I’ve been prescribed Busparone for anxiety that’s directly tied to Lamotrigine side effects. Is it advisable to start a new medication when planning to taper off?
For context I take 150mg daily once a day with no other medications and am preparing to start my taper in the coming week.
I started taking lamotrigine in November of last year for bp2 and while some side effects tritating up were pretty unpleasant (insomnia, brain fog, nightmares, anxiety) around 75-100mg I started to notice positive effects. My mood and anxiety improved. However, I went from 100 > 150 then 150 > 200 over the course of 2 months and entered a hypomanic episode. It was too much so I went back down to 150mg and became very depressed.
My psych suggested I try and tritate up to 200 again but after a week at 175mg I was having multiple panic attacks so I had to come down to 150 again. The last month has been hell. I feel like I can hardly function at all and in a constant state of dpdr and extremely anxious and constantly ruminating as well as forgetting everything. I get so anxious interacting with my close friends and family that I become non verbal and am very sensitive to light and sound. Physically I feel very weak and in pain and my hair is falling out. Jaw clenched heart pounding and hands shaking.
I want to start to taper off back down to the 75-100 range where I felt better but I am scared it will get worse. Has anyone had a similar experience that can give me some advice? I just want these side effects to calm down so I can live a some what normal life again. I’ve been breaking down crying nearly every day.