Anyone on both a benzo and lamictal (lamotrigine)....if so I have a question?

[[Sh...]]

Hi I have been given great information by prhiannon (who is on this website) that both benzo's and lamictal affect glutamate and when coming off either or both of them, it heightens the glutamate in the body. While I have been coming down off my ativan I took a break from tapering ativan to taper 1/8 of my lamictal, because I was not finding much stability with my ativan taper. This was a month ago and as bad as i felt in my taper of ativan the lamictal cut made things worse. I am wondering if by going back up on my lamictal and even going a little higher than where I was before, that it may calm my glutamate so I can have a bit more stability to continue cutting my ativan? Because right now I have felt so bad that I am afraid to make any move as i don't want it to get  worse? I know this is a tough question but any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

Thanks so much!

 

Sean

[[Sh...]]

What knowledge do people have about glutamate and has anyone found something that may help lower it?

[[2w...]]

I am currently getting off of lamictal. It has been a week since I took my last pill and it has really increased my w/d symptoms but it a different way. Last week, I felt really tired all of the time, very foggy and sickly feeling, backache, and extreme head pain and pressure. Also a lot of d/r and d/p.

 

Here is a link that has a bit of info regarding benzos w/d and lamictal.......http://beyondmeds.com/2010/05/24/gabaglutamate-system-benzos-lamictal/

 

I hope this helps.........I'm not sure if I'm doing the right thing but I really wanted to get off the last psych med I was on, so I jumped and now I guess I'm paying the price.

 

Take care,

Lou

[[2w...]]

I also found this post.....http://beyondmeds.com/2007/12/20/lamictal-withdrawal-from-hell/

 

Lou :smitten:

[[Sh...]]

Thanks for the info! Amazing you came off everything so quickly. How are you feeling? What was the hardest thing to come off and what was your taper and withdrawal symptoms like coming off lamictal and how long did they last and what was the time line ?

 

Thanks

 

Sean

[[2w...]]

Hey Sean,

 

The hardest thing to come off of was first Xanax and then Valium.........and then probably Effexor Xr.

 

It seems like the more of these meds I get off of.......the better I feel, but each one has had it's own set of challenges. I've been concerned about getting off of the Lamictal so quickly but I really feel like it does more harm than good......at least for me that is. I didn't really taper the Lamictal very much....I started to taper for a couple of days and then I just went c/t. It's been about 7 days now............from the first day I've had a lot of fatigue, felt really out of it......worse than any flu.....have had a consistent backache.......the head pain/pressure seem like the worst part of it....and the nausea has been pretty bad too. very foggy and sickly feeling, backache, and extreme head pain and pressure. Some other w/d symptoms started around the 5th or 6th day......crying, sadness and confusion. From what I've read, you can have suicidal feelings and go into a deep depression from stopping this med too quickly. I'm praying that this won't happen. I never really felt any benefit from this med, so I'm honestly glad to get rid of it.

 

I've gotten off a lot of psych meds over the years.......and I never realized how horrible they were making me feel until I was off of benzos.

 

Thanks for your post....stay strong and I hope you're feeling better soon.

 

Take care,

Lou

[[Sh...]]

Thanks Lou for sharing your experience, I feel for you for what you are going through right now with your lamictal withdrawals and hope they pass for you really soon! It took alot of courage for you to come off all this stuff! How long were you on lamictal before you came off and what dose did you start your taper at?

 

Please keep me posted how you are doing.

[[2w...]]

Hi Shift400,

 

I had been on Lamictal a couple of times over the last 10 yrs. The first time I didn't think it worked at all and the last time I was prescribed it I believe was in 2010.........not sure when.......have to look that up. My old (horrible) psych doc had me on 150 mg and then last Oct. 2011 my former addiction doc (not sure about him......he doesn't seem like he knows what he's doing) bumped it up to 200 mg in hopes of stabilizing me while I was in benzo w/d. It didn't seem to help so I stayed on it and after getting off most of the other psych meds it was the only left and it seemed to be causing me to have a lot of depression and intrusive thoughts. I started the taper at 150 mg, but I did go c/t on 3/13/2012 and I'm praying that I can survive w/out having to reinstate it.

