Bipolar medications and head fuzziness - a new way of life - Bipolar Disorder Message Board

ridersam · 01-14-2008, 08:34 PM

I've have had some changes to medications. Lithium is fine but I suspect the Tegretol and Risperdal cause my head to feel fuzzy. I manage to function day to day. I'm wondering, is this fuzziness common with other people with BP? I have to really concentrate on things like driving. My memory is terrible, I'm slower and writing lists are part of my life. I suspect I'm not alone - I hope?

fineanddandy · 01-15-2008, 03:17 AM

You are not alone. Unfortunately, many meds for bipolar are very sedating and make it difficult to concentrate. Talk to your doc about the risperdol - perhaps he can give you something less sedating.

klyn07 · 01-15-2008, 06:49 AM

No, you are not alone. I used to have such an excellent memory, now I am writing lists for the most simple things so I know I can get through them. I know what you mean about the driving too. Our family lives a few hours away and my husband and I take turns driving, he drives there I drive back home. When we were on our way back home Sunday he kept asking me if I was okay and I told him I just have to concentrate really hard on driving so I can do it safely, something that has never been an issue in the past. Little things like that, so you are not alone.

NutshellNutter · 02-06-2008, 09:18 AM

Hi RIdersam,
I hope ur still about as I know ur post is quite old now. Anyway a few of ,y older posts answer your question from my point of view....

I was initiqlly prescribed tegretol (initiqlly 200mg daily which was increaed to 600mg daily). I too had memory problems after taking the tegretol for a while. It got so bad I had to carry a book with ,e and write everything down - but even that became useless when i couldn't remember where I'd put my book!!!!!

So i spoke with my psychiatrist and was put on a different formula of the same drug - tegretol retard. This is the same drug in q time release form and i've been taking it for over a year now and it has eliminated my memroy problems whilst still provididng me with the mood stabilisation of tegretol which worked for me. the switch was easy to do too as it is the same active drug in both.

Speak to your psych if you would like to try it. I thoroughly recommend it for elimination of your carbamazapine realated memroy probs;

Nut

lyn0910 · 02-07-2008, 01:12 AM

Hi

I was on Tegretol Retard for about 9 years and came off it last year with no problem. Amazingly for me and my history of coming off psychiatric drugs had no withdrawal and felt the same afterwards! I did notice that when I rarely took it during the day or in the morning I felt soooo dazed, confused and stupid. I could hardly get words out, I felt really slow and my cognitive faculties and memory were shot to pieces. Have you tried taking the whole dose at night? It was ok to do that for me.

Good luck!