Alternative to Meds Center has developed a wide range of lamotrigine alternatives designed to help people regain their joy in living without remaining trapped in struggling with a lifetime on antipsychotic medication.
Medication such as lamotrigine (brand name Lamictal) may have played a vital role during a desperate time of crisis. But frequently, that does not serve well as a permanent solution, and alternatives may serve a person better in numerous other ways.
Do Your Symptoms
Require Lamotrigine?
For 15 years, Alternative to Meds has been the only licensed center helping people find alternatives to antipsychotic medications. We have published evidence regarding our long-term success. While each case is different, such things as blood sugar issues, genetic factors, diet, allergic reactions, and even quality or lack of sleep may have played a significant role in a prior crisis. But generally, these things are not looked into and a prescription is given as an “answer” that doesn’t bring a person’s joy and vibrancy back into play.
15 Years Experience by Professionals Who Understand Your Journey.
Despite their usefulness in certain critical situations, antipsychotic medications like lamotrigine (Lamictal® ) are fraught with negative consequences, especially when they are taken for a very long time.5 It is possible, however, to avoid these adverse consequences by implementing lamotrigine alternatives, that can free a person from these negatives. Alternative to Meds has discovered practical options that mean better strategies than having to endure the oppressive side effects of lamotrigine. Of note is the inconvenient fact that over time medication becomes ineffective. Although antipsychotics can provide temporary relief, many people find these drugs untenable as a long-term solution. They tend to suck the joy out of life. For these reasons, it is recommended to consider alternatives to lamotrigine.
Choosing an alternative to lamotrigine opens the possibility of successfully discontinuing this medication. Crucial to the process is having qualified medical care professionals who are familiar with the nuances needed for the best outcome in treatment.
Alternative to Meds Center is a specialty rehab that has been designed for authentic results using holistic therapies at its core. Our staff has dedicated years of earnest research and discovery so that we can offer a workable pathway to antipsychotic discontinuation that is both safe and comfortable. We are a fully licensed facility, having met and surpassed the standards of treatment for our clients.
Schizophrenia, Psychosis, and Dopamine
Although the cause of schizophrenia has never been fully understood, the general medical consensus is that symptoms of the disorder are at least in part, related to the dysregulation of dopamine. Antipsychotic medications are designed to restrict dopamine expression to manage the symptoms. This is the dampening effect of antipsychotic medication.6
After stopping an antipsychotic medication, and in fact, during the process of tapering, neurochemistry attempts to rebalance once again. We know that many human hormones, dopamine levels, glutamate, aspartate, etc., begin to revert back, and eventually normalize. While a person is on antipsychotic medication, the body begins building or activating more receptor sites due to the restriction of available dopamine. But now when the drug is reduced, and dopamine expression is freed up again, this overabundance of receptor sites can exacerbate a recurrence of mania, psychosis, overstimulation, and other unwanted responses.7 This is a common problem and is why one should not stop antipsychotic medication quickly, even though it may feel quite liberating to do so. One wants to avoid the cascading “out of control” reactions to stopping medication like lamotrigine. The lamotrigine alternatives used at Alternative to Meds are designed to minimize these reactions using slow tapering, and natural support therapies, making withdrawal from lamotrigine calm, and happily, quite uneventful.
Natural Solutions
Introducing alternatives to lamotrigine plays an important role before, during, and after completing a tapering process. Keeping an even keel is a good description.
Programs must be designed differently and precisely for each person, as a cookie-cutter approach just cannot be effective.
Alternative to Meds Center uses protocols designed to help stabilize neurochemistry in safe, drug-free ways, and to discover any other areas that were not addressed that could well have contributed to the person’s original symptoms or psychosis.
Top Lamotrigine Alternatives:
Neurotoxin removal, such as mercury, lead, and other heavy metals, pesticides, chemicals, and countless others that tend to accumulate in fatty tissues.8,9
Remove neurotoxic products from the home, such as personal hygiene products, chemical cleaners, solvents, sprays, deodorizers, etc.*1,2,3
Clear the pantry of foods with preservatives, additives, MSG, gluten, Aspartame10,22
Improve the diet, such as Mediterranean style diet, and targeted supplementation for deficiencies, notably vitamin B9 (folate), B12, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids11
Avoid sugars, caffeine, and alcohol, and avoid recreational drug use including cannabis12-14
CBT, other genres of personal and psycho-social counseling15
Practice mindfulness meditation, yoga, and other traditional Chinese medicine16,17
Fresh air, sunshine, bright light therapy18-20
Exercise shows promise for the treatment of psychiatric symptoms of schizophrenia20
*Studies have shown a direct correlation between toxic exposures and psychiatric symptoms.1-3,8,9
Discovering and Addressing Root Causes for Initial Symptoms is Key
Mankind has always, it seemed, been blessed with the desire “to know.” Certainly, the field of medicine started out with a keen eye focused on finding the reasons behind mysterious illnesses and health issues. Over the centuries we have been blessed with discoveries of pathogens, bacteria, and an ever-increasing wealth of knowledge about the internal workings of the human body, functions of organs, hormones, etc. The quest has been to find the answers, whether we are searching for cures for a skin rash, or cancer, or even the common cold. Some outstanding success has been realized in some of these endeavors. The field of health and medicine has been gifted by a host of compassionate geniuses who did their best to solve these mysteries.
