I had a doctor’s appointment by coincidence today and the doctor decided to double my Topamax prescription from 25mgs to 50mgs.
If you aren’t familiar with Topamax, it is an anti-seizure medicine that is also used in the prevention of migraines.
It is one of those medicines that has a list of side effects and warnings that is a mile long.
Just for medicines you should be careful with:
Be sure to mention any of the following: acetazolamide (Diamox); amitriptyline; antidepressants; antihistamines; dichlorphenamide (Daranide); digoxin (Lanoxin, Digitek); hydrochlorothiazide (Microzide, Oretic); ipratropium (Atrovent); iron; isoniazid (INH, Nydrazid); lithium (Eskalith, Lithobid); medications for anxiety, irritable bowel disease, mental illness, motion sickness, Parkinson's disease, ulcers, or urinary problems; metformin (Glucophage); methazolamide; hormonal contraceptives (birth control pills, patches, rings, implants, or injections); other medications for seizures such as carbamazepine (Tegretol) and phenytoin (Dilantin, Phenytek); pioglitazone (Actos); risperidone (Risperdal); salicylate pain relievers such as aspirin, choline magnesium trisalicylate (Trisalate), choline salicylate (Arthropan), diflunisal (Dolobid), magnesium salicylate (Doan's, others), and salsalate (Argesic, Disalcid, Salgesic); sedatives; sleeping pills; tranquilizers; valproic acid (Depakene, Depakote); and zonisamide (Zonegran). Your doctor may need to change the doses of your medications or monitor you carefully for side effects.
The highlight ones are ones I take.
This side effect makes me a little nervous:
you should know that your mental health may change in unexpected ways and you may become suicidal (thinking about harming or killing yourself or planning or trying to do so) while you are taking topiramate for the treatment of epilepsy, mental illness, or other conditions.
Oh goody! Here’s some more wonderful side effects:
-
numbness, burning, or tingling in the hands or feet
-
slowed reactions
-
difficulty concentrating
-
speech problems, especially difficulty thinking of specific words
-
memory problems
-
lack of coordination
-
confusion
-
nervousness
-
aggressive behavior
-
irritability
-
mood swings
-
depression
-
headache
-
drowsiness
-
weakness
-
excessive movement
-
uncontrollable shaking of a part of the body
-
uncontrollable eye movements
-
extreme thirst
-
weight loss
-
constipation
-
diarrhea
-
gas
-
heartburn
-
change in ability to taste food
-
swelling of the tongue
-
overgrowth of the gums
-
dry mouth
-
increased saliva
-
trouble swallowing
-
nosebleed
-
teary or dry eyes
-
back, muscle, or bone pain
-
missed menstrual periods
-
excessive menstrual bleeding
-
skin problems or changes in skin color
-
dandruff
-
hair loss
-
growth of hair in unusual places
-
ringing in the ears
-
difficulty falling or staying asleep
-
swelling of the hands, arms, feet, ankles, or lower legs
-
difficulty urinating or pain when urinating
Ugh. I did not have many bad side effects with 25mgs. Let’s hope that it continues to be that way. I take it before bed. It fascinates me that all of this can come from 1 little pill.
All of my information came from the US National Library of Medicine’s page on topiramate .
I had a doctor’s appointment by coincidence today and the doctor decided to double my Topamax prescription from 25mgs to 50mgs.
If you aren’t familiar with Topamax, it is an anti-seizure medicine that is also used in the prevention of migraines.
It is one of those medicines that has a list of side effects and warnings that is a mile long.
Just for medicines you should be careful with:
Be sure to mention any of the following: acetazolamide (Diamox); amitriptyline; antidepressants; antihistamines; dichlorphenamide (Daranide); digoxin (Lanoxin, Digitek); hydrochlorothiazide (Microzide, Oretic); ipratropium (Atrovent); iron; isoniazid (INH, Nydrazid); lithium (Eskalith, Lithobid); medications for anxiety, irritable bowel disease, mental illness, motion sickness, Parkinson's disease, ulcers, or urinary problems; metformin (Glucophage); methazolamide; hormonal contraceptives (birth control pills, patches, rings, implants, or injections); other medications for seizures such as carbamazepine (Tegretol) and phenytoin (Dilantin, Phenytek); pioglitazone (Actos); risperidone (Risperdal); salicylate pain relievers such as aspirin, choline magnesium trisalicylate (Trisalate), choline salicylate (Arthropan), diflunisal (Dolobid), magnesium salicylate (Doan's, others), and salsalate (Argesic, Disalcid, Salgesic); sedatives; sleeping pills; tranquilizers; valproic acid (Depakene, Depakote); and zonisamide (Zonegran). Your doctor may need to change the doses of your medications or monitor you carefully for side effects.
The highlight ones are ones I take.
This side effect makes me a little nervous:
you should know that your mental health may change in unexpected ways and you may become suicidal (thinking about harming or killing yourself or planning or trying to do so) while you are taking topiramate for the treatment of epilepsy, mental illness, or other conditions.
Oh goody! Here’s some more wonderful side effects:
numbness, burning, or tingling in the hands or feet
slowed reactions
difficulty concentrating
speech problems, especially difficulty thinking of specific words
memory problems
lack of coordination
confusion
nervousness
aggressive behavior
irritability
mood swings
depression
headache
drowsiness
weakness
excessive movement
uncontrollable shaking of a part of the body
uncontrollable eye movements
extreme thirst
weight loss
constipation
diarrhea
gas
heartburn
change in ability to taste food
swelling of the tongue
overgrowth of the gums
dry mouth
increased saliva
trouble swallowing
nosebleed
teary or dry eyes
back, muscle, or bone pain
missed menstrual periods
excessive menstrual bleeding
skin problems or changes in skin color
dandruff
hair loss
growth of hair in unusual places
ringing in the ears
difficulty falling or staying asleep
swelling of the hands, arms, feet, ankles, or lower legs
difficulty urinating or pain when urinating
Ugh. I did not have many bad side effects with 25mgs. Let’s hope that it continues to be that way. I take it before bed. It fascinates me that all of this can come from 1 little pill.
All of my information came from the US National Library of Medicine’s page on topiramate .