Has anyone NOT put weight on using pregablin

[Backpain4ever]

I have just been prescribed pregablin from the pain clinic specialist to support other medication I take for chronic back pain, reading posts here a few of you have said you have gained weight on pregablin. I am only on 25mg 2x daily, it is important that I don't put on any extra weight to avoid more stress on my lower back. Has anyone been described this drug in small amounts and not actually put weight on? Any advise welcome.

[welshnut]

Sorry I went from a size 10 to an 18 in a year on pregablin now fighting to lose it again.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news but maybe if I had known the side effect when I started I would have been more vigilant and taken steps to change my diet. At least being aware of the problem you stand a chance of controlling the gain.

nutty

[Hidden in reply to welshnut]

OMG..... I did not know that could happen! I've lost 6 stone and trying for another 2. I'm just new on it instead of amotriptolyne because of the sweating. I feel a chat with the Doc coming on! If that is the case, I'm going back to amotriptolyne! Pregablin is extremely expensive apparently.

[Backpain4ever in reply to Hidden]

No my pain consultant or GP did not warn me of this, I only found by researching myself but it does look like it may effect weight gain in a lot of people so good luck.

[Backpain4ever in reply to welshnut]

Thanks for your reply, yes I am going to monitor it very closely, GP or pain specialist did not warn me which is crazy as they both said keeping a healthy weight is important for my back problem!!!!! It just shows that we need to check everything out thoroughly for ourselves.

[Trixybell82]

Hi,

I started pregabalin last June on a 75mg dose morning & night, it has gradually been increased to 300mg morning & night and I have been in this dose now since about sept/oct. I haven't put on any weight during this time but have in fact continue to lose it as I had started slimming world last feb as I am getting married this year. I don't use sweeteners and just avoid eating rubbish but I still allow myself treats (my syns). I am unable to exercise at all due to my health conditions but I think the trick to avoid weight gain on this medication is to just watch what you eat. I think it increases your appetite which is probably what causes the weight gain. On my diet plan you can eat as much free food as you want (salad,veg, fruit,fat free yoghurt etc) so if your hunger increases it's a simple case of being conscious of what choices you are making when eating snacks & what you choose to eat.

Gentle hugs

[Backpain4ever in reply to Trixybell82]

Hi, well that's good to know, I am a very healthy eater normally so I will watch what I eat , I know what I normally eat to maintain to my current weight so will watch for any increases in hunger and ignore them!!! And see what happens! Good luck with wedding and gentle hugs too

[Trixybell82]

I'm lucky then as my pain specialist did forewarn me it can cause weight gain so I guess forewarned is forearmed. Pregabalin is expensive but I get an NHS prescription certificate that last 3 months as I am on about 8 diff kinds of meds anyway. I was speaking to two fellow fibro suffers at my hydrotherapy session in Friday & both said they had tried gabapentin before going onto pregabalin and both said that pregabalin was better for them as less side effects,

Not sure about amitriptyline instead as I used to have that at night for difficulty sleeping but I now have nortriptyline instead.

Gentle hugs

[Brett85 in reply to Trixybell82]

I was given gabapentin and gained 24 pounds in one month. I didn't

change my eating habits. I switched over to pregabalin and I gained

another 8 pounds that month so the doctor took me off of it. I am

going to start on Miraplex. I heard the side effects are awful.

[Backpain4ever in reply to Brett85]

Hi Brett, thanks for your response, so sorry to hear about the side effects, you may be Ok on the Miraplex as everyone reacts differently so hope your ok on it and all goes well, everyone has said that once they stopped the prebablin the weight fell off again.

Let me know how you get on with the Miraplex I would be very interested to hear how it works for you.

All the best

Ann

[Kat3]

Hi Backpain4ever (I hope not!)

I have been on pregabalin for a year (or maybe 2 now? can't keep track, so many meds) and I haven't put weight on because of it. I have put a few pounds on from being housebound and lying on the sofa all day for the past 3 years, not to mention the sweets... but this hasn't been from the pregabalin. It affects everyone differently, so give it a try. And by the way, I've been on 75 twice a day, and then 100mg twice a day, and now 100mg once a day. So just try for a few weeks and see.

Best,

Kat

[Backpain4ever in reply to Kat3]

Hi Kat, thanks for your reply, that's two of you now so I will give it a go, know what you mean about lying around all day....lol it certainly doesn't help! If it does help my nerve pain then the plan is I can be more active so maybe it will all balance out

Take it easy ann

[Poppy_Ann]

hi there, i started Pregabalin several months ago and never knew about it causing weight gain i have increased weight even though i decreased my food intake as i am trying to loose weight i think i better get to the doctor to talk about it as the weight gain is not good for me as my back is very bad and has been for the last 30 plus years after a accident whilst in the army.

