I've been seeing Psychiatrist and Neurologist since 1994, diagnosed having anxiety,depression,panic attack,insomnia and chronic tension headache.
I was unable to continue with my study in University.
I tried almost all psychiatric meds, antianxiety/antidepressants/anticonvulsants, as the result I developed Mitral Heart Prolapsed when checked by a cardiologist. ( it is sort of irregular heartbeats.....that's why, in this forum, I just want to get as much info as possible of whether smart-drugs, Racetams, could exacerbate my condition...)
I have no intentions to oppose anyone in this forum, neither to discourage anyone from trying Racetams, but I am also struggling to find out its benefits for me to improve my memory so that I can continue my study in University.
At the moment, I take Avanza(mirtazapine) 45mg , a very sedating tetracyclic antidepressant, to help me to sleep.
I take Rivotril( clonazepam) 2mg, a high potency-long acting Benzodiazepine-antianxiety, to control my panic attack, after breakfast.
I take Tegretol( carbamazepine) 200mg, a novel anticonvulsant, to prevent my chronic tension headache, after breakfast.
I've been taking these for years, occassionally using Ibuprofen too, for headache.
But I still get tension headache daily,( it's not migraine...)...so my Neurologist recently wrote a prescription of Nootropil 800mg twice/day. But I have to get it from a compounding pharmacy and when I brought it to a pharmacy, they ask me to go back to the Neurologist to fill another form, called SAS form, so they can order it from UCB Pharma. ( Piracetam is not available in Australia). So I have to wait until another month to see my Neurologist to ask him that form.
In the mean time, I read a lot about Piracetam and its wondrous effects on the brain.
But, as I have Mitral Heart Prolapsed, anxiety and headache, I just want to read some of the users experience on Piracetam.
I have posted before about Tropilex ( Piracetam) which I tried in Indonesia and got flu-like symptoms,and other bad reactions....( due to contaminations batch, because in 2001, hundreads of pharmaceutical medications were withdrawn from the pharmacies across Indonesia...)
So I am now really scared to get Piracetam from Indonesia....or from unreliable sources ( months before, as Levetiracetam is the only Racetam available thru prescription in Australia, my Neurologist prescribed it for me, 500mg thrice/day.)
Keppra (Levetiracetam) is an anticonvulsant, being a Racetam, it has little interactions with the Psychiatric meds I'm taking, also, it is not as toxic as other anticonvulsants available.
When I searched thru the internet about Levetiracetam, it was shown that, Levetiracetam does not have any Nootropic effect at all, unlike Piracetam/Oxiracetam/Aniracetam/Pramiracetam.
While taking it, I felt sedated, disoriented, I could not focus, and it gave me insomnia and tics. So the doc stopped it, and now changed it to Piracetam.
Well, as far as I know, Piracetam and other Racetams do not raise the liver enzymes, as they are not metabolised via liver's Cytochrome P450. ( ... I'm really sorry if I typed it wrong, as i have limited knowledge about Pharmacology and did not finish my study in University due to my psychiatric illness, but here, I am trying to get as much info as possible..... as I want to continue with my University, and hoping that smart-drug like Piracetam would help me go thru and earn a degree )
I have a few questions if anyone could help to give me a better understanding, as I could not get the answer here from any pharmacists nor doctors.
1. As I have a chronic tension headache, and piracetam also improve the oxygen circulating in the brain, has anyone using it notice an improvement in headache ? ( I read this from the book Smart Drug, Dean & Morgenthaler)
2. As piracetam, unlike amphetamine salts/methylphenidate/modafinil/caffeine/nicotine which are CNS stimulants, does it affect sleeping pattern ? ( as I am having insomnia and taking Avanza to help me to sleep )
3. As the cost is expensive to get it from reputable company that makes it, UCB Pharma in Victoria, $40 for 30 tabs (800mg), so I may be taking half a tab twice/day ( 800mg daily), would there be any therapeutic effect ? ( I am using it for headache, also for its nootropic effect too if possible )
4. Has anyone develop tics ? ( I am just afraid, as I got that with Levetiracetam )
Thank you so much if anyone could help by giving an input.
