fibromyalgia medication

[Brandy2020]

hi folks it’s been a while since I posted but I’m after some advice, I was diagnosed with Fibro about 2yrs ago by my lupus specialist, I was put on duloxtine which worked at first but had to keep upping the dose as the symptoms returned so I made the decision to wean off them, I’m now just taking 30g every other day so I don’t get withdrawal 🤦‍♀️ I have been referred to pain management which I’m waiting for appointment 🤞 they can help, the gp has prescribed gabapentin but after reading up on the common side effects I’m not happy about going on to them, the symptoms of medication are literally the symptoms you r getting with the condition it’s so frustrating, I’ve heard cbd oil can be beneficial but my full time 35hrs a week job can’t allow this, I do Pilates which is vey good and helps a lot, I also swim and do a lot of self help and I try to live my life with a positive attitude, I’ve finally getting referred for bowel scan and ultrasound doctors have for years now kept telling me it’s ibs with no further investigations done not even a stool sample 😡 I suffer with trapped wind bloating and sometimes can’t go for a week they have had me on laxatives but still not right , eventually I took sample in and it has showed a inflammatory marker so we will see what scans show 👍

My main issues atm are bowels the pains and extreme fatigue that just hits me like someone has put a sleeping pill in my drink, all my bloods are fine they have tested everything so it makes you feel like a hypochondria, I’m 44yrs old and feel like a ninety year old, it’s frustrating as there is stuff I need to do but I’m knackered

Any advice is much appreciated on meditation even tho I’m reluctant to take things that make things worse in my experience, and how to manage this blasting condition, thankyou ☺️

[Pastafox]

Hi Brandy 2020 I can share with you my experience on gabapentin I hated the stuff it didn't help with pain I dreaded waking every waking hour it took me weeks for my gp to stop them I felt , looked , walked even sounded intoxicated I finally got to the point coming of them I was on 12 gabapentin and 8 Paracetamol a day the gabapentin were hard to come off but I found the Paracetamol even harder mentally hope you find what suits stay safe...

[Fatabelly]

Hi Brandy,

Personally I couldn’t recommend Gabapentin highly enough. It’s one of the best medications I take (amongst many) I takes 1200mg three times a day, and it really helps with my condition. I did have some side effects when I first started taking them, but it soon settled down and now I couldn’t be without them.

But everyone is different and some people just can’t deal with them or get any benefit. My advice is to just try them, but do give them chance to settle in.

All the best and good luck

Martin.

[Puddywoods]

My experience with Gabapentin is a positive one but I only take them at night now, very rarely do I take them during the day.

Gabapentin are the reason I sleep I believe as they are effective at controlling the pain I get at night, I am supposed to take 1x30mg twice during the day and 2 x30mg at night but I have found my own regime works better for me.

[PurpleRing]

I don't have experience with gabapentin specifically, but I have experience with a related drug called pregabalin. Gabapentin and pregabalin are similar, but pregabalin is said to be more gentle than gabapentin. It's worth noting that some people only tolerate one of the two, some tolerate both, and some tolerate neither. You could try to gabapentin for a while or you could try asking if there's an alternative that you can try instead. Not all pain meds behave the same way, so sometimes you do have to do a little trial and error to find what works for you.

[PurpleRing in reply to PurpleRing]

completely forgot to say that pregabalin has been a positivie thing for me. Compared to OTC meds and naproxen it's the only thing that deals with the kind of pain that immobilises me

[Brandy2020]

thankyou everyone for your comments really appreciate people’s views, I wanted to try naproxen but my doctor said no, he said naproxen is not prescribed for fibromyalgia 😕 I just want to be able to have something on the days I feel really bad and not be put onto medication that you have to take everyday with side effects that are worse and may or may not work and end up addicted

[Yoyo2024]

Hi Brandy,

Personally I’ve not tried gabapentin as my GP doesn’t think it’s going to help based off NHS guidelines and my history so they gave me amitriptyline which is helping to take the edge off the pain and helps me sleep really well. I take 10mg at night which is the lowest dose and doesn’t give me any side effects. I’ve tried naproxens few times and I have to say it did absolutely nothing for me except making me very spacey and almost like I was drunk which was fun for me but not everyone around me!