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Gabbapentin?
My Dr prescribed this for my fibro pain today since it is out of control and very painful. He wanted to give me Trams! No thank you. Do I need to be concerned about Gabba being an addictive substance? And I have heard some use it during wd but I don't need it for that. How exactly does it help with that? Just want to know what im getting I to.
If I can get to a manageable level, I will be happy. I've never had a flare up this bad before to where literally every joint in my body hurt and had that burning/aching sensation in my arms and legs. Took my second dose and it hit me hard. Feel a little loopy but the pain in my hands is getting better now. At least I can move them without it hurting as much. The burning and aching has gotten quieter too! My mood is good too. Im hoping tomorrow I notice a significant difference. Going to watch my 3 yr old grandson all day. Im going to need all my energy for that! Wish we could harness their energy. Where do they get that much...sheesh!
Hey
I am so glad it's helping and you aren't having any side effects. I have been sleeping alot too but it seems to be getting better.
It's better than no sleep.
I have noticed a big difference in pain but of course it doesn't take it all away.
It's just much better. Hopefully it lasts.
I am so glad it's helping and you aren't having any side effects. I have been sleeping alot too but it seems to be getting better.
It's better than no sleep.
I have noticed a big difference in pain but of course it doesn't take it all away.
It's just much better. Hopefully it lasts.
I took gabspentin for nerve & rsd pain. It helped my pain but even @ low doses it caused me to sound drunk & have trouble word finding. I'm very sensitive to medications in general. It is not addicting but needs to be tapered due to risk of seizures.
Update: took the first dose last night and slept 12 hours!! Wow...I didn't realize how tired ( really was from all this pain. Probably some of it from recovery too. Don't sleep as good as I used to. So far today the burning and aching in my arms and legs feels better, but still have alot of joint pain all over. Took another dose this morning and couple hours later and the seems like it has taken the edge off a wee bit. ,aybe this afternoons dose will help more! Gonna go start some plant seeds today...can't wait for gardening season. Love my flowers!
Thanks for the great feedback ladies. Im going to take them now ( just picked up at pharmacy) take a hot bath with magnesium and hopefully see some relief in the morning. Even a little at this point would be good! I will let you know how it goes. :)
Well that is good news. I haven't experienced a high from it, dammit lol but I did with Lyrica. You do get used to it quickly though and the euphoria goes away.
I liked Lyrica because you only had to take it twice daily but gaba is so much more affordable that it is worth the inconvenience.
I liked Lyrica because you only had to take it twice daily but gaba is so much more affordable that it is worth the inconvenience.
I think it's great to have Pat's experience with it...she's in such a similar boat!
It definitely has some anti-depressant and anti-anxiety properties, which is actually two of it's off label uses (besides pain)..and yes, you are correct that its INITIAL purpose was an anticonvulsant. The good thing about (some) meds is that doctors often begin to find additional indications for which it can be used.
You will already be hypervigilant about how you feel (which is a good thing)..so just keep your eye out for any excessive euphoric feelings. It's also good that he's tapering you UP in dose...rather than starting you out at the goal dose. That will likely minimize the the chances of you feeling high from it.
I hope it gives you some relief. Honestly...from a professional standpoint, I can't say I've ever seen anything but very positive outcomes with its effectiveness..and I've seen it used to treat seizures, pain, long-term ventilator related anxiety, anxiety disorders, depression, acute shingles pain, etc.
It definitely has some anti-depressant and anti-anxiety properties, which is actually two of it's off label uses (besides pain)..and yes, you are correct that its INITIAL purpose was an anticonvulsant. The good thing about (some) meds is that doctors often begin to find additional indications for which it can be used.
You will already be hypervigilant about how you feel (which is a good thing)..so just keep your eye out for any excessive euphoric feelings. It's also good that he's tapering you UP in dose...rather than starting you out at the goal dose. That will likely minimize the the chances of you feeling high from it.
I hope it gives you some relief. Honestly...from a professional standpoint, I can't say I've ever seen anything but very positive outcomes with its effectiveness..and I've seen it used to treat seizures, pain, long-term ventilator related anxiety, anxiety disorders, depression, acute shingles pain, etc.
Grrrrr, I just posted and it disappeared.
I will try again lol.
When you take the 600 tonight it MAY make you really dizzy so be very careful. Don't bend over to pick anything up or anything like that.
It does take a couple of hours to kick in so take it early enough so it can help you sleep.
Lyrica made me stagger like I was drunk. I am sure when I went for my walks that I was getting the reputation of being the new town drunk.
Anyway, be very careful and I really hope it works for you. Make sure you let me know. Oh, it makes me hungry too.
I will try again lol.
When you take the 600 tonight it MAY make you really dizzy so be very careful. Don't bend over to pick anything up or anything like that.
It does take a couple of hours to kick in so take it early enough so it can help you sleep.
Lyrica made me stagger like I was drunk. I am sure when I went for my walks that I was getting the reputation of being the new town drunk.
Anyway, be very careful and I really hope it works for you. Make sure you let me know. Oh, it makes me hungry too.
