Vimpat and Dizziness: What Users Say

• Sal...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 6, 2019

For Seizures "I have been taking Vimpat for a while now and had a lot of these symptoms listed below. Tiredness, dizziness, headaches, double vision, loss of balance, feeling faint, shaky/trembling, nausea, shortness of breath, pounding heart beat, trouble sleeping, dark urine, irritability, panic attacks, worsen anxiety, memory issues, ringing in the ears, can't find the word when speaking, weight gain, nervous tics, and itching. On top of that my seizure activity seemed to increase, not decrease. I have told my doctor over and over again and she told me to increase the dosage! Then, the doctor tried to push the VNS surgery on me. I thought about it at first, but I have not read the best reviews on that either. I feel like she is shoving Vimpat and VNS surgery down my throat so she can get kickbacks from the pharmaceutical companies."

• Sal...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 6, 2019

For Seizures "I have been taking Vimpat for a while now and had a lot of these symptoms listed below. Tiredness, dizziness, headaches, double vision, loss of balance, feeling faint, shaky/trembling, nausea, shortness of breath, pounding heart beat, trouble sleeping, dark urine, irritability, panic attacks, worsen anxiety, memory issues, ringing in the ears, can't find the word when speaking, weight gain, nervous tics, and itching. On top of that my seizure activity seemed to increase, not decrease. I have told my doctor over and over again and she told me to increase the dosage! Then, the doctor tried to push the VNS surgery on me. I thought about it at first, but I have not read the best reviews on that either. I feel like she is shoving Vimpat and VNS surgery down my throat so she can get kickbacks from the pharmaceutical companies."

• Emi...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 9, 2021

For Seizures "I read through a lot of the negative reviews below and was really surprised. Vimpat has been the best medication for me. I've been taking it for almost 3 years and it has stopped my seizures and has way fewer side effects than any other anti-epileptic I've taken. The thing with finding the right drug for you is that you have to take into account literally everything in your life. With the most common type of epilepsy, seizures can be triggered by pretty much everything. On another note, titrating up on any anti-epileptic will cause side effects regardless of the drug. It's a matter of your body adjusting to the drug. Every time I titrated up a dose, I experienced side effects for about a month or so. BUT I've been on 400 mg for over a year and have been fine, minus the unavoidable, occasional dizziness and vertigo. And the typical speech and memory problems come from having epilepsy, not necessarily from the drugs. Do your research! And if you have insurance, Vimpat is affordable."

• Emi...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 9, 2021

For Seizures "I read through a lot of the negative reviews below and was really surprised. Vimpat has been the best medication for me. I've been taking it for almost 3 years and it has stopped my seizures and has way fewer side effects than any other anti-epileptic I've taken. The thing with finding the right drug for you is that you have to take into account literally everything in your life. With the most common type of epilepsy, seizures can be triggered by pretty much everything. On another note, titrating up on any anti-epileptic will cause side effects regardless of the drug. It's a matter of your body adjusting to the drug. Every time I titrated up a dose, I experienced side effects for about a month or so. BUT I've been on 400 mg for over a year and have been fine, minus the unavoidable, occasional dizziness and vertigo. And the typical speech and memory problems come from having epilepsy, not necessarily from the drugs. Do your research! And if you have insurance, Vimpat is affordable."

• ngp...
• May 24, 2013

For Seizures "I have been on Keppra for a year and just started Vimpat 6 wks ago. The Vimpat seems to have controlled my simple partial seizures. However, I have noticed the side effects are troublesome. Some of the side effects are shakes, depression, anxiety, mood swings, dizziness, but the most troublesome is the effect it has on my memory. It feels like I can't find my words or I've forgotten information I should know. I'm 50 years of age and have tried many different types of medication in the past 43 years for seizure control, and Vimpat is working. However, the side effects on memory are affecting my job performance."

• Sei...
• February 18, 2011

For Seizures "When I started Vimpat, I got vertigo, headaches, and nausea like whoa. My neurologist asked me to try to stick it out, and I am so glad I did. It replaced Topamax (which was messing up my kidneys), and it works. I went a record (for me) 124 days without a seizure with the Vimpat/Keppra combination I am on now. I still get dizzy more easily than I used to, but seizure freedom is absolutely worth the inconvenience."

• Sei...
• February 18, 2011

For Seizures "When I started Vimpat, I got vertigo, headaches, and nausea like whoa. My neurologist asked me to try to stick it out, and I am so glad I did. It replaced Topamax (which was messing up my kidneys), and it works. I went a record (for me) 124 days without a seizure with the Vimpat/Keppra combination I am on now. I still get dizzy more easily than I used to, but seizure freedom is absolutely worth the inconvenience."

• Cor...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 18, 2014

For Seizures "I had been on Keppra and Vimpat 100 mg twice a day, and it controlled my seizures well for about a year. I then started having seizures. Then the doctors increased the dosage to 175 mg twice a day and Keppra EX 1500 mg at bedtime. I became like a zombie, dizzy, fell twice, and bruised my head. I attributed the symptoms to an overdose of Vimpat at one time. I started cutting the Vimpat pills 175 mg in half and spacing them six hours apart, and now I am active, no dizziness, no falling. So far, I have not had my hair fall out as others have reported. I called the doctors to tell him the above, but he's on vacation. I can't find anything on cutting the pills and spreading the dosage as I have done."

