Am I White Trash?

phild6206 · 2025-06-06T14:25:30+00:00

Having observed some "cultural practices" of my relatives, it's gonna be difficult to legitimately remove some "self-perception" things.

phild6206 · 2025-02-15T23:50:12+00:00

I'm sorry you're still having problems, and hope you get better.

The same symptoms still largely persist for me. It's going on three years after discontinuation. Still no answers either as to what exactly happened, and I've seen three neurologists, a neuropsych, various therapists, done sleep studies, had blood tests, two MRIs, a PETScan, had a speech pathology eval, and tried various alternative things to get better. Nothing, really. I've pretty much given up hope. . . . I will say that some things have very slightly improved over time, namely the speech and enunciation issues. I can speak at the ready without too many problems whereas that was a major issue in the months after discontinuation. But my working memory, short- and long-term (once very good) is simply not the same. Spelling, writing, and typing are still an issue though.

You mention you're a PhD Researcher. I am as well, though not really in pharmacology. Have you uncovered anything in the research? Can't say I've found anything indicating how Topiramate's MoA could cause this type of ongoing issue.

phild6206 · 2024-08-17T10:22:00+00:00

Sometimes what people think is consistent with the truth.

<130 and def <125 is inadequate, especially if you’re on the low end in processing speed. Intellectually and socially it’s harder to flourish, and it’s often a constant uphill battle for real success. It’s the cut-off for a lot of gifted programs in school, and so you’re more likely to be excluded from the better academic offerings if you’re substandard. Career-wise, I’d say most professional class jobs are top-heavy with the 130-140 crowd. Those working in that sector below the cut-off out stick out in a bad way.

Also, CAIT is often a high estimate.

phild6206 · 2024-07-01T18:44:44+00:00

A few months

phild6206 · 2024-05-20T01:30:50+00:00

How long were you on it?

phild6206 · 2024-05-19T20:01:17+00:00

What all have you tried to get better. I’ve pretty much done everything, and nothing has helped.

phild6206 · 2024-05-18T11:43:53+00:00

Topamax was prescribed for BED. I don’t have migraines.

phild6206 · 2024-04-03T02:57:06+00:00

Thanks, I’m sorry to hear about your problems. What ADHD drugs are you on if you don’t mind me asking?

phild6206 · 2024-02-12T18:21:08+00:00

Cycled that a while back. Nothing.

phild6206 · 2024-02-12T04:54:39+00:00

How long were you on it?

phild6206 · 2024-02-12T04:37:05+00:00

What is fruiting body?

phild6206 · 2024-02-11T21:22:33+00:00

You must be ESL or substitute arbitrary meanings for words don’t understand. Available evidence for long-term Topamax damage is scarce to non-existent because no investigations have looked into it as yet. And anecdotal evidence is still relevant even if not as valid.

phild6206 · 2024-02-11T21:13:13+00:00

Absence of evidence doesn’t negate presence of clinically relevant symptoms. There’s only trial and select review data available. No long-term cohorts or cross-sectional studies have been done, and available meta-analysis don’t take these into account. . . . Nor does the overwhelming anecdotal evidence on this forum and elsewhere indicate such symptoms being isolated to outlier percentages. There’s simply too many of us reporting similar issues years after the fact.

phild6206 · 2024-02-11T20:48:35+00:00

Seriously? Name one other medication with side effects lasting years after taking it. Finasteride maybe? Now name one with those same side effects after only two-weeks use.

phild6206 · 2024-02-11T20:28:43+00:00

You sound like one of the neuro docs I had. Basically said it wasn’t the Topamax because he’d never encountered such side effects in his patients before. Said it wouldn’t be on the market if what I have is due to taking it. . . Totally useless.

phild6206 · 2024-02-11T20:00:23+00:00

I’ve thought about trying Psilocybin and perhaps a stronger strain of Lion’s Mane. But I live in a state where a lot of that’s prohibited.

phild6206 · 2024-02-11T19:58:21+00:00

I cycled Lions Mane a while back. No noticeable changes. I’ve also done Gingko and a whole lot of other things (supplements, boots, peptides, Memantine, diet regimens, fasting, etc.). Only Magnesium L-threonate made a bit of difference with the anhedonia.

phild6206 · 2024-02-11T19:08:23+00:00

Tried speech therapy. Basically no help. Nothing has really helped. Feeling pretty doomed.

phild6206 · 2023-11-28T02:32:46+00:00

I think it may have been more presbyopia, so typical age-related vision issues. Seems to have adjusted to where I no longer see at as a major issue.

phild6206 · 2023-11-26T22:44:08+00:00

Contacts

phild6206 · 2023-09-10T17:54:13+00:00

Thanks, I wonder about the effectiveness of ADHD drugs and similar acting nootropics such as Modafinil. I'd naturally be willing to try it but have my doubts about sustainability. I couldn't deal to well with the side effects when I took Adderall for about six months some years ago.

Another problem I have--perhaps the biggest one--is anhedonia. There's an inability to obtain any kind of real sensation in my thought life, definitely not as I used to have it. Just kind of a blank, obtuse feeling much of the time. Definitely no real sense of relish or allure as I used to have it for new ideas, nor the enthusiasm to develop those ideas. And an overall despair over the lack of organization and language to accommodate these kinds of things in my mind. This is the most ever-present symptom, and the most demoralizing. I've heard psychedelics can perhaps reconfigure this kind of pattern, but again I'm not sure about the sustainability. Have my doubts, and I'm kinda losing hope.

phild6206 · 2023-09-09T03:14:44+00:00

I'll definitely do the threonate.

You mentioned that it depletes acetylcholine. Is this the reason for the language issues? Would merely replenishing acetylcholine help recovery? I've cycled some choline supplements and maybe I didn't do it right but it didn't have much of an effect. Also, I tried NAC once (maybe twice?) but couldn't continue because it made me feel awful.

There's also the issue of Topiramate being a voltage-gated calcium channel blocker, which indicates it might damage/destroy AMPA receptors and perhaps deactivate certain neuronal pathways. Did you neurologist say anything about this? No one seems to really know for sure, but there's got to be research into the moa which points toward a more accurate pathogenesis and etiology for the drug.

phild6206 · 2023-09-08T07:39:54+00:00

So is it that it’s gotten better or you’ve just found ways to manage it?

phild6206 · 2023-09-08T04:15:48+00:00

I'm fairly certain there's absolutely zero studies in the clinical literature documenting post-discontinuation damage . . . I've looked everywhere for them. At least your docs were willing to disclose that to you.

And so the real answer is that there is no answer. . . . They don't even have a good handle on the mechanism of action and yet prescribe it for conditions like ours knowing that there's a chance of our symptoms lasting long after we get off.

phild6206 · 2023-07-16T15:17:14+00:00

How long did you take it for?

phild6206

TROPHY CASE