Going off gabapentin??

[dgleds]

Hi!

Does anyone know how long its takes for Gabapetin to totally leave your body...without a trace? Im crummy at the calculations they do ....

Also if you know or not, if its one of the anti sezuire drugs that can cause drug induced lupus?

[Ginsing]

Dgleds

Morning all brit early morning. I came of Gabapentin very slowly much the same as you go on it. I suppose it was with me for about 3 weeks after having stopped. It was a gentle release and I discovered it had been the cause for my horrendous Tinitus

s.

Good luck

Have a good day

xgins

[dgleds]

They say it has a short half life in the body.,.like hours or something...but maybe still there like 1% in weeks after...something like that. Im not sure...

I took it for back pain and degenerative disc probs...and good rest.

I wonder if its one of the drugs that can cause drug induced lupus, because it really is an anti sezuire drug too....

Thanks Ginsing for your answer

[dgleds]

ya, I been hearing different things about it reallyfedup....I wonder if its one of them that can cause drug induced lupus? I too had ear probs like ginsing, but never related it to the gabapentin...At that point I had my dose really low, but on it 4 years...

[Izzy20]

I totally agree as I'm on pregabalin & I have to come off it 25 mg a fortnight or more as when I came off it I had such bad withdrawal symptoms I was ready to commit suicide. I thought I'd never leave the house again & then I had both my parents but my dad died in the August the same year. I've had both & don't think they do a lot for the pain instead they are incredible hard to come off !!!

[dgleds]

Oh WoW!!!! That's so much for one person to endure, that's awful......Super awful to see your children(and adult children) goin through things like that.

They don't say its from stress, but Im pretty sure it is part of it...I just saw my beautiful daughter go thru bells palsy recently...she is almost back to normal (thank you angels above I was worried because they had her on high doses of steroids for that, and she has never taken anything much...

[Cefn48]

Wow please share if anyone can help get rid flu like symptoms im willing to try xxxx

[wiseEagle]

Please give me more info.

[wiseEagle]

I took Gabapentin for severe pain in my foot.. (neuroma..swollen nerve in bottom of footpad) I also had really bad back pain that was exacerbated by my limp. Now I have fibromyalgia. Has anyone hear of Gabapentin causing Fibromyalgia? For a while I thought it was MS. It is horrible.

I am now permanently suffering in pain all the time all over my body depending on the weather, my stress level, sleep amounts etc...

[wiseEagle]

Please share info...

[Mdaisy in reply to wiseEagle]

Hello All,

Hearing others speak of reversing Fibro is positive news but please know that diet can be important and a diet in high antioxidants has been researched to possibly help people with Fibro. However, it is best to use a combined approach when trying to control the symptoms of Fibro using medication, stress reduction, relaxation, complementary therapies, CBT, lifestyle adaptations etc.

Please be aware a change in diet may or may not help and equally it also may not be the solution that people hope for!

Best Wishes

Emma

FibroAction Administrator

[TheAuthor]

Hi dgleds

It is not a medication that I have used, but I wanted to wish you all the best with coming off this.

Take care

Ken

[dgleds]

Thank you...

[bwaite]

I was on that medication when I

Was diagnosed 12 years ago. It

didn't help me, but I really don't

remember how long or if I noticed

A difference. Good luck X

[Scouser58]

Hello dgleds, I have looked up on emc and found gabapetin, and found that it recomends at least 1 week, in a slow steady manner. I also noted what it is used for, seizures, epilepsy, peripheral neuropathic pain, it also mentioned about suicidal ideation, even tinnitus. This drug scares me very much, and would not take it, without further investigation. Please would you investigate any medication fully, either by asking you pharmacist for more information, or looking up on research sites, I have been using emc, using the site for each drug, ttfn

[dgleds]

I did ask the pharmacist, but they weren't sure about the drug induced lupus from gabapentin....I need to ask a GP....There was real controversy (sp) on letting people use gababpentin for nerve pain, because its really for like sezuires...It wasn't studied enough apparently...

Thanks Scouser 58 for trying to help me

[Mrs_Somerset in reply to dgleds]

Hi,

The difficulty is the availability of other medication.

My Pain clinic doctor advised I should add Pregamblin to my medication for my severe constant nerve pain, however my GP refused. He said I would have to have Gabapentin. I asked why - he said they did not give out pregamblin unless gabapentin does not work, I asked why - and he eventually fessed up it was a cost issue.

I have been on it for about 5 months now and am still in a great deal of pain - I asked the doc if I could try Pregamblin now, he said I would have to wait until I was on the max dosage for 3 months before they would even consider it .

So I have to take a drug that has pages of nasty side effects, at the maximum allowed dosage, for 3 more months, before they will consider giving me the one I am supposed to have, because of cost.

Got toLove the NHS! - they really care about patients wellbeing.

I am dreading coming off it - apparently it can cause seizures, even in peopl who have never had a siezure before. Please let me know how you get on.

When I come off it, I will have been on 3600 for 3 months ( currently on 3000)

[deerae777]

Hello, the half life of Gabapenin/Neurontin is 5-7 hours. So if you take 300 mg, in about 6 hours you will only have 150 mg left in your system, and in another 6 hours, you will only have 75 mg left in your system and then in another 6 hours, you will only have 37.5 mg left, and at that point, you shouldn't be feeling the effects of the medication anymore. I hope this helps!!

