Lamictal overnighted

Hello doctors and everyone else!
36F with a question about B12. Some more info about me: -Bipolar I and on seroquel 75mg, lamictal 50mg, buspirone 10mg. -Vitamins: B12 10k iu a day, Ashwaganda, D3 10k iu daily
So...my question. At this stage in my life, I have to take B12 (and the D3). I'm moreso asking about the B12. Nowhere on Google can I find an understanding as to why not taking B12 royally screws up my sleeping patterns. Everywhere seems to say that B12 makes people feel more awake/energized. But for me, it actually makes me not only tired, but if I stop taking it, I simply stop sleeping. The seroquel and buspirone I take are for sleep and anxiety (among other things) and even they will not be as effective as when I take B12.
There was a period of time last year that I stopped sleeping despite having great sleep hygiene (saw a sleep neurologist and a sleep therapist and religiously followed their direction). Lots of money later, I realized I had stopped taking my B12 supplements. On the way to my PCP (was going to beg for ambien because I hadn't slept more than a few hrs a night for months), I grabbed a bottle of B12 pills and popped the recommended dosage right before walking into the doctor's office. During my wait, I effortlessly drifted off to sleep, something that had been evading me for months.
Kept taking it and my sleep issues went away nearly overnight. Came home that day and caught up on sleep debt for 4 hours. Slept beautifully every night after that. I ended up not asking for Ambien or anything else. I did incredulously explain this to my PCP during my appointment, and she had absolutely no clue. My psychiatrist has no idea either as I've discussed it with her, but she insists I keep taking it for sleep.
What's bringing me to ask is about a week ago I ran out of B12, and now Im experiencing middle insomnia again. Waking up multiple times in the middle of the night despite being heavily drugged, and having issues falling back to sleep. I have more on the way don't worry.
So my question(s) is/are this:
Why? Why does B12 affect me this way?
Is this something anomalous? Does B12 affect anyone else this way?
I started taking B12 several years ago probably in my late 20s/early 30s because I just thought it would be good for me. Never made much of a difference if I missed doses. Now, at the ages of 34-36, it affects me greatly. Did I screw up? Should I wean off of it? Did my body stop naturally making it because I started taking it?
Any help/answers would be appreciated. Thank you!

I can't believe this. Chronic severe constipation for months now (I know the cause it's okay don't worry lol) I tired everything. I mean anything you can name in the comments I tried. Natural remedies, pharmaceutical, diet changes, lifestyle changes, etc. Always combined, not just one at a time. The only thing that ever worked was saline enema. My partner suggested I eat some grapes (I had been trying everything else all week with barely any movement AT ALL, none in the prior few days)I laughed at him. I said "sure, that'll work as well as (insert all the bs remedies that only treat very mild constipation)" but hey, I'll try anything, I'm miserable. Ate a bunch of them & it worked overnight. HOW???? Ain't no way. I DON'T GET IT lol
******TLDR: chronic severe constipation for months, tried everything, partner suggested grapes. I laughed. When even the last ditch effort diarrhea inducing treatments did nothing? Worked like a charm. Can't believe it's been here all along 😭 how?? Why???
Edit to add: Didn't realize I had to add this
• Do you have the urge to go, but you cannot? Or do you have zero urge to go? (this is the most important question) ●zero urge
• Do you have alternating diarrhea and constipation, or just constipation? ●Just constipation
• Do you have nausea, vomiting, acid reflux, difficulty swallowing, or early satiety (getting full really early into a meal)? ●Nausea + vomiting which may be unrelated.
•Have you had this issue since childhood, or did it begin in teen years/adulthood/after a major life event (surgery? divorce? car accident? mauled by bears?) ●Teen
• Did you in the past or do you currently take any medications that could damage your intestines? The acne drug Accutane/Sotret/Claravis/many other names (isotretinoin) has been linked to serious conditions of the digestive tract. I am absolutely convinced that my large intestine was destroyed by this drug. Antibiotics are also a major culprit in ruining the small intestine microbiome and causing diarrhea/constipation disorders. Antidepressants can ruin the serotonin balance in the gut as well. ●•Suboxone (BIG culprit) •Lamictal •gabapentin •vyvanse •klonopin as needed
• Did you suffer sexual abuse as a child? There is a high degree of correlation between childhood sexual abuse and adult constipation disorders. Meaning, a lot of people with chronic constipation disorders in adulthood experienced trauma when they were young. This sort of thing must be investigated by both your doctor and a therapist in coordination. Do some Googling on this topic if you believe this might be your issue. ●Yes

I have a psych appointment on Monday thank god but this is following an episode so bad my therapist forced me to go to the ER. I’ve been taking my meds (200 mg Lamictal, 60 mg ER propanolol) everyday and yet I am still stuck in a depressive episode that came on SO quickly (triggered but still- I’ve been able to handle triggers well up until this point). My psych wanted me to start Latuda as well but I have yet to do so because I simply don’t eat enough to be able to take it. It feels like everything is spiraling downhill again and I don’t understand why. Things went so well last month and now this month is back to being a shitshow. It’s like they stopped working overnight and I’m back to my unmedicated self. Has anyone experienced this? For further context, I’ve never been medicated before this and I started meds in OctobeNovember.

