Indigestion

[jemsister]

I started Vimpat about 5 days ago, 50 mgs 2x/day. Ever since yesterday, I have had horrible indigestion. It started about 20 minutes after taking my pills, and hasn't gone away since. It's worse after eating, of course, but even later when I'm hungry again, I still feel the pain and the feeling of food wanting to come up into the esophagus. It's painful in my lower esophagus/upper stomach (does that make sense? Up under the sternum) when I swallow--the same sort of feeling you get when you swallow a bite of food that's too big.

Could this have anything to do with the Vimpat? I'm on 4 meds right now--Trileptal, Lamictal, Dilantin, and Vimpat. I have been on Dilantin for about 3.5 weeks, and Lamictal for 3 or so months. Trileptal I have been taking for 8 years, but they have been trying (with little success) to wean me off of it due to sodium depletion. It went from adding Lamictal, then adding Dilantin as a stopgap while reducing the Trileptal, and now adding Vimpat with the intention of removing both the Trileptal and the Dilantin. Makes one feel like a lab rat in many ways, ha.

I have stomach issues in general--indigestion, heartburn, reflux, nausea, stomach pain, intestinal cramps, loose stools, hard stools--all of the above, pretty much, from top to bottom. So I can't say that I have never experienced this before. But what I haven't experienced is the indigestion lasting all day, and most especially lasting overnight and into the next day. That has never happened before.

I know I am on a huge cocktail right now (the four AEDs I mentioned, plus sodium supplements, prilosec, and zantac as needed), so maybe it's just my stomach rebelling from having to digest so much every day.

Any thoughts?

 

[Nakamova]

Indigestion and heartburn are listed as Vimpat side effects. Here's hoping they go away as you adjust to the med. If they don't, or get worse, let the docs know.

 

[jyearta]

Have you seen a gastroenterologist?

I just had EGD done, I have a lot of the same issues, The test showed I have an infection of the stomach and the esophagus. He told I can mag. this with watching my diet, (I love spiceee food)

I have found that Gaviscon is the only that helps in giving me relief.

 

[jemsister]

Bleh. Well, at least I know it's probably from that then. Thanks, Nak. I'll be keeping an eye on it.

 

[jemsister]

Have you seen a gastroenterologist?

I just had EGD done, I have a lot of the same issues, The test showed I have an infection of the stomach and the esophagus. He told I can mag. this with watching my diet, (I love spiceee food)

I have found that Gaviscon is the only that helps in giving me relief.

I need to see a gastroenterologist and have some tests done. I have all the same issues my dad has--have had them my whole life, just like he has. I sometimes wonder if I don't sometimes go through times when I have ulcers that heal on their own, because I'll go weeks at a time where I can't tolerate anything even remotely acidic without getting horrible pain. I think I probably have something like a combo of GERD and IBS. I'm on the lowest dose of Prilosec, but still need Zantac on top of that. Prilosec has helped though. Before taking it, I had to sleep with my upper regions elevated if I didn't want to wake up choking on stomach acid.

 

[jyearta]

Hear ya, acidic is another of the food group that I can't tolerate. I have notice a big improvement since I felt off all the food groups he told me to leave off.

Those food groups are caffeine, spice foods, acidic of course, butter.

Hope you find what is causing you all your problems.

 

[jemsister]

Generally, my stomach issues are exacerbated by rich/fatty foods. Some acidic foods irritate me, but mostly that only happens when I go through one of those blocks of time when I feel "ulcerish." Those are the times where I eat a really bland diet. =P Lots of toast, white meat chicken, and mild soups.