@A MyEpilepsyTeam Member. I am really afraid we are in a time when the pendulum is going so swing so far back i the other direction where people won’t be able to get pain medication and we get to go back to the dark ages.

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A MyEpile...

every AED (anti-epilepsy drug) has a different half life on how long the drug will be in the system furthermore most AEDs will have a half life that is different. Once more, each of those AEDs are used for so many years before they are changed for good reason. The drug begins to lose how well it's strength can be because human body becomes use to having the medication constantly flow through it. Does that make sense?

I talk to my university pharmacy frequently when I have questions about my AEDs and their half life as I can get the exact numbers. I suggest speaking to your pharmacist as they do need to provide you with these numbers when being asked for them. A place you can check on line is drugs.com it is the one and only website I trust for obtaining medical information.

It depends. Everyone is unique! Some medications cause side effects in some people and not in others.

Tasha711
I think that it's more of a question as to: "How much do medications 'lose' their effectiveness over time?" Our bodies, over time, will grow used to having a foreign med in them. At which point, your doc may(probably) have to up the dose that you are taking. If the meds that you are currently taking are keeping the seizures away, then that's probably all that will be needed.

I have been on the same medication, phenobarbital for 43 years. When I had breakthrough seizures my doctors would up the dose. Lamictal was added almost 10 years ago to help with the breakthrough seizures. I have had a few seizures on the combination of the two meds, but not many. I do find that I have a very high tolerance for other medications. Have woken up twice during surgery. All that being said human medicine does not figure out your dose according to your weight like they do in veterinary medicine. I feel we are under dosed a lot of the time.