Hello, I am no stranger to bipolar disorder as my mom had BD1 and was very ill since her diagnosis in early 20s. I am a 34F. She was never on the proper meds and was heavily medicated and was pretty much severely depressed for most of my young life. But she knew her illness well and could feel mania coming before it went full blown so she was able to nip it before it got too bad.
Anyway, my whole life I’ve been told I was bipolar. I was hospitalized at 11 and again at 15 for SI and severe depression. Every psychiatrist I saw said I was bipolar because my mom was.
Finally at 19 I saw a new Dr and I decided to not tell him my mom was bipolar to see if he’d come to the same diagnoses. He said I had ADHD. After that I was like eff this and just told myself I had MDD, GAD and ADHD.
Now I’m 34, married with 4 kids. Weekly therapy for 2 years and she does not believe I am bipolar. Or if I am, not to fear bc I’m obviously not as ill as my mom was. A lot has happened and my husband has a demanding job with very long hours overnight. I’m doing everything basically on my own- managing my household with 4 kids. I’ve been an anxious mess. Today my psychiatrist told me she believes I have BD and put me on lamictal (I’m also on 20mg lexapro) Here is a list of why she believes I’m bipolar (or possibly BPD)
Mom had bipolar disorder and my father has history of substance abuse.
My brother is BP2 and takes lamictal with great success.
I had postpartum depression (she says there’s a strong correlation between PPD and BD)
I experienced SA as a teen, apparently there is a correlation there as well.
I do have mood swings but I don’t believe I’ve had a full blown mania. I do have periods of heightened creativity as a stained glass artist, and then long periods where I’m depressed and lack all motivation to do anything except survive and keep my kids fed, clean and happy.
I have a lot on my plate and feel like it’s reasonable to say I’m just very overwhelmed, but all doctors hear my mothers history and say I’m bipolar. I’m crushed and don’t know what to think about it. Wouldn’t I have had some kind of major manic episode between my early 20s and now? I’ve been on lexapro on and off since I was a teen and it’s always worked well for me until recently.

28F 5’3 256lbs, PCOS, PTSD, hyper mobile joints, non smoker, rarely drink, on Lamictal, Latuda and Celexa
So about a week ago, I got super dehydrated. Im horrible about drinking water (or any fluids) and I’m rarely thirsty, so I just… don’t. I was barely conscious, dizzy just laying there, and too weak to hold my water bottle up or anything. It took two liquid IVs (mixed with about one standard bottle of water each) and 2L of water for me to finally pee. My husband almost took me to the ER.
I’ve been trying to do better about drinking, and finally have started feeling thirsty again. But I still feel super dehydrated, sluggish and fatigued and stuff, like no amount of water is enough, and the thirsty feeling is driving me crazy. I have no idea if this makes sense, but I’m worried that I can’t hydrate enough during the day to catch up before I go to sleep and dehydrate again overnight. Is there anything I can do? Do I need IV fluids? I really don’t want to bother the ER with this.

I (f, 28, Canada) am living with my parents due to being in college to be a vet tech. I am restless, irritated, easily angered, and want to do a million things but have no energy. My sleep is very agitated and not refreshing. I also have a lot of plans on how I want my life to be, but I have no energy. I try to put things into place but go back to my old ways. I know habits don't form overnight. I deal with ADHD and Bipolar. The idea of consistency feels foreign because both disorders thrive on it but are difficult to achieve.
I ruminate a lot and get anxious about the future. I often tend to dissect everything about an interaction with people and imagine what I could have done differently or what I could do to address perceived or real issues.
However, when I feel better, I manage to do more.
All the while, even when I feel bad, I somewhat manage to show up, I guess, but it's still incredibly difficult. I also tend to doom scroll and buy unnecessary shit and get dopamine out of it.
I'm in therapy. I pushed to see a pdoc saying my situation is pressing because it is, I suffer with passive suicidal ideations despite wanting to live. I'm on meds.
My life is going well actually, but I still can't manage to feel better. It has improved since being in therapy and on meds. I try to be kind to myself.
This is hell.
I guess whenever I feel good, I fear it's another episode and not just me feeling good. It's the same when feeling down. I fear I am spiralling into depression. I have become very aware of my hypomanic and depressive behaviours and cognitive dissonances. However, I still can't trust myself.
Plus, I feel extremely flat, kind of like the hypomania is controlled, and all I am left with is feeling down. I don't know if it's just me not being used to this feeling, but I hate only feeling down with some good times in between and a desire to live despite feeling bad.
My employer loves me. My family and friends love me. I have issues maintening my living space and getting the good grades that I used to have.
I'm on Lamictal 200mg, Effexor 300mg, Vyvanse 50mg, Seroquel 25mg and Dexedrine 5mg. Seroquel and Dexedrine are for my sleep.

