Lamictal for Teens W/ Mood Swings... Possibly Bi-polar?

Hi Christi,

I am Bipolar 2 and have been on Lamictal over 2 yrs I have tried Topomax. Nerountin and a couple of others. If your daughter is Bipolar 1 they always give Lithium. She won't get it if she is Bipolar 2. Anyone that has Bipolar 2 would also be on anti-depressants like the lady said in another posting we are mainly on the depressed side. I disagree with the lady that said it makes you emotionless you are just normal except you aren't sitting there crying and being sad all the time. If you have any questions you can email me at ____@____.com

Jen

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There is a lot of recent evidence that Bipolar 2 may be a type of seizure and treatment with anti-seizure medication is often the first thing they try. If it helps, then it is a good thing. My teenage daughter has similar issues and while we havent tried Lamictal I would do whatever it takes to help her. There are some dangerous side affects with Lamictal so they usually start with a very low dose to see if there is any rash before slowly raising the dose. I know some people will say that you shouldn't medicate your child but they aren't in your situation. Trust yourself to do what is best for your child. You know them best and love them most.

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Hi there
while I don't have exp with this medication, I have read numerous articles in regards to depression and how a change in diet can help dramatically, such as taking sugar and gluten and white flour out of the diet. before going the traditional medicine route, any chance you can look into alternatives? if you type in depression on the net and diet, much comes up.. there are people out there like Gary Null and many others who have been studying this for years, he even has a website. it's worth a try. I believe diet plays a major role. good luck to you :)

Hmmm... my granny took this medication after her stroke to help prevent another one or seizures. I'd do some research on it. The standard treatment for Bipolar disorder is Lithium. I would be open to discussing some natural treatments for your child once given more information if you would like. :)

I have been on lamictal myself. I loved how it mellowed out my moodswings however I did not like how groggy and sleepy I was all the time. I ended up stopping it because of that.

Being bipolar I have tried lots of medications. So far Ability has been my best bet. I love it. However every medication will work differently for every body chemistry.

Good luck on finding out if they are bipolar and then finding the right drug cocktail for your child. Be careful on getting them labeled as biplar so early. Give them a chance to work it out send them to counseling. Do what ever.. but be careful. Labels fallow a person for the rest of their life.

Good luck. Feel free to ask me anything.