[Backpain4ever in reply to Poppy_Ann]

Hi poppy, sounds like you are like me! I have had on and off back problems now for 30 years and now they have pretty much said no more surgery, let's focus on pain management. It is very frustrating I have been prescribed this without any warning especially as being told not to gain weight but at least I am now forewarned. A couple of people have said they have not gained weight so I guess all I can do is try for a few weeks and see but if I do gain weight I will be straight back to the pain specialist - I have had to stop all aerobic exercise and even Pilates so after being very active for 6 years ( before metal work in my back broke due to a fall down stairs) I have already gained some weight and feel flabby and middle aged which just lowers your self esteem even more and doesn't help produce a positive mood so apart from the extra pressure on my discs there are emotional negatives too!! Good luck with losing the weight . Ann

[Poppy_Ann in reply to Backpain4ever]

Hi Backpain4ever at the start of my problems i said no to surgery as i was told that for every one that they fused there was a 10% chance that i would be paralyzed and as i had 3 damaged ones plus the one above and below it was a 50/50 chance that i would never walk again so as at the time i could walk for most of the time i refused the operation now i can hardly walk i returned to the hospital and have been told that there is nothing that they can do to help the pain clinic just offered a change in medication but the Gabapentin was not good for me as it put me on my back for 3 months and the morphine patches which were quite good for a few months but then they started to burn my skin and i had to stop them so now i am back where i was over a year ago except for Oramorph which i only take if i have to go out and i cannot put it off.

just lately i have hardly even bothered to get dressed each day just trying can cause my back to go into spasm which makes me double over in pain and normally i end up on the floor where ever i am at the time the spasms can last from a few minutes to several days when i went for one of the interviews for the DWP for incapacity benefit and told them how i am they just take the best day you have in a year and work it out from that this time i kept a pain diary using a scale of 1 to 10, for the past two years it worked out that i was in a pain of 1-2 for 10% of the time, in pain of 3-4 10% 5-7 for 50% of the time, in pain between 7-8 for 20% of the time, in pain of 8-10 for 10% i explained what the numbers mean starting with a pain of 1 being like you just stubbed your toe on the end of the bed it hurts but it is not that bad and you can manage to cope and number 10 being like some one has just hit you with a sledge hammer on your head and you wished you were dead if my pain level is between 1 and 2 i can get up dressed and go out as long as i do not have to walk much, between 3-5 i can get up but getting dressed is hard and trying to walk is just about impossible unless i am holding onto something and between 5 and 8 i have to just lie in bed as even trying to get out for the toilet is to painful and when it gets up to 8-10 i just wish i was dead, now i am just waiting for them to let me know what their decision is with luck they will keep me on ESA in the support group which they have replaced incapacity benefit with. good luck managing you pain meds i know how bad it can be, regards Poppy Ann.

[Backpain4ever in reply to Poppy_Ann]

Hi Poppy Ann, OMG your situation sounds terrible, much much worse than mine currently is, I totally understand where your coming from with the depression and negative thoughts, especially as I suspect as you were in the army you were very active. It's so frustrating as back pain effects every aspect of your life. I wish you all the best with any future improvements and keeping some money coming in. Keep fighting and don't give into specialists, I have had to push to be believed and get treatment since I was 15, but the older I get the more forceful I become.

Hope your pain is not too bad today. Kind regards Ann

[peperpup]

Hello backpain4ever. Like you I have recently been put on 2 x 25mg Pregablin and have been very worried about putting on weight. I was nearly 17 stone and on four other meds that have a side effect of weight gain. I read about the 5:2 diet (500 calories for 2 days and normal eating for the other five) and it seems to be working for me. So far I've lost 12 lbs since just before Christmas. I am not noticing any pain relief from the Pregablin so far but I gather we need to give it 3 months to work (why, I wonder?). Also I understand that it can be combined with other drugs, eg Amiltryptaline, and I am keen to give that a try too. Good luck with the weight! By the way, if you are merely trying to maintain weight the 5:2 diet recommends one day fasting a week.

[Backpain4ever in reply to peperpup]

Hi there, thanks for your reply, I am also on citalopram and naproxen and the chiili cream ( topical) only been on the pregabalin for a couple of days and so far not noticed any pain reduction but I am supposed to self increase with experimentation - no one mentioned it takes 3 months to work!!! I am seeing the pain specialist in a couple of weeks for another nerve block so will discuss all the recent information and feedback I have got from the web with him. I am not overly concerned with what I eat as I have been extremely health conscious for years and control my diet effectively and it would not be healthy to restrict it any more. What concerns me is the lack of control in relation to weight gain that pregabalin may cause.