i could use help getting past the shame and embarrassment of things i did during my first episode, especially from people that have been stable for a while.
i got diagnosed with bipolar i in october with medication and drug induced psychosis. my manic episode episode began slowly in the end of august, then i started getting intense delusions in september.
i started texting a guy i had hooked up with briefly and thought we were getting engaged and that he was in love with me. i thought a girl i hadn’t been close to in years was getting abused by her boyfriend and involved a lot of people from our university. i got angry at some of my closest friends from college over imagined issues. the guy forgave me but the rest have completely ignored me since.
i went to the hospital overnight three times. the last time was in mid-october, where they put me on risperidone. i haven’t had any manic episodes since but ive been in a deep depression. i’m also in lamictal and wellbutrin but i’m still low.
i’ve been on medical leave from school since last year for what i thought was deep depression but now it’s more complex. i’m supposed to go back in a month and my family wants me to, but i don’t know if im ready yet. i’m afraid of the brain fog and the idea of socializing with people my age now feels impossible. i just feel so stuck and im struggling to see a way out.

i’d like to know people’s tips (especially those that have been stable for 6+ months) for getting over the shame of what they did during their episode.
it all started with my first manic episode at the end of august that continued until september when it evolved to full blown psychosis. i had been smoking daily from my weed pen and on adderall from newly dxed ADHD. my NP that i no longer see also upped my zoloft. i went to the hospital overnight three times but was never held (my therapist thinks i should have been) and was diagnosed with bipolar i and medication and drug induced psychosis.
i became obsessed with a guy i barely hooked up with and sent him a lot of crazy messages as i thought we were getting engaged. i was sure i girl i hadn’t spoken to in years was getting abused by her boyfriend and tried to involved dozens of people from our university. i got super angry at my college friends for imagined offenses and sent some hurtful messages. this was all back in septembeearly october and they haven’t spoken to me since and have ignored my apologies. the guy forgave me but im afraid to see him again if i go back to school.
ive been on a medical leave of absence since last year for what i thought was just severe depression but now it’s so much more complex. my family thinks i should go back to school next semester but im afraid of seeing people and taking rigourous classes when my brain is as foggy as it is right now. i don’t know if it’s a good idea to return but i feel like my life has been put on pause for so long. i got a seasonal job but recently got injured. i keep replaying what i did and said over and over again in my head. i’m on lamictal, wellbutrin, and risperidome but i feel flat and still depressed. every one keep telling me it takes time but it’s so hard.

