My PS wants to put me on Topamax for my manic ( ie. throwing and breaking expensive stuff that I SERIOUSLY regret later) bi polar behavior. Does any one know about this drug?
My PS wants to put me on Topamax for my manic ( ie. throwing and breaking expensive stuff that I SERIOUSLY regret later) bi polar behavior. Does any one know about this drug?



yeah, i was on it for a while, dependig on the dose,it can get a little....weird.
it was originally intended for individuals with e[ilepsy to help prevent seizures, and i'm not sure if it is even FDA approved yet for BP treatment, i know when i was on it for my bp it wasn't.
theoretically, it will help those with BP because it increases bloodflow to the frontal lobe (where supposedly personality, behavior, etc is controled) and will actually "repair" whatever damage the BP has caused there. assuming, however that BP causes damage to the brain. (you'll get my opinion on that one later)
the effect it will have on you, entirely depends on your own body chemistry. i will however tell you the effect that it had on me. keep in mind i was on 100mgs a day, which is outrageous. but the effects still happened at 25mgs a day. the best way that i know how to describe it is my blood felt like it was electric. i could feel it buzzing through my entire body (esp my frontal lobe! haha, which really feels weird). i also had a weird floating feeling, not lethargic, like depakote or seroquel will make you, but quite literally, because my blood was buzzing (and i could feel it flowing through my veins) i couldn't feel myself doing anything; walking, picking things up, etc. it felt like one of the wierdest highs i've ever been on.
it can also increase any halucinations if you have those already. and it can be a little bit weird when you go into your psych and tell him/her that there's a gigantic beachball bouncing up and down on their head. so what did she do? she INCREASED my dosage!
when you start to "come down, the most common side effect is tingling in the hands and feet, like they are falling asleep. it is very irritating.
make sure you do not take too much, as that can be very dangerous, also, DO NOT drink alcohol when you have any topamax in your body. it can make you feel crazy, like you're speedballin' and scizophrenic. then, your heart rate will slow down hella low, and you'll almost stop breathing. hospital...the whole nine yards. NOT FUN! trust me, i've been there.
ok-now for my big speil about how BP is NOT a disorder. personally, I do not find my BP to be a curse, once you learn to deal with it, manage it, recognize your symptoms of depression and mania, and also recognize your triggers that set you off into either, it becomes much easier to control. i do understand that some people need medication to cope with their issues, ok. not a problem, but for a majority of the people with bipolar disorder, medication is not a good thing, as it can compound the problems. medication to calm you down in a mania can catapult you into a depression, and then to get you out of a low spot, that medication can kick your ass into a mania. thus increasing the rapidity of your cycles. and for me, the constant drugged feeling was not condusive to every day functioning. its hard to drive when half your meds make you hella sleepy, and the other half makes you fidgity and spook easily. actually, its hard to do ANYTHING when you're feeling like that.
the best thing to do is to learn self control, enlist the help of people you trust around you, and give one person permission to make you stop. if you're throwing stuff in a blind rage, put all the valuables and breakables away and replace that behavior with something else, go for a run, paint, get a punching bag. if you are feeling depressed and don't feel motivated to do anything, instead of laying down in bed and crying, take the day off, call a friend or your mom, or whoever, whine to them (andbefore hand make sure they know they are just there to listen, not provide advise, etc. often when we're feeling low we just want someone to listen) drink hot chocolate, read a book, have a movie marathon, and do something "lazy" but not necessarily inactive. engage your mind, rather than your body. also, getting on here (SW) and venting your frustrations, whining, etc is cool, and more often than not,there is ALWAYS somebody online here.
i hope this helps, and i'm sorry if there are a lot of typos, my keyboard doesnt like me today, and is putting things on the screen out of order and about 20 seconds after i type it.
If God would have meant for us to be naked, we would have been born that way.
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I couldn't agree more. I didn't take Topamax, but I had Depakote. Completely ruined me while I was on it. I had NO personality and no sense of humor. Also, had to take a ton of suplements because stuff like this leeches vital stuff from your system.
I can't stress enough how the behavioral approach, like you described above, works. But the miracle cure? No more refined sugar, refined grains, or processed food.
Others will hopefully come on here and tell you that they experienced the same thing. I'm sure you could look it up and find tons of people benefitted from changing their diets.
I just know that, now that I eat cleanly, no more anxiety (other than normal stuff), no more depressions, no more manic episodes. I haven't broken anything for a long time.
Good luck hon, but do your research. Dr's these days are so willing to just dispense a pill without stressing lifestyle changes that could lead you to longterm management without changing your chemical makeup.
I've been on both Depakote and Topamax. Talk about vile drugs! The fucking Topamax has PERMANENTLY impaired my memory and speech!
Last edited by BrunetteGoddess; 04-14-2007 at 03:46 PM.





yeah i had a friend on it and she always messed up her words and seemed to have memory problems.
Corsica, i didnt know that topamax permanetly ruins speach and memory (I thought it was just a temporary while on the meds thing) The side effects of the depakote scared me too much, and my PS felt the topamax was better suited for me. Im also on Lexapro and adderall.





Topamax-Devil. Simple as that. I effing hated life on that stuff.
Gingerlee what were the side effects when you took it and how long were you on it?
Ick, I hate that shit.
"Have you ever been to American wedding? Where is the vodka, where's marinated herring?" - GB
"And do the cats give a shit? No, they do not. Why? Because they're cats."-from The Onion
Originally Posted by Mia M
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