Weaning off Tegretol

[PSUgirl2009]

Anyone have any problems with weaning off Tegretol? I just rduced my dosage from 800mgs to 600mg (we are going 200mgs at a time til zero) and I have felt really nauseous and have even gotten sick a few times? Thoughts?

 

[CQ:)]

PSUgirl -
How long ago did you start weaning of the Tegretol? Are you replacing it with another med?
When I have a med change I usually allow myself at less 2 weeks for any side effects while my body gets used to the new doseage.

I am currently on Tegretol (200mg AM/PM) & Keppra (1000mg AM/PM). In March this year I went 12 months seizure free so my Neurologist & I discussed slowly taking me of one of my meds. We decided to reduce the Tegretol but we agreed it was best to do it slowly to reduce the risk of seizures. At the end of March I reduced my Tegretol from 400mg twcie a day to 200mg twice a day. The only side effects I had from lowering the Tegretol happened a week into the medication change - for a couple of days I had a niggling headache which hung around all day & for about 4 days I felt like I had no energy to do anything & felt really tired.

I saw my Neurologist in September & I think he would've reduced my Tegretol more but I was under alot of stress at the time so he didn't want to mess with my meds while I was so stressed. I go back to see the Neurologist in March so I am hoping he will reduce the Tegretol more lol.

 

[JustAnotherName]

I was on 200mg Tegretol (or the generic Carbamezepine) twice a day for 18 years. My doctor switched me from Tegretol to Keppra 500mg twice a day.

Since I was on a relatively small dose of Tegretol, my doctor had me start by taking 500mg of Keppra in the morning with my usual 2 daily doses of Tegretol for 2 days before adding on my evening dose of generic Keppra. I took generic Keppra 1000mg and Tegretol 400mg simultaneously for 5 days before cutting out the Tegretol completely.

It has been a week since I've taken Tegretol. There were a couple of days were I would be completely zapped and probably could have slept the day away, but I pushed through it. Severe fatigue has seemed to be my only withdrawal symptom.

It could also be a result of the Keppra generic. My doctor is putting me on pre-natals and folic acid to make sure I'm getting all the nutrients I need. I'm on a pretty high dose of Keppra for someone my height and weight. But it's working thus far, it seems.