When I was 14 I was diagnosed with bipolar type 2. I have several other diagnoses, but the bipolar symptomology always resonated as the most accurate to me. The psychiatrist that diagnosed me also told me that I should apply for disability and maybe pick up a part-time job doing something like pushing carts at Walmart.
Now that I'm 28 and I look back on my life so far... I am immensely proud of who I've become.
I'm having a difficult cycle right now, sleep disturbances and a head cold are bogging me down. I just got into an argument with my wife that I regret, I haven't been working well in the workplace, I haven't been able to control any of my emotions, etc. If you're reading this you probably know what I'm talking about.
So one of the things I do when I'm feeling down is say affirmations. It sounds like cringe self help bullshit, but it works for me.
At this stage in life I don't have as many friends in real life, most of my friends moved away and are online. So I decided to hop on the good old Reddit and post a bit of my story.
So right around the time I was diagnosed bipolar, I was in and out of psychiatric hospitals due to suicidal ideations.
At the same time I had also picked up a severe drug habit. I was on opiates, cocaine, all sorts of hallucinogens, everything. This was during my freshman year of high school.
As you can imagine I was really bouncing between extremes! I fell in love and fell out of love multiple times, found many passions, and I lost over a hundred pounds in 8 months. I shaved my head and then didn't get it cut for 7 years. I made amazing friendships and then destroyed them.
By the time I had gotten into college I was fried out. Life alternated between incredible movie-like drama and absolute abyssal horror. I was in completely horrendous situations many times.
When I was 22 I was homeless working at a gas station overnight and shooting heroin. I thank God that my story didn't end there.
I went to treatment for the fourth time, this time a Christian Rehab. You can say all you want about religion, I get it. I was an atheist my whole life up until I got sober. I got sober, started lamictal, fell in love. I held down a shitty job and stayed in the halfway house for 2 years.
Then I married the love of my life, someone who shares similar struggles as myself. Our marriage has been nothing short of incredible and I adore her.
I worked at a fast food place, then a Starbucks, and then at a treatment center, and then add another treatment center. I've worked my way up in each company. Being bipolar has honestly been a blessing in some avenues. I'm able to pick up on people's vibes very well.
Because I can read the room effectively, it's as if I can feel how to be. I'm not sure if that makes sense but I don't think any of my promotions were due to being hardworking.
Anyways, I'm somehow in HR right now. Not only do I work full time and make pretty good money for my age, I also pay for my college tuition and my wife's education. I bought my used Corolla with straight cash. I've saved up a nice chunk of change. We're trying for a baby and hopefully I'll be able to purchase a townhome sometime soon.
This has never been easy. I have felt like giving up at least once every day since I can remember. This has been arduous. This has been war. This is also been breathtakingly beautiful. No moment has been wasted, every second has been profoundly joyous when looked at from the right view.
I'm 60 days nicotine free today, I've been working out pretty consistently for over 2 years, I'm reading a lot more than I used to. I got a cool tattoo recently. I do a good amount of service work sponsoring people in the AA program. I've been going to church and it's been really good for me.
I totally see the alternate reality version of me where I applied for disability and never worked and never strived and never pushed myself. And this isn't to look down on anyone that's on disability! I don't think I'm better for working a job.
But I'm proud of is that I've never given up, and I've become increasingly more resilient every day of my life. I am valid. I'm not a mistake. I'm a beautiful, bipolar creature.
Cheers 😁
Edit: thank you so much for the comments! Writing this out was therapeutic and helpful. I felt a lot better afterwards and reading your comments gave me joy!

Hello, I've been taking lamictal for a while now I started it back up in June and realized my acid reflux got worse, after that I increased my dosages to 150 mg which was okay my doctor recently switched me to 200mg and I started taking them on Wednesday by Saturday I started having this weird feeling in my chest like my heart skipped a beat and my hands got very clammy and I was trying to calm myself down. I've continued to see very anxious and like my blood pressure drops or my heart starts feeling weird and it's freaking me out. The only thing that I can think of that changed is my medication. I don't see how I could've developed a condition overnight considering this has never happened to me before. It only happens when I'm super hungry and haven't eaten and I get shaky or horrible anxiety. Idk what to do! Has anyone felt this way?

I was on the bus on my way to work and all of a suddenly i was seeing double, then felt my legs go numb and i realized my speech was slurring when i called my boyfriend. He freaked and asked me if i could walk and i said no. But i finally attempted to get off but fell onto the sidewalk (on my butt). My boyfriend came and picked me up but he had to carry me. Then he floored it to the hospital ER. I called my dad letting him know. At first they thought it was a stroke so i had to get MRI, CAT SCAN, X Ray. They still thought it was a stroke and the doctor finally came in and my dad was in the room and the doctor informed him that he could give me a medication called IPA ( or something) but the side effects would be bleeding AND 1% chance of death! (My dad said no to the IPA) My dad needed a translater so they brought one in. While she was translating, i started to OD again but this time it was worse! The clock was moving really fast so i tried to get the doctors attention but he told me to hold on! I’m freaking out crying my eyes out. When he finally looked at me i told him the symptoms. So this nurse gave me Keppra but i couldn’t say anything to stop her cuz i HATE Keppra. Then they took me to get a CAT scan and i fell asleep. I remember having my dad call my neurologist and told him the symptoms. He said it wasn’t a seizure or stroke. He told them i had overdosed on my medication. After i was controlled they wanted to keep me overnight and have THEIR neurologist check me out even after they had spoken to my neurologist 2X! So my boyfriend refused and we went home. It was the most scariest thing i have ever gone through. So everyone PLEASE take your medication as told. I accidentally got confused when my neurologist said “we’re going to double up your Lamictal”. So yes it was my fault. And yes ER doctors are dumb as fuck!

