Medications with suicidal side effects

[Delta40]

I've been reading about the side effects of medications I take to control epilepsy. They have a warning about possible side effects ranging from suicidal behaviour to depression, irritability and mood swings. I'm concerned about how much of my recent illness I should attribute to these meds. Do others think these warnings are there to cover the pharmaceutical company against litigation or because there is a solid foundation for them?

[YesNo]

I think taking some medications involve taking a risk and the risk has been hopefully documented. Supposedly the risk is worth it.

Were I in a situation where standard medicine was not able to provide a cure for what I had, but just cover up the problem, I would look into alternative treatments, assuming they exist.

[Delta40]

Unfortunately, there isn't really an alternative way to manage epilepsy. But my expressed concern is to medications in general that have these warnings. The doctor certainly didn't tell me about them which raises the other point about information on the internet and how it might change the doctor patient relationship

[OrphanPip]

It would depend on the various rules put down by the appropriate regulatory body in your country. In general, the companies try to cover their bases by putting warnings for anything they could be reasonably expected to suspect as a side effect, or that they have actually documented. Sometimes, this involves something that only showed up in Phase II trials on animals. Other times, it can be stuff that has showed up in Phase III and IV trials with related drugs, if not the actual drug the warning appears on. Sometimes, it actually can just be them covering their *** because someone, somewhere said the drug could theoretically cause those symptoms. If a symptom only appears in something like 1/10,000 patients then the warning may not be something you should necessarily worry about. In any case, your personal physician is the only one truly qualified to advise you on whether or not your medications are potentially causing problems for you.

[Delta40]

Thanks Orphan. I will speak to my doctor or better still my neurologist. It just seems odd that I have experienced 'emotional' crap since I started this medication but I can't discount the daily pressures of everyday living, working and parenting either.

[MystyrMystyry]

It occurs to me, though I'm noo expert, that if you're medication is for espilespy it would be a depressant to some degree? If so, then a dose of anti-depressant would be included to counteract the symptoms?

The best anti-depressants are the natural ones like endorphines or di-phenylaniline (already in your brain)

Those sugarless softdrinks and chewing gum use phenalketoneurics to give the feeling that the sugar normally would if it were present. I usually have some chewies handy for emegencies, though you can buy pills

All chemical anti-depressants can periodically have the effect of super depression (well documented)

The other thing to try is excercising your hands with a stress ball (or manual labour), because each hand has a million nerve endings that go straight to your central nervous system into you bran and causes release of whatever happy enzymes and stuff to make you feel good :)

[Delta40]

I don't know if my epilepsy meds have a depressant component. I chew sugarless gum and have a collection of stress balls (because of taxpayers heckling me all day!) Just lately, I've started smoking but I don't actually crave nicotine so I have no idea why I'm doing it. I really couldn't care if I never smoked again.

[Hawkman]

I suppose it is arguable that anyone who commits suicide whilst under the influence of chemical medication might not actually be considered a suicide but a murder victim. By declaring the possiblility that a medication might induce such behaviour, whether the medication is taken or not becomes the sole decision of the user, unless forcibly administered.

[Annamariah]

All medicines can have negative side-effects. The stronger the medicine, the worse (or more serious) those side-effects can be.

At least in Finland all the possible side-effects are listed on the product information paper. They are divided into several categories, "very common" side-effects affect > 10 % of people taking said medicine, "common" affect 1 to 10 %, "relatively rare" affect 0.1 to 1 %, "rare" 0.01 to 0.1 % and "very rare" fewer than that.

The product information paper also lists those medicines that should not be taken together with the medicine in question and which side-effects are harmless and which should be reported to the doctor immediately.

If you are worried about the possible side-effects of your medication, you should contact your doctor or talk to a pharmacist. Your doctor should be aware of all the meds you are taking so that they can be sure there won't be any negative side-effects because of mixing medicines that should not be taken simultaneously.

[billl]

Just lately, I've started smoking but I don't actually crave nicotine so I have no idea why I'm doing it. I really couldn't care if I never smoked again.

I'd recommend you quit, then, because that's just the sort of mind-game that nicotine plays. You might soon become familiar with "Well, I may as well wait until tomorrow to quit," which can even turn into "next year". And, maybe someday, "I just can't". The relief and relaxation that comes with smoking really dispose a person to finding some reason, I think, to avoid the ending of that source of comfort.

