Lamictal

Anyone try this?

My Neuro Prescribed it but a I looked it up and asked on here and decided not to.

 

I asked Neuro if it would prevent GABA receptor upregulation. He said yes, brain would not heal while taking it.

I was on it for 2+ years. Not for benzo withdrawal, for depression/mood regulation. Worked well at first. Caused pronounced cognitive impairment and memory loss. Also caused irreversible Vitiligo, which is apparently quite a rare side effect. It definitely helped me at the time. Being covered with white patches for the rest of my life isn't really ideal...

I have been on it for 10 years for mood swings. It has worked very well for me; I have been relatively stable with this medication and have had no side effects to speak of. don't think it helps for withdrawal though.

I haven't used it personally, but I do know I've seen several people mention that it did help their benzo symptoms, especially if they were cold turkeyed and glutamate is surging.

Lamictal can cause a rash, which is supposed to be rare according to its manufacturer.

 

I tend to remember reading it can cause harm to the liver, I was on it and felt unwell in what seemed like ways that were not directly attributable to bzds at the time. It could have been the combination, but I felt better physically after stopping.

 

It gave me dark spots on my face, hyperpigmentation. It has a track record for this especially for those whose genetics are prone to it.

I have been tapering off Lamictal for  over 3 years from a high of 200mgs. 

 

I actually am back on benzos now because the wd has been so hard.  I'm super sensitive to meds and foolishly tapered another med, Mirtazapine, at the same time.  I'm off that bur have just barely finished my Lamictal taper after having to jump off a higher dose due to a paradoxical reaction.

 

All this to say that Lamictal is a powerful medication.  I know some people use it at a very low dose,  below 5mgs to help with wd off of other ADs.  Dont know about benzos.