Hi, I know this has been posted about a lot and most comments are just "power through" but... should I really ??
I'm 20 yo, 5'6 110lbs. I'm very small. My periods have ALWAYS been super heavy and long and painful. Right now they average 8 days and day 1 and 2 I am basically useless from pain. I also bleed HEAVILY. Like, overnight pads 24/7 kinda heavy. I've been checked for endometriosis and nothing.
I recently started seeing someone and decided to explore some birth control options. I've used birth control before, once on the pill in highschool to regulate my periods, and then on the ring about a year ago (I stopped really quick because it severely effected my mood.) I started the Lo Loestrin Fe pill because it was a low dose pill, the hope that it didn't effect my mood so much. I have also since started Lamictal (been on that for a while).
Well. I started the pill, and for the first week, it was great ! No symptoms, it never messed with my mood. Then, on the 16th, I went to the bathroom and noticed a bit of spotting. No worries ! Knew that was a risk, and it wasn't much, so I ignored it. Unfortunately, the next day, it was way worse. I went to the bathroom and the toilet paper was brick-red. I was displeased. I went to sleep with a pad on and there was back to only a small bit of spotting when I woke up. Then after a bit I went to pee and there was so much blood. It was like. Day 5 levels of blood. Not quite as bad as day 1-3 but still like, way too much to be called spotting. I went to work and wore a genuine pad and just went to the bathroom to change my pad after 5 hours (I know, I should have changed it sooner, but to be fair I was not expecting so much blood) and it FULLY looked like I was menstruating. It was deep brown/red and had a weird dry thick film on top. And the cramps. Ugh. This sucks. Ive seen people say heavy spotting is normal and you just gotta power through but ??? Is this really what I have to put up with for 3-6 months until it settles down ?? What else are even my options at this point ? Help.

31f, 7 months postpartum (baby is in childcare), taking Lamictal and Lexapro for over 5 years. I attempted breastfeeding for 2 weeks, but never supplied anything more than an ounce even with pumping.
Can Keflex and Bactrim cause joint pain and fatigue?
10/9 - noticed pea sized lymph node after getting sick.
10/27 - called Dr because the lymphnode hadn't gone away and I get fine.
11/7 - node swelled to golf ball size overnight, no longer sick and no symptoms. Urgent Care doctor put me on Keflex as the lymphnode is not squishy or mobile. Suspected abcess. There was no breast exam that day.
11/9 - I feel a lump in my upper left breast near the lymphnode. Likely just noticed it, but went back to the same urgent care doctor. He confirmed the lump and that the lymphnode had gotten slightly larger. Prescribed Bactrin in addition to the Keflex. Ordered imaging which isn't available until the 28th.
11/10 - started feeling joint pain in hips and knees. And pain in breast, per instruction took Tylenol.
I just want to make sure that the side effect of fatigue and joint pain are normal under 2 antibiotics. They coincided around 48 hours after the Keflex.

My history: 34F 5'6 130lbs. I have moderate depression diagnosed in early teens. I'm on lexapro 20mg daily and feel that my depression is well contolled. I have mild anxiety for which I am prescribed 0.25-0.5mg klonopin PRN. I take 5mg Adderall PRN, I'm honestly not sure if I'm diagnosed with ADD/ADHD or not. I take 50mg quetiapine PRN for insomnia and took it almost every night of my 12 day trip to assist with jet lag. During the trip I was on ropinirole 0.5mg daily at bedtime for restless leg syndrome that only gives me problems when I travel - I do not take this medicine when I'm at home. I was on disulfuram 250mg daily for alcohol abuse but stopped taking it before this long trip because I did not want to have a reaction due to language barriealcohol in cooking, etc.
I spent a grand total of about 28 hours traveling home starting early Monday night central time (It was Tuesday morning where I was when travel began.) I got home late Tuesday night/Wednesday morning around 1am. I stupidly stayed up overnight before the day of travel thinking it would help me sleep on the plane and shift back to my regular schedule more quickly. I also do not typically drink (hx alcohol abuse, was not taking my disulfuram,) but had a night out with drinking two days before travel.
Since arriving home, I have needed less sleep, less food, been more talkative, felt euphoric, made plans I wouldn't typically make (in the interest of trying new things?) I have been making lists almost obsessively because I feel like I can't keep a thought in my head longer than 3 seconds. I've been reaching out to old friends, cleaning and organizing nonstop. I have drank alcohol each night since I've been home. (I will be starting my disulfuram as soon as it's been long enough and pouring out the remaining alcohol.)
I also noticed some symptoms before leaving the foreign country, like easily staying up that whole night and not feeling tired. I also did a ton of shopping which is abnormal for me, but the city where I was is known for fashion and shopping and the trip organizers scheduled a trip to the malls. I got all my Christmas shopping done. These could just be normal things that seem unusual since I'm looking back on them.
I have no diagnosis of bipolar to my knowledge but in the past have been prescribed low doses of either lithium or lamictal which were adjuncts to my antidepressant to my knowledge. I have not taken any mood stabilizers in at least a couple years.
I am not engaging in any risky or harmful behaviors and have NO concern that I could be a danger to myself.
Could all of this have been triggered from my travel and sleep deprivation? Could it have been triggered by drinking for the first time in months? When will I start feeling normal? What should I do at home to take care of myself? I have an appointment with my psychiatrist in 5 days.
Thank you very much for your time reading and considering my case.

