How Long Do Topamax Side Effects Last? (Page 10) (Top voted first)

I began Topamax a week and a half ago as a migraine prevention. I am experiencing random facial, hands, and feet numbness. Mental fogginess, dull headaches, and tiredness. For those of you who have had success with migraine prevention and have taken this medication for a long time: How long did your side effects last? I have heard only a few weeks. I'm not sure If I can deal with this constantly much longer. I am contemplating which is the lesser of the two evils side effects vs. migraines. I have lost 10 lbs. though. Any advice?

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Re: FiFi (# 156)

Hello FiFi did your tinnitus ever gonway after the Topamax?

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Re: Posted b4 but cant remember nickname (# 122)

hi, i know this was an old post but did your tinnitus ever go away after getting off topamax, how long were you on?

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Re: AlaskaMom (# 159)

Hey! Did your topamax induced tinnitus ever go away?

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Re: Vampykitten (# 166)

hello, did there ringing in your ears from topamax ever go away?

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I started Topamax close to 5 years ago now. I've been on so many doses I couldn't even begin to tell you what they were. Right now I'm on 100mg a day. I'm writing this in hopes to find some answers. Since the beginning I definitely have the brain fog, it would get so bad I wouldn't remember how I got home from work. I've had the bad taste in my mouth, couldn't drink soda. I have the pins and needles in my hands and feet. Now I have new things happening that I'm not sure is my medicine or not and I'm curious to see if it has happened to anyone else. Currently I'm suffering from severe Raynaud's Syndrome. Cold is extremely painful, and it's getting to the point where I can't move. When my hands do warm back up they will get hot, painful and swell. I also have a swollen lymph node in my armpit with no explanation. It seems to hurt and swell more when I have these "cold flare ups". My doctor ran tons of tests and found nothing wrong. In my body I know something is wrong to be in this much pain. Anyone have anything similar?

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Re: Confusednscared (# 31)

I have been where you are. I was on Topomax for less than a month. I expected the tingling sensations but not the anxiety, nervousness, loss of appetite, and panic feelings. After only 4 days on the medicine, I lost my ability to swallow. I had weighed only 108 lbs before taking Topomax, and now I was weighing 98 ( at age 68). I stopped taking Topomax, but the side effects continued. The doctors told me the symptoms should be gone after a week, but they weren’t. I was finally hospitalized where all types of tests were done on my esophagus. They found nothing wrong. The ENT also found nothing wrong. I am in therapy now because of the anxiety and panic. In the hospital a PEG feeding tube was placed, so I am slowly gaining my weight back.
I hope that swallow therapy will help me.

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I took my son to the er and they saw his confusion restlessness he couldnt even remember the day or his birthday. They looked into both of the meds he was taken and said that the intuniv may cause seizures so they took him off both meds and put him back on geodon 40mg at night and said that for his age he was taking to much which will cause him to always be tired and took him off the intuniv and reffered me to another psychiatrist. So through the night I continued to monitor him through the night and he had a few twitches but he did sleep all night. Thank you for the advice both of you.

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Heidi FYI EVERY MED HAS SIDE EFFECTS DEAR!! IF YOU GET CRAMPS AND TAKE IBUPROFEN THERE ARE S/E WE ALL KNOW THIS... AS A SUFFERER YOU OUT WEISS THE GOOD AND BAD, I HOPE SOME DAY YOUR NOT IN THIS PREDICAMENT UNTIL THEN DO NOT JUDGE PEOPLE

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I am now weaning off of my beta blocker (cardicor) as well. Was put on it to stop pulpitations but it caused horrible headaches and interaction with my other medication. Just beware that the day you want to come off of it, you wean off slowly. 6 weeks. I was advised by 1 doctor to just leave it and then by another doctor to wean off in 2 weeks. Ended up in ER with unstable blood pressure. It would go really high and really low. Was told to take it real slow by a paramedic because a beta blocker stops your heart from taking in additional adrenaline, etc. And the moment you leave it too quickly, your heart cannot cope with all the additional adrenaline. You can give yourself a heart attack. I have some side effects like muscle cramps in my neck, my fingers and toes feels like the first time blood is flowing to them. My bloodpressure has atleast stabilised. Just remember to take it slow. I am down from 4 tablets to 2 and am determined to leave those as well. It was a nightmare to get off but taking it really slow helped..

