Gabapentin

[Gailbt]

I was put on this and took the first one last night and it knocked me out! Been told to take one a day to see how I go then up it to two then three all going well. Has anyone got any experiences they could share of how you felt taking it?

[Hidden]

Hello Gailbt, I haven't personally taken Gabapentin, but a lot of our members do. I am sure you will get some posts telling you of their experiences with it.

In the mean time here is some info for you to read about this medication -

patient.co.uk/medicine/Gaba...

nhs.uk/medicine-guides/page...

[carron]

hello gailbt, i was given gabapentin and to have 3 aday, i only told 1 and was sick didnt have no more. ido no some one who said they worked for her. hope they work for you fom carron

[Hidden]

I am sure you will get messages soon Gailbt from members who take Gabapentin and get on well with it. Hopefully, fingers crossed . . . . .

[Hidden]

I take it nite times.knocks me out cold.no pain at all.

But be careful in mornings.it takes me half day to come round from it.

Ive sent texts to people in a druggie haze.

But they do work good.

Im meant to take one in morning but too dangerous for me as i have m.e plus seizures too.

I get alot of headaches with them though.xx

[Gailbt in reply to Hidden]

I took mine at 1am this morning after getting home from a friends house. I slept all night and felt as though I could have slept until at least lunch time but had to get up at 9.30am! I did have a slight headache this morning but 2 paracetamol at it went away. If I get on ok taking this at night, doc wants me to then take one in the morning then if I'm ok with this then another around dinner time.

[Elky]

Hi gailbt, I have been on Gabapentin for some weeks now and take 3 day and have no problems but prior to that I was taking a conbination of NSAIDS and Tramadol so I was already used to powerful meds. I have to stop taking those medications as they were creating hovoc with my bowel and I became allergic to them. It is worth persevering with the Gabapentin as you will get used to them and the best way is to take some time off work and stay at home till you have gotten over the initial dizziness etc.

[Gailbt in reply to Elky]

I'm already on Tramadol for my rheumatoid arthritis and I've been on Amitriptyline for over a year now for my fibro. Had Gabapenton added just the other day then I've to go back in a month to the doc to see how I'm getting on.

[getactive]

Hi I take 3 150mg tablets a day and I have got used to them and they really help the pain. Try and stick with it and see if it helps xx

[Gailbt]

I'm on 3 x 300mg a day, hoping they help my restless leg too but if not then doc is going to add something to help that. He said he didn't want to give me 2 new meds at once as if one didn't agree with me, it would be hard to figure out which one it was.

xx

[CAREN]

Hi ,,yes my husband taken that medication,its really helpfull to ease the pain,but the trouble with him is it took so long to recover to be wide awake,well husband loads of medication needed to take,thers tramadol.omeprasol.oxynorm.Amitriptyline because of his bad accident before,,and now the doctor gives another extra mg.of gabapetin.instead of 400mg.now is 800 he need to take because of the pain in his right shoulder,witch i think is fibro?sad to say souds that my husband takenn medicine to over dose a self,so im gonna ask review to all his medication tho...xxx

[iandavid]

i take gabapentin three times a day 3 in the morning and 3 at lunch and 3 at night i get on ok with them still in pain but think the pain would be far worse if i did not take them . I hope you get some relef from them xxx

[Hidden]

Just wondered if any one put on weight I have been offered gabapentin

Or pregablin which the doctors are not as keen to give as the cost is more

Don't know what works better than the other one

[kraftyk8]

Hi Gail,

I take Gabapentin 1200mg x 3 daily without any problems. However, the side-effect you are getting is quite common in the beginning. The doziness is generally a short term effect, until your system gets used to it.

My advice is to take the one you are taking at about 23:00hrs so you would normally be asleep for most of the time you are feeling dozy, that has the added benefit of getting some good quality sleep. When you are ready add the second one at teatime, so again it won't matter too much if you feel a bit dozy in the evening, then by the time you are ready to take a third one after breakfast, the side-effect should have disappeared.

You need to persevere with them because the therapeutic dose is 300mg x 3 daily, so you won't feel the benefit of them properly, until you are taking that amount and therefore won't be able to give an informed view on whether they work for you, until you have taken that amount for a couple of weeks after that.

You may find that the dose is adequate for you, or like many of us, you need to take more and you may even find that you will be able to drop the Amitriptyline.

Gabapentin deals with neuropathic pain, which is why it is so effective in treating Fibro. For your RSL I would talk to your GP about Pramipexole (Mirapexin) and your GP is quite right about not starting it until your Gabapentin is stable.

I hope that helps

happy hugs, kate

[ithurts]

i tried what you just been put on and they didnt agree with me gp put me on pregabalin and they help

[Spirit]

Hi Gailbt - like Kate I've been on Gaba for a long time. I take 2 x 600 and then 1 x 900 (nighttime). Took me a short while to get used to them, and it started with 1 x 300 for one day and then 2 and then three. Stayed like that for long time, but they have been creeping up. There has been talk a few times of moving me onto something else, but I don't really want to go through all the side effects rubbish again, and I'm good on this drug.