However, in the field of mental health, it seems that investigating root causes has somewhat been put to bed early with the popularization of drugs for mental health treatment. Despite this trend, great strides were seen in Dr. Linus Pauling’s work, and that of Dr. Abram Hoffer, and others. But these efforts have not been further pursued with the fervor that they perhaps should have. Certainly, they have been largely ignored, or slow to receive attention in the mainstream circles of medicine. Some might even suggest these avenues have been purposefully blocked. Nonetheless, the quick-fix approach of popping a pill for this, that and the other symptom took center stage, fueled by multi-million-dollar ad campaigns from the pharma industry.
Now, research is waking up again to the wondrous world of investigating why certain disorders or lingering, puzzling symptoms seem to arise “out of nowhere.” Without the knowledge of how and why certain mental health conditions come about, some of which are ruinous, the desperate need for answers capitulated, in many cases, to accepting false and fast solutions in the form of prescription drugs. We can now say these drug-free alternatives to lamotrigine and other drugs are seeing more light of day. This type of medicine sometimes called alternative medicine, and sometimes called by other names, is the key to successfully regaining natural mental health and is the foundation of lamotrigine alternatives at the center.4 We no longer have to rely on the long-term use of antipsychotic medications.5
A vitamin deficiency is never going to be cured by a dose of anything except what the deficiency actually comprises. A mind-numbing antipsychotic medication will never fix the torturous stress of examinations in college or an untenable work situation, or unfulfilled life aspirations. Delusions from drug abuse perhaps combined with lack of sleep due to allergies to mold in the walls or basement of one’s home won’t be fixed by a pill. But, with proper investigative testing, these factors can be isolated and then addressed, in logical, effective, health-restoring ways.
Toxic Exposures and Symptoms
Lab-testing can provide a pathway forward because we know the adverse reactions that can occur after toxic exposures — and the relief of symptoms after these are cleared, through biotransformational sauna cleanse, chelation, colon hydrotherapy, and targeted nutritional therapies.
Drugs don’t “fix” bad nutrition or toxic exposures to mercury or lead.2,3
The research of Mason et al, as published in the Journal of Psychiatric Clinicians of North America has reviewed the existing literature on symptoms of toxic exposures and given guidelines on diagnosis and treatment. Common reactions after toxic exposures to heavy metals, organophosphates used in agriculture, industrial chemicals, and others, include increased anxiety, psychosis, irritability, depression, and impulsiveness.8
Such reactions are often misdiagnosed as psychiatric disorders mainly due to physicians who have not been trained to recognize them for what they actually are.9
For More Information About Alternatives to Lamotrigine at Alternative to Meds Center
The success of our clients is really what inspires us at Alternative to Meds Center. We have graduations where persons who have spent years of suffering relate their experience of becoming free of these oppressive chains and are now looking forward to a joy-filled and satisfying life. Our pristine and comfortable facility provides a nurturing, caring environment for recovery. Please call us for more information about our world-class program of lamotrigine alternatives for yourself or your loved one.
12. Hasan A, von Keller R, Friemel CM, Hall W, Schneider M, Koethe D, Leweke FM, Strube W, Hoch E. Cannabis use and psychosis: a review of reviews. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2020 Jun;270(4):403-412. doi: 10.1007/s00406-019-01068-z. Epub 2019 Sep 28. PMID: 31563981. [cited 2022 June 27]
This content has been reviewed and approved by a licensed physician.
Dr. Samuel Lee
Dr. Samuel Lee is a board-certified psychiatrist, specializing in a spiritually-based mental health discipline and integrative approaches. He graduated with an MD at Loma Linda University School of Medicine and did a residency in psychiatry at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle. He has also been an inpatient adult psychiatrist at Kaweah Delta Mental Health Hospital and the primary attending geriatric psychiatrist at the Auerbach Inpatient Psychiatric Jewish Home Hospital. In addition, he served as the general adult outpatient psychiatrist at Kaiser Permanente. He is board-certified in psychiatry and neurology and has a B.A. Magna Cum Laude in Religion from Pacific Union College. His specialty is in natural healing techniques that promote the body’s innate ability to heal itself.
Diane is an avid supporter and researcher of natural mental health strategies. Diane received her medical writing and science communication certification through Stanford University and has published over 3 million words on the topics of holistic health, addiction, recovery, and alternative medicine. She has proudly worked with the Alternative to Meds Center since its inception and is grateful for the opportunity to help the founding members develop this world-class center that has helped so many thousands regain natural mental health.
Medical Disclaimer: Nothing on this Website is intended to be taken as medical advice. The information provided on the website is intended to encourage, not replace, direct patient-health professional relationships. Always consult with your doctor before altering your medications. Adding nutritional supplements may alter the effect of medication. Any medication changes should be done only after proper evaluation and under medical supervision.
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