Hello all
I started taking Gabapentin for a nerve problem in my foot in November 2015 starting at 300mg and working up to 900mg over 6 weeks. At the end of May this stopped having an effect so the doctor doubled the dose - again increasing in 2 weekly amounts. I stopped at 1200mg as this was working for me and still does now.
However, i have had some pretty nasty side effects. The headaches i can cope with (having been on Prozac for depression for nearly 8 years i had them with that too). Loss of appetite and flatulence were okay too.
I've had foot swelling and anxiety attacks - not okay but the latest episode really scared me. I was walking to the shops and felt my balance going (this happens anyway because of spinal problems) but then i had a terrifying spinning sensation and had to grab a post and couldn't let go. The episode lasted for about 5 minutes but seemed much longer. Fortunately i had a friend with me. He said i looked okay. I know this is one of the possible side effects. Has anyone else experienced this?
I will be making a doctor appointment tomorrow.
1 curtida
Megan,
Having used Gaba. for 4 years now I can verify that there really are some scarey side effects from this drug (in fact most ALL Drugs ). My neurlogist Rx'd me for 300 mg about 4 times per day, mostly in the evening for my RLS. And yes It does seem to help minimize....BUT there is a price to pay for the horrible, debilitating side effects that occur over time. Doctors always want to increase the dosage if the effect seems tobe minimal. This always makes the side effect worse actually in my experience . Dizziness, and balance problems are at the top of the list for me....I am now slowly decreasing my dosage and working to get off of them totally. It has to be a very slow weaning process as an abrupt withdrawal can be hazardous. Do an internet search on all the horrible side effects on Gabapentin. (as well as numerous other drugs, SSRI's included ). You will be astounded. The severity of side effect must be viewed as minimized, the way it is being reported. I'm sure whatever it says....the % are higher . The Medical establishment keeps feeding us this myth that our phyical problems can be solved by swallowing a pill. Once started on a med, Doctors are not usually open to getting you off of them. You have to listen to your own body and make your own rational decisions about how to get off them. GOOD LUCK .
Another thing to consider is: Are you taking any other medications at the same time as Gaba. ? Other drugs have some of the same side effects and can compound the already distressing ones you are having. It is kind of a viscious cycle hard to break from. In my case I was taking ambien (10 mg), along with the 300 to 1200 mg of Gaba. and also taking Klonopin .5 to 1 mg....all of these daily ! Now.....I don't use ambien any more, I am down to 1 300 mg Gaba in the evening , and .25 mg of Klonpin in evening for sleep..........I'm going very very slowing in a gradual decrease now......I feel much better and more normal. I'll keep you posted of my progress.....feel free to contact me in private msg if you
like. Best regards
Gabapentin is a horrible drug with lots of side effects. I was on it and still am for migraines with vertigo...didnt do a thing for me......only took 400 once a day at night...down to 100mg.......by October going to try and decrease it again.....had trouble when I went to once every other day.....someone told me they make a liquid form......so maybe I will be able to drop 10 mg every three weeks.......Good luck.........
Thank you for your PM. I have been taking 30mg Prozac for about a year (was 40mg for the 7 previous years). I was decreasing that gradually via the doctor but that has come to a grinding halt thanks to life events as my depression is reactive. I have Co-codamol max (i'm in the UK so in USA/Canada this is Tylenol 3) on prescription (recently added), Diazepam for nights my mind won't shut up and body won't relax and Lansoprazole to line the stomach when taking max painkillers.
I'm glad i stopped at 1200mg Gaba as by now i should be on 1800mg. My doctor doesn't know/feel how my body reacts to these drugs - i do. I will be asking to come off them slowly. The pain was bad and it has been good to have relief from it for 10 months even though BOTH feet go dead now after 10 mins walking but the spinning sensation, similar to acute vertigo is a side effect too far as is the anxiety attacks that have recently started.
Thank you so much for your replies.
Thank you for your reply Rita. I agree that Gabapentin is a horrible drug. I did a lot of research on it before the doctor said there was really no alternative and it is meant to work well with Prozac in confusing the brain's pain signals. I have 'enjoyed' 10 months of no pain in my feet although they still go tingly and then dead after 10 mins. I find that it creates really bad headaches. When i started on Prozac i had nausea headaches that would last up to 10 days but 8 years on i get very few problems with that particular drug.
My capsules are 300mg so i will ask the doc about how slow to reduce as i know it must be gradual. They do make a liquid version but the doctors don't prescribe it often as it costs far more than the tablets/capsules.
Thanks again for your quick response.
Best wishes
Wish you lots of luck.......I think I tapered off 100 mg every 4 weeks....the problem came in when i reduced the 100mg to every other day.....lol.....Even if it takes another 7 months to come off of it thats ok....as long as I can get off this med with no withdrawals.........have a good night.......keep posting
I guess I'm one of the lucky ones and have had no noticeable side effects other than finding myself more forgetful. This could just be from getting older though. Not everyone can take the same medicines with the same results. What works for some doesn't work for others.
I am also on Gaberpentin with no side effects, thou i have noticed some weight gain and have reduced from 3 to 2 tablets a day. If i go lower my nerve pain comes back. Its as you say some people it works for and some it doesn't.
