posted
Hi, I've been on klonopin (clonozepam) for 20 years (seizures) and my psych. has changed me to trileptal for the seizures and to help stabalize my mood. As I make this change I am going off the klonopin.
As I increase the trileptal the side effects are so pronounced I am extremely uncomfortable and the overlap of the exiting klonopin gives me slurred speed. I've backed off the clonopin and the speech is better.
My mood swings are far apart and as described by them,with a wide bell curve.
Their goal was 600 mgs trileptal and at 400 I find myself backing off trileptal and building back up on the klonopin and I feel ALOT better.
The trileptal side effects are too traumatic for me & I can't take it! My tongue goes numb, I feel like I have to plant my feet wide apart to stand at work and keep balance (feel like I'm on a cruise ship). Drinking gator-ade constantly is hard; it seems I am always off balance w/it but the trileptal lowers the sodium. Too much and ring finger swells, not enough and sodium/eloctrolytes are off balance.
In the crossover of klonopin and trileptal I got slurred speech so they said back off the clonopin & I got panic attacks. I know I need meds for the seizures that cause the "panic attacks" and I know I need something to keep me ok during times of depression. Alot has gone on in the last 10 years of being ill.
The panic attacks are actually a feeling of dis-association, I can't feel my own body (all day on Sunday) long before I got medicated. It's very odd but that's what indicated seizures.
I'm afraid to try anything new! The klonopin worked and while I say don't fix what isn't broken, I know I need a bump in the depression area.
I've read old posts on the lamectil that it makes you tired. I work in a salon w/alot of people and activity around. Nervousness was another side effect of the trileptal . . . it's horrid when I'm trying to talk to a new client. The more anxious I get, the worse the drug makes it. I'm anxious about trying the lamectil and I CANNOT take an antidepressant, only mood stabalizers. Antidepressants send me into orbit.
This is sort of rambling but I think you can get what my problem is. Can anyone help? I'm guessing that all mood stablizers will make me tired. Maybe I can just back off the trileptal and take a low dose of trileptal . . . that's when I seemed to do the best and keep on a lower dose of klonopin.
What do you all think?
Thanks, Curley
Posts: 982 | From Florida | Registered: Feb 2002
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kgg
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 5867
posted
First of all, weaning off of Klonopin is VERY difficult to do. And it sounds like you have experienced this first hand. I guess since it was working I don't understand why they were weaning you off. Can't they just add a mood stabilizer? Like Neurontin? It has much less side effects than the one you have been trying.
Have you been in contact with your doc about how difficult this process is? They need to know this is a no-go for you and find out what else you can do.
Best, Karen
Posts: 1688 | From Maine | Registered: Jun 2004
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Thank you ALOT for your help. I did not know the klonopin would be so difficult. I took it slow but still . . . yikes, it's very hard.
Before I used the klonopin they had me on Tegretol. Every day for a year I was spinning so bad by 11 AM I had to leave my chair, go to the bathroom and put my head down for a minute and then start work again. It took a year for the psych to hear that I was having a hard time. FINALLY he got it and said "the squeaky wheel gets the grease, why didn't you say so sooner?"
I'm not going to let that happen again and today I have sophistcated tools that can help like the internet. I can reach you and have help from someone like yourself. I really appreciate it, I was feeling so vulnerable but I did realize this simply might be a total no go.
The reason they were messing with it is because when I had depression, it was pretty bad. I had dark cirles under my eyes that wouldn't go away until I started this. It was very hard to work on new clients feeling like crap and trying to project confidence. This did help but the side effects are really getting to me.
I've never heard of neurontin, I'll google it and if you can tell me something about it I may mention it. I have an appt in the AM.
Thank you, Curley
Posts: 982 | From Florida | Registered: Feb 2002
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