Hi. I am new here and apart from thyroid, health anxiety is my major problem. Lately I was having some unexplained neurological symptoms of vibrating spots plus I have twitches so neurologist put me on 150 mg a day of Pregabalin. It helped with sysmpyoms but lately I struggle sometimes to find a right word and funnily I recall difficult synonym and struggle for usual word. I was reading a book and in mid of it forgot name of the author.once I forgot after washing my face that if I have find it. I took some cognitive test and they had 38 to 43 as score range of being in risk and above 43 was normal and mine was 43. All in all this started freaking me out that I am heading towards dementia although I have a demanding job and am learning a foreign language.i checked that pregabalin causes memory issues but that had failed to assure me though I have started tapering it down and intend to get off it. . I had few months ago a brain ct and MRI for unrelated issues and was totally fine. I am getting desperate please help
Pregabalin,forgetfulness, health anxiety. ... - Anxiety Support
Pregabalin,forgetfulness, health anxiety. Scared !!
Just forgot to add that I am a 44 years old female with no family history of dementia
Hi ritecharm, if you go onto Chrohons and colitis support you will find a lady called Marz, she can tell you all you need to know about the thyroid, I know that's not what your asking about but you won't be sorry if you speak to her.she may be able to give you some answers as well as people on here. Good luck 🙏🏻
Hi I have had lot of support from Marz in thyroid forum
Oh good I'm so pleased, I hope you can get to the bottom of it then. I had an operation 4 months ago and since then my memory has been dreadful sometimes. Apparently when you have an operation the anaesthetic can deplete your body of b12. So I've been taking a supplement for it. I know it's unnerving sometimes. Mind you I'm 54, with all that goes with that!! Sweats and memory loss, brain fog, and so much more!! The joys of it all. Fingers crossed for you x
Hi Angep
I too am in my early 50s and I think I'm going through the menopause, sweats,brain fog,etc , all playing havoc with my anxiety, drives.me crazy x
Hi Suzie, as if women don't have enough to contend with Youve then got hormone fluctuations thrown into the mix!! Once I hit my 30's mine seemed to go completely haywire!! Terrible episodes of depression. I came to realise it would pass but Seemed to return far to soon. I tried medications which didn't help!! Especially when the side effects of one of them could result in a deeper voice and facial hair!! I soon gave them a wide berth. Little did I know the facial hair would be in abundance once you hit the peri menopause😮 Well at least for me. I would think I was mad!! And it was only me that felt that way!! The sad fact is it isn't just me is it!! Too many people suffering uneccesarily. So I learned to help myself. My life!! My choices, my body!! Not always my choices!! But my mind set and how to deal with things I do choose how I do that. It's a hard work sometimes but like they say nothing worth having ever comes easy. I always look for the positive each day even if it's only small. 💪👍x
Your so right, I suppose its about finding what works for yourself, but I'm soooo grateful to everyone here, I read through the many conversations and am finding it really heart warming how people pull together and support each other, its truly comforting 
yes, these forums are a much needed and used resource. There just isn't enough help out there for the so many people suffering. And often there's such a long wait to see someone. So these forums are priceless and help so much x
Hi there. i haven't posted or replied in a long time but your post prompted me to reply. I had a similar situation as well regarding word find and also your situation with vibrating spots and twtiches peaked my interest.
Some questions to ask first...
Are you on any other medication or tapering off of anything during the time the time the sensory issues started?
how many hours are you sleeping a day?
Hi thanks for your answer. I went off my medication combo of quetiapine and Prozac as I was getting twitches. Vibrations came afterwards. These days my sleep is lesser than it used to be. How did your memory problem get solved. I forget names too but I have been told by my psychotherapist that there is nothing out of ordinary in my symptoms and i am stressed. I had some very stressful life situations personal as well as professional for one and half year. How are you now. What did help you . Please share your experiences
Rite charm,
I wanted to give you some information based on personal experience and in which you could further dig into in order to connect the dots . Your twitches, vibrations, and word find issue could certainly be a withdrawal and or discontinuation of your previous medications. Look up "Mad in America" (SSRI discontinuation syndrome). The discontinuation of antidepressants and Antipsychotic brings on a whole host of problems such as sensory and even memory issues.
