Hi ladies! I went for my physical today. Dr prescribed me gabapentin and said it is good for hot flashes/flushes and will help me sleep through the sweats. He means well and just wants me to sleep! It is a nerve pain med (neurontin). I already take nortriptyline for migraines. I still am going to do research and talk to my neuro and obgyn too. Anybody try it? Good, bad?
hi lou - i have never taken it, but know a few people who have…its pretty heavy stuff & a laundry list of side effects - please check out the possible side effects first before taking - have you tried valerian root? magnesium or acupunture? i know they might not help with the sweats, but could help you sleep -
Hi Lou,
Did you try melatonin for sleep? 3mg per day will be perfect. Too much does not mean good.
Never heard that before-- nerve pain med for hot flashes.. Interesting. But there is a womans health vitamin on the home shopping website with hundreds of reviews on how well it diminished hot flashes. Could be worth a try.
Hi Debra, Thanks! I googled right after posting. People take it for sciatica, back surgery, etc. First 3 side effects…dizzy, drowsy, loss of balance. I have vestibular migraine, so I already have those symptoms…not to keen on making them worse! Valerian killed my head. I take magnesium for migraines. Did acupuncture years ago very regularly for headaches…cannot afford it now though. I will just deal with it! Night sweats certainly won’t kill me. At least I know what to expect from them. I love how drs just throw these meds around like candy.
thanks Lucy, I do have the liquid kind that I could try again. Honestly, the thought of being on another drug and being so out of it that I would be able to sleep through hot flashes …kinda scares me.
I was prescribed Gabapentin for diabetic neuropathy. I am very sensitive to medications and when I took only one 300mg pill it gave me visual hallucinations. I started googling to see if this was a normal occurrence with gabapentin and saw that people actually take it to purposefully get high and see hallucinations. I immediately stopped taking it and will never take it again.
hi lou - i know what you mean about drs throwing Rx’s at you…its crazy!!! i would have to agree with you, night sweats easier to deal with then some of those nasty side effects - one thing i learned is…there isnt a Rx out there that doesnt have some side effect - take care! warm epsom salt baths with lavendar also help me sleep - & i just have a cold wash cloth ready for the sweats!
i think gabapentin pretty heavy stuff. i have bad hot flashes between 3-6 am most mornings. this morning so bad it felt like my back and face were literally on fire even though it only lasts a few seconds. if i take a .25 of lorazepam the night before i will sleep through them. i only take maybe once a week though when i get sleep deprived. also a fan next to bed blowing right on me. i am 47.
Thank you for all the great responses! I think the gabapentin will be a big NO for me. The funny thing is I almost didn’t mention the sweats to my dr …was going to wait for my obgyn appt next month. Only because they are a newer thing for me…I wanted to make sure nothing else could be going on. I never asked for any relief! I actually said…if this is just another phase of perimeno for me…no biggie! I have my trusty little fan by my bed. But, he was on the computer keying in a prescription while I was talking…pretty sure not listening to me.
I would check up on it before taking it. I think it is a pretty strong drug. I know that is one of the medications people will use to get high. I don’t like to take anything that makes me feel more weird than I do already. I’ve never heard of a doctor giving it to help with night sweats. If you do decide to take it, I hope it helps you and you are able to get some rest.
I was prescribed gabapentin for migraines. No thank you. Made me slur my words, fall over and many other unpleasant effects. I was then put on nortryptiline which has much less side effects although it is making my heart race. I personally wouldn’t want to take both. Also side effects from gabapentin can hang around long after you stop the medication. Could you increase your nortriptyline? I am taking Ferrell for hot sweats. It doesn’t eradicate but it does lessen them.
It is used to treat moderate night sweats . I heard this before so I googled it. I found info from the mayo clinic sight. It told several things used to treat hot flashes . It said estrogen was proven most effective and from there it went all the way through to things that might help you just cope with them. natural things all the way to practicing mindfulness . Different kinds of medicines even antidepressants mentioned. After reading side effects I wouldn’t take what he prescribed either though. I had a Dr prescribe it to me for my ms 15 yrs ago and I didn’t take it because she said about the only thing it might cause is sometimes you might see spiders while taking it . Geez that was all I needed to know and I never took the first pill. But wanted you to know it is used for hotflashes . Good luck
Hi Lou, I took gabapentin for a couple of months for hot flushes and night sweats. I didn’t suffer any side effects but also it didn’t make a blind bit of difference to my symptoms. It must be strong stuff though as i found it was a popular choice of drug on the streets and i could have made a few bob selling it!
Hi Lou,
My gyno had me try Gabapentin too. I hated it! I felt like I was drunk in the morning, I already have brain fog, therefore, It made it 10 times worse. I take colonadine at night and that seems to help me sleep, and it helps when my heart is racing at night. You can google it, its for high blood pressure but also has helped with hot was hot flashes. I also take DIM, you can purchase it off amazon and that helps. Maybe try the DIM first, you have to take it every day, I notice if I miss a day or two the hot flashes come back worse. I have hot flashes/flushes during the day, by the end of the day my clothes are soak and wet. I just started BHRT treatment in December. My doctor said I was one of his worse cases he’s ever seen. I was suffering badly to the point where I wasn’t able to leave my house. Good luck!
Hi Tracy, I am on 30 mg of nortrip now. (migraines) Due for an increase in April (from my otoneuro) I agree, I have tolerated it pretty well too. Only on since Dec. My heart runs a little fast too. Definite no thanks for me taking Gabapentin! I slur my words enough when I get a bad migraine! Thanks!
Well, I am not working now…soooo. Only kidding! Horrible sounding med!
Hello! My 78 y.o. mom is on clonidine for her high BP…she has been doing well on it…calms her down a bit too. I will look into. My heart is a bit speedy too!
No thanks to the spiders! Bad enough tbe nortriptyline gave me horror movie nightmares the first month 