Lamictal (and other meds) and Teeth Grinding?

TicTacGo · Sep 29, 2018 at 02:58 PM

I stumbled across an article about Lamictal and bruxism (teeth grinding), not realizing there is a link.
(excuse the upcoming rant)

I struggle with moderate bruxism, having to wear a tooth splint (or whatever you call it) to prevent further damage. If this is the case, I will not take it lightly. No no absolutely not.
I am pretty certain I told my pdoc about the teeth grinding.

I am not trying to be stubborn, deliberate or difficult; having a couple of years lost due to the combination of both a mood disorder and OCD means that this is just another thing.
I will not take any more crap. Lithium caused severe acne that took years to rectify, as well as constipation, jitters and dry mouth. Medications are not going to rule my life. I will not let a disorder rule my life, but I shall not let medications rule my life either.

Question #1: what other medications from the list below could cause bruxism?

Question #2: what possible treatments are there? I have read of muscle relaxants and even Botox injections along the jaw muscles to relax them.

Blue_Bird · Sep 30, 2018 at 05:05 AM

Well, I used to have really bad teeth grinding with Zoloft (Sertraline)

Deejay14 · Sep 30, 2018 at 03:51 PM

Cymbalta (Duloxetine) can cause that.

still_crazy · Sep 30, 2018 at 05:08 PM

you're on multiple antidepressants. maybe serotonin syndrome could happen?

Mountaindewed · Oct 01, 2018 at 01:33 PM

Lamictal is absolutely destroying my teeth and not just with teeth grinding. But my teeth actually shifted with lamictal. I don’t want the weight issues of other meds though. No doctor will put me on Wellbutrin. So I have to stick with lamictal.

TicTacGo · Oct 01, 2018 at 08:26 PM

Update:

Thanks for all the replies.

Saw our family doctor. He is almost 100% certain it has something to do with the medications and suggested I see my psychiatrist asap, and a different dentist.

He said it could possibly be the setraline, olanzapine or even the flupentixol. Could be a accumulative effect of multiple drugs.

So my psychiatrist will just have to change something; if it causes so many issues; wear of the teeth, sensitivity, muscle aches... medications do have side effects, but some are just outweighing the benefits; there are alternatives. He said the Zoloft in particular, but there are alternative SSRIs.

On the topic of other SSRIs, what do you all have experience with? I know in the SSRI group we have citalopram, escitalopram, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, paroxetine and of course setraline.

In terms of venlafaxine: I do not see why we cannot drop it as I am only on 75 mg and other medications have been put in place.
I'll hear what the doc has to say.

Deejay14 · Oct 01, 2018 at 08:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TicTacGo

Update:

Thanks for all the replies.

Saw our family doctor. He is almost 100% certain it has something to do with the medications and suggested I see my psychiatrist asap, and a different dentist.

He said it could possibly be the setraline, olanzapine or even the flupentixol. Could be a accumulative effect of multiple drugs.

So my psychiatrist will just have to change something; if it causes so many issues; wear of the teeth, sensitivity, muscle aches... medications do have side effects, but some are just outweighing the benefits; there are alternatives. He said the Zoloft in particular, but there are alternative SSRIs.

On the topic of other SSRIs, what do you all have experience with? I know in the SSRI group we have citalopram, escitalopram, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, paroxetine and of course setraline.

In terms of venlafaxine: I do not see why we cannot drop it as I am only on 75 mg and other medications have been put in place.
I'll hear what the doc has to say.

Three anti depressants seems like overkill to me.

Blue_Bird · Oct 02, 2018 at 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TicTacGo

On the topic of other SSRIs, what do you all have experience with? I know in the SSRI group we have citalopram, escitalopram, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, paroxetine and of course setraline.

I've taken all of them except fluvoxamine. Can't remember the effects of citalopram or fluoxetine. Escitalopram caused me to get very hypomanic. Sertraline was a life saver for me for many years. I'm on paroxetine now, it's helpful but due to the other meds I'm on the combo makes me pretty tired since paroxetine it'self tends to be somewhat sedating. I have wondered lately if I should see about switching to fluoxetine for somewhat of an energy boost as I am tired throughout the day but I kind of don't want to mess with things that are helpful and it not working out

nmzol · Oct 02, 2018 at 01:31 PM

Sertraline and Paroxetine are more likely to trigger teeth grinding compared to other SSRIs however Venlafaxine, Desvenlafaxine and Bupropion can cause teeth grinding and/or mandibular pain too . All SSRIs and SNRIs could trigger teeth grinding even if you don't have a history of bruxism but it's more common during treatment with sertraline, paroxetine and fluoxetine.
If you take sertraline or paroxetine and experience bruxism it doesn't mean you'll get this side effect from other Anti depressants such as venlafaxine, escitalopram, fluvoxamine or fluoxetine. Some people report bruxism on sertraline but not on escitalopram; others report bruxism on escitalopram and not on sertraline. In this case your doctor will tell you if switching is the best option for you.

HALLIEBETH87 · Oct 02, 2018 at 05:20 PM

I take 400mg of lamictal a day and I grind day and night. I wear a splint at night but even during the daytime I do it. I sometimes wonder if I need splint for 24/7 wear. my neck hurts a lot and so does my ears and jaws

TicTacGo · Oct 06, 2018 at 06:33 PM

Again, thank you for all the input.

I am seeing my psychiatrist on the 18th and my dentist before that. I just have one big issue with the amount of meds I take (with consideration to their purpose) and I just do not like it.

The discussion as to what SSRI could be used in place of setraline (as I expect it is the cause) is another story. It may be a combination of a couple of things, but this side effect is more than just drowsiness or some headaches. It is literally destroying a part of my body.

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Blue_Bird Legendary Wise Elder Member Since Jun 2013 Location: Hogwarts Posts: 36,741 (SuperPoster!) 10 14.3k hugs given	Sep 30, 2018 at 05:05 AM #2 Well, I used to have really bad teeth grinding with Zoloft (Sertraline) __________________ My Blog: https://livingwithachaoticmind.wordpress.com/ R.I.P mom 8/6/55-1/15/16 “All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.” -St. Francis of Assisi
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Deejay14 Poohbah Member Since Sep 2016 Location: USA Posts: 1,460 7 41 hugs given	Sep 30, 2018 at 03:51 PM #3 Cymbalta (Duloxetine) can cause that. __________________ True happiness comes not when we get rid of all our problems, but when we change our relationship to them, when we see our problems as a potential source of awakening, opportunities to practice patience and learn.~Richard Carlson
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still_crazy Grand Poohbah Member Since Oct 2016 Location: United States of America Posts: 1,792 7 3,342 hugs given	Sep 30, 2018 at 05:08 PM #4 you're on multiple antidepressants. maybe serotonin syndrome could happen?
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Mountaindewed Legendary Wise Elder Member Since Jun 2016 Location: Where the sidewalk ends Posts: 36,193 (SuperPoster!) 7 8,764 hugs given	Oct 01, 2018 at 01:33 PM #5 Lamictal is absolutely destroying my teeth and not just with teeth grinding. But my teeth actually shifted with lamictal. I don’t want the weight issues of other meds though. No doctor will put me on Wellbutrin. So I have to stick with lamictal. __________________ Ridin' with Biden
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