Keppra and Irratibility

[momdealingwithkeppra]

my 7 year duaghter has Nocturnal Complex Partial seizures and has been on Keppra liquid for 1 year now.  they just increased her dose to 8 ml in the am and 10 ml in the pm.  she has been extremely grumpy, irritable and very down in the slumps.  Has anybody else experienced this?  the Dr. thinks that she should talk to a Shrink, but I think it all has to do with the medication as she is normally a very happy, loving and caring girl...now she is very pessimistic on EVERYTHING!!!  I don't know what to do and I know that this is not my child's normal behavior...I feel so bad for her and feel guilty for having her to take this medication and feel like this on a day to day basis....any insight from anybody???

[JKJ]

Sorry it took so long for me to get back with you.  My son was taken off Keppra due to the irritability.  I finally found a med that works miracles....Trileptal.  His seizures stopped completely!!!  And zero side effects!!!  Now, this drug is expensive as hell, but my insurance pays for it...but even if they didn't it would be worth it.

Best of luck!!!

[ozyabbas]

Keppra has worked wonders for me. People said I was practically a zombie on my last combination of meds. There have been a few side effects and irritability is one of them. My way of dealing with it is to do sports, judo and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I feel less irritable, grumpy and generally more pleasant to be around. My wife can definitely see the difference in me.

[efrates59]

thanks.. I hope so it works to my girlfriend with out irritability...

[momdealingwithkeppra]

Becky,  
Let me know how you do on the Lamictal.  I finally got a new Dr. to understand what my daughter and our family is going thru and they were talking about switching her med...We will find out on Jan 8th what the Dr. wants to do.  I hope it works for you.

[momdealingwithkeppra]

My daughter has done great on Keppra, except the irritability...the Dr.'s do not know if this is a side effect from the Keppra (I think it is) or because she is 7 and going thru changes....my personal opinion it is the Keppra, otherwise she has tolerated Keppra really well and has controlled her seizures real well. Good luck with it.  I hope it works well for your girlfriend!!  Stay on it for at least 2-3 months to give it a chance...most side effects will go away after your body gets used to it.

[becky808]

All individuals will experience varying degrees of side effects from different medications. Keppra was a really bad drug for me, but my sister takes it twice daily for epilepsy and has virtually no side effects. Studies indicate that most people taking Keppra have very few side effects. Most common are things like dizziness and a "foggy" feeling that goes away after a couple of weeks.

The best thing to do is listen to her Dr and try it out. For whatever reason I started experiencing odd side effects like anger, depression and irritibility. My experience is not the norm. I hope it works for her seizures and she feels better on Keppra.