Posted by JohnX2 on May 8, 2002, at 0:04:12
In reply to Re: JohnX2's comment on Lamictal headache?, posted by james on May 7, 2002, at 2:15:21
> John,
> I don't understand. I thought Lam was an anti-convulsant, not an SRI? What is the connection?
> I'm interested also because I have suffered from headaches and jaw clenching type stuff on and off for a long long time. But it was always hard to figure out if it was due to any of the many meds I was on at the time, stress, need for a stronger prescription for my glasses, or the possibility I have inherited my mother's TMJ. I've learned to live with it, I'm just curious to know if it is possibly due to the 200 mgs of Lam I am on. Thanks, and sorry for sort of butting in on the topic at hand here.
>
> --JamesNo problem.
I did a little research and found some abstracts indicating
that lamictal may have serotonergic properties.I posted a few links about this a week or 2 ago.
Hope you feel better.
FYI, medication induced tension headaches may be due
to hyper-dopaminergic or hypo-dopaminergic states in an
area of the brain. For SRIs like Zoloft or Effexor, etc
the increase in serotonin dampens dopamine receptors that
inhibit facial muscle spasms.
Other people who take prolonged use of psychostimulants
like Adderall may also get tension headaches/bruxism.
I actually found that Adderall relieved my headaches
(consistent with hypo-dopaminergic state).Medicines that block the serotonin 5ht-2a are also good for tension
headaches (this indirectly increases dopamine). Serzone has
been a good medicine to alleviate my headaches.Also GabaA medicines like Topamax and Klonopin have also
alleviated the headaches.Buspar may help also (it slows hyperactive serotonin firing).
But like you said, it could be other things like TMJ, some
sensitivity at a particular nerve, etc. It was just in my case
that there was ?sorta? a clear association on the serotonin side.John
poster:JohnX2
thread:105265
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020503/msgs/105528.html