![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 8 of 8. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by AMD on August 22, 2004, at 22:56:17
I've been on 200 mg of Lamictal/80 mg of Celexa for about a month now, and each day I feel progressively slower and weaker of mind. My memory is getting worse, my attention more so. What is going on? Is this Lamictal, or the high dose of Celexa? And are these results reversible?
Thanks,
a
Posted by chemist on August 22, 2004, at 23:37:34
In reply to Lamictal: progressive brain slowing?, posted by AMD on August 22, 2004, at 22:56:17
> I've been on 200 mg of Lamictal/80 mg of Celexa for about a month now, and each day I feel progressively slower and weaker of mind. My memory is getting worse, my attention more so. What is going on? Is this Lamictal, or the high dose of Celexa? And are these results reversible?
>
> Thanks,
> ahey there a....chemist here. it's the lamictal, the results are reversible, and a quick fix that also adds to mood stabilization while clearing up cognitive dulling is a cholinesterase inhibitor. i recommend looking into a low dose of aricept in concert with your doctor's approval. the mechanism involves blocking hydrolysis of acetylcholine (reversibly). if you want to go down another route, the ritalin/concerta/adderall/dexedrine/provigil one is an option, as your induced ADD/ADHD-like sympotoms could well be addressed by one of these meds. do keep us posted, be well, chemist
Posted by SLS on August 23, 2004, at 2:48:06
In reply to Lamictal: progressive brain slowing?, posted by AMD on August 22, 2004, at 22:56:17
> I've been on 200 mg of Lamictal/80 mg of Celexa for about a month now, and each day I feel progressively slower and weaker of mind. My memory is getting worse, my attention more so. What is going on? Is this Lamictal, or the high dose of Celexa? And are these results reversible?
Whatever cognitive side effects you experience with these drugs are reversible - set your mind at ease.It has been my experience with Lamictal that it can indeed impair memory and dull thinking. I had particular problems figuring out mechanical things while taking 300mg. Short-term memory impairments were profound.
I'm sure Celexa has its own cognitive treats to bring to the table as well. Some people complain of "brain fog" while taking it.
For me, dropping the dosage of Lamictal produced an almost immediate decrease of mental impairments. It might be worth dropping back on it for a few days to see if it is the culprit. I have never had trouble going up and down on dosage of Lamictal, but you might err on the side of caution on the way up. If it were me, I would drop the Lamictal to 100mg as an experiment for 3 days. You might then go back to 150mg for 2 days before re-establishing 200mg.
- Scott
Posted by Sad Panda on August 23, 2004, at 6:31:01
In reply to Lamictal: progressive brain slowing?, posted by AMD on August 22, 2004, at 22:56:17
> I've been on 200 mg of Lamictal/80 mg of Celexa for about a month now, and each day I feel progressively slower and weaker of mind. My memory is getting worse, my attention more so. What is going on? Is this Lamictal, or the high dose of Celexa? And are these results reversible?
>
> Thanks,
> a
>
>It could be either, I had an experience like that with Effexor. After increasing it from 225mg to 300mg, I received a drastic reduction in apathy, but, as the weeks went by I became more & more absent minded. After 4 weeks I went back down to 225mg & returned to my normal level of cognitive function.
Cheers,
Panda.
Posted by SLS on August 23, 2004, at 7:07:42
In reply to Re: Lamictal: progressive brain slowing? » AMD, posted by Sad Panda on August 23, 2004, at 6:31:01
> > I've been on 200 mg of Lamictal/80 mg of Celexa for about a month now, and each day I feel progressively slower and weaker of mind. My memory is getting worse, my attention more so. What is going on? Is this Lamictal, or the high dose of Celexa? And are these results reversible?
> >
> > Thanks,
> > a
> >
> >
>
> It could be either, I had an experience like that with Effexor. After increasing it from 225mg to 300mg, I received a drastic reduction in apathy, but, as the weeks went by I became more & more absent minded. After 4 weeks I went back down to 225mg & returned to my normal level of cognitive function.
>
> Cheers,
> Panda.
Maybe it would be better to try lowering the Celexa first? I really didn't get zonked with Lamictal until I reached 300mg.