Hi there! Yes I used to have bad anxiety attacks before I was on the Gabapentin. After years of being on the Gabapentin at 3600 mg. I thought that the anxiety was gonet Now that I am withdrawing from the Gabapentin I am getting them back. They seem to hit me suddenly. I usually find that I just start shaking like I used to, and that just makes me experience more anxiety. I was also on Prozac (among other meds including pain medication.) I decided that I no longer wanted to be on these medications...at least the very least possible! I stopped the Gabapentin suddenly because my Dr. had told me that it was not addictive. I had very bad withdrawals and had to start taking it again. When I told my Dr. what had happened she was surprised; she didn't know that it was addictive. I have been trying to go down more gradually, and I know the Dr. is taking me off too quickly. Fortunately, I have had some extra so that I can still go down at my own pace. I have been trying my best to take only 900 mg. daily, but I was still taking one 300mg. capsule extra most days. I have now gotten some 100mg. capsules and I'm taking 1000-1100mg. daily. I would like to go down as quickly as possible without experiencing the side effects so badly. This includes the sudden anxiety attacks. I also find that I am becoming overwhelmed with things that are happening in my life, and I get depression as well. I'm hoping that it's situational depression as I have been off of the prozac completely, and I don't want to have to start taking it again. I will try to go down again after another week by 200mg. if I can. I've also seen another Dr. who told me that 3600mg. is twice the daily recommended daily dose..what a shock! He said that I should never have been on more than 1800mg. daily. He's very good, and has offered to treat me along with my other Dr. as she is quite far away. I plan to move--but would really like to be able to keep him. I'm seeing him tomorrow and plan to talk to him about the anxiety. I will keep you posted. I can't say anything helpful at this point except for "hang in there!" Please let us know what your Dr. says and I will do the same. Are you getting depression at all? And yes, I am getting headaches as well..I'm taking tylenol and that seems to help.
hi there...so glad you switched drs...must come off very very slowly.......I was only on 400 mg once a day and I had to dropp 100mg every 3 to 4 weeks....down to 100 once a day....going to dr soon...going to try to drop it 10 mg every 3 to 4 weeks.......couldnt handle every other day with 100mg...had to take it again daily......on it now for about 4 months...its not helping me at all...as much as I want to come off it I realize must be done very slowly......I was told that when you get to a low dosage it takes even longer ....your body really needs to adjust.....I think maybe another 8 months??? willtalk to dr...maybe some months I can do 15 mg to dropp....wish you the best
Hiya Mis Jewel
I was hoping that as i had only been taking this drug for 10 months, that i would be able to come off them quicker. This doesn't seem to be the case.
I've literally just had another spinning sensation episode but found a chair quickly and sitting down seems to calm them down quicker - maybe it's because you don't have to worry about balance whilst seated. 1200mg is the max i have ever been on. i used to get panic attacks and you got a slight warning with them I didn't get anxiety attacks before taking Gaba and they are extra nasty as there is no warning. I still have depression - it's reactive meaning i cannot handle shock - i've lost 6 people in the last 10 years, the last one, a dear friend, only last week. I see a counselor on a regular basis as can no longer store emotions in my head. I have Tylenol 3 (Co-codamol max in the UK where i am) on temporary prescription. I was going to see my doctor this morning but lack of sleep got in the way of that plus i want to find out as much as i can about withdrawl as i have a gut feeling that he won't know.
Thanks for the hang in there. It's all i can do for the time being. At least i now understand what the spinning sensations are which doesn't make me panic, stress and overthink what could be happening.
Sadly that is true Linda. I had managable side effects when my dose was 900mg - headaches, forgetfulness, worse balance problems than i had before. It was only a few months after i increased to 1200mg that the extra nasties appeared - anxiety attacks and the spinning sensation plus far worse coordination. When i started on Prozac i had virtually every side effect on the list and some lasted for a couple of years as the dose increased. These are now managable and got me out from a very dark place.
I think my body is slowly rejecting presciption chemical drugs as i can no longer take anti inflammatories and it seems to be reacting badly to Gaba now. I hope you manage to stay side effect free.....i can only wish.
I think i am going to have to live with the nerve pain Elizabeth - the lesser of 2 evils. I cannot live my life wondering when the next attack will come. What if it happened when i was driving on a fast road?!
Hiya Rita
How long had you been taking Gaba for?
I only have 300mg capsules so will have to go back to the doc to get lower dosage ones if i am to drop more slowly than in 300mg chunks which i take is not recommended? Do you know what the half life is of Gaba (as in how long a dose stays in your system for)? I am 'lucky' with Prozac as i take a liquid form so can drop in 10mg amounts - that has been 40mg, 30mg, 20mg and back up to 30mg.
hi I was on 400 mg once a day since last July....I am now on 100mg once a day...I would only drop 100 mg every 3 to 4 weeks....i started taking 100 every other day and it didnt agree with me....lol dr says stay on it for a few months i stopped taking depakoe in June....going to see dr soon going to get liquid gabapentin so I can drop 10 mg every 3 to 4 weeks.....maybe 15.....going to take awile but I dont want withdrawals and I need to come off this stuff...not doing anything for me
I too have gained weight. Not a good side effect at all. If I stop taking it altogether, I fear the pain from my peripheral neuropathy will become unbearable. I don't know what else I can take for this condition. Thanks for your input. I am currently on 1800mgs a day!
I never had have had problems with headaches, but of course I do have some balance problems. I'm currently taking 1800mgs a day. Just today I dropped 2 of my pills and we'll see how that goes. Thanks for your input.
I am amazed that your dosage is that high! I am on 1800mg a day and think that is just so high. I'm so sorry for your axiety attacks. My former doctor who moved away said 1800mg was the maximum i should take. I worry about long term side effects. I've been on it for 7 years. I hope you will find a dosage that works for you. Oh I also take a low dose lorazapam for anxiety.
Thanks Rita. Could be fun trying to persuade my doc. When i said i wanted to reduce Prozac he said 'well, you were on 20mg originally before i incresed you to 40mg so go back to 20mg' . Predictably that didn't work. Looks like i will eventually need 100mg, 300mg and 400mg capsules to come off it. Down to 900mg only 400mg and 300mg.
Very slowly seems to be the general opinion.