No, not at all, just that I should ask if you prefer to keep this private, in a series of emails, or not.
The biggest side effect for me was the short-term memory erasure, paired with the aphasia--of course, I was prescribed the dope-a-max for migraines, not for any significant neurological disorder. Part of the reason, I think, for the iron deficiency is that it makes animal protein taste strange, unbearably different, or--in my case--completely unpalateable. No protein in your system = anemia. It's a theory.
I'd recommend you read over the Crazymeds info page on Topamax--it's witty, and, more to the point, absolutely clear about the common and uncommon side effects. I highly recommend you read through it; it helped me understand a lot of the more irritating reactions I was getting to the drug (what do you mean I can't eat meat now? What do you mean sugar tastes like ass? I'm not happy with...oh, never mind, I've forgotten everything).
And if you're uncomfortable talking about anything else after that, just let me know, and I'll email you for privacy.
Actually, that makes sense to me, because beforehand, I was not a vegetarian. I was an omnivore tending to carnivore. I wanted meat that whimpered when I cut into it. Some days forget rare--I didn't so much want it more than warmed.
Now? I still can't process beef, chicken, and pork the way I used to, though I've had some success with (limited) amounts of tuna, bacon and bits of salami. We're still trying to figure that out, but uncured, unsalted meat? Not interested. I've worked up to being able to have beef broth, and I figure, I can stop here.
I didn't lose a ton of weight, but I did lose some, which is notable because PCO, my bane of existence, does everything it can in my system to pack weight on.
I never got above 100mg, but I didn't have seizures, either. And if what you're dealing with is a change in how your tastebuds react to things, and a change in what you can stand to eat, that seems pretty typical to me.
Things that worried the hell out of me, and the reason I got off the drug: no short term memory. NONE. Four months of my life? Gone save for shreds here and there, mostly due to writing stuff down here and reading it, over and over. I don't remember the event; I remember my retelling of the event.
This scares me.
Also, aphasia. For a brain that has trouble finding words anyway, finding the wrong ones, or no ones at all, on a consistent basis fucked with me. Also: difficulty in typing words out, my fingers didn't want to use the right keys. It was baffling.
The biggest side effect for me was the short-term memory erasure, paired with the aphasia--of course, I was prescribed the dope-a-max for migraines, not for any significant neurological disorder. Part of the reason, I think, for the iron deficiency is that it makes animal protein taste strange, unbearably different, or--in my case--completely unpalateable. No protein in your system = anemia. It's a theory.
I'd recommend you read over the Crazymeds info page on Topamax--it's witty, and, more to the point, absolutely clear about the common and uncommon side effects. I highly recommend you read through it; it helped me understand a lot of the more irritating reactions I was getting to the drug (what do you mean I can't eat meat now? What do you mean sugar tastes like ass? I'm not happy with...oh, never mind, I've forgotten everything).
And if you're uncomfortable talking about anything else after that, just let me know, and I'll email you for privacy.
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Now? I still can't process beef, chicken, and pork the way I used to, though I've had some success with (limited) amounts of tuna, bacon and bits of salami. We're still trying to figure that out, but uncured, unsalted meat? Not interested. I've worked up to being able to have beef broth, and I figure, I can stop here.
I didn't lose a ton of weight, but I did lose some, which is notable because PCO, my bane of existence, does everything it can in my system to pack weight on.
I never got above 100mg, but I didn't have seizures, either. And if what you're dealing with is a change in how your tastebuds react to things, and a change in what you can stand to eat, that seems pretty typical to me.
Things that worried the hell out of me, and the reason I got off the drug: no short term memory. NONE. Four months of my life? Gone save for shreds here and there, mostly due to writing stuff down here and reading it, over and over. I don't remember the event; I remember my retelling of the event.
This scares me.
Also, aphasia. For a brain that has trouble finding words anyway, finding the wrong ones, or no ones at all, on a consistent basis fucked with me. Also: difficulty in typing words out, my fingers didn't want to use the right keys. It was baffling.
How's your response to sugar?
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