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UPDATED: Sun, 12/23/2007 - 12:06pm
debora...
keppra vs. topamax
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i'm a 28 year old woman diagnosed with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy when i was 16 - and have been on depakote since. my doctor has, of course, always told me that i should let him know when i'm thinking about getting pregnant. well, it's now within a couple of years of wanting to get pregnant...so i decided to switch over to lamictal. in the last couple of months, i've been ramping up lamictal and decreasing depakote. lamictal and i did not agree so well. so, my doctor has suggested to look at keppra vs topamax -- any thoughts???
By debora... at Sun, 12/23/2007 - 12:06pm | 288 views | 19 comments
Topic: Women With Epilepsy
Recent Comments on this Discussion
I'M DIAGNOSED JUVINE MYOCLONIC EPILEPSY SINCE AGE 10. NOW I'M MARRIED AND LOOKING IN TO HAVING CHILDREN FAILY SOON, I'M 24 NOW.I WAS JUST WONDERING IF ANYBODY WAS ON THE COMBO OF TOPOMAX AND LAMICTAL. I'M LOOKING AT GETTING ON A DRUG COMBO THAT WILL BE GOOD IN A PREGNANCY. I AM ALREADY ON LAMICTAL I HAVE BEEN FOR 7 YEARS AND NO SIDE EFFECTS BUT I AM ALSO ON VALPROIC ACID AND REALLY AM WANTING TO GET OFF IT, MY DOCTOR MENTIONED TOPOMAX I SAID I WOULD THINK ABOUT IT , JUST WONDERING IF ANYBODY HAD GOOD RESULTS.
I was diagnised with temperol lobe epilepsy when I was 11 years old. I am now 26. I tried everything from tegretol, lamictal and depakote. 10 years ago my neurologist put me on topamax and eventually ALSO keppra. My seizures dramatically decreased from 10-15 a week to 3-4 a week, and eventually stopped. I have now been seizure free for 5 years and 9 months. I loved the combination because I was finally able to get my license and have been discharged from my neurologist. I suggest asking your neurologists about this combination. I value every day so much better now!!
My son was also started having seizures at age 11, although his began as simple partial only (one arm) and ending up generalizing into full seizures 3-4 times (to date). He was on Keppra and it did not seem to control him on its own, but now he is on Topamax...again it does not yet seem to be controlling everything although we are still ramping up dosage...but I am wondering about the possibility of adding Keppra to it. Were your seizures partial seizures? The fact that you tried everything and finally got it under control gives me great hope for my son!
This is my first post, and I am not sure where to look for your reply, but I will try to come to the keppra vs. topamax thread to check. Thanks!
I was diagnosed with partial complex seizures when I was 9 1/2 yrs. old. I am now 24yrs. old and have been seizure free for 6 months. At your son's age I was on Tegretol and it really worked well at controlling my seizures, as I got older and started going through puberty my doctor had to up my doses, but in doing so tegretol still helped control my seizures. When I was 14yrs. old I had been on tegretol for so long and such a high dose that my body became immune to the medication and the seizures returned. At that time Topomax was a fairly new drug and I was placed on that which did help control and stop my seizures. However, at age 17 my seizures returned still being on topomax and now my seizures were no longer partial complex seizures where I was awake, alert, and consious through the whole seizure, now the seizures happened only while I was sleeping, unconsious, alot more rapid movement with my whole body instead of just my left side and now I stopped breathing when I had a seizure, which were now grand-mal seizures. What had happened was just like the tegretol my body became immune to a high dose of topomax. My neurologist put me on Keppra which had just came out and found that by putting me on a dosage of Keppra and Topomax together it has helped control and now stopped my seizures. I have been on Keppra and Topomax together now for the last 4 years and it is still working great. I would say though for you and your son to not give up hope, everybody's brain and body responds differently to certain medications and dosages of medications. The fact that your son is a male and I am a female could have an influence with the certain horomones our bodies produce at certain stages in our life and how our own unique bodies counteract and respond to certain medications and dosages of a medication. Try not to get frustrated if the first medication your son tries doesn't work, it may not be a high enough dose, or it needs to work with another medication, or its just not the right medication all together. Finding a solution to controlling and possibly stopping seizures is alot of trial and error playing with different medications and dosages. But when it comes to living a normal life your son will still have that I guarantee it! I still went to school like everyone else, played the clarinet in marching band, went to college, got involved with everything and anything I wanted to, and now at 24 years old I work for the Association for Retarded Citizens and am getting married in a year. So I'm sure your son has a bright future ahead of him. God Bless and good luck! Lindsay
I have been on Keppra for about 8 months to control my temporal lobe epilepsy. I had side effects at first such as drowsiness and that "walking through mud" feeling, but after about three weeks, I felt like myself again. The only problem is that I still get my simple partial seizures, but not as often (I may need to talk to my neuro about upping my dose). The one good thing is that I am sleeping sooooo much better since taking the Keppra. I use to be up at 3:00 anywhere from one to three times a week unable to sleep. Now I sleep through the night every night. I think I had too much electrical activity in my brain all day and night.
