When you deal with any sort of mental illness, you’ll hear the same five canned responses on loop. “It’s all in your head”, “Everyone feels like that sometimes”, “You’re making it up”, “Have you tried exercise/prayer/yoga/meditation”, and worst of all, “You don’t look like you’re mentally ill”.
None of these responses help in the least, and many can exacerbate existing symptoms. However, one thing that can help your symptoms is medication. One of the many medications prescribed to treat various disorders is Lamictal.
What is Lamictal? How much does it cost? What does it treat? Can you expect any side effects? These questions and more, we will answer below.
What is Lamictal?
First things first, what is Lamictal? Lamictal is the brand name of the drug known as lamotrigine.
It is an anticonvulsant tablet used to treat seizures and aid in the treatment of mood disorders. Though it was completed and approved to treat seizures in 1994, it didn’t see much use in the wider market until its approval to treat bipolar disorder in the year 2003.
What Conditions does Lamictal Treat?
As we mentioned above, Lamictal is an anticonvulsant. As such, it tends to get prescribed to handle disorders where seizures play a major role. Primarily, it sees use in tandem with other medications to treat epileptic seizures.
However, it also helps to treat patients who deal with bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, OCD, and other chronic mental illnesses. One of the most fascinating Lamictal properties is its ability to delay the onset of depressive or manic phases in those with bipolar disorder.
Pushing out the onset of those cycling moods can reduce impulsive behavior and help someone with bipolar disorder better manage their condition. So, if you’re wondering, “Do I need Lamictal?”, research your chronic illnesses and have a discussion with your doctor to see if it can help.
How to Take Lamictal
Lamictal gets taken orally, no matter what variety of it you decide to get. The most common method is through tablets or extended-release tablets. Those, you simply swallow without chewing or crushing.
Lamictal is available in chewable tablets or oral dissolving tablets as well. Chewable doses, you can chew, crush, or dissolve in liquid at will. For oral dissolving tablets, place them under your tongue and wait for them to dissolve.
Follow all dosing instructions carefully. The last thing anyone wants is an overdose.
How Much does Lamictal Cost?
The brand-name drug Lamictal can cost over $400 for a 30-day supply of 100mg tablets. If you need cheap Lamictal, the generic version, Lamotrigine, only costs a little over $8 for a 30-day supply.
If you want to save money and time getting your prescriptions re-written and filled, then you need to use a service like https://www.quickrxrefill.com/ to make it happen. Otherwise, you can find discount cards to order Lamictal online. They’ll help you shave some money off of the brand name price.
Side Effects of Lamictal
Of course, like most medications to treat mental illness, Lamictal comes with a whole suite of side effects. Depending on the severity of the side effects, you may need to consider other treatments.
Some of Lamictal’s milder side effects include:
- Blurred or doubled vision
- Difficulty speaking, thinking, or concentrating
- Drowsiness and loss of coordination
- Nausea, vomiting, and other gastrointestinal issues
These side effects can be annoying, but aren’t anything to worry about. However, you should contact your doctor and stop taking Lamictal immediately if you experience the following:
- Facial swelling, a swollen tongue, or a swollen throat
- Extreme rashes, fever, and other signs of serious infection
- Racing or skipping heartbeat
- Unexpected or unusual bruising or bleeding
These can be signs of serious negative reactions and should be presented to your doctor immediately. Don’t wait for the reactions to get worse. Reach out now!
Drug Interactions with Lamictal
Before taking any new medication, you should consult with your doctor to ensure that it won’t interact poorly with what you already take. So, what is Lamictal prone to interacting negatively with? Some common medication interactions you should be aware of include, but are not limited to:
- Estrogen-based hormonal treatments, including HRT for trans patients
- Progestin-only contraceptives
- Medications with a known risk of hyponatremia
- Barbiturates used to aid in treating seizures
- Common cold medications containing dextromethorphan
If you use any of these on a regular basis, make sure that you discuss this usage with your doctor before starting Lamictal. You may need to stop taking them or adjust your dosage.
Other Contraindications of Lamictal
While Lamictal can be a helpful medication for many patients, it is not for everyone. Other common contraindications of Lamictal include:
- Patients who have non-infectious meningitis
- Patients with anemia
- Those with bone marrow failure
- Those actively fighting with suicidal thoughts
Any patients with these conditions should not take Lamictal, as it may worsen their current physical or mental state. If these conditions develop while taking Lamictal, make sure to discuss that with your doctor.
What is Lamictal, and What can it Do? Let’s Review
It’s an anticonvulsant drug developed to treat epileptic seizures. It’s also shown great effectiveness in managing chronic mental health conditions like bipolar disorder.
You can order Lamictal online with the aid of coupons, or by purchasing its generic version lamotrigine. Patients take Lamictal by mouth and can continue to do so as long as they don’t experience any serious side effects.
Would you like to learn more about medications used to treat mental illnesses? If so, then check out our blog today for more articles like this!