Neurontin and/or Lamictal causing twitches?

[watershedhead]

I generally just lurk around here, but I have a question. Actually, a couple of them.

I have daily (and I mean DAILY) migraines, complex partial seizures, and the rare tonic-clonic. I have not found one single anti-epileptic drug that does not give me major side effects.

I was first on Topamax (made me horribly dumb). I was taken off that and put on Keppra, which did not help my migraines and made me incredibly sleepy all the time. I'm on the road a lot for work, and I would drive the 4 hours to the site, but my partner would have to drive back to the office while I slept for four hours... this happened every day. It also killed my sex life; I was simply exhausted and was falling asleep by 8PM, even though I napped from 1-5PM every day. I asked to be taken off the Keppra and was put on Neurontin and Lamictal. Now, I'm not sleepy all the time, but I still have daily migraines. Also, my body has started to twitch. Im used to the occasional twitch like everyone has, once a week or so, but these are almost hourly. It's mostly my legs (it just happened for the second time since I started typing this post). I don't drink caffeine or eat sugar, so I'm wondering if this is yet another side effect (sigh). Has anyone else experienced twitches on either of these drugs?

For the migraines, I've also tried two different meds for acute symptoms, with horrible side effects both times. I first tried chewable Maxalt, which made me horribly nauseous--I vomited it up both times I tried it. Last weekend, I was out of town with my boyfriend and I got a migraine. He also has them and he takes injectable Imitrex. Probably wasn't a great idea, but I took one of those (we were about to leave to go to dinner with his family and I didn't want to miss it). You guys... I have never ever had such a weird reaction to a drug before. Within 30 seconds of the injection, I felt dizzy, nauseous, and sore. My brain LITERALLY felt like it was on fire. It burned so badly. You know that specific kind of sore you get in your cheek muscles when they're tired from chewing something really tough? It was like that, but x1000. I really, really thought I was going to die. I couldn't feel my throat and I couldn't talk. I put my Road ID on my wrist and prepared to be taken to the hospital. I tried to lie still and forget about it, and after about an hour it subsided. Anyway, has this happened to anyone else?

Sorry for the irrelevant questions. I'm not really sure whom else to ask about this kind of stuff besides my neurologist, but I don't have another appt. until next week.

Bless you if you read all that!

[Nakamova]

Hi watershedhead, welcome [officially] to CWE!

I haven't had any twitching on Lamictal. I can't speak to Neurontin, although I noticed that twitching is listed as a potential side effect for both meds.

Side effects listed for Imitrex include some of the ones you mention:

Most common:
Injection site reactions (including redness, pain, or swelling)
Abnormal sensations, including tingles, warmth or burning, pressure, tightness, or numbness
Bad or unusual taste in the mouth
Dizziness or a spinning sensation
Flushing (redness of the skin, especially the face)
Chest tightness or pressure
Weakness
Neck pain

Slightly less common:
Ear, nose, or throat discomfort
Drowsiness
Muscle pain or cramps
Anxiety
Abdominal pain (stomach pain)
Difficulty swallowing
Jaw pain
Sweating
Decreased salivation
Drowsiness

I don't know if it's an option for you, but you might want to look into neurofeedback for both your migraines and seizures.

Best,
Nakamova

[kostareyna]

I don't know if twitching is the same ay a myoclonic jerk(suddent like movenment) but if it is than both the drugs you mentioned neurontin and lamictal may cause jerkings or increase it.When i toke lamictal it certainitly increased my jerks until i stopped but that's not how it is for everyone..

Neurontin defenitly not reccomended for people with jerks

"Worsening of myoclonic jerks has been reported in some patients taking only Lamictal"

"Myoclonic jerks associated with gabapentin"

[Endless]

Hi, Watershed,

Welcome!

I can talk about the imitrex issue. I used to be on Imitrex (before anti-epileptic drugs). The injectible form was pretty intense for about 10-30 minutes after an injection. The already HORRIBLE headache I had would temporarily increase by a factor of 10+. It also felt like a 1000 lb gorilla was sitting on my chest and my heart pounded fast and hard. I'd throw up, my legs would get all wobbly, and my eyes would hurt. Then everything would get better. Then I'd fall fast asleep for a few hours.

What concerns me about your experience is the numb throat and inability to talk. Usually the first dose of Imitrex is done in your doctor's office, so the doc would be supervising. Have you talked to your doctor about your reaction? You should. Seriously.

In my experience, different forms of Imitrex have different severity of side effects, a different speed of when the drug starts to work, and different effectiveness.

Injectible works fast and best, strongest side effects
Nasal spray works a little slower and is a little less effective, side effects more mild
Pill works very slowly and doesn't work at all for some people, much milder side effects.

Hang in there with the migraines. They often go hand in hand with epilepsy.

[lovemyladybug]

welcome to CWE ! i have never taken neurontin , so nothing i cn tell you there , but i was on lamictal for years until just recently , and since coming off of it my hand doesnt jerk as much as it use to and my eyes dont twitch as much either , so lamictal was def having that effect on me , hopefully you find something for your migraines thats not so severe , that sounded awful

[watershedhead]

Thanks for your replies! I've tried reading up on this stuff but it seems like all the websites just copy and paste each other's information.

I'm not sure what a myoclonic jerk is. I read about people who have them dropping coffee cups and knocking things over, and this is nothing like that. They're smaller, but they have increased exponentially in frequency since I've started the Neurontin and Lamictal. I've been keeping count today at work and between 10AM and 1PM, I counted 18 twitches in my lower legs, knees, upper legs, upper arms, and one in my hand. It's so weird. o.o

[survivor]

Dear WSH, read ur post, got ur blessings! I have not been on drugs u mentioned, I have been on sod. valporate and phynetoin but experienced these jerks. I know these are horrible and irritate a lot. Most of them are such that others dont even know that we are experiencing anything, and this worsens the situation. My doctor reccomended me calcium supplement with VIt. E and I got rid of these jerks, which were often in the legs. But in my pregnancy they caused me so much of trouble that after the third month I had literally sleepless nights. So dear, kindly suggest ur doctor and u will be all fine.