I know Keppra is good because you can take other medications and have no interactions.
oh, i'm 32 and also have juevenile myoclonic seizure disorder, i was diagnosed when i was 19. i have not had a seizure in 7 years.
I was also 19 when I started having seizures but didn't find out why until about a month ago when I switched neuorologists and did some more testing and he diagnosed me with JME. I almost 21 and I am still having seizures and I was wondering what medicine you took when you were diagnosed because I would love to be seizure free in order to lead a normal life where I can drive, hang out late, etc.
I have been on topamax for ten years and love it. I was on Lamictal for one week, but couldn't handle the effects of it myself.
I'm 25, I was diagnosed with temporal lobe Epilepsy last year. My first doctor put me on Keppra and I had a reaction to it, my heart skipped all the time it started skipping every 30 seconds I was rushed to the emergency room. So my next doctor put me on Topamax, I have been fine ever since no siezures or anything. Now another friend of mine she was put on Topamax due to Migraines I don't know how many miligrams, and she did lose about 30 lbs. or so, 30 lbs she didn't have to lose. I didn't lose any wieght, I didn't lose one lb. So it's only an appetite suppressant to some people. Different drugs will affect different people in different ways.
Keppra is a ....Good med. to be put on Dont try Topamax cuz its a appetite sup. and u know it wil make u lose wait..
I love Keppra! I've never been on topamax so I can't comment on that. Lamictal and I also did not agree and it didn't control my JME. I am 30 and pregnant with my 2nd child and my first boy is healthy thus far. I know keppra is usually used in additon to other meds, but I take it alone (2000mg daily) and it works great. My neuro also believes that monotherapy is best during pregnancy. Of course after reading many different posts, every drug seems to work differently in every person... Hope this helps.
my situation is almost exactly like deborah's. i was diagnosed with jme when i was 15 and am taking depakote and lamictal. i took only depakote for many years then my doctor told me that taking depakote if i wanted to start a family was not a good idea. so then i was put on just lamictal which didn't do a thing for me and i ended up having 10 seizures in 6 months (i hadn't even had 10 total until then). and i can't be on depakote if i'm taking birth control because of the interactions between the two. now my doctor wants me to try keppra so i can actually be on birth control and if i do get pregnant there aren't as many risks as there are with depakote. my fiance and i know we want to have children and he's willing to wait until we get all of this figured out but i am really just looking for any thoughts on what i can expect if i do get pregnant and if keppra causes any extra complications.
hi there. I came across your blog and we have a lot in common. I have JME as well, and was diagnosed at the same age as you. I am now 28 and from my experience as of the last 2 years i would like to tell you that keppra was handling in my system great for the first 2 months. Then i decided to go on the birth control pill and i have not been the same ever since. Not to say it will be your experience but if any of this can help you to avoid what i have been going through for the last 2 years i will save you the greif. Everyday i experience numbness in my feet, sometimes my hands, i get horrible eye strain everyday, my muscles get very tense, and i experience aura's in the back of my head everyday. And there is a strong correlation with my aura's when i am around my hormonal cycle.
If i knew then what i know now i would not have done that. But i was told it would be safe. So now i am in the beginning of getting off keppra and starting topamax as even the lamictal/keppra combo was brutal for me. But then again i was taking keppra all along thinking it would get better with time. I hope this little bit helps. I have heard that keppra is good to have children on though.
Goodluck!
