kaygee
Junior Member
Posts: 73 
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Post by kaygee on Aug 10, 2020 15:54:01 GMT
Hi, I'm asking this for friends of ours that live far from us. We don't talk that often but spoke yesterday. Their 16 year old daughter has been diagnosed with epilepsy a couple of years ago and seems to be doing well (as far as seizure control) on Keppra. Lately she seems to be having depression symptoms and not just teen girl type stuff. I've had epilepsy (JME) since I was 14 but she has the general kind as far as I know. I didn't recall going through depression symptoms. I was wondering if anyone went through something similar - whether yourself or your child - and had some advice or different medications that worked for them. They may either try a new epilepsy med or add on something for depression. I know some anti-seizure meds seem to cover depression/bipolar. I take Lamictal and I believe that is also prescribed for bipolar. They are meeting with her neurologist, counselor and pediatrician in a couple of weeks to talk further. TIA.
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Post by jeremysgirl on Aug 10, 2020 16:05:41 GMT
That is an age where depression can start to show itself. Now that I know what it is, I can trace my bipolar back easily to at least age 12. My depression started early. So a 16 year old girl isn't shocking to me.
There is also some new studies coming out based on brain imaging. And they are beginning to trace mental illness to other medical conditions. It would totally not be shocking to me if people who have a condition that impacts the brain, like epilepsy can be traced to mental Illness.
I have taken lamictal in the past. And I just got prescribed another low dose of it to go with the antipsychotic medication I am on. It does have a mood lightening effect on those with bipolar. It was a three week long depressive episode that got lamictal added back into my medicine.
I would be more apt to try a mood stabilizer like lamictal if I were in that situation before going to an antidepressant.
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Post by cecilia on Aug 10, 2020 16:10:31 GMT
I was on an anti depressant by age 13. If she starts on anti depressants, she needs to make sure she doesn't stop them cold turkey. I stopped cold turkey, ended up in the hospital for a week. Had lingering effects for months too. Not trying to scare anyone, just want to get point across it is key to keep parents/doctors in the loop on these type of meds.
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Post by Merge on Aug 10, 2020 17:03:23 GMT
My oldest started antidepressants at around 16. Might have been 15. She now has a tentative bipolar diagnosis (age 19) and looking back, we can definitely see the start of that around the middle school years.
She is currently on lamictal and they just added something else that starts with an O. So yeah, these things can start early and may or may not be related to any other issues she has.
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Post by jeremysgirl on Aug 11, 2020 9:28:38 GMT
My oldest started antidepressants at around 16. Might have been 15. She now has a tentative bipolar diagnosis (age 19) and looking back, we can definitely see the start of that around the middle school years. She is currently on lamictal and they just added something else that starts with an O. So yeah, these things can start early and may or may not be related to any other issues she has. Keep an eye on her if the med is olanzapine. There is a huge weight gain side effect. I gained 45 pounds in a year on it. Also, I tend to run manic and it dragged me down into the worst depression I have ever had. I use it as a rescue med but not an everyday one. |
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artbabe
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,051
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Post by artbabe on Aug 11, 2020 11:31:26 GMT
I take Lamictal for bipolar and really like it. I don't have any side effects.
The one I hated was Topamax, which I know is also used for epilepsy. I hate it so much. I was out of it the whole time I was on it- like I was in a fog. It made my reaction time so slow and I couldn't remember words. I also was always thirsty. I cannot tell you how much I hate that stuff.
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Post by jeremysgirl on Aug 11, 2020 11:50:55 GMT
The one I hated was Topamax, which I know is also used for epilepsy. I hate it so much. I was out of it the whole time I was on it- like I was in a fog. It made my reaction time so slow and I couldn't remember words. Topamax didn't help with my bipolar at all. But the words thing was huge. I could see in my head what I wanted to say, but I couldn't get it out of my mouth. The words that came out of my mouth made no sense at all. I had to leave work that day because I was so messed up. That was after 3 days on it. I got off very quickly. |
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Post by Merge on Aug 11, 2020 11:55:48 GMT
My oldest started antidepressants at around 16. Might have been 15. She now has a tentative bipolar diagnosis (age 19) and looking back, we can definitely see the start of that around the middle school years. She is currently on lamictal and they just added something else that starts with an O. So yeah, these things can start early and may or may not be related to any other issues she has. Keep an eye on her if the med is olanzapine. There is a huge weight gain side effect. I gained 45 pounds in a year on it. Also, I tend to run manic and it dragged me down into the worst depression I have ever had. I use it as a rescue med but not an everyday one. It is, and thanks - but that’s actually one of the reasons they put her on it. Anxiety symptoms have caused her to lose a lot of weight this past year, and she was slender to begin with. She’s also starting up with a therapist and nutritionist because it’s gotten to the point where she sometimes can’t eat even when she wants to. I have to say an unexpected side benefit of her staying home this fall due to online only classes is that I can better keep an eye on her and make sure she has access to nutritious food. She’s good about working to manage her own illness, but she’s also a typical college student who is often too lazy to get or prepare a decent meal. We will definitely watch for increased depression. I don’t think her doctor wants her on it long term. |
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sharlag
Drama Llama
I like my artsy with a little bit of fartsy.