I know what you mean about wanting some relief Pat...this pain is awful...especially when it is everywhere! Hurts to do anything and just be touched. Heck I can't touch myself without yelping! It gets old. Ha...now im thinking about that song "when I think about you, I touch myself"! Going back is NOT an option. Besides, you blazed the path for me!
Lol...he told me to take 600 tonight, then 300 to tomorrow 3 times then start adding another 300 in one of the 3x's a day until I notice relief. He did say it would make me tired and help with sleep. Good to know about missing doses..I don't want no more wd either! I think he is looking at short term for now to see if it helps. I go back in 2 weeks.
I did get immediate relief, especially with the Lyrica. I noticed right away just going up and down stairs was so much easier.
The gaba hasn't been as effective but it is helping.
I am glad because I was ready to go back to percs. I just couldn't take it anymore and was ready to do anything for relief.
The gaba hasn't been as effective but it is helping.
I am glad because I was ready to go back to percs. I just couldn't take it anymore and was ready to do anything for relief.
No, it's like a withdrawal feeling. I have forgotten to take it before I fell asleep and when I wake up I feel terrible.
I am not a good example though because I have been really sick since Christmas from going on and off all these different meds trying to find the right one. I really think I messed up my whole system so I am just trying to stay on this for awhile and see what happens.
I just increased my dose to 600mg x 3 a day. It sounds high but I guess that's the therapeutic dose for fibromyalgia. It does make you really tired but apparently that goes away.
I haven't had any other side effects from it other than being very tired. Again, I was tired before i took it too lol.
I am not a good example though because I have been really sick since Christmas from going on and off all these different meds trying to find the right one. I really think I messed up my whole system so I am just trying to stay on this for awhile and see what happens.
I just increased my dose to 600mg x 3 a day. It sounds high but I guess that's the therapeutic dose for fibromyalgia. It does make you really tired but apparently that goes away.
I haven't had any other side effects from it other than being very tired. Again, I was tired before i took it too lol.
Great info NG! Dr said it was originally used for seizures. He said some people get immediate relief. Something I teresting he said was that opiates don't really help much with nerve pain. Its better suited for muscular and skeletal pain. So why Tram? Because he said it helps take the edge off for some people because of its SSRI qualities.
Thank you Pat...that is very helpful. Im supposed to start it tonight and keep addind doses until I get pain relief. Can't take this entire body pain anymore. Its awful! I heard lyrica can be abused so that's why I was concerned about Gabba. I will give it a whirl...it can't be as bad as Trams or Cymbalta wd...I hope! :)
Hey there!
Neurontin is a really great med for neurological pain IMO.
The EXACT mechanism of action for analgesic purposes isn't known, but it's structurally similar to the neurotransmitter GABA, although it doesn't act on the same receptors in the brain that GABA does. Because of the way it acts (like GABA), there are some psychoactive effects which have led to some recreational use and abuse.
It would not be an incredibly high risk for abuse, and it SHOULD be tapered off upon discontinuation. One option is to give it a try and see how the pain responds. Of course, stay vigilant to how it makes you feel, although I don't think you'll have any issues there. Obviously, you always have to take into consideration your history of addiction, and it's very wise to think these kinds of things through....and making a decision after having the proper information.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a694007.html
Neurontin is a really great med for neurological pain IMO.
The EXACT mechanism of action for analgesic purposes isn't known, but it's structurally similar to the neurotransmitter GABA, although it doesn't act on the same receptors in the brain that GABA does. Because of the way it acts (like GABA), there are some psychoactive effects which have led to some recreational use and abuse.
It would not be an incredibly high risk for abuse, and it SHOULD be tapered off upon discontinuation. One option is to give it a try and see how the pain responds. Of course, stay vigilant to how it makes you feel, although I don't think you'll have any issues there. Obviously, you always have to take into consideration your history of addiction, and it's very wise to think these kinds of things through....and making a decision after having the proper information.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a694007.html
Well I am prescribed it as well. It is similar to Lyrica but not as strong or as effective. I really liked Lyrica. It helped with pain but it also made me a little high so I had a tendency to take a little more than I should. It wasn't covered by our drug plan so I had to go off of it. The withdrawals were hell. Worse than opiate withdrawals.
I tried Cymbalta and that was another horror story.
So, my doctor convinced me to try gabapentin. I was very, very afraid lol but I was so sick and in so much pain I finally decided it was better than taking opiates.
So far so good. I don't get high off of it and it is helping with my pain.
I have no idea about withdrawals from it but I can imagine it would have to be slowly tapered.
It's a bit of a pain though because I have to take it every 8 hours and I often forget and I feel really awful when I do forget it.
It takes a couple of hours to kick in but it did seem to work right away for me, pain wise.
I hope this helped.
I tried Cymbalta and that was another horror story.
So, my doctor convinced me to try gabapentin. I was very, very afraid lol but I was so sick and in so much pain I finally decided it was better than taking opiates.
So far so good. I don't get high off of it and it is helping with my pain.
I have no idea about withdrawals from it but I can imagine it would have to be slowly tapered.
It's a bit of a pain though because I have to take it every 8 hours and I often forget and I feel really awful when I do forget it.
It takes a couple of hours to kick in but it did seem to work right away for me, pain wise.
I hope this helped.
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