33F, bipolar + ankylosing spondylitis, take Humira, lurasidone, Cymbalta, and lamictal.
I have recently started trying to conceive and had my hormonal IUD removed, being without birth control hormones for the first time since I was 16. I have heavy periods and have heard some chatter on social media about heavy periods potentially being a sign of fertility issues?
Specifically, in the first 2-3 days of my period, I have to wear multiple tampons and a pad to keep from soiling my clothes, and often still bleed through overnight even with two tampons and a pad. I have no cramps - I cramped a lot as a teenager - but bleed like a stuck pig for about 5 days. I've heard people saying online that it could be a sign that I don't have a normal amount of progesterone?
TTC is kind of messing with my head/emotions and I don't want to bother my OB-GYN if it's not important but I am stressing.
​
Thank you!

My mom and I (75, and me 45f) have planned this trip for a year. I worked really hard to make sure I was stable as I could during that time. Currently on lamictal 200, propranolol and hydroxyzine as needed.
Long story short, it's been absolute hell. The long overnight flight with no sleep, the stress of trains, airports, hotels, and no sleep in strange hotel in strange country. I have had severe panic attacks and constant anxiety. Ive had to go to to a local gp and spend $$$ to get a script for Xanax so I wouldn't completely lose my shit.
I barely made it through tea at the Ritz, I only went bc my mom was really looking forward to it.
I just want to be home and back with my family. I'm not enjoying anything and now I can barely make it out once a day to walk to local shops and get some food. We go shopping and suteseeing a bit, but I can't handle much. I feel so bad for my mom, she was so looking forward to it.
It's been 7 days of this. 3 more to go. I'm done though. We have theater tickets tonight and a trip to Dover the next day. I can't do it, you know? I need to cocoon it out here at the Airbnb until I can finally go home.
How do you put your needs above other's disappointments? I try to hard not to let this burden anyone, but it ultimately does.
Is it horrible if I put my mental health needs above her dream trip? Ugh. This is so hard. But my mind is just in survival and to get home and recoup and see my psych.

