Anyone on Topamax or Phentermine?

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  • literaryweasel
    literaryweasel Posts: 18
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    I absolutely HATED Topamax. It controlled my migraines but it completely messed up my brain. I couldn't think of words, I would space out in the middle of sentences and not remember what I was saying, I couldn't write coherently--I'm a grad student and I basically lost 75% of my productivity. I felt awful. I've been off Topamax for a couple of years and I'm still feeling effects. It wasn't worth it, even if my migraines were debilitating.
  • cldaugherty
    cldaugherty Posts: 28 Member
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    I am on Topamax and have been on it for a number of years that I can't remember how many. I take it for migraine prevention. The only side effect I seem to have is feeling fatigued. I have lost weight naturally. I am also on an antidepressant and it hasn't done anything to my appetite or weight. Everything that I have done over the last 4 years in regards to my weight has been control and exercise. The medications help me to function evenly on a day to day basis. I only have one headache on average per month and my depression/anxiety is under control. This helps me to exercise with perseverance and edurance with a purpose and meaning.
  • logrolls
    logrolls Posts: 3 Member
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    I lost 50 lbs on phentermine in 3 months - kept it off for almost two years....and then regained it all as soon as I went on fertility drugs/hormones. The phentermine helped me stay full while I taught myself to eat more healthy and "shrunk" my stomach (even if it was partly psychological - it worked). By the time I went off it, I was eating better on my own, without the help of drugs. I had to see the doctor every week while on it so he could check my blood pressure and heart rate, etc....which became expensive. I've had a set back, but knowing that I have done it once is encouraging me now to get a grip and do it again. Good luck - it's all about what works for you, but make sure you are seeing an actual doctor and not ordering the dangerous crap from the internet! (Because of the possible effects on your heart rate, you may only do moderate exercises at first as well...but I love to walk, and that was fine.)
  • Starbuck2020
    Starbuck2020 Posts: 173 Member
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    Thanks for the input. I am working with my doctor on this and will keep all of the information in mind. I am the last person that would look for a "miracle pill" when it comes to health, but I am at the point where I just don't see myself doing this on my own. Consistency is key for me.
  • Starbuck2020
    Starbuck2020 Posts: 173 Member
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    I have a friend on Amitriptyline...ask your doctor if it would be right for you. It has stabilized her mood swings and she's not gained an ounce on it. I don't know what kind of med it is though. I've never looked it up.

    I will have to ask about that one as well thank you.
  • AverageAngel
    AverageAngel Posts: 123 Member
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    All I can say is : best weight loss pill by far is oxyelite pro.
    That plus HIIT training has changed my life.
    I had great success with low dose phentermine about 5 years ago. but also own a treadmill, and have a very supportive husband, that knows a bit about nutrition and weight lifting and was there for me on good and bad days. I had no side effects of the dizziness or what ever.. I think that is in your head. I went from 225 to 175. 1600 calorie diet, hour of circuit, with cardio included 4-5 days a week. My doc ok'd it because I had proof of my work out and diet, but was feeling completely ravenous, and was having a hard time keeping the appetite under control... blah blah blah.. you know what I mean here.. ANYHOW... the topomax thing. good LUCK getting a doc to give it to you. Sorry , but true.
    On the OTHER hand...
    *Oxyelite pro* IS PHENOMENAL.
    It was the closest thing to RX I have found. none of the nasty otc fat burner jitters and bad stuff. I had put my winter butt and belly back on a few years ago, and the scale creeped back up to 195. With Oxypro.. I was able to get my **** together. Got my post workout binges under control again. Don't take it for more than 3 months. pointless. But I agree.. Oxyelite Pro is the non RX way to go. Good luck to you! Remember. Start the process in your kitchen YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT.
  • Starbuck2020
    Starbuck2020 Posts: 173 Member
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    Well considering my doctor offered the Topamax I don't think I will need much luck.
    Thanks for the feedback though. I have been working out 4-6 days a week for over 4 months. Personal trainer 3 days a week and my own workouts the rest of the week. 60-90 minutes sometimes more.
    I also love every vegetable there is and eat them all the time. haha The doctor seemed to think I was a good candidate so here I am. I don't care if it is 1-2 lbs a week (as I am working hard to keep my calories up to support the exercise). I just need this to help me eat the same general amount of calories a day. I was too up and down with all of it to get any real progress despite the healthy choices and the exercise.
  • W2obx
    W2obx Posts: 17 Member
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    My time on Phentermine started out great but after a few weeks I either kicked in "starvation mode" or my body became used to the medication and stopped working. It was great for establishing a good eating pattern but not sure about all the side effects that go with the medication.
  • hope8311
    hope8311 Posts: 166
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    I took phentermine but was monitored by a Physicans assistant...and we weighed in every week..We had to follow certain rules not over eating allowing one carb a day...It was healthy but depriving myself of a lot...I lost 20 lbs in a month and half....But once I was at a healthy bmi they slowely decreased me and took me off...I gained weight real quick afte 2 months I wasnt following the plan...HOwever the only con I could think of is that I could not fall asleep at night.....
  • trishka48
    trishka48 Posts: 51 Member
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    I was on Topamax 3 years ago for migraines.
    1. It didn't decrease the amount of migraines I had.
    2. I experienced a lot of " Topamoments". ( forgetting what I was talking about, losing train of thought, etc.)
    3. It made everything taste like hot dogs--and I hate hot dogs.
  • Ninja_Bunny
    Ninja_Bunny Posts: 48 Member
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    I wish there was a like button :) I was just put on Topamax for migraines NOT for weight loss :)
  • audra_g
    audra_g Posts: 19 Member
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    Topamax is a seizure medication. its secondary use is to help control migraines. IT IS NOT A WEIGHT LOSS DRUG! i dont know why a doctor would offer to put you on it unless you have one of those conditions.. it is a serious CNS drug that has a lot of side effects. I have been on it for 6 years and i agree with what everyone here has said. i lost about 10 lbs when i first started taking it, but it balanced back out and the weight came right back. i had parasthesia for years ( numbness and tingling in my hands and feet and in my face). i still get it once in a while. the insomnia and depression come and go, but the trouble with words, thoughts, right and left, etc is everyday :(
  • mecaseyrn
    mecaseyrn Posts: 76 Member
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    Topamax was a wonderful drug at first to rid me of my migraines. However the side effects are no worth it. I had horrible and I mean horrible numbness and tingling in my hands and feet. I would also get really bad neck pain. I was tired all the time. I was cranky. It initially helped with decreased appetite but it was because I was sleeping so much. THEN came the withdraw...I decided I no longer want this numbness in my hands or feet. It took weeks of flu like symptoms as I was coming off it, the rebound migraines were terrible, the nausea was nuts.

