• Effectiveness

  Major (for Treat my mood condition(s))
• Side effects

  Mild (for Overall) (dry mouth, word fishing, sore throat, headaches, problems concentrating, nasal congestion, word finding difficulty)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  A little hard to take

Dosage: 200 mg Daily

Cost: < $25 monthly

Side effects: sore throat, word finding difficulty, word fishing, dry mouth, headaches, problems concentrating, nasal congestion, problems concentrating, nasal congestion

• Effectiveness

  Can't tell (for Other)
• Side effects

  None (for Overall)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 150 mg Daily

Cost: < $25 monthly

• Effectiveness

  Slight (for Other)
• Side effects

  None (for Overall)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 150 mg Daily

Advice & Tips: Itchiness is one thing, but if you develop any rash (no matter how small or insignificant you may think it is) go the nearest hospital emergency room. Rashes caused by Lamictal can be fatal if not treated immediately.

Cost: < $25 monthly

• Effectiveness

  Can't tell (for Treat my mood condition(s))
• Side effects

  None (for Overall)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 150 mg Daily

Advice & Tips: risk of dangerous rash. if your develop a rash, go to the nearest emergency room

Cost: < $25 monthly

• Effectiveness

  Moderate (for Treat my mood condition(s))
• Side effects

  None (for Overall)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 150 mg Daily

Advice & Tips: I started Lamictal SLOWLY because it is necessary. I did not have a rash (which can be life-threatening-GET TO THE ER) but did have a lot of itching for the first month, talked to my psychiatrist and he said not to worry about it and then it stopped. I was worried I would not be able to take Lamictal and was disappointed because it was the first medication I was given as I am recently diagnosed. I am able to take Lamicatal and I am so happy with this medication. It has really helped my mood disorder. I notice if I am a couple hours late taking my dose I get really irritated. It really does make a big difference. Some days, of course, my mood is all over the place or totally up or totally down. I believe medications are great, but sometimes I think no medication can controll all mood fluctuations when you have bipolar disorder. I have been on the same dosage for months and sometimes think I need a higher dose, but my psychiatrist disagrees at this point. I listen to him because he knows more than I do about mood disorders. I have never handled my mood swings very well on my own (hence, alcohol & drugs).

Cost: $25-49 monthly

• Effectiveness

  Slight (for Other)
• Effectiveness

  Moderate (for Treat my mood condition(s))
• Effectiveness

  Moderate (for Increase effect of another treatment)
• Side effects

  Mild (for Overall) (cramps in calf muscles, hair loss, sedation, slowed reaction time, vision problems)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  A little hard to take

Dosage: 100 mg Daily

Advice & Tips: Don't take more than 100mg for Bipolar a day quickly. The side effects go from mild to moderate. The distorted sparkes went crazy, slight pains like growing pains appeared, the calf cramps made it hard to walk, it made me really sedated, and my reaction time was 5X slower. My friends would hit me in the face, and I didn't respond to it until 2 seconds later. At 100mg a day and over a month into it, the side effects are pretty much non-existent. If you experience calf muscle cramping, it's from a Calcium deficiency. Lamotrigine decreases Vitamin D, which absorbs calcium. Take one or two Calcium+D tablets a day. It is a glutamate inhibitor and sodium channel blocker, so MSG has no direct mental effects. I was worried that it would make the effects less effective, but then I heard about a woman who took it for migraines that were sensitive to MSG. That also means that L-Glutamin is fine to take as a weight lifting supplement. Overall, it has made me much more reliable and stable. I get mild hi, lows, and mixed swings still, but that's nothing compared to what I'm capable of. The mixed swings have increased, but again, they've been really mild. It also has a slight elevating effect so that mood swings tend to be in the positive direction. Socially, it has killed my over-hyperness and anxiety. I think that's a very good thing. I can actually talk to people without being a d*ck or a creep.

Cost: < $25 monthly

Side effects: vision problems, hair loss, cramps in calf muscles, slowed reaction time, sedation

• Effectiveness

  Moderate (for bipolar disorder)
• Side effects

  Severe (for Overall) (insomnia, nausea, weight gain, problems concentrating, nightmares, dizziness)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Very hard to take

Dosage: 300 mg Daily

Cost: $100-199 monthly

Side effects: insomnia, weight gain, nightmares, nausea, problems concentrating, dizziness, problems concentrating

• Effectiveness

  Can't tell (for bipolar disorder)
• Side effects

  Mild (for Overall) (weight gain)
• Adherence

  Never taken as prescribed
• Burden

  Very hard to take

Dosage: 100 mg Daily

Cost: $25-49 monthly

Side effects: weight gain

• Effectiveness

  None (for bipolar disorder)
• Side effects

  None (for Overall)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 375 mg Daily

• Effectiveness

  None (for bipolar disorder)
• Side effects

  None (for Overall)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 25 mg Daily

Advice & Tips: This treatment doesn't seem to be working for me.

Cost: < $25 monthly

• Effectiveness

  Major (for bipolar disorder)
• Side effects

  None (for Overall)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 200 mg Daily

Advice & Tips: so far I think it's helped me quite a bit.

• Effectiveness

  Slight (for seizures)
• Side effects

  Severe (for Overall) (night sweats, blood pressure decreased, spinning dizziness (vertigo))
• Adherence

  Usually
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Advice & Tips: I had SERIOUS problems with this mediation. When I missed so much as a single dose, I would start having serious chills and night sweats and felt like someone coming down off heroine or something. The neuro told me that could not possibly be a side effect. But it happened on three separate occasion after that - and again when I had to wean off of it to go on some other similar med. BEWARE!

Cost: < $25 monthly

Side effects: spinning dizziness (vertigo), night sweats, blood pressure decreased

• Effectiveness

  Can't tell (for epilepsy)
• Effectiveness

  Can't tell (for seizures)
• Side effects

  Severe (for Overall) (night sweats, blood pressure decreased, spinning dizziness (vertigo))
• Adherence

  Usually
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Cost: < $25 monthly

Side effects: spinning dizziness (vertigo), night sweats, blood pressure decreased

• Effectiveness

  Can't tell (for seizures)
• Side effects

  Moderate (for Overall) (night sweats, blood pressure decreased, spinning dizziness (vertigo))
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 200 mg Daily

Cost: < $25 monthly

Side effects: spinning dizziness (vertigo), night sweats, blood pressure decreased

• Effectiveness

  Slight (for Treat my mood condition(s))
• Side effects

  None (for Overall)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 100 mg Daily

Advice & Tips: after going off it for a few weeks, i noticed increased feeling of depression that lasted for a almost a week until my doctor put me back on at a lower dose. now i am at 100 mg daily and seem to be doing fine.

Cost: < $25 monthly

• Effectiveness

  Slight (for Treat my mood condition(s))
• Side effects

  None (for Overall)
• Adherence

  Always
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 100 mg Daily

Advice & Tips: not too helpful for unipolar depression.

Cost: < $25 monthly

• Effectiveness

  Moderate (for Treat my mood condition(s))
• Side effects

  Mild (for Overall) (headaches, problems concentrating, sleepiness)
• Adherence

  Sometimes
• Burden

  Not at all hard to take

Dosage: 300 mg Daily

Cost: $200+ monthly

Side effects: sleepiness, headaches, problems concentrating