27 year old Female 5’2” 175lbs Dystonia lasted a few days Location- Midwest Any existing relevant medical issues - psychogenic seizures, anxiety, opiate dependency - 4 years use with very high Tolerance Current medications - at the time - gabapentin, lamictal, trazadone, Ativan as needed ( rarely took this )
This happened a year ago to me. BACKGROUND: I was in the ICU from being intubated. I was there for withdrawal from a high opiate dependency. When all was said and done, I started peeing clean from fentanyl after 6.5 weeks from my last use. So the withdrawal was heavy, it triggers my seizures/PNES really bad. I stopped breathing during one of these episodes and they intubated after my first 24 hours into withdrawal. After a day or two they pulled the tube out and kept me in the icu. The only meds I was given was folic acid, 5mg diazepam 2x a day orally, clonidine every 6 hours, gabapentin, lamictal and trazadone (not sure why they would not let me take my Ativan) A central line was put in. The evening of day six, they administered compazine to try to get me to sleep as I had not yet slept after extubation. Mid day on day seven of withdrawal, the doctor gave .4 of narcan to test if I was ready for the vivitrol pill. Sent me into acute precipitated withdrawal (they did not test my urine levels for fentanyl beforehand). During the PW, my body started to twist and turn, my jaw clamped and throat muscles swelled, my head was cocked to the side, anytime I laid directly on my back I choked, my tongue hung out of my mouth uncontrollable and I drooled everywhere. I was in a lot of pain. Every muscle was twisted in my body and hard. I had to be on my hands and knees for my throat not to feel like the muscles were choking me. They called it hysteria and tried to get me to swallow Valium pills, I could not swallow them with my tongue not being controlled or being able to swallow spit. I was unable to orally take any of the meds that day and they treated me as if I was just trying to make their job hard (they being the nurses)
The evening of day seven they administered compazine again. The day of day eight, they figured it had been over a week and my withdrawal was close to being over and got me ready for discharge. The muscle issue started to get better but it was still bad. I could Atleast walk at this point. I still could not talk right. I would lose control of my tongue. During this I told them to have the doctor see me several times, it was ignored and the nurses told my parents it was hysteria again. It seemed like the narcan set off a lot of the muscle issues but the second dose of compazine is what really did it.
The evening of day eight I was exhausted and twitchy. They gave me the option to stay another night or leave and be discharged. I felt I was not being listened to so I decided to go home. The next day (morning of day nine) I went to a residential rehab center with a NP. She told me I was having an acute allergic reaction to compazine and it was causing severe dystonia. I had another seizure shortly after arriving to rehab. They sent me to their local ER. They administered 50mg IV Benadryl and the symptoms stopped. My potassium levels had been low when I left the hospital on day 8, but was at 2.6. Over the course of day nine by the time I got to the local ER after the seizure at the residential rehab, it was down to 2.0. They kept me overnight and pumped me with potassium. It burned so bad. After the fluids, Benadryl and potassium I finally felt okay again.
My question is - what would have happened had I not had the seizure that sent me to the ER that night and my potassium would have kept dropping from the dystonia? Why did the hospital I went through the withdrawal at ignore my pleas to check me out, because I was a drug user? I was not there trying to get drugs. I told them so many times something was not right and they blamed it on withdrawal and stress.
What makes the dystonic reaction happen and why? This happens when I was given haldol at one point too but not as bad as this specific time I’m explaining here.
Was this just ignorance of the doctors and nurses not listening to their patient?
Could withdrawal or acute propitiated withdrawal from narcan cause such a severe dystonic reaction for two days?
This event honestly traumatized me a bit. I still think about it frequently. By day nine my eye was wandering because the muscles were so crazy.
Is dystonia deadly? Had I not ended up in the ER the first night of residential would I have been more seriously injured from it?
Sorry for the long post. This experience has bothered me for a year now. It made me feel so helpless and I was not taken seriously. I’ve lost my trust in medical professionals caring for me. I am afraid to try to get clean again because of this incident. It was hard on me and my family and in the end I relapsed. I’m highly functioning autistic also if that matters. Most would not realize I’m on the spectrum since iv learned how to act in social situations but it is hard to communicate at times. Also - my use is severe wih high tolerance but in most aspects of life I function well. Most do not know I have dependency issues. I have been thinking of trying again but I’m so afraid of this happening. My heart skipped beats and I don’t know if I can go through it again if it is from withdrawal.

Any advice on forgiving oneself from actions during a prior manic episode?
Almost two years ago I blew up a golden opportunity to change careers. I was given the chance to get a free spot in a tech bootcamp, paid for by my employer, and a guaranteed job by said employer. I know for sure that this was mine for the taking.
The day of the interview I wrote an email to the head of the IT department and in the kindest words possible, told them to go fuck themselves. Reason being was that I was convinced that I would be the next great labor leader if I stuck it out in my current dead end job and got more involved with my union.
This line of thinking was completely counter to my prior ambitions to get into tech for YEARS. I was completely delusional thinking I could just show up to a union meeting and be taken seriously on any level.
Looking back at that particular month, I like to describe my state of mind as 8 different versions of myself with each not knowing what the other was doing or why.
That month I was prescribed Wellbutrin after self harming for the first time ever and I think this put my mania into overdrive. At the time I wasn't formally diagnosed as bipolar and was extremely resistant to that diagnosis. Resistant is the keyword because I wasn't exactly in denial. My father was diagnosed bipolar but isn't taking any meds. I think my mom and the fact he was the main breadwinner kept him in check despite all of his episodes of irritably. He was never delusional or had bouts of grandiosity as far as I know.
I'm frustrated that my psychiatrist would simply prescribe me an antidepressant despite me telling them for years that I would have so many rapid mood swings that it made me exhausted. I understand that some mental health professionals are reluctant to give formal diagnoses because of how it may affect the patient's sense of self. I personally think this is bullshit and that it infantalizes the patient. Even if that were the case and they just wanted to treat my symptoms, why not give me a mood stabilizer after all these years after trying different antidepressants with no success? I truly feel like my psychiatrist and therapist did me a massive disservice by not pushing back on my reluctance of a bipolar diagnosis and at least adequately treating my symptoms.
I'm now prescribed Lamictal and Vraylar alongside the Wellbutrin and now feel like a totally different and stable person. Unfortunately I can't change the past but I'm struggling to move forward with my life. I'm in my late 30's and absolutely exhausted with living.
I am teaching myself how to code (I actually really enjoy it!) which is notable because I've become more disciplined where in the past I would be jumping from one thing to another thinking I would become an expert overnight. Completely delusional behavior.
I dunno. I'm trying to stay positive but everything seems so unbearable. I've been on a medical leave of absence from my current job because I had a total mental breakdown in the office after months of disruptive behavior. I truly have a monster for a supervisor but that doesn't excuse my actions. I should've been able to handle things differently and at least tried looking for another job completely instead of thinking I can become the next great labor organizer or whatever.
I'm hoping I can get on disability for a couple of years to take the pressure off and maybe go back to school. I was denied my initial application and I have a sinking feeling that a lawyer won't want to represent me for whatever reason. Probably because I'm under 50 years old.
Any tips on how to forgive myself and seperate myself from my illness?
Thanks for reading and I do feel better after writing all this out.