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i've been fighting with migraines for years. I was on Pamelor for a while but developed a tremor from it and the neurologist took me off it. I still have a bit of a tremor. Right now i'm on 200 mg on Topamax and i get tingling mostly in my feet ( and i've developed an aversion to carbonated drinks - lost 30 lbs too - but no ones complaining about that one!) I still get hit with migraines - probably 1 week as opposed to crying myself to sleep almost nightly because there was no relief before the topamax. But I also have fiorocet to use as a rescue med for the bad times.

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Hi, Allison! I've been taking Topamax 200 mg. Per day to prevent Migraines. I have been on many prophylaxis in the past and Topamax, Cymbalta and amitriptyline have been a great combo. Is it possible that the side effects are from migraines? I routinely get numbness etc when I actually have a migraine, particularly if it lasts a long time. I did have increased sleepiness and fog. That lasted about a month for me. For me, no contest!! I'll choose the Topamax!

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I have chronic migraine. I have had this condition since I was was a young child. I earned a degree in psychology over my curiosity and need to learn more. My doctor put me on the generic topamax. It caused my head to hurt immediately. He then put me on amitriptyline instead. My life is so much better. Now i have like one migraine a month where before was around five a week. My doctor sent me to a new neurologist who put me on topamax and to continue with the amitriptyline as well. I take promithazine and imatrex as needed. I take 800 mg three times a day as needed. I am reading these side effects and how some never go away. I will discuss with my doctor. Neurologist states that thinks do get better. I am trying to pick my battles.

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If it were me, I would stop taking the drug and look for a natural solution for your migraine headaches.

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My prayers are with you, your family and your brother. Keep fighting every hour of every day for your brother and his life. You have RIGHTS! HE has rights! Don't let ANYONE tell you otherwise. You also have the right to remove him and take him home into YOUR CARE. As long as you continue to get him the psychiatric and medical care he needs and deserves. They MUST give you information on his condition and if I were you, I would take as many family members with me as possible on my next trip to the hospital. Strength in numbers! DO NOT BACK DOWN. HE NEEDS YOU! Now more than ever...good luck and Godspeed

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I was on Topamax for 12 years for horrible miagranes. I started at 25mg and was at 100 before tapering off at the end of May. I had horrible side effects from this drug. The tingling sensation eventually left after some years, but I still have concentration problems and problems forgetting words mid sentence. Due to this fact, I am a hermit in my own home and I refrain from conversation because I feel so dumb. Since I have stopped the medication I have not had a menstral cycle. Its been a month and going on two weeks now. I am wandering if anyone else has experienced this? The topamax did help my miagranes and the reason for tapering off was because my neurologist stated I had been on the drug for a while with no miagranes and it was no use to keep taking the drug and experiencing the side effects.

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You say said lessor of two evils. Your post is dated 2011. I believe you chose best which would be to have gone off the drug.

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i started to take topamax for a migraine 25 mg at the morning, 25 mg at night.. after two days i felt really tired. i slept 20 hours and still want to go for more...

then i decided to go online and i read about others experiences..i freaked out everyone felt the same as me...tingling in the brain, in the fingers, the toes, blurry vision, difficulty to do sports...

if i put in the balance have a migraine every week against numbing my mind with a drug that will made me slower, stupid and has many many other effects i would definitely go for the migraine. Then i read this is an anti epileptic drug !!!,,,and not just that they use it to treat bi polar disorders, alcoholism, bulimia...guys we just have migraines...imagine how this drug mess with your brain if it is able to treat those conditions...what are neurologist thinking!!! ..i had imagine that this drug was a month drug to take and migraine solve, but apparently you have to take it for years!! years of brain poison!!

And for migraines there is a study of sense neurologist that say that you have to take 800 mg of magnesium and 400 mg of vitamin B2 each day and you will be better.
HOW a migraine can be put at the same level of really brain messed up disorders...it's not that and all of you, i bet, know it...

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I did not have problems until they increase my dosage to 75 milligrams doctor would not call me back so I took myself off to 75 with that got a 50 problems with away 1 of the problems is the half-life of this medicine is 19 to 20 hours

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Before starting any medication you should be informed. If the doctor did not do that, do it yourself! Read labels as all prescriptions have the side effects attached. There is also more information than you can possibly consume available on the web! No one can blame anyone but themselves if they do not ask questions, read labels or research prior to starting any medication. Side effects are pretty much displayed and spelled out in black and white. If you choose not to do these things please do not play the woe is me card. Ignorance truly is bliss when you have control over what you are putting in your mouth!

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