I think anyone would stop if they knew the next one would kill them. But just one more won't kill, and that is especially true in the beginning. So it's easy to see how people eventually get into trouble.

(Further complicating things, I should mention, is a certain proportion of people who can just have a cig every once in a while, maybe 3 or 4 a year, just for whatever at a party or something.)

[Delta40]

I'd recommend you quit, then, because that's just the sort of mind-game that nicotine plays. You might soon become familiar with "Well, I may as well wait until tomorrow to quit," which can even turn into "next year". And, maybe someday, "I just can't". The relief and relaxation that comes with smoking really dispose a person to finding some reason, I think, to avoid the ending of that source of comfort.

I think anyone would stop if they knew the next one would kill them. But just one more won't kill, and that is especially true in the beginning. So it's easy to see how people eventually get into trouble.

(Further complicating things, I should mention, is a certain proportion of people who can just have a cig every once in a while, maybe 3 or 4 a year, just for whatever at a party or something.)


Oh I definitely agree! I'm seeing my doctor on Wednesday about it because I think its wiser not to overestimate my ability to quit. Nicotine is very sly.

[billl]

Sounds good, I just wanted to mention it--it really is amazing how nicotine can go to work on a person.

[Delta40]

I can't think of any advantages to smoking (cough cough!). I recently spent some time in a psychiatric ward and that is why I'm curious about the effects of medications. I wonder if the recent stress, combined with the side effects have brought me to this stage. It's not that I want to palm off poor decisions on tablets but I was genuinely alarmed about the side effects and the fact that it coincided with my hospitalization. I'm now in a 12 month DBT program for 'mood swings'. Anyway, it's a puzzle for me right now.

[billl]

It sounds like a busy and difficult time! I'm no expert on the medications and all of that, but seizures are something that it seems obvious to treat, if possible. Maybe there's another tablet out there you could try, etc. Or maybe the tablet had nothing to do with it. I know some people do really well b/c of medications for that, but people are different and some might need different things. I'd get more than one opinion, if possible. Didn't the physicians at the ward have anything to say about it? It's a puzzle for you, but it seems like something some doctors should puzzle over too ()or maybe they are puzzling over it, sorry...:-) ).

If you're worried that it might be the meds (and then what next if you stop using them???????), I think it's still a good idea to talk with a doctor (and maybe one or two more if you aren't satisfied, or maybe even if you *do* feel satisfied with the first consultation). If a person has the flu, one doctor is enough, but your situation seems like it deserves more attention. I doubt a good doctor would recommend you go around without *any* medicine for the seizures, in order to mitigate possible negative side effects. If they do recommend something like that, I'd say move on to the next one, and make sure that next one has you check back in after a week or a month or whatever of whatever treatment they recommend, to see if it's working.

Sorry if I'm repeating a lot of stuff, or am missing some info about seizure/seizure medication or your current treatment, etc. and I'm just prattling on beside the point.

[Delta40]

I can't stop taking them because I lapse into seizures. having said that, I still have seizures on the meds but not to the same degree. I guess I need to look at other medications that could be available but without the warning but I suspect all epilepsy meds have this as a possible side effect. On the other hand not all of them may affect me that way. I've got a very good neurologist who has overseen my condition for many years and we've tried lots of different meds to get my epilepsy under control and this one, while not the most effective, doesn't have renal side effects which is another condition I have.

[billl]

Ah, OK then. Your situation is one I wouldn't want to provide much advice about then, it seems like you've done the right things. I think your talk about "stress" being an element would make a lot of sense, considering the rest of the stuff going on.

I too would think that this sort of side effect might accompany a lot of anti-seizure medicine (worth looking into though, just in case), but like you say, maybe different ones would negatively effect different people, and there could be some better matches for you out there. It could also be that it takes time to adjust to the new meds, and maybe other people have gone through an initial stressful period--but that'd probably be common knowledge, if it were true.

Anyhow, sorry for speculating about something I know nothing about, I just wasn't sure what steps you had or hadn't taken yet.

[Delta40]

that's ok. I wasn't really looking for medical advice of lit-net. Just more curious about other lit-netters and their experience with meds with adverse side effects.