Are my issues caused by lamotrigine, I wonder?

Posted by tisme @tisme, 1 day ago

started lamotrigine a couple of weeks ago and lately i have been getting a lot of palpitations, and tachy, up to 117beats. the palps dont always come with rapid heart beats but I often can hear the heart beat in my ears. freaky. So I am going to get off this stuff, I dont want to end up being on it too long to be able to get off like effexor ( the side effects of that are the reason I am still on it).

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depressedbutnotdead | @depressedbutnotdead | 5 hours ago

According to this study published in Nature, the answer is yes.

From the abstract:

"In adult participants with BPD (bipolar disorder), LTG (lamotrigine) has a statistically significant association to increase VT (ventricular tachycardia) risk compared to commonly prescribed alternatives."
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-01321-7
You should definitely alert your doctor for safe withdrawal procedures. Especially since there's a cardiac issue occurring. I have an arrhythmia that's controlled by medication and have had no symptoms of it despite being on lamotrigine for two years now. So I strongly suggest you ask about consulting with a cardiologist as well, just to be sure that it's the medication and there isn't an underlying issue that has not surfaced yet. Hearts are not something to take chances with.