I noticed memory issues and word find problems as I was tapering near to the end of my antidepressant and went to the neurologist and he said I was fine and not to worry about it. Asked how much sleep I was getting and I said about 5-6 hours. He told me at my age (which is 45) we need at least 8 hours otherwise it starts to catch up with our bodies. So I believed him and continued on with my taper when all crap broke loose and I started to develop sensory issues. I posted about 3 months ago on this forum titled "HELP! weird buzzing parathesia sensation in limps when trying to relax and sleep!" I Got numerous replies and only towards the bottom of the thread you will find that someone chimed in regarding SSRI discontinuation. I also had figured this out only after going to so many specialist and taking numerous tests and them not being able to determine any diagnosis. Many doctors aren't educated about Antidepressant withdrawal/discontinuation symptoms.
It may be as simple as the hours of sleep you are getting. So try to figure this in and once you are getting more hours of sleep see if your word find gets better. If you believe the Pregabalin is causing it then by all means taper off. As a side note the pregabalin can also cause twitches so if they return once you are off try not to get alarmed and just let your brain heal and over time the twitches may resolve. Don't go on a Benzodiazepine as that may help to resolve the problem and can also bring on twitches and jerks once you taper off.
I hope this has been helpful. Feel free to message me if you'd like to discuss more. Otherwise Good luck and I hope you feel better.
Hi thanks for your answer. I went off my medication combo of quetiapine and Prozac as I was getting twitches. Vibrations came afterwards. These days my sleep is lesser than it used to be. How did your memory problem get solved. I forget names too but I have been told by my psychotherapist that there is nothing out of ordinary in my symptoms and i am stressed. I had some very stressful life situations personal as well as professional for one and half year. How are you now. What did help you . Please share your experiences
Pregabalin is usually prescribed for anxiety. I have read on Internet on other sites about lots of people complaining about memory issues. Is there some one here too who had such issues on this drug ?
I have been taking pregabalin for almost ten years now and although the list of side-effects the manufacturer needs to include in their patient leaflet are lengthy and sometimes quite scary, I have chosen to stick with them even though they are a relatively expensive drug on the NHS, something, sadly, both doctors and patients have to consider before committing to any drug regime. There are three usages for this drug, one being for the relief of neuropathic nerve pain ( a condition caused by diabetes which I also have), one for use in conjunction with other anti-epileptic medications and one for the treatment of GAD (generalise anxiety disorder). I was initially prescribed pregabalin by my psychiatrist who had never used them before and would, he said, like to know whether they were of any good for the treatment of GAD. Initially I was prescribed 150mg as a split dose throughout the day which was increased to 300mg as split doses throughout the day and then finally 600mg as a split dose throughout the day. This is the only medication I have been prescribed over the years which have had any lasting side-effects, those being slurred speech, awkward gait and lack of co-ordination. These side effects are still as pertient today as they were ten years back yet, as I have said, these side effects I am quite prepared to put up with given the effect they have had on my anxiety problems. What has to be remembered though is that each individual is different ( maybe a clue regarding that with the use of the word 'individual', something of a tautological mistake!!) and so what may work for one person would not necessarily be of any use to another. If you are embarking on learning a new language then that may be the cause of your difficulties with memory and finding the right word at the right time. That doesn't sound like classic signs of dementia although I am not a doctor. When you are engaged in a demanding job together with learning the new language, the synapses in your brain will obviously not be formed as quickly as they might have been had you not had those two factors to deal with. Maybe you ought to have a protracted chat with your GP and see what they have to say. I wish you well,
John
Hi ritecharm, it sounds like the Pregabalin is causing your symptoms. I've know others who were on immensely high doses and the nerve like symptoms were worse than what they were taking it for. Probably not the best med for you. I hope you are tapering off with your doctor's help. Feel better.
My memory is stuffed and I’m not sure why . Prob the different meds for BP
I’ve been taking Pregabalin for a while it’s been really effective. Every now and again I will completely forget a single word . It’s hugely annoying but the way I look at it it’s a minor problem and it isn’t getting any worse.
It’s a new tactic with me I’m starting to ignore side effects. Almost everyone I speak to has some glitch. It’s part of life.
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