Community Forum Archive
The Epilepsy Community Forums are closed, and the information is archived. The content in this section may not be current or apply to all situations. In addition, forum questions and responses include information and content that has been generated by epilepsy community members. This content is not moderated. The information on these pages should not be substituted for medical advice from a healthcare provider. Experiences with epilepsy can vary greatly on an individual basis. Please contact your doctor or medical team if you have any questions about your situation. For more information, learn about epilepsy or visit our resources section.
Problems with Depakote ER
Mon, 11/28/2005 - 18:33Topic: Medication Issues
My neurologist is taking me off Topamax after a year and has put me on Depakote ER. I'm now at 1000mg at night and down to 50mg of Topamax at night as well. I told my neurologist last week that after having my blood level tested and it coming back o.k, that I felt a little under par. Like I could feel one trying to happen, but hadn't had one. The neurologist wanted me to up my Depakote ER to 500mg in the morning and 1000mg at night.(I was taking 100mg of Topamax last week). So, I did that for 2 days and I had this swelling, almost numbing sensation around my eye on the left side. I looked up serious side effects, and swelling of the face is one of them. I stopped taking the extra 500mg in the morning, and of course we we out of town for Thanksgiving and when I called and explained the situation about the numbness and the swelling, and that I was by now having seizures(staring-petit mal) because Depakote isn't helping and Topamax is now down to 50mg, the doctor told me to take all the pills at night and see if that made a difference! It's a horrible feeling. It feels like my face if partially parialized or something. Has anyone else experienced any problems with this medicine? The 2 days that I took it, it just felt like the medicine was hitting the "needed" as well as the "unneeded" parts of my brain. Almost like it was making my brain hurt. I'm going to call again tomorrow and I have an appointment on Friday anyway. I feel like the doctor is sort of blowing this off. THanks for the advice..
Comments
Re: Problems with Depakote ER
Submitted by unicoideb on Thu, 2006-01-05 - 13:04
hi my name is debbie. first thing that comes to my mind is you need a new neurologist!!! if you are having a visible allergic reaction and he doesn't think you need to change, somethings wrong!!! i was on depekote for a while and while i didn't have any problems like that i started losing hair by the handfulls it was in the sink in the shower all over the floor and when i washed my hair it would come out in handfulls nonstop. i started getting noticeable bald spots and my hair was origanally very thick it became very thin and there was no sighn of it going away. if you feel something is wrong you need to trust your judgement if your dr. won,t listen get a second opinion. it is your quality of life your dealing with not theirs. hope this helps!!!
Re: Problems with Depakote ER
Submitted by Ssuuzzyy on Tue, 2006-01-03 - 16:45
My son started on 1000 mg nightly of Depakote ER in Nov 2005. It has stopped his seizures (he has juvenile myoclonic epilepsy). The only real side effects have been fatigue and increased appetite. No swelling or other problems. We just lowered his dosage to 750 mg nightly to address the fatigue problem. He is also having his carnitine levels tested because Depakote can lower those; if they are low he can take a supplement to increase his energy. 1500 mg of Depakote sounds like a lot, but everyone is different in the amount they need and based on the type of seizures they have. Good luck to you. I hope you find a dosage that works. Mom of 16 yr old boy diagnosed with JME in Nov 2005.