Any seizure meds that HELP sleep?

[elizzza811]

I have a 'generalized seizure disorder', seizures that I'm assuming start out as simple partials and spread into complex partials. I'm definitely having both seizure types though.

I'm currently on Week 2 of Lamictal - 25mg twice a day - and my sleep (which was already bad) is getting even worse - so bad that I'm actually starting to wonder (and worry) that maybe the way Lamictal works is by preventing drowsiness and sleep, since most of my seizures occur in that state? By preventing me from ever sleeping again, I'm 'cured' of my seizures?

To describe my sleep issues, as soon as I lay horizontally, my jaw clenching symptoms go up immediately (though they are always there to some degree). It feels as if there are two 'magnets' located in my lower jaw or lower teeth, c-o-n-s-t-a-n-t-l-y trying to 'connect' with something located above....my upper jaw/teeth? my brain?...I'm not sure what. I never relax my jaw anymore, and my lower teeth are visibly sawed-down from the constant clenching. Often times I also experience pressure at the base of my skull with this symptom.

These symptoms are annoying though, so I toss and turn...and sweat on and off. Even if my eyes are closed, I remember the entire night, constantly changing position, staring at the insides of my eyelids, or glancing at the moon all night long...so definitely very 'restless'.

Just wondering which seizure meds might work on my types of seizures and might help me sleep for a change? Thanks!

[valeriedl]

Have you talked to your dr about this? That may be some sort of seizure that you are having (not sure thought).

I've been on several different meds and dosages. There was one med that I was on where all I did was sleep, sorry I can't remember what it was though, I've been on so many. The neurologist actually had to take me off of it because I wasn't eating or anything, I would just stay in bed all the time and sleep. I think I lost around 20lbs, that's when they decided to take me off of it.

I know it's hard trying to go through all the different meds trying to find one that works for you. You may even try asking for some type of medicine to help you sleep until things get straightened out.

[elizzza811]

Thanks - was it Klonopin by any chance? Because I was on Klonopin for years, and that definitely made me sleepy. But I definitely don't want to go on that one again because I was dependent on it. In fact, when I stopped the medication, that's when these seizures started.

I did tell my neurologist that I was having trouble sleeping though, and Lamictal is what she chose? Just wondering what my other options are for simple/complex/generalized seizures...if anybody here knows?

[valeriedl]

I've been on so many different meds that I've lost track of them. I'm almost positive I was on Klonopin but I don't know if that was the one that made me sleep.

I am on Lamictal now. I usually have to take a nap in the afternoon but I don't know if it's because of that because I'm on Tegretol and Keppra too.

Hope someone has some good advice for you.

[momof3boys]

When my dr tried me on Lamictal, the lack of sleep is one of the side effects I had from the medication. I started the Lamictal in April, and by the first week of May, I was having an allergic reaction (swollen lymph nodes, and sores around my mouth area). But one of the first side effects I saw from starting the medication was not being able to get to sleep. I would lay in bed til at least 3am and just toss and turn all night long. It was like my brain was not tired, but my body felt exhausted. I was finally able to sleep, but with my kids waking up early, I always felt so tired because I got only a few hours of sleep each night. Once I quit taking the Lamcital, all that changed and I finally got to have a good nights rest.

I was on Keppra and Carbatrol for 12 years prior to my dr dropping the Carbatrol, and switching me over to the Keppra XR. The reason he tried me on the Lamictal, was because he cold turkey'd be for a video EEG, and put me back on the Keppra XR, but I was having complex partial seizures soon after I was put back on the Keppra XR, which I now know was due to my levels being too low and not being where they should be. Once I was on the Keppra XR, and my levels got to where they should be, all that changed and I didnt have no more seizures. But during that time period my dr tried me on two different medications... Vimpat and Lamictal. Both didnt work for me. Have you tried Keppra for your seizures?

