Posted by SLS on July 8, 2008, at 7:47:20
In reply to Lamictal - Strange heartbeat/Anxiety, posted by mjbogdanov on July 8, 2008, at 6:44:51
> I have been on Lamictal for several weeks at 50 mgs.
> I have tried to go up but get agitated and cannot sleep. The problem I am having though is that my heartbeat feels labored, especially when I am lying down or when I get up from a reclining position. At that point my heart just pounds, not particularly fast but hard. It seems to be pounding harder than normal, again not particularly quickly. I have had a hard time to describe it to my pdoc but he is certain that it isn't Lamictal because it's not a typical side effect. They think I should 'work it out' in therapy citing some well reasoned notion that my body has learned to react to meds and I have to 'unlearn' it (sounds a little nuts to me but I'm trying to be open-minded and not over-react.) I have been very med-sensitive in the past and there is arguement as to whether I am bipolar. I am terrified and am not sure what to do. I have had some reasonably good response to the Lamictal but now the anxiety is creeping in and I am concerned about heartbeat stuff. Any thoughts?? They did send me for an EKG but that is a 30 second reading and can't tell one much. Does anyone think this is a metabolism issue?No. You might be experiencing dysautonomia. This is a condition of an imbalance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems of the autonomic nervous system. In the case of depression, there is too much sympathetic (fight or flight) and too little parasympathetic (feeding, sex, calmness). It is possible that you are experiencing what I believe is an exaggeration of the depressive dysautonomia that might occur as one is beginning to improve. It is a sort of window that one passes through on the way to remission. I would continue to go up to 200mg as quickly as your doctor will allow you to.
1. Difficulty urinating
2. Dry mouth
3. Clenching teeth
4. Heart palpitations
5. Accelerated heart rate
6. Tremulous hands (shaking)
7. Constipation
8. Heart burn
9. AnxietyWhich of these are you currently experiencing?
If you are experiencing most of these, I would give these symptoms time to pass as your system begins to reregulate itself as the result of passing through this window of dysautonomia. It is a positive antidepressant response that exaggerates the state of depressive vegetative symptoms. You might be on your way to remission. 200mg is the "sweet spot".
Does any of this make sense to you?
- Scott
poster:SLS
thread:838791
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20080706/msgs/838795.html