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Some medications taken for migraine prevention such as Depakote, Elavil and Pamelor have a tendency to cause weight gain. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers have established what many of us knew from our own experiences: preventative Topamax (topamirate) does not. In fact, patients taking it often lose weight.
Treating Migraines Without Weight Gain
Lead author Jan Lewis Brandes, M.D., a neurologist in Nashville, Tenn., studied 468 people with chronic headaches. People taking Topamax had fewer headaches, experienced fatigue and nausea and lost weight.
Those taking 100 mg of Topamax a day went from an average of 6 headaches a month to 3.5. People taking 200 mg of Topamax a day went from an average of 5 headaches a month to 3. Patients taking Topamax lost an average of 3-4 percent of their body weight.
My personal experience with Topamax was not favorable. I definitely lost weight while on the drug, but it was because I was so constantly nauseated that I couldn't stand to eat. It was not an effective preventative for me. However it is effective for many people. Further, many are able to tolerate it quite well.
For more information about the use of Topamax as a migraine preventative, please read this article by expert Teri Robert:
Topamax Doseage, Titration and Tapering
Related Posts:
Migraine Prevention News: Depakote, Topamax Better Than Placebo
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Content by Diana E. Lee.
3 comments:
Topamax was great for me, at first. It cut my Migraines in half....I dropped 15lbs....it was awesome!!!
Until I started to overheat doing virtually nothing and my libido was non-existant.
I'm waiting for the drug that UPS the libido, helps you lose weight, and drastically reduces Migraines....until then, I guess we just keep looking.
I lost weight (and my hair) on Topomax, mostly because food tasted awful. Soda, in particular. It had a funny bitter taste. Even now, after being a Coke fan for years and not taking Topamax, I don't drink soda.
It did little for my migraines and robbed me of my mind. I became incredibly stupid (I call it Stupamax). I thinking capabilities were slowed to the point that my DH thought I was ignoring him. I was only thining of the answer to his question. I couldn't do simple math in my head (I still can't). It affected my work becaues I do a lot of typing and I was constantly making spelling errors that I had never made before. And that has stayed with me. Needless to say, I am not taking Stupamax anytime soon.
I was on Topamax until stupid Kaiser decided they wouldn't offer it anymore.
I lost weight and had very few or no migraines at all some months. Loved it!
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