I have stopped taking Depakote.. Please help?!


Question: ive been on Depakote for about 3 months now, i was at 750mgs daily(at once) then went back down to 500mg(250mg's at night and 250mg's in the morning) im being treated for bipolar disorder and i am about to be put on a better medication due to increased suicidal thoughts(not sure if it is associated with the medication) and i just recently stopped taking it. my doctor did not tell me to wean myself off, so i didnt. As of now, i'm extremely tired, but also i have energy(hard to explain), pain in the back of my head(pulseating), and i am very irritable. my question is, is this withdrawals?


Answers: ive been on Depakote for about 3 months now, i was at 750mgs daily(at once) then went back down to 500mg(250mg's at night and 250mg's in the morning) im being treated for bipolar disorder and i am about to be put on a better medication due to increased suicidal thoughts(not sure if it is associated with the medication) and i just recently stopped taking it. my doctor did not tell me to wean myself off, so i didnt. As of now, i'm extremely tired, but also i have energy(hard to explain), pain in the back of my head(pulseating), and i am very irritable. my question is, is this withdrawals?

It's very likely it is withdrawal. You should never go off a drug like this without a dr's approval. And being on nothing is not going to help. Ask your doc about Lamictal, as mentioned by another answerer. There are several ad's that cause only minor side effects. You need to find the one that works best for you. Under a dr's supervision, of course.

Yes, your having bi-polar episodes on top of it.... I think you should try Lamictal.

I also vote for Lamictal. I'm bipolar and have taken it for years. It doesn't treat bipolar symptoms, but delays the onset of future episodes. Costs about $350 a month. As for going off the Depakote so quickly, big no no. Any of the psychiatric drugs can have bad effects if stopped suddenly. I learned this personally a few years ago. I would immediatly take 250 mg and consult your doctor. Good luck.

Did you have headaches before going on Depakote
Depakote is used for head aches also....so you may be prone to having headaches .......and may not have felt any headaches for a few months or at the least not to bad of headaches...
That being said.....
If you have had the diagnoses of Bi-polar for a while you know that medication can not and will not take a way suicidal thoughts alone....So please work on the other things you have learned to help you with suicidal thoughts like exercise......

Withdrawals
Anything that we take can cause withdrawals.........

First of all any dr. knows that you should NEVER stop cold turkey like that, especially when taking that amount.

My dr. put me on Topomax which is kinda close to depakote. It is more expensive and when I asked for a cheaper alternative, she said the closest thing was the depakote, but all the things that I liked about the topomax I would not have with the depakote. Topomax is also used for migraines and I did go for a week w/o it and did have bad headaches and was also very irritable, just ask my kids!

This medication has been great for me and I ouldn't trade it (only the cost), and unlike the depakote, I only have to take it once a da 50 mg. (which would be equal to the 500 mg of depakote my dr. said)

any time you have to switch meds even if your dr. doesn't remember to tell you, you have to wean yourself off the old and into the new. I even got headaches the first few days. if not your body goes into serious withdrawal which is what you sound like and that can even take a few days to happen because it takes a few days for all the residual drugs to leave your system.





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