Pain & Swelling

[Spider395]

Morning all, hope you are all ok. Thought some of you might find this interesting.

Since being diagnosed, after a bad virus, I’ve gradually got plumper shall we say! I’ve put this down to not being as active as before. Also I’ve found myself getting stiffer & stiffer when I first get out of bed, but this does improve as I walk. However the worse symptom in the last 10 weeks has been swelling & pain in my arms/hands plus feet/legs. This got to the point when it was very difficult to walk, especially as the soles of my feet were swelling so much.

Anyway, I’ve halved the dose of my Pregabalin & within a week I’m literally half the woman I was. What I believed to be weight gain was gradual water retention due to the drug. I’m less stiff in the morning & my feet are no longer swollen. I am however spending most of my day in the toilet!

Just to be clear this wasn’t like normal water retention. I didn’t look puffy & if you pressed my skin you got no indentation. Now just got to find something to deal with all the other symptoms.

Hope this helps someone.

[Medically_confused]

That is interesting. I’ve been bed bound for a while and I look really bloated everywhere. I was thinking it was weight gain from the lack of movement but I’ve barely eaten due to depression. I did increase my pregabalin to max dose a couple of months ago though.... now I’m wondering if it’s water retention. If the weight doesn’t come off when I get back to my usual routines & leaving the house etc, I’ll go back to my old dose & see if anything changes.

[Spider395 in reply to Medically_confused]

I’d been eating really healthily to try & shift the weight but it was making no difference. That’s what made me really suspicious.

Hope you are back to your usual self soon.

[KateMaguire]

Hi, I’m really interested in this because I have put so much weight on in the last two years. I am currently on 300mg of pregabelin a day but increase this dose if having a flare up. I hardly eat some days and what I do eat is very healthy so I’m wondering if you might be on to something here! I will have a chat to my lovely GP and start reducing my dose to see if I can get some weight shifted- only trouble is I got rid of all my ‘thin’ clothes,lol!🤦🏻‍♀️🤣

[Spider395 in reply to KateMaguire]

The only trouble is, now I’ve reduced my dose, I’ve stopped sleeping 😩

[KateMaguire in reply to Spider395]

It’s always the same isn’t it? What you gain in one thing you lose in another-I give up,I am staying fat! 🙄😂

[Paininthebutt757]

I have been prescribed Pregabalin for the pain caused by Diabetic Neuropathy, I have been taking them for 6 weeks, 150mg 3 times per day. Absolutely no effect on the pain, I am still in agony whenever I walk,stand or put any strain on my legs. I haven't experienced any water retention problem but that is probably because my Diabetes medication, Metformin, has a diuretic element in it. I do however make numerous visits to the "Wee Room"!

[foxyshar]

I am the same with pregabalin, I gained a lot of weight over a few years and so I decided to cut down on the pregabalin and I noticed I was losing weight so stopped taking it altogether and now I’m 6 stone lighter, still in lots of pain but I would rather put up with the pain and pace myself then be that heavy again.

[Spider395 in reply to foxyshar]

That’s an amazing weight loss

[Tiny58]

I am on pregablin 300 mil a day and I have put weight on but its swings and roundabouts they work for me I sleep now and didn't before but the weight gain is an issue I hate it now on the cus of being diabetic and been told I need to lose weight what's the answer any advice would be welcome

[Spider395 in reply to Tiny58]

I can’t really give any advice, as what I at first assumed to be weight was just swelling from water retention. I only realised this when my feet began to swell. Hope you find an answer.

[AllthatGlitters]

I take water retention tablets which are prescribed by my GP, they are amazing the difference they make as I use to really swell up in the hands and feet. X

[Spider395 in reply to AllthatGlitters]

Thanks for that reply. They are going to try me on another drug first, but if that doesn’t work I could always ask to try what you are doing.