does anyone else get double vision.. worried

[vapour]

Hey.

About 2 months ago I started to get double vision. When I get it I also start to get very very sluggish in my speech and feeling spacey and weak.

It wont stop unless I lay down and close my eyes .. or fall asleep.

It will go on for hours...

I was told I was on too high dose of tegretol at first. Then I was told it was an interaction between the tegretol and lamictal, but im wondering if its a new seizure sign.

Reason I wonder this, is because yesterday when it happened I had been at a pet convention all day helping a friend. I had not slept the night before and there was alot of noise, movement and strobe lights (had already had alot of twitching)

Anyway. If anyone knows .. please respond.

Also. Just to let you all know.. I might not be online for a while and its not for bad reasons. Since I was in the hospital for a bipolar episode I lost my job and place I was living...

I havnt been doing good as far as functioning so my psychiatrist has brought in a team of people to help me, and I will be moving into a house tomorrow for people with mental health issues. They help you function better, and help you to get back on your feet.. find a job and get back in your own apartment again. .. Not sure how long I will be there....OR if they have internet access.

 

[carlos.fonke]

Yes, I get double vision sometimes and I'm on Carbatrol (time-released Tegretol). I know it isn't caused by my seizures. It's the medication.

The double vision is impossible to predict, but I suspect it happens when my blood level is high. It happens when I haven't had enough sleep and when I get too much caffeine. It also happens - in spades! - when I've taken my medication too early.

I now take it as a warning sign of one of these conditions - not enough sleep or too much caffeine - than anything else.

Of course, I can't say it isn't for some other reason for you but I suspect it's the Tegretol.

Most often, it happens when I've skipped a meal. Are you eating enough and regularly?

Edit: Also, it happened for you when you hadn't slept the night before. It's hard to predict for me, but if I went a night without sleep I'm almost certain I would be seeing double.

 

[RobinN]

When Rebecca was taking Tegretol she had vision problems. She did not drink caffine, and was still young enough to be getting a decent amount of sleep. It occurred many times when she got up quickly from a seated position. Other times we weren't able to figure why it occurred. It was even considered that she might be having mini strokes. She had a test called a MRA. Shows more of the vascular system in the brain.

It occurred without warning and sometimes lasted a couple of days.

Her neurologist did not agree that it was connected to the medication, but when we eliminated it from her system, she never had this side effect again.

 

[Duvexy]

When I was taking Carbazapene which is the generic Tegretol I did have problems with my vision and vertigo from time to time. I am no longer taking it and I have improved on this. I still do have eye problems but, not as bad as I was getting with Tegretol. I do not like Tegretol. I would get rashes and vertigo.

 

[Endless]

Going off lamictal I had terrible eye problems. Everything looked wavey, cloudy, and when I moved too quick double vision. Be sure to tell your doc, so he/she can rule out anything too serious, and adjust your meds if needed.

 

[RobinN]

Sometimes telling the doctor isn't enough. When I told Rebecca's doctor he told me it wasn't the drug causing it. I mentioned that it was listed as a side effect, and then he snapped at me and said, "So what do you want me to do about it?". I trusted him for a while longer, then I told him I was going to taper her off of that drug.

Sometimes you have to stand up for yourself and tell them what is acceptable and what isn't. They don't live in your body / shoes, day to day. That side effect was not acceptable to me or to Rebecca. Being able to see is rather important in my mind.