Lamotrigine Cough And Vomiting

I have bipolar disorder and have been on almost everything for it, was taking depakote and Saphris which worked great but I gained a ton of weight so doc switched me to lamotrigine because it’s weight neutral. Starting off at 25mg/day and working up to 300mg/day. Gradually by the time I got up to 100 in the morning and 150 at nite I had a RELENTLESS bronchial cough that wouldn’t respond to any kind of treatment, that became so violent that I would start vomiting until everything was completely gone from my stomach. I don’t actually feel sick at all I just have this obnoxious never ending cough that ends in throwing up. Also had lost my voice. Now I have gone all the way back down the dosing schedule and am just getting ready to go completely off of it. Tomorrow will be the first day with nothing. I have read that it takes something like 14 days or so to completely wear off. My voice is back for the most part, still a little lower and a little hoarse, but much better. Still can’t go back to singing yet though. I’m still coughing and puking, not as extreme as when I was at the highest dose, but enough to still be concerned. Has anyone else out there had this experience? How long do I have to expect this to go on- any guesses?

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Hello Dianashears,

According to the National Institute of Medicine when doing their clinical studies 8 percent of patients who were given Lamotrigine developed a cough. Unfortunately they do not have any data that explains how long the adverse effects continue after you stop administering the medication, however, I can say that the recovery time depends a lot upon how strong your immune system is and how well you take care of yourself during the recovery period.

Talk to your doctor and see if there is anything you can do to speed up the process such as taking pain killers to reduce the swelling. I have found that when I have issues with my respiratory system that a cup of warm tea with a spoon full of honey really helps me. The honey coats the throat and prevents further irritation.

I hope this helps, best wishes.

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Re: Kevin (# 1)

Thanks Kevin! Today is the first day I haven’t taken any lamotrigine and it did start out with some coughing but as the day goes on it’s calming down some. I’m just doing a little bit of work at home today so I’ve been sneaking in some extended breaks and resting more and taking just a little ibuprofen, drinking water and using a cough drop here and there. Also per the doctors instructions taking 5mg of Abilify to start out (probably go up to 10 in a week) to keep things under control until the lamotrigine gets gone and we can try something else. So I’m feeling encouraged that the coughing is mellowing out and I’m also keeping my food down. And no headache either! Thanks for the advice!

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Re: Dianashears (# 2)

Excellent! It always feels good to see a positive response. I'm glad to see that you and your doctor worked out a solution for the time being. Hopefully when this is all over you can find the medication that works best with you.

Best wishes.

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