discountinue my meds ?

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vapour

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Hi everyone. Kinda feeling discouraged right now.

Just over a month ago I was rushed to the ER with a seizure Ive never had before, and since my lamictal was upped to 300mg a day and 900mg of neurontin 3x a day was started.

Anyway as time has gone on the last month ive been getting better and better gradually. Time between myoclonic seizures are getting longer and longer. At first after hospital I was having them everyday.. but now i might not have one for 4 days.

Anyway, basically I dont have medical insurance. Generic neurontin which ive been getting is only roughly $25 for the month, my emergency med diazepam is $10 a month... and then....I found out generic lamictal (so far been on samples about to run out) is $250 a month !!

So im kinda bummed that just as things were starting to stabilize I find this out. I cant afford to see neuro since I have a bill to pay from the ER, ive lost 2 days work due to the economy... so I called and asked if he could just give me something similar to lamictal and fax it through to the pharmacy.

Anyway, he said he has to see me... that means.. Im going to go quite some time on only the neurontin.. so who knows whats going to happen...but I amstill wondering if there is a substitute ? I was given lamictal for partial seizures.

At this point, Im wondering whether I should just dis-continue medication and treatment altogether.. because all this stuff seem to be a never ending process, and I just want it to end.
 
no, don't

discontinue the meds........there are ways to pay for the meds, and asking for the samples, too.

As a matter of fact, I looked this up for someone else yesterday, and still had the window open........so go check out these links, they should help you some.

http://www.coping-with-epilepsy.com/forums/search.php?searchid=55401

I do understand what you're saying about the costs.......my copays are not cheap, but the cost without them are ABHORRENT. And there's no way I can get around without them, either.

Yes, there are diets, the GARD, MAD, LGIT and ketogenic.........all should be seriously considered. Some, like myself are actually celiacs because of the E....and seriously lactose intolerant as well. Talk to your doc about that, too.

In the meantime, check out the links, see what you can do, and have your doc help you out. If they're not willing to help you out, it's time to go doctor shopping.........Remember, YOU PAY THEIR SALARY

Take care,

Meetz
:rock:
 
agree with meet....the cost can REALLY suck....

what's sucked for me is that I get soem samples, but then have to pay for a month supply...but then i have another seizure, change meds, and have 3/4 of a bottle left of meds i cant' use anymore....

The one thing i've been doign that my work supllies is the medical account, basically, I put a certain amount of money into it tax free. I pay for my meds out of it. One thing to be careful of is that I cant' take out anything that's still in at the end of the year. So it's good, but have to be careful with it. But hey, saves me some money.
 
Vapour, NEVER just quit your meds. Not unless you WANT the seizures to come back stronger and more frequently. If you quit the meds, and then have another seizure, there's no guarantee that the meds that work for you now will stop the new seizure. I know it's tempting...and the meds are a pain in the butt....but you have to stay on the meds unless you get a doc that wants to try alternative therapies. That being the case, they can work with you to get stuff set up so that your not just left hangin. Right now, I would go ahead and go see the neuro. Yes, it's expensive, and yes you have bills, but honestly, it's for your own good. And wouldn't you rather pay a small bill for a doc visit instead of the cost of an emergency room visit?? So go see the neuro. Be honest with him about your finances. Maybe he can help you out. Heck, once your on a med, contact the company that makes the med and tell them what's happening with your finances and see if they can provide you with the med at a lower cost.
 
Bridges to Access

I am also taking Lamictal and it is VERY expensive, I agree! But they also have a patient assistance program called Bridges to Access that provides it for free if you meet their income requirements. Call them at 866-728-4368.
 
If there is any chance that this is going to happen, boost every other therapy that you can find to reduce your seizures. Nutrition, CBT, relaxation, sleep, exercise...
 
Vapour:
re: your wanting to stop meds , especially considering that you get myoclonic seizures i really don't think it's a good idea (i tried it and landed up in status epilepticus). If you have been diagnosed with JME then it is a contraindication to even think about stopping meds (though you can reduce the dosage gradually , but not stop drugs ever). I don't know how effective the other therapies are with regard to JME in particular. if you do not have JME , you need to be seizure free at least 2 years before you can approach your neuro and check if you can taper off the meds (knowing neuros, they're likely to pooh pooh your requests untill you are seizure free).
Re: your financial issues , i really don't know much about your health care system there , so maybe i'm not the best person to respond.
Anyhoo , hope you get better (and med free , if possible) soon!
 
Gotta agree with Skille on this one...never just discontinue your meds! It causes more seizures! Work on the other therapies that are out there as Robin pointed out. There are also some great books (Treating Epilepsy Naurally, Epilepsy--A New Approach) which could guide you on your journey.

Hang in there.---LMT
 
Don't QUIT the meds!!!!

I really know how horrible the first while can be with the meds, and how tempting it is to quit. Especially when you cannot afford it.

You will not go back to "how you were before". That is gone. But you will find a stable point one day. It can take a while, and doctors like to "monitor" you on a drug for what seems like ages before they make any decisions. If you want to make any changes, if you want him to try something cheaper, then you need to be bossy. I actually told a neuro once, straight out, that he could give me a new med or not but when I left his office I was never taking my current one again. He gave me the new med (works great - still taking it 7 years later).

No matter how much it costs, no matter how much the money pinches, find a way to see the neuro and get through this time. It will get better. You will get through. There is a light at the end of the tunnel.
 
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