very high dosages - 200 mg. and more.

Also, do not abruptly discontinue your lamactil!! You will need to wean off slowly, just as you slowly increased your dosage to 50 mg. Did you mention how long you have been taking this? Also, who made your BP/depressant diagnosis? I hope that it wasn't a FP. No offense, but they simply don't have the training and background to be treating this properly. A diagnosis like this should be made by a licensed psychiatrist.

Good luck and don't worry..

[Crystlas]

Did not bore me...Relax, we are a support forum here to help each other and some of us, including myself, have asked some questions that might be boring or silly to others, but always get feedback by those with the knowledge.  I used Lamictal for a very short period of time too.  It caused me migraines so I quit.  However, I shared the fact that I was on it to my mom and she asked if they performed any blood tests to make sure my liver was funcitioning properly.  I told her that a blood test was never mentioned.  I know a lot of bipolars on it and I asked them if they took a blood test for it and they all said no.  Anyhow, my mom told me that it damaged the liver of a person in the support group she goes to in order to learn more about BP for my sake.  That was scary to hear.  Evedently, these psychiatrists are prescribing it w/o regards to the damage it does do to the liver.  More people need to know this and be educated, especially with a history of heavy drinking.  Well, that is all I know and I will never use it again for my BP.  Take care.