[dgleds in reply to deerae777]

That helps quite a bit...thank you. Now to find out the other Lupie thing....I cant find it anywhere, which makes me think its a No, but you never know...

[RayB]

One of the rediculous things about this drug is that the more of it you take the less of it you absorb. (The bioavailability reduces) The max bioavailability is noted to be around 60% and this incrementally falls to less than half this figure when taking higher doses.

The half life is normaly 5 -7 hours meaning that after 5 -7 hrs you should only have half left of what ever you absorbed and the amount left keeps diminishing by 50% every 5 - 7 hours after.

Realisticaly within 2 days there is presious little left!

I think they can take you off this drug quite quickly and it shouldn't be a problem if you haven't been on it for long but again disguss this with your Dr!

It did nothing for me good or bad,, not that I could see anyway!

[dgleds]

Thats interesting to know...

Well one thing it did for me was make me have good sleep...

[ellablade]

I've been on gabapentin on the max dose at 1200 Mgs per day for the last 3 years and for me it's been a life saver. Its made no difference to the tinitus not made it any worse but the spasms in my back have stopped

[Mrs_Somerset in reply to ellablade]

Hi,

That is interesting - are you in the UK?

I ask as I currently take 3000, and have been avised to ramp up to the max dose of 3600 ( not 1200) a day.

[ellablade in reply to Mrs_Somerset]

Sorry I should have said 1200 per dose taking it up to the maximum of 3600. If you're ever admitted to hospital take some with you. They were loathed to give me that dose unt they had phone my doctors to check x x

[Loopykaz68]

Hi I have been no 900mg 3 times aday gradeulie increasing to that,and 200mg sertraline,and zapain (cocodamol ) and diazepam 2/2mg twice aday 1/5mg at night.

I am worried if when I come off them what will happen as if I forget one of the daily dose,

The pain dose increase so I no they are all working don't really understand but they help me through the day, as for lupus I don't no what this is sorry . Good luck and best wishes

Cherokee x

[Mrs_Somerset in reply to Loopykaz68]

Hi,

That is interesting - can I ask if you are in the UK?

My GP advised me that I could not take diazepam every day as not only is it addictive but the effects lesson, the more you take it ( you apparently get used to it) so he will only let me have 1 x 5mg tablet once every 3 days and gives me a hard time every time I refill the prescription - and I explain to him yet again that I go 3 solid days with no sleep at all because of hte pain and pass out I am so exhuasted, and htat diazepam is the only thing that knocks me out AND lets me feel rested when I wake up ( the tamazepam was horrid - just knocked me out and made me feel like i had not slept at all!)

[dgleds in reply to Mrs_Somerset]

Im not in the UK, although my family are all from there....and I did live in the UK myself for a while....Im in Canada now....

Ask gp about Ativan for sleep (lorazipam), but he may say only once in a while...OR motion sickness pills even...

I had to pull my mom off diazepam, it was a sad situation....It got way worse before it got better too...(almost like my sweet Mum was possessed)...

Sometimes anti inflammatories can make you sleepy, diclofenac can do that(I think its high dose Voltaren by its shelf name in the USA)

No sleep is horrible!!!!

[Piggysqueak in reply to Mrs_Somerset]

Hello mrs somerset

I'm really interested in your Diazapam story . I was given it by my GP about 7 years ago 2mg three times a day and up to 5 mg as needed for pain I did have a big problem I took it for every twinge and took more and more to try and sleep at night there seemed to be an endless supply . Then I moved and changed my GP they hate hate Diazapam and I'm now on 6mg in divided doses in 24 hours . The problem I have is that when I get my worst pain the only thing that works or helps the most is 20mg oxynorm and 4 mg Diazapam it ease the spasm and work so now I feel I'm on a low dose why do they insist I need to come of it . I'm so so scared the pain attacks are horrendous without it so why when I'm on so many drugs even morphine and pregabalin duloxitine lots more why have . the gps focused on Diazapam and still despite me begging they are determined to get me off this drug all the best with your battle love squeak xx

[wiseEagle]

Gabapentin gave me short term memory problems. It worked for pain (neuroma in foot pad which caused a limp which aggravated back. However, I am a teacher. I would point to a student to call on them in class...or see them on the hall... (it was November) I wold have absolutely NO MEMORY of their name. By November I KNOW all of my students.

It also interfered with my ability to recall things like: "what I did yesterday" "why I gave a consequence to my son 2 days ago" "where I put things that I took away from said son" and "what a student/parent told me last week..." it also erased anything a staff member told me on the fly in the hall,office or staff room or bathroom, which are places that frequently involve staff to staff interaction of important details during the day.

It interfered with my ability to recall textbook information.

I slowly took myself off of it, regained my memory somewhat and then developed a huge increase in pain and weird burning feet and tingling legs. I was diagnosed later with fibromyalgia which does NOT run in my family.

I HATE GABAPENTIN

[dgleds in reply to wiseEagle]

that sounds like a nerve thing.,.like when you have degenerative disc problems in lower back, you can get tingling legs and odd feeling in your feet...

[Sweetpee]

Hi this is my first time on this so bare with me. I actually saw my gp today as I have been on gabapentin for five years.i don't feel like it's helping me now and it's causing heartburn and acid every time I take it, so I want to come of it. My doctor said it is a very slow process can take a long while for it to leave your body as when you first take it it's a slow process into your body, it builds up over time, she couldn't give me a time.Not sure this will help sorry.