[bgoodcci]

I'm not an expert on these things but as I looked at all the posts about different meds and doctors a couple things came to mind. One is a drug my daughter was on called Topamax (or Topiramate) that is for both seizures and anxiety. She was actually having more of an anxiety issue at the time. The other is a doctor recommendation, do with it what you will. I feel my doctor is one of the best neurologists ever.


Reposting the info on my neurologist:

Two of us have seen her and she seems really good.

Pamela Santamaria
4242 Farnam St, North Tower Doctors Building, Suite 655,
Omaha, NE 68131
402-552-2650

[Loopy Lou]

Well, i seem to be sleeping an awful lot more since i started Tegretol, and i'm still only on 200mg a day at this moment in time. It'll be fun next week when i go to 400mg, i'll probably spend most of my time sleeping!

Well, so long as i can drag my bum to work, it'll be fine. After months of insomnia, i'm quite happy to get some sleep.

[elizzza811]

Hmmm? Thanks! I'll keep those meds in mind. My insomnia is severe and ongoing, so if need be, I might ask this neurologist to add something to the mix...one of those drugs perhaps?

[Cint]

I took Lamictal years ago, along with another anti-epileptic drug, I don't remember which one at the moment. I don't recall insomnia, but I was soooo drugged at the time for seizures.

Here's what www.drugs.com list as side effects:

Less serious Lamictal side effects may include:

dizziness or drowsiness;
blurred vision;
dry mouth, stomach pain, upset stomach;
loss of coordination;
back pain;
weight loss;
menstrual pain;
sleep problems (insomnia); or
runny nose, sore throat.

[elizzza811]

Thanks. I have noticed a few episodes of loss of balance and runny nose since starting Lamictal, though it's too early to tell if it's from the Lamictal or not. The insomnia though might be the Lamictal, or as crazy as it sounds, it might be the 'funky Space Weather electrons' we've been experiencing lately. I'm still trying to figure out which one it is.

I have a thread going on Solar and Geomagnetic activity and seizures, and I check Space Weather websites daily, every day, and I do notice that nights when the electron flux 'dips' and goes crazy, I always sleep lousy...tossing, turning, and sweating. Last night was another horrific night for me (July 2, 2011), but the night before (July 1, 2011), I slept fairly good.

Check the Satellite Environment Plot 'Electron Flux' graph below. Notice the dips last night?

http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/today2.html

[Cint]

Notice the dips last night?

Nope. Last night I slept all night, whereas the night before I tossed and turned all night and yesterday morn I woke with an awful headache, due to a low pressure system coming our way. Sure enough, we had thunderstorms yesterday afternoon.

[elizzza811]

I actually have trouble with thunderstorms, too, so you can be skeptical. But you can ask my boyfriend...sometimes I am wrong about 'what' exactly has changed solar and geomagnetic-wise on those 4 websites I check daily...was there an electron flux for the first time in weeks? did the sun's dynamic pressure drop to zero and neutral and remain there for more than a couple of hours? did the electron flux go crazy on the Satellite Environment plot graph? was there a magnetic filament on the sun for several days that finally erupted? was the geomagnetic field 'unsettled', as indicated by yellow or red bars on the graph?...

...but rarely am I wrong that something, and usually something major, has changed - and I've been checking these websites daily for years, not just one day. I don't know how to explain it, but I am able to feel these changes. Specifically, I feel them by how well (or poorly) I sleep. I feel them in my knees (knee pain and 'cracking'). And I feel these changes mostly in these sensations I experience in my lower jaw (which is what usually prevents me from sleeping in the first place).

In fact, sometimes holding a stack of strong magnets in between my fingers lessens these jaw pulling sensations somewhat (rarely enough though to sleep). And it's not always the north side of the magnet that helps, so I know it's not just wishful thinking. And these are strong magnets, not refrigerator magnets - I have 4 of them stacked together and cannot separate them myself.

Space Weather Now:
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/SWN/index.html

Todays Space Weather:
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/today2.html

Space Weather Archives (Click on 'Currently in Effect):
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/alerts/archive.html#2006

Space Weather - Sunspot Page:
http://spaceweather.com/