[migraine, plague diaries] amusement

[kaberett]

The drug I am currently trying as a migraine preventive, topiramate, has a list of side effects that is very nearly as long as my arm, which is great fun, the majority of which I am not yet experiencing.

(So far I'm at 100mg -- max is 200mg -- and nothing is yet bad enough to discontinue, but also, I very much still have The Migraine.)

However. However. I am listing, under the cut, for your amusement, a selection of the side effects I might reasonably expect to develop as I continue to titrate up...

Very common (may affect more than 1 in 10 people)

• Stuffy, runny nose or sore throat
  
• Sleepiness, tiredness
  
• Dizziness
  
• Nausea, diarrhoea

Common (may affect up to 1 in 10 people)

• Loss of appetite, decreased appetite
  
• Decreased, loss of, or no sense of taste
  
• Shortness of breath
  
• Cough
  
• Fever, not feeling well, weakness
  
• Vomiting, constipation, abdominal pain or discomfort, indigestion, stomach or intestinal infection

Uncommon (may affect up to 1 in 100 people)

• Swollen glands in the neck, armpit, or groin
  
• Impaired, distorted, or no sense of smell
  
• Flu-like symptoms

... I'm just saying.

(I am mildly concerned that one of the side effects I definitely am getting is reduced sweating, so I'm needing to consciously think about and take steps toward implementing evaporative cooling instead of just letting it sort itself out, which is a whole 'nother lot of executive function...)

Comments

[alexseanchai]

happy happy fun times

[kaberett]

it's just the way it has complete overlap with the plague symptom profile that gets me

[alexseanchai]

yup, fun

(I've been spending a lot of time going "I don't need to waste a rapid test, my senses of smell and taste are working possibly too well, and the rest of the symptoms I have were already chronic in 2019"…)

[ludy]

That’s a fun list in these times! Eep!

I’m currently on prednisolone which has lowered resistance to infection as a listed side effect….

[sporky_rat]

if it makes you feel any better at all, I've had none of those side effects (barring a weird taste when I drink anything carbonated) and I've been on topiramate for....probably a year and a half now. I was off it for about two years, and the three years I was on it before I didn't have any of those either, and I am usually the canary for the uncommon ones.

[oracne]

OH GREAT. "Is it allergies? Is it side effects? OR IS IT PLAGUE?!"

[smilingslightly]

topiramate has done great things for me (multiple kinds of migraine plus seizures) and I've been mostly lucky w side effects. My sister found the level of relief vs side effects a poor trade-off, tho. Altho, yeah, with a list like that one doesn't always know if it's the med or...?

Biggest for me is the paresthesia (in combination w Reynaud's): I have to be very watchful for injuries to hands and feet that I don't properly feel. Also now carry around and drink lots of water all the day long because of the dehydration and kidney stone possibilities.


Here's hoping it turns out to be a net positive for you.

[lunabee34]

FWIW, I didn't have any of those side effects.

I was very stupid to begin with but that went away (she hopes LOL).

The only persistent side effects I've had are dry mouth; tingling in my hands, feet, and face (this was much more often at the beginning and much rarer now); and sometimes carbonated drinks taste weirdly flat.

*crosses fingers for you so hard*

[shanaqui]

Ugh, having to figure out sweating is gonna be such a pain. I hope you find a trick to handle it.

[beckyc]

Those are super unfun symptoms especially in a pandemic!

[divulge]

Oh no! I hope it at least helps. Look after yourself <3