Posts: 6,574
Location: Kansas
Jun 26, 2014 12:57:48 GMT
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Post by sharlag on Aug 11, 2020 14:19:53 GMT
I know some anti-seizure meds seem to cover depression/bipolar. We are just learning this with my youngest DS! He was recently diagnosed with epilepsy, and his medication has helped his bipolar symptoms. It's Vimpat (Lacosamide). |
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kaygee
Junior Member
Posts: 73
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Post by kaygee on Aug 14, 2020 0:13:02 GMT
Thank you everyone - I appreciate the responses. Anyone else with epilepsy that developed depression?
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Post by delila on Aug 15, 2020 20:53:12 GMT
I have epilepsy & with that I have mild depression. My depression seems to be more situational than anything but it is still depression & I have learned to deal with it over the years.
Can I be of any help?
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Post by jmd74 on Aug 15, 2020 21:22:21 GMT
My 23 year old son has JME. He was diagnosed when he was 14. Up to this point he has not dealt with any depression but from the reading I’ve done it’s common in people with epilepsy, along with anxiety.
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Post by elaine on Aug 15, 2020 21:49:29 GMT
Keep an eye on her if the med is olanzapine. There is a huge weight gain side effect. I gained 45 pounds in a year on it. Also, I tend to run manic and it dragged me down into the worst depression I have ever had. I use it as a rescue med but not an everyday one. It is, and thanks - but that’s actually one of the reasons they put her on it. Anxiety symptoms have caused her to lose a lot of weight this past year, and she was slender to begin with. She’s also starting up with a therapist and nutritionist because it’s gotten to the point where she sometimes can’t eat even when she wants to. I have to say an unexpected side benefit of her staying home this fall due to online only classes is that I can better keep an eye on her and make sure she has access to nutritious food. She’s good about working to manage her own illness, but she’s also a typical college student who is often too lazy to get or prepare a decent meal. We will definitely watch for increased depression. I don’t think her doctor wants her on it long term. My 19 yo takes olanzapine to help with his autism symptoms. He also has gained a lot of weight on it, but pretty much all of the atypical antipsychotics have that side effect, although it is strongest with the olanzapine. In fact, when I was suffering from nausea due to my chemo, they had me take olanzapine to help with the nausea and as an appetite stimulant. |
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Post by Delta Dawn on Aug 16, 2020 0:05:36 GMT
Olanzepine is my miracle drug but they will not give it to me anymore as my weight gain is too much. I take Risperdal and Seroquel and deal with both of them just fine. Olanzepine just took it to the next level.
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Post by sasha on Aug 17, 2020 1:48:02 GMT
My daughter was diagnosed with Epilepsy and suffers from anxiety. She was prescribed Lamotrignine which the Dr. told me is used to treat bi-polar as well, so it's helps with depression/anxiety. It hasn't completely cured her anxiety but with incremental dosing, she's just started the dosage they want her on. That said, I do see a difference in her moods (in a positive way!)
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Post by refugeepea on Aug 17, 2020 2:09:55 GMT
My son (11) started having seizures in March. He's non verbal and a lot of times it's a guessing game, but Keppra didn't work for him. He's Autistic and always hasn't slept well, but he's been staying up for over 24 hour plus on a regular basis. Meds affect everyone differently, just thought I'd throw that out there about possible insomnia problems.
We are now slowly weaning him off and we are slowly switching to Lamictal. It's used to treat bipolar and epilepsy.
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alwaysme
Shy Member
Posts: 16
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Post by alwaysme on Aug 18, 2020 0:41:39 GMT
She should discuss her depression symptoms with her neurologist/epileptologist. Keppra is a wonder drug (as compared to medications which preceded), but notorious for many side effects (depression included). It's a graceful dance to find the right drug/drugs that suppress seizure activity yet have tolerable side effects.
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Post by jmd74 on Aug 18, 2020 3:06:11 GMT
My son was on Keppra for 4 years then had his first tonic clonic seizure so they switched him to depakote. Once the depakote was in his system he told me he had no idea how awful the Keppra was until he got off of it. I hope you’re able to find the right meds for your daughter.
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