• Anonymous
• December 29, 2011

For Seizures "I have been taking Dilantin for almost 20 years. Tried all sorts of anti-seizure drugs. You name it, I have it. Started Vimpat about 4 or 5 months ago along with Dilantin. 200 mg/day. I felt initially that it is better than others. I did have a short seizure (usually don't get frequently). With increased dose along with Dilantin, I am confused, memory loss, dizziness, sort of depressive mood at times. The big thing is the memory loss. I forget what I did at work the other day, things like that. I feel very stressed and have become more sensitive. The major one is memory."

• ukg...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 23, 2012

For Seizures "I have started Vimpat just over 7 days ago and noticed I feel like losing marbles. I can't think straight, I can't concentrate on anything, can't read anything as I can't concentrate long enough to read it. I get really dizzy, I'm forgetting a lot, even walked out forgetting I hadn't put shoes on. I was only started on 50 mg once a day and within 7 days thinking it's making me a nutter."

• din...
• January 7, 2016

For Seizures "Vimpat worked great. Only med that has been able to control my seizures. Neurologist had to adjust dosage too much, at each dosing, made me dizzy. I was on 600 mg 2x daily, but had to switch to 600 mg 3x daily. It is very expensive w/o insurance. But I couldn't ask for any other med. This is the ONLY MED that has controlled my seizures. 2 years seizure-free."

• Tec...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 29, 2015

For Seizures "Vimpat is a cursed drug to me. It's helped with my seizures, but it's not worth it for the side effects. I started it with Lamictal XR 500 mg. I had seizures at Vimpat 100 mg. At 200 mg, I was having extreme vertigo-I couldn't even lay down. It happened a few times, along with other side effects. The doctor balanced it out at Lamictal XR 400 mg and Vimpat 150 mg. I have double vision at least once a week (mild to high), nausea frequently, vomiting a few times a month, and sometimes off balance. A mild vertigo has happened a few times. If I don't eat it with a good amount of food, the side effects are almost guaranteed for me. It stops the seizures, but it's not worth it."

• Tec...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 29, 2015

For Seizures "Vimpat is a cursed drug to me. It's helped with my seizures, but it's not worth it for the side effects. I started it with Lamictal XR 500 mg. I had seizures at Vimpat 100 mg. At 200 mg, I was having extreme vertigo-I couldn't even lay down. It happened a few times, along with other side effects. The doctor balanced it out at Lamictal XR 400 mg and Vimpat 150 mg. I have double vision at least once a week (mild to high), nausea frequently, vomiting a few times a month, and sometimes off balance. A mild vertigo has happened a few times. If I don't eat it with a good amount of food, the side effects are almost guaranteed for me. It stops the seizures, but it's not worth it."

• Tec...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 29, 2015

For Seizures "Vimpat is a cursed drug to me. It's helped with my seizures, but it's not worth it for the side effects. I started it with Lamictal XR 500 mg. I had seizures at Vimpat 100 mg. At 200 mg, I was having extreme vertigo-I couldn't even lay down. It happened a few times, along with other side effects. The doctor balanced it out at Lamictal XR 400 mg and Vimpat 150 mg. I have double vision at least once a week (mild to high), nausea frequently, vomiting a few times a month, and sometimes off balance. A mild vertigo has happened a few times. If I don't eat it with a good amount of food, the side effects are almost guaranteed for me. It stops the seizures, but it's not worth it."

• kcr...
• September 12, 2014

For Seizures "Vimpat is wonderful, in that it has stopped my seizures for the past two years. I am also on Carbatrol. Short-term memory loss I can live with, but my main concern is dizziness. I can't find the combination of times to take it/foods to take it with. It seems like I find a combination that works for three or four days, then I'm so dizzy I cannot stand up. Very frustrating."

• mwo...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 15, 2014

For Seizures "I've been having seizures for the last two years, after being free from seizures for 5 years after temporal lobe surgery. I've had a seizure about every three months. Each seizure was worse than the previous one. Last year when I fell, complications caused kidney failure. This has passed. I was on Lamictal, and Keppra was added, and both were increased, without any change in seizures. Four months ago, I was taken off Keppra, and Vimpat was added: 600 Lamictal/400 Vimpat. It is a strong medicine, in the morning, I got very dizzy and unbalanced with double vision. I complained, and my dose was split up 3 times a day, and I feel much better. Four months free of seizures now, I'm simply waiting for the next seizure, hoping not."

• mwo...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 15, 2014

For Seizures "I've been having seizures for the last two years, after being free from seizures for 5 years after temporal lobe surgery. I've had a seizure about every three months. Each seizure was worse than the previous one. Last year when I fell, complications caused kidney failure. This has passed. I was on Lamictal, and Keppra was added, and both were increased, without any change in seizures. Four months ago, I was taken off Keppra, and Vimpat was added: 600 Lamictal/400 Vimpat. It is a strong medicine, in the morning, I got very dizzy and unbalanced with double vision. I complained, and my dose was split up 3 times a day, and I feel much better. Four months free of seizures now, I'm simply waiting for the next seizure, hoping not."