I too tried the 5:2 diet and really enjoyed the food so keep it up and enjoy the continued weight loss.

Take it easy and have a good pain free night.

[teadrinker]

I am lucky in that I didn't gain weight on pregabalin, or on gabapentin. I was only on pregabalin for a couple of months, but on gabapentin for much longer. I seem to have a fast metabolism as I don't tend to put on weight that easily (though I can't just eat what I like, before everyone groans and tells me I'm lucky).

My other half gained weight rapidly as a result of being on another sort of medication. He has had to change his diet and his mindset - the medication was making him hungry! He's cut out chocolate bars and puddings, I don't serve up such big portions anymore, and he eats more fruit and drinks more water to not get hungry. He's lost a couple of stone gradually by doing this and he's still on medication.

It's a difficult one because you want to sort out the pain without having the side effects. Maybe you sould just try it for a few weeks and see what happens. If you gain weight and it's making your back worse it's not really helping.

[purpledm10]

Hello Backpain4ever

I have been taking Pregabalin (and nortriptyline) for a year i'm on the maximum recommended dose of 600mg and i haven't put on any weight, not that i've noticed anyway and i didn't know that it was a side effect. i found that i started to get relief from it after about a week or so, thankfully i didn't have to wait for 3 months, guess I'm one of the lucky ones?

[Backpain4ever in reply to purpledm10]

Hi there, that's good to hear, I have been on it now 4 days and when I take it I can tell the difference in my sciatica pain, although last night I increased the dose from 25mg to 50mg as still having pain, that worked, slept like a baby for a solid 9 hours so I am in the playing with dose stage and hoping I will be one of the lucky ones re weight gain.

Thx for your response

[blue0470]

Hey all,

l have been taking pregabalin for 6 months now 200mg three times a day they are giving me decent pain relief for my lower back pain and sciatica.I have put on weight and only discovered that it is one of the side effects on this site.Why no warning from GP, added weight on back problem is not needed

[Backpain4ever in reply to blue0470]

Hi there, I specifically asked my GP what were the side effects and rather than just admitting she didn't know and ask me to read the info carefully she said oh just the normal...dizziness and nausea on initially taking them!!

I suppose we can't expect them to know all the drugs on the market but it is the pain specialists job to know this and I am very surprised he didn't warn me.......I will be having words

Have a good day

[Hidden]

Hi, I have been taking pregabalin since last May. I put on a couple of pounds only and that was because I am off work sick and just having too many biscuits with all the tea and coffee. I have cut them out now and I eat a lot of fruit now too and also try to eat healthy through the week and keep treats for weekends

[Brett85 in reply to Hidden]

It gave me an appetite.

[anthony97]

Hi i take preagablin twice daily 600mg in total, i do have a weight problem which no one seems bothered with, i am of course. I to suffer with lower back problems and i know the weight doesnt help but struggle to lose it not sure if its the meds or just the fact that its me, i do take a lot of medication for my pain and im also down because off it im sure thats why i over eat. Eating takes away the pain the sadness of being this way but it also makes everything twice as bad. Any advice would be appreciated. Joanne

[purpledm10]

Hi Joanne

Ive now been off work since August 2012 (and on a concoction of meds) and have found that my eating habits have changed as have my taste buds!! i use to dislike sweet stuff and chocolate as i found it very sickly, i was definitely a savoury eater before August 2012,

That is not the case nowadays. i tend to graze on biscuits to such an extent that when my son stays overnight at his dads i wont bother to cook for myself i will literally live off biscuits and chocolate sweet stuffs for days at a time. It got so bad that i even tried freezing meals for one but haven't really used them.

For me, i think its boredom that's at the route of it, that, combined with an instant snack, every time i go in the kitchen i emerge with a few biscuits or creme eggs (i don't get the creme eggs as i hated them). I have recently purchased a rollator walking frame (i've waited a month for the one that the physio ordered and its still not arrived) and am hoping to start walking again (i aim to do the 5K Race for Life (ill be walking, i hope) in July. I have swapped the biscuits and chocolate for fruit which is just as instant as the biscuit tin.

i just wish apples tasted like custard creams!!! good luck

[Vectron]

You are on a very low dose, if you use the 5/2 diet you will be fine.

[Vectron]

No weight gain I am on 50mg twice a day