Clusterheadaches.com Message Board


    
      
        Clusterheadaches.com Message Board
        (http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.cgi)
      

        Cluster Headache Help and Support >> Cluster Headache Specific >> Topamax vs B6?
        
(Message started by: turtlendog on Feb 9^th, 2008, 7:22pm)

Title: Topamax vs B6?
Post by turtlendog on Feb 9^th, 2008, 7:22pm

I've been puzzling over my experience with Topamax and may have found the answer. Maybe it will help one of you.

My experience with Topamax was that my doc initially prescribed 100mg. I reached that level without too much trouble, but a little stupidity, and no effect on my pain after one month at 100mg.

My doc upped the prescription to 200mg and I climbed to that level and stayed there for a month without success or intelligence.

This 200mg level coincided with the time that I decided to take control of my treatment instead of trusting the doctors. I began questioning myself about what my symptoms really were and could not honestly differentiate which were the natural symptoms and which were the side effects of my drugs. Having no relief from Topamax, and being confused by it, I told the doc that I wanted to get off it. A negotiation ensued and I agreed to step down to 100mg.

I had no trouble stepping down to 150mg, but felt like I suffered for it when I dropped to 125mg... and again when I dropped to 100mg.

It didn't help me when I started... and now it's going to hurt me when I stop???

I may have found the answer to this riddle the Healthnotes A-Z Guide to Drug-Herb-Vitamin Interactions. In the anticonvulsant section I find that "One controlled study revealed that taking anticunvulsantant drugs dramatically reduces blood levels of vitamin B6" and that "On the other hand, supplementation with large amounts of B6 (80-200 mg per day) has been reported to reduce blood levels of some anticonvusant drugs"

So, the key to the riddle may be the fact that I had been taking a daily multivitamin that included B6, but recently ran out and just stopped taking it since it seemed like a failed experiment.

PS. Yes, my doc knew I was on a multivitamin.

So, if you've tried Topamax and it hasn't worked for you, Do you also take a B6 or multi vitamin?

Title: Re: Topamax vs B6?
Post by monty on Feb 10^th, 2008, 9:51am

I haven't tried topamax, but have a question for you: how much B6 is in your multi-vitamin? Mine has 5 mg, which is more than most, but much less than the 80-200 mg that can interfere with anticonvulsants according to your source.

Not much written about this topic - anticonvulsants do seem to reduce levels of some B vitamins, but adding B vitamins sometimes increases the effectiveness of these drugs - for example, B vitamins made gabapentin more effective in blocking neurogenic pain in an experiment on rats.