 

The last few of days have been a real challenge. Today I feel so exhausted.....just want to rest but my family thinks I should stay active..... .....I admit it......I'm really grouchy today and not in the best mood but I feel a bit better than yesterday. This w/d is very strange........I feel like I have so much fatigue, but I'm just trying to push forward.

 

Thanks for the support.........I really need it right now........I feel like I'm running on empty.

 

 

[[Sh...]]

Just remember it is just withdrawals and not who you are. It will pass and then you will be free of the grip of these things and can have some fun but for now it is okay to be grouchy and exhausted and to focus on just taking care of you.

[[2w...]]

Hey Shift400,

 

The Lamictal w/d symptoms are getting better......I'm trying to stay positive, get out in the sun as much as I can and rest when I need to. It's really amazing to me how all of these psych meds really change who you are.......your personality and how you think. I'm so grateful that I have the opportunity to get off these meds.

 

Thanks again for your support. Hope you're well.

 

Love,

Lou

[[Ma...]]

I was on Lamactil for two months, starting Jan 2012.  got up to 75 mgs.  Realized it was making me incredibly anxious.

 

Went down 25 mgs every approx. 10-12 days.  Today is day nine off it completely.  I feel so worn out.

[[2w...]]

I've been off of Lamictal for a little over 2 weeks now. The mornings are the worst  I feel like I just want to end it all in the mornings. My head is riddled w/ different pains....I have a lot of intrusive thoughts and I feel so moody. It's hard because I wake up alone and I have to literally talk myself down off the ledge. The fatigue has been horrible but I know that will end....it's just very difficult to relax w/ the other w/d symptoms plus whatever benzo w/d is left. I've also been having a lot of back pain lately.........I think it's related to the stress my body has been put under for so long while getting off of all of these meds.

 

Yesterday was really bad........I felt like I needed to go to the ER but knew that has never been an option. I just sat....cried....rocked in my chair and watched tv for 4-5 hours until it passed. It did pass and I felt much better. I'm just praying the Lamictal w/d won't last as long as some of the other med w/d's I've had over the last however many years.

[[Sh...]]

That sounds so tough! I feel for you but you will get through it and life will have so much more meaning then!

 

Remind me again how much you were taking and for how long and how long did it take to come off of it?

Sean

[[2w...]]

Hey Sean,

 

I have been taking 150 mg of Lamictal for a little over 1 year. I started to do a taper, but the Lamictal was making me feel so awful so I just dropped it. I know it's not the best idea, but I've been on so many different meds over the years....I think I've just gotten sick of trying to taper and I just want to be done w/ all of these toxic psych meds.

 

It's been 2.5 wks since I stopped and I do feel better in the mornings. I don't think the benzo w/d is over but I do think this helped me to be able to see things more clearly and to be able to feel better in the long run.

 

I hope you have a peaceful weekend Sean. Thanks for your post.

 

Love,

Lou

[[pr...]]

Sean, this is just my opinion--I don't have nearly as much experience with people tapering off Lamictal as I do with people tapering off Benzos.

 

I would say, first, definitely hold your Ativan taper until you're feeling better and more stable.

 

A cut of 1/8 might be too much.  With any psych med I think 10% cuts at once are the max you should try.  In this case since you're already in withdrawal from Ativan my opinion is that even 10% would be way too much. 

 

Tapering multiple meds is tricky.  I love it for ME, but you have to go VERY VERY slowly and make only very small cuts (I cut by 1% or less at a time, although I do cut more frequently, using the "microtaper" method).

 

So I think probably going back up on the Lamictal might be a good idea--not all the way back up to your full dose, but to something that's only a small amount less.

 

I find that using a milligram scale works well with Lamictal if you don't want to go to liquid tapering.  The pills are large enough that you can shave off little bits at a time. 

 

If you choose to continue to taper your Lamictal and Ativan together, I think the only way to really do that safely is to use a milligram scale and/or liquid taper so you can make small enough cuts.