• Cat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 19, 2013

For Seizures "I was on Keppra (500 mg/day) since Jan 2010, due to grand mal seizures from a brain tumor. No more seizures until Jan 2013, then another one. They added Vimpat (50 mg, 3/x day) and upped the Keppra (to 750 mg/day). I know the side effects are due to Vimpat; I never had them before, even on higher doses of Keppra. Extremely itchy skin; itching at my face and scalp constantly. Severe dizziness the first month, but that went away as I've adjusted. My vision suddenly got bad; like blurred/double vision. My vision was always 20/20 before this. Constipation, which I've never had, but that's okay. Overall irritation and snappy moods. Overall okay."

• Rob...
• September 24, 2010

For Seizures "Vimpat is highly effective at controlling my seizures. It causes dizziness at high doses, but this improves when lowering the dose of Lamictal and greatly lowering the dose of primidone, which also causes dizziness. Vimpat is more effective at controlling partial seizures at high doses when it is nearly a primary medicine. My MD was the Director of Research in the Vimpat study. I have less dizziness at 600 mg/day when doses of other anti-epileptic drugs are lowered."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 17, 2016

For Seizures "Have had seizures since I was 8 and am now 36 and have been on Vimpat for a year now and has been the only medication to almost stop the gran mals altogether. Used to have 4 to 6 a month mostly during my menstrual and now have not had one in almost 3 months. There are some side effects: migraines and major dizziness, but those are not as often as they were in the beginning, and the way that I look at it is that the positive outweighs the negative. Best medication for me."

• jes...
• January 13, 2014

For Seizures "I have had grand mal seizures since the age of 15. Around 32, I started having partial seizures only I didn't know that's what they were till I read a pamphlet in my doctor's office. They put me on Vimpat, which at first did not help with the dizziness I was already feeling from the partial seizures, but after about a year now, the dizziness has definitely slowed and I only have partial seizures when I'm overly overwhelmed or stressed. It doesn't help with my grand mal seizures, which I have at least 1-2 every month. I have noticed weight gain and memory loss, which I had before the medication, and hair loss and tingling in my limbs, but if I drink more water, it helps with the tingling. As for the hair loss, I take biotin, and that has helped."

• Del...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 13, 2017

For Seizures "I have grand mal (tonic-clonic) seizures, which are the full-body go-crazy type. They started 2 years ago with no warning or cause. I'm now 28 years old, and the neurologist at Mayo and scans/images see nothing wrong. I started with Keppra, but that didn't do a thing. I used to have 1-3 seizures every 30 days. I started on 100mg, then 200mg twice daily since May 2017, and seizures have at least lessened to at most once a month. I went 3 months before a seizure (new record!), which is great. Also, it lessened the strength of my seizures and the postictal phase. I do experience heavy memory loss, difficulty remembering new things, random headaches, difficulty with speech and finding the right words, and rarely random dizziness, but that goes away quickly. Overall, I can work, and I'm still me."

• TJS...
• March 26, 2016

For Seizures "Nocturnal grand mal seizures with tremor for 35 years. I have been taking Vimpat for 3 years with limited success. At times, I have had headaches, dizziness, vision problems, weight gain, and tongue swelling, to name a few. I was taking 300 mg morning, 300 mg night, along with 1200 mg once daily of Aptiom (the new Tegretol with a twist). No problems until 4 months ago. My knees started swelling, and my joints started hurting like a severe pain I have never had. All the muscles in my legs started cramping at the same time. I went down to 150 mg of Vimpat twice daily, and the swelling went down but not away. The pain is less but still there. The trouble has to be the Vimpat because I have been taking the Aptiom for only 2 months. Hope this is helpful."

• Anonymous
• July 31, 2018

For Seizures "POSITIVES: I have my normal energy and personality. NEGATIVES: $750.00 for a 30-day supply with insurance! I have a little blurred vision, ringing in my ears, and short-term memory loss. (Can't remember things from the day and week and can't find words to talk well, especially in groups of people). I am 59 years old and started having multiple auras at age 56, which led to 2 grand mal seizures. Keppra made me extremely tired and anxious. Dilantin made me extremely tired, off balance, and 'high' feeling. Vimpat has worked the best with 2-150 mg pills per day."

• Jam...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 19, 2020

For Seizures "I had a small cavernoma removed from my frontal lobe, and I had 2 seizures before the surgery. I have epileptic form from the site of the surgery, so I am at a higher risk of having seizures, so they are treating the epileptic form. I started with Keppra, and that was a nightmare, Lamictal did not work either. I've been taking Vimpat for 4 months, 50 mg twice a day. This is the worst medication ever. I have been feeling miserable for the last 4 months. The side effects I experienced are panic attacks, anxiety, tremors, cognitive problems, balance issues, dizziness, speech problems, problems coordinating my muscles to swallow, a very strange sensation in my throat and tongue, flushing, memory problems, and nausea. I am changing to Klonopin, we'll see how it goes. This is so frustrating."