Kym
Hi! I am a 25 year old woman who was also diagnosed with petite mal epilepsy when I was about 3. I have been on depikote but got off of it due to weight gain. I have tried both Topamax and Keppra. Of the two I liked topamax the best. Although the side effects: numbness, cognitive problems (forgetting & "the stupids"), loss of apitite etc will away with in a couple of weeks. I decided to slowly decrese the topamax and get on Keppera (i felt like it had stopped working after 5 years on it). I had not fully gotten off of topamax but was on a higher dose of keppera when I started to have severe panic attacks, uncontrollable crying for no reason, I worried about nothing. I couldn't breathe I felt like I was going crazy. I immeadiately got off keppra, but my doc said that I would have more panic attacks from the withdrawl of Keppra and gave me a seditive to take if one happened.
I am now on Topamax and Lamictal and have gotten along fine with it; besides the insomia and my skin is really ichy with the lamictal.As for panic attacks, I haven't had a HUGE one since I got off of keppera.
However different people react to different drugs.
I hope that helps!
Hey! i've been on topamax and it didn't work with me. I've been on lamictal ever since i was diagonsed in 2004. Lamictal has worked for me, but they decided to put me on Keppra also. Together they have both helped me so much. I have a question though. Does anyone know how long you have to wait untill you can get your california drivers license? i know i have to be seizour free for a crtain time, but i don't know for how long. can anyone help?! oh, and i've had seizours for about 4 years. from 12-16. i had my first on super bowl sunday, go figure.
I guess all of this just goes to show ya - everyone is different and nobody can generalize how a drug will affect YOU. I took Topomax for about 2 years and was angry ALL THE TIME. I never slept through the night anymore, people stopped talking to me at work, I gained about 70 pounds - I'm surprised i stayed married; matter of fact, i almost didn't. When I started on keppra from neurontin, i started getting that angry feeling; found myself listening to angry head banger music again. told my dr. about it and he upped the dose!! now on 1000 2x per day and am doing fine. even able to turn off that really annoying VNS. still get irritable every once in a while, but know when to stand up for myself and when to walk away. all in all, much better than seizing. Karen
I was also diagnosed with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy 2 years ago, I'm now 23. But they originally started me on Depakote for about 3 weeks, I had such a bad reaction to that they took me off right away, and put me on topamax. I had no problems with it for a couple months, except that I had no appetite and I went from a size 10 to a 2 without even trying. And then I started with bad anxiety, and mood swings, and I also had the "dopamax" going on. I was wicked spacey and forgot everything, so after about a year I couldn't take the side effects anymore, so for the past year I've been on Keppra, I gained all my weight back, no more mood swings either, so side effects wise I feel 10 times better, the only crappy thing is that about 6 months ago I started having grand mal seizures, which they never thought I would have, I was supposed to outgrow this type of epilepsy, but I actually just had my 3rd gm 2 nights ago. So they just upped my dose of keppra and still no negative side effects, and i'm hoping that it will control the gm seizures. So that's my experience with the both meds. I hope it helps you.
I have taken both meds and neither of them worked out for me. I was diagnosed with complex partial epilepsy in August 07. I was put on Keppra in September of 07 about three weeks into it Keppra basically turned me into a violent person and I am very calm. I have heard it works for a lot of people, but I was not one of them. I personally would not recommend it. Topamax I have taken for about 4 months now and I am going to switch to another medication soon because I am extremely tired all day and have lost 25 pounds on it. (granted I am a 6'6" male, but I was faily skinny before I started taking it. I went from 205 to 180.) Because of Keppra I often forget to eat or don't want to at all and before ever having taking it I could and would eat more than any person me and any of my family or friends knew. They both had their down sides for me, neither one of them worked out. If I had to choose one I would go with Topamax definitely, because Keppra I nearly choked someone out in public who I knew fairly well and really didnt have anything against. Three weeks after stopping the Keppra I was hanging out, joking around with the same guy. Keep in mind that everyone is effected differently though. Hope this helped.
I have been on 400mgs Topamax for almost a year with very little change in my siezures the only thing that was good was I was loosing wieght like crazy because it stoped me from drinking soda. Because of the Topamax it makes it taste like Windex or like windex smells anway. My dr has now added Keppra 750mgs for 4 months it has lessened my siezures but has not stopped them. My dr wants more test first. amnisia the Keppera has seemed to shorten the time period of the amnisia if I have the siesure in the morning or before bed. I have not had an adverse reaction to either medication exceopt for when I was on 1000mgs of Keppra I felt like I was in a fog all day long. I was on it for more than a month and my body could not get use to it.