Consultant says that not everyone gets on with it as well as Kate and I clearly do, but I would say that it is worth persevering for a little while. DO however consider how much of a soporiphic effect it has on you. This wore off for me over only a very few weeks.

Good luck <3

Spirit x x x

[Hidden]

Hi there i've been taking Gabapentin for several months now,yes it knocks you out it is one of the side effects that i welcome as i had insomnia for years,now i'm out like a light! i currently take 300 3x a day to be reviewed soon as my body has adjusted and the pain relief isn't quite as strong as it initially was but there is a definite improvement it has been a lifeline for me, i hope it works out for you, i actually quite like the floaty floaty feel it gives, take care hugs Della xxx

[htmre]

Hi Ladies, I take 2700 mg a day. I have been on this dosage for about a month after starting lower. It has helped me with the neuropathy and Fibro pain until we get a rainy system...............like yesterday. I felt awful, achy and tired. I try to go with the flow and don't fight it. Works better for me but I hate to lose a day doing nothing!! Have a great day everyone. K

[NordicNavajo]

Hi

Gabapetin made me nauseous and i threw up alot. It didnt ease the pain. However lyrica or pregabalin which is a newer version brought a fair bit of pain relief after initial problems when increasing the dose (blurred vision). I stopped taking it after many months when I had a real big stress attack caused by the DLA tribunal that was a sham and loss of my job due to sickness. It didnt tough the pain when my nervouse system had gone completely awal! I now still have the bee sting sensation all over but my head can cope due to the pain patches I have been prescribed (after nagging) . they are opiat based. My dose of pregabalin had reched maximum at nearly 600mg daily, but i dont feel any worse now im off of it.

Good luck and hang in there

NN

[Jeannie]

After taking Gabapentin I developed a jerking leg which has never gone away. I was changed over to Pregapentin which is better. my understanding is Pregapentin is more expensive so they don't like prescribing. Neither knock me out. I take Zapain as well. Still in pain but takes the edge off. Good luck

[tribalwelshgirl]

Hiya, yes I got the same thing when I first started on them. I was dizzy and nauseous and very sleepy. Over the next three weeks it settled down and they made a bit of a difference. I went back for a review with my dr and as the gabapentin wasn't on top of the pain they upped my dose a bit more. Again I was dizzy but it settled down after about a week or 10 days. It's horrible I know but it gets better, and I have certainly found them good now the side effects have settled down. Good luck.xx

[Gailbt in reply to tribalwelshgirl]

Hiya Tribalwelshgirl (cool name by the way ) I feel my dose could be increased! I'm on 3 x 300mg a day but the one I take at night is helping most of the night but I wake around 6am in pain so maybe a higher dose would help. xx

[tribalwelshgirl]

Thank you, it comes from my holiday in new Zealand!! To be honest, I wake up early in pain, generally between 3 and 6 am so I know how you feel. I don't know if the gabapentin would help with that as I think your body gets used to the dopey effect, worth a go though :o) xx

[Hidden]

*** If you think your dose is too low, please make sure you speak to your Doctor first before increasing your daily dose. This also applies to reducing your dose too, please seek medical advice first. Many thanks folks. ***

[zimbabwemac]

When I first started on Gabapentin, I was put on 300 mgs once at night and eventually I was on , over a prolonged period of time 600 mgs three times a day, 1800 mgs in all. I was taking this along with a multitude of other drugs, including initiall, tramadol and then morphine. What I would say about Gabapentin is that whatever dosage you are on, you need to make sure increase or decrease your dosage slowly and incrementally. I recall one day, having taken too large an increase in dose, running round the lounge of my house pretending I could fly. Given that I could hardly walk at the time, let alone run, this was nothing short of a miracle! Gabapentin is a strong drug, which isn't for everyone, but you need to persevere with it, to draw out the real benefits. It can cause headaches and a very dry mouth, but you learn to cope with these issues. My problems are now getting off the Gabapentin and morphine. At the maximum, I was taking 1800 mgs of Gabapentin and 120 mgs of morphine, plus another 20 mgs in liquid form, but am now down to 600 mgs of Gabapentin and 50 mgs of morphine. Finding it difficult to get below this level. I also suffered a massive withdrawal issue, when, after my knee joints were replaced, the hospital took me off morphine altogether and I ended up in another hospital within 48 hours of being discharged from the hospital that operated on my knees. The real message Gailbt, is to do things slowly when it comes to increasing or decreasing your dose and to persevere. You will feel tired and consider yourself lucky if you do sleep well. When I was on my maximum drugs, I was still only having two hours of continuous sleep a night. My specialist said he once had a patient on 300 mgs of Gabapentin who slept for three whole days, so obviously the drugs impact on people differently. Hope by now you are much better, along with all the other people on these powerful drugs.

[magicmo]

what mg are you taking of gabapentin ? i was on 300mg 3 times a day but was still getting pain so my dr just uped it too 600mg 3 times a day . must admit by the end of the day i am ready to go too bed