    I do not recommend taking this drug unless it is for Migraine Maintenance and you can tolerate the side effects. I know everyone is different and some have lots 100s of pounds on it, but what happens when you stop. You will just regain it all. Good luck!
  • wonderwoman1974
    wonderwoman1974 Posts: 66 Member
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    I am on Topamax and have been on it for a number of years that I can't remember how many. I take it for migraine prevention. The only side effect I seem to have is feeling fatigued. I have lost weight naturally. I am also on an antidepressant and it hasn't done anything to my appetite or weight. Everything that I have done over the last 4 years in regards to my weight has been control and exercise. The medications help me to function evenly on a day to day basis. I only have one headache on average per month and my depression/anxiety is under control. This helps me to exercise with perseverance and edurance with a purpose and meaning.

    ^^^I am also on Topamax for migraine prevention for 3 years now...but it also is treating my bipolar as a mood stabilizer. I have not had any of the horrible side effects listed in this thread. The one I am replying to is the most similar to my experience. I have found my experience to be very positive. Topamax keeps me level and functional and also keeps those headaches in check on top of it. I unfortunately didn't have the good side effect of weight loss either :/ that would have been a welcome one!!
  • bettymayfree
    bettymayfree Posts: 4
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    I take Topamax, and like a lot of people have said, I sleep ALOT, like 12 hours or longer a day, and I've been taking it for 10 years now. So while I do have a diminished appetite, what I do eat, considering it's a relatively large amount of calories for the amount of exercise I can do and the amount of time I'm awake...it doesn't really work out. However, I'm also on Lexapro and that increased my appetite until I started taking something else that happened to interact with that and lower it again. So...drugs are bad!
  • abrahamsitososa
    abrahamsitososa Posts: 716 Member
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    My wife knows these 2 chicks that take phentermine(however you spell it). The first time they took it they lost A LOT of weight and as soon as they stopped taking it they regained it back or even worse they added a few more lbs than before they started taking it. They always get back on it on and off but they dont seem to lose weight as much as they did the first time they took it. They have told us that their urine changes color and they feel like drinking a little more. A lot of their symptoms are similar to that of Methamphetamine. When they are on it they dont sleep much and have lots of energy, they want to party more and they drink more alcohol now. One of the women now has some serious migrane problems and she thinks its because of the weight loss drug. Her doctor ended up prescribing her some seizure medication and now she's on all kinds of crap.
  • ewfishbye
    ewfishbye Posts: 3 Member
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    I just started on the combination of Topamax and Phentermine!
    Hopefully it works well for me!
  • jordanroberts00
    jordanroberts00 Posts: 1
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    I just started month 2 of phentermine and topamax. I take 12.5mg of phentermine in the am and 100m of topamax in the pm. I lost 19lbs the first month. I am 24 years old, female, mother of three kids (one set of 3 month old twins!). I also work the night shift as an RN. I had a few side effects of the topamax at first like dry mouth, tingling mouth/face, and soda tasted funny. But other than that it wasn't bad at all. I'm really happy with the results. I do eat extremely healthy, when I do eat! It def suppresses my appetite and I drink a lot of water due to the dry mouth. I started at 199 lbs and now I'm 180! My doctor is keeping me on it for 3 months, then off for three months. If I need to go back on after the three months off I can restart again.

    So that's my story- I like it, I see results, I feel good.

    Good luck!

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