when I first got diagnosed everything was very new to me and i was hopeful and open to explaining and talking to others about my mental health. I’ve always struggled with my mental health but i wasn’t thinking “oh im bipolar”.
A year and a half later and i’ve been through 6 different medications and now im trying to go onto my seventh. Recently I’ve been on and off Latuda because i hate how i feel on it so im talking to my psychiatrist tomorrow on going on Seroquel. I currently take 50mg if lamictal and as most of you probably know, its never enough; especially at that dose.
Last week my therapist had police and EMTs take me to crisis and I stayed overnight. i was doing really well with Latuda as my main medication. The whole experience was very traumatic for me, mainly because I was planning on “ending it”. I havnt told my friends, mom, my boyfriend, and my little sister doesn’t even know i went to crisis AT ALL.
it genuinely could’ve been worse but it wasn’t, I just hate that i have to take medication for probably the rest of my life, i also hate leaving the people i love in the dark, but honestly i don’t even know what to do.

Hello all!
37f: Type 2 Diabetes, ADHD, Bipolar 2. Taking Metformin, Vyvanse, Caplyta, Seroquel, & Lamictal.
My ears have been some variation of blocked/crackly/pressurized for almost three weeks now. I've tried heat compresses, Debrox ear drops, nasal allergy sprays (Flonase), allergy pills (Zyrtec) nasal decongestants (Afrin), doing the close your nose and blow thing to pop them like you do at high altitudes... Nothing seems to work. I've had a virtual doc appointment and have done everything they suggested (see above), but haven't had a chance to see someone in person due to lack of availability with my PCP's office.
The pressure is way worse in the morning, I'm assuming because whatever is in my eustachian tubes settles overnight and gravity takes over during the day relieving (some) of the pressure. But the constant crackly feeling/sound all day combined with the pressure is enough to make me want to poke out my ear drums with a sharpened chopstick.
There's a bit of tinnitus as well, but not severe and it does go away during those brief moments of pressure release. Some dizziness but not that noticable, and no sinus pressure or headaches. A bit of itchines, but not always.
Both ears seem to be about equal regarding pressure, but the left one feels a bit more sensitive: not quite pain, but almost a sharp scratchy/tickly sensation deep in closer to the ear drum, if not the ear drum itself.
I don't use cotton buds/q-tips, but do have ear bud headphones (pixel buds pro) that I use maybe once a week, but not since the ear pressure started.
Not sure what this could be... Is there anything else I can try to relieve the pressure?

Looking for a little bit of advice on how to stay safe when travelling with epilepsy. Im based in the UK and planning to go to mexico for a couple of weeks this year and then south america for 2.5 ish months next year.
My seizures are triggered by lack of sleep/sleep interruptions and thankfully I have been seizure-free for over 5 years now on 300 mg lamictal daily; I was having tonic clonic seizures at the time. I know for sure that while my seizures are controlled, I do get that muscle tension kind of feeling that feels indicative of seizure activity if I don't sleep well, so I do need to be careful to avoid any breakthrough seizures.
Does anyone have advice on things like how to manage flights, best flight times (e.g. overnight or day flights west to east and east to west), time differences with medication, how to manage overnight buses, and just any general tips that you may have!
Another very specific Q but would love to hike the 4 day Inca trail trek to machu picchu- does anyone have experience with epilepsy and this hike? Have assumed there will be quite early starts.
Thank you!!
TLDR: travelling long-haul with seizures set off by lack of sleep - do you have any travelling tips?