Topiramate first thing prescribed with no hesitation without discussing the side effects.

 I took Topamax for the first time as prescribed to do so by a dr. In the past i took Remeron, Ativan, and sometimes Depakote for anger issues. I recently went back to my dr. cause of a traumatic event that occurred and brought back all my depression, anxiety, and I haven’t been sleeping because reoccurring dreams which caused headaches.  I told him i don’t need Depakote my anger issues are stable and have been. The dr. suggested the new drug Topamax, because it can actually treat all three of my problems. In reality in the past I can take Ativan and Remeron before I go to be bed and wah la! The next day I would be fine no anxiety no depression and guess what no headaches from lack of sleep. But Topamax sounds like a great new wonder drug when the dr. explains it with no hesitation for prescribing it. Which makes me wonder is Topamax the next new big pharma drug like the Prozac craze that swept the nation and fattened the wallets of everyone but the patients whom it negatively affected? My curiosity got the best of me, and with some poking around and some amateur research this is what I recovered. Most of it came from inserts from health magazines and dr. articles as well as FDA reports and patients personals experiences.

 So before its patent expired in 2009, the seizure drug Topamax made Johnson & Johnson a billion a year and it still made $538 million a year after its patent expiration. Topamax was such a favorite for pain conditions in the military it was given the nickname “stupamax” for the way it slowed reaction times and impaired motor skills, attention and memory, not too great for combat.  www.alternet.org

 Topamax is an anticonvulsant drug approved for the treatment of seizures (epilepsy) in adults and children. It can be used alone, or in combination with other anticonvulsants. It is also approved for use in preventing migraine headaches in adults.

 While not approved by the FDA for other illnesses, Topamax has been tried and studied in the treatment of tremors, nerve pain, cluster headaches, eating disorders, alcohol dependence, and bipolar disorder (also known as manic-depression).  http://www.namihelps.org Topamax/PDF.

 Does Topamax really treat so many disparate conditions that doctors prescribe it for everything, even when it is not FDA approved for these conditions? I must add that Topamax is one of the most dangerous drugs in the prescription market today. ... Evidence is also accumulating that Topamax can cause brain damage!  http://www.hormonesmatter.com/topamax-drug-nine-lives/

 My question is do you treat people with depression with meds that can cause depression and is it like treating someone with a flu vaccine cause your treating it with a live virus? Topamax was prescribed for me for depression, anxiety, and headaches. Whenever I start a new Pharmacia drug that I know nothing about I often write down my side effects. But with Topamax it went a lot deeper than I attended to. Here are some of the side effects from their website:

Abdominal or stomach pain

fever, chills, or sore throat

lessening of sensations or perception

loss of appetite

mood or mental changes, including aggression, agitation, apathy, irritability, and mental depression

red, irritated, or bleeding gums

weight loss

 Back to the amount of money made from Topamax and why it is so ready for prescription. Even though being approved by the FDA only for seizures (epilepsy) and preventing migraine headaches in adults and may have been approved for weight loss.There are dangerous side effects caused by prescribing Topamax for other ailments.

 Why would you take an epilepsy seizure drug for pain? The same reason you'll take an antipsychotic for the blues and an antidepressant for knee pain: good consumer marketing. -- But it is still the darling of military and civilian doctors for unapproved pain and migraine. Topamax also has the distinction of looting $51 million from Medicaid last year despite a generic existing.

 All seizure drugs increase the risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors according to their mandated labels. An April article in JAMA found seizure drugs linked to 26 suicides, 801 attempted suicides, and 41 violent deaths in just five years. But yet I was prescribed one of them.

Also to add to it seizure drugs can make you lose your memory and your hair, say posters on the drug rating site askapatient.com

 And yet there is so much money to be made off the suffering of patients, my next question is how the dr. will react to my side effects and wanting to discontinue use? Will he say that’s a normal reaction and it will go away with time and continue treatment. I can see why he would suggest that cause after the two week mark I’m supposed to take 4 pills an hour before bed. Increase of dose is an increase in prescription equals increase in the wallets. But I have a hard time taking something that has not been approved by the FDA and especially because it’s been on the list of top15 dangerous prescription drugs.

My notable side effects from Topamax:

·         Numbness and tingled fingertips which prevent me to sleep, this was one the worse withdrawals symptoms I went through when i went cold turkey off of suboxone.

·         Agitated and irritable and sometime short fused

·         Watery eyes

·         Foggy head, problems with memory;  1985 i was given Ritalin and continued  all through college

·         Dry mouth and feeling dehydrated and somewhat lethargic 

·         My so called migraine moved to behind my left temple. I never had a problem with migraines it was caused by the lack of sleep recently. I took Depakote in the past for anger not for migraines.

·         Food and drinks taste weird

·         Lack of appetite

·         Abdominal discomfort                    

 These are the side effects so far after day one on Topamax will continue tomorrow and as the day progressed some got added.

 Again a reminder the only reason why I’m writing this is to keep my fingertips busy to avoid trying to chew them off. But my research only dove into the treating people with depression with Topamax and the adverse effects. I didn’t get into the dangers it has affected most in females especially pregnant females. But from my research consensus is that Topamax does help with migraines but on the other hand at times does nothing or even of reports of worsen.

 Oct 24/17 I took 50mg of Topamax at around 12am I was supposed to take 100mg but again I have problem taking something I know nothing about. I did fall asleep but not for long only for a few hours as I woke up with numbness and tingly fingertips which in the pass was one of my worse symptoms that prevented me from sleeping after going cold turkey from suboxone after 7yrs of taking. It usual takes at least 4-5 hours for that restless feeling to go away in my fingertips to finally fall back asleep but if you think about it I just wasted my day.

 I thought it was over around 10:45pm my entire body started over heating despite having a fan on me. I couldn’t get comfortable as I’m stripping down to my boxers. I also had immense pressure behind both eyes and that’s when the sharp abdominal pains started and lasted for some time. So what am I to do? I wanted this to end! As I lay in bed trying to get comfortable I look over as that bottle of Topamax stares at me. So I took 50mg hoping to get some relief even if it only for a few hours, but I have a feeling that my body is going to reject it like it did the night before. After taking it and 2 hours later with no effect, I took another 50mg in actuality what I am prescribed. Within a restless hour I fell asleep, but only to wake up again feeling some very familiar symptoms. I felt like I was going through some of the horrors of opiate withdrawal. My back felt like it was sunburnt and tingly, my body ached, and to add on the side effects from earlier. Again after a few restless hours it subsided and I was able to fall asleep but I wasted my day. I have so much pressure behind my eyes and basically my whole head which is making me miserable. This is only from two days of taking this wonder drug and supposedly in two weeks an increase of dosage like a person whom is tolerant to their pain meds.

 So is this drug being treated like a person who is prescribed or addicted to painkillers? People on painkillers and most opiate addicts achieve a tolerance where it has no more effect on them and have to up they’re intake. I personally spending much of my life in the restaurant business and witnessing firsthand the cycle of drug’s especially painkillers and its high-end price tag. Topamax is very similar to opiate painkillers when dealing with dopamine to which they both affect GABA, what is GABA? Webmd.com says states; GABA is a neurotransmitter that blocks impulses between nerve cells in the brain. Low levels of GABA may be linked to: Anxiety or mood disorders. Epilepsy. Chronic pain.

 My question is why dr.’s increase the dosage of Topamax as weeks goes on as if we build a tolerance to the drug and the healthy price tag that comes with Topamax. It’s not easy finding that answer, but what I’m finding is the misuse for the drug. This justifies my beliefs on the concern about the money made and not the sanity of the patients prescribed.

I’ve only just started!!!!

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