- Scott
Posted by AMD on August 23, 2004, at 14:34:02
In reply to Re: Lamictal: progressive brain slowing? » AMD, posted by chemist on August 22, 2004, at 23:37:34
chemist,
Do you think the 200 mg of Lamictal might also be causing me to feel this extreme drowsiness. I'm hardly able to keep my eyes opened. My energy level is down, I'm breathing heavily (something I've noticed on all anticonvulsants), and I feel a general malaise. I'm starting to worry this is more serious, but I felt the similarly on Trileptal. Why would just just now start happening? I've been on 200 mg for a few weeks already.
Perhaps it's the higher dose of the Celexa.
Ugh -- I can feel my anxiety coming on ...
Adam
> > I've been on 200 mg of Lamictal/80 mg of Celexa for about a month now, and each day I feel progressively slower and weaker of mind. My memory is getting worse, my attention more so. What is going on? Is this Lamictal, or the high dose of Celexa? And are these results reversible?
> >
> > Thanks,
> > a
>
> hey there a....chemist here. it's the lamictal, the results are reversible, and a quick fix that also adds to mood stabilization while clearing up cognitive dulling is a cholinesterase inhibitor. i recommend looking into a low dose of aricept in concert with your doctor's approval. the mechanism involves blocking hydrolysis of acetylcholine (reversibly). if you want to go down another route, the ritalin/concerta/adderall/dexedrine/provigil one is an option, as your induced ADD/ADHD-like sympotoms could well be addressed by one of these meds. do keep us posted, be well, chemist
Posted by chemist on August 23, 2004, at 14:42:05
In reply to Lamictal: progressive brain slowing? » chemist, posted by AMD on August 23, 2004, at 14:34:02
hi adam, sorry to hear all this. i think first off that you should consider what Scott (SLS) and Sad Panda had to say, as in my opinion, they are better sources than i in this case (if not always). that said, given that you have experienced similar symptoms on drugs in the same class as lamictal, it is likely that this is the cause. you are 2 weeks in, that is not a long time by any stretch, as 6 to 8 weeks is when you can claim you really gave something a good try. now, that *is* a lot of celexa, and if you go down a bit on the lamictal and feel better, it should happen rather soon, and you can rule it out. the celexa is a little dicier, in my opinion. my opinion is that, given your similar reaction to other anti-convulsants, a logical thing to do is inform your doctor and reduce the lamictal by 50 mg/day at the outset. see if this remedies the problem, and stay at that level. if not, i would stay at a maintainence level of lamictal (100 mg/day, e.g.) and then adjust the celexa. please do get with your doctor, and please heed what the others have to say.....do keep us informed, all the best, chemist
> chemist,
>
> Do you think the 200 mg of Lamictal might also be causing me to feel this extreme drowsiness. I'm hardly able to keep my eyes opened. My energy level is down, I'm breathing heavily (something I've noticed on all anticonvulsants), and I feel a general malaise. I'm starting to worry this is more serious, but I felt the similarly on Trileptal. Why would just just now start happening? I've been on 200 mg for a few weeks already.
>
> Perhaps it's the higher dose of the Celexa.
>
> Ugh -- I can feel my anxiety coming on ...
>
> Adam
>
> > > I've been on 200 mg of Lamictal/80 mg of Celexa for about a month now, and each day I feel progressively slower and weaker of mind. My memory is getting worse, my attention more so. What is going on? Is this Lamictal, or the high dose of Celexa? And are these results reversible?
> > >
> > > Thanks,
> > > a
> >
> > hey there a....chemist here. it's the lamictal, the results are reversible, and a quick fix that also adds to mood stabilization while clearing up cognitive dulling is a cholinesterase inhibitor. i recommend looking into a low dose of aricept in concert with your doctor's approval. the mechanism involves blocking hydrolysis of acetylcholine (reversibly). if you want to go down another route, the ritalin/concerta/adderall/dexedrine/provigil one is an option, as your induced ADD/ADHD-like sympotoms could well be addressed by one of these meds. do keep us posted, be well, chemist
>
>
Posted by SLS on August 24, 2004, at 14:19:38
In reply to Re: Lamictal: progressive brain slowing? » AMD, posted by chemist on August 23, 2004, at 14:42:05
For what it's worth, regarding Lamictal, I think it is the glutamate release inhibition that probably helps with depression, and the sodium-channel blockade that produces the undesirable cognitive side effects.
- Scott
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.