Hi all, ive been put on Gabapentin...

[Cookie16]

Hi all, ive been put on gabapentin 300mg today- 600mg tomorrow and the 900mg the day after stick to that for 4 months and if still have pain he will up the dosage more, my question is does anyone take gabapentin and what is your good or bad experience with it i was told to keep taking my cocodamol 2 x 30/500 4 times a day, i have taken the first one at 9.30am today, just read so many bad reviews on it i would like to see if theres also good ones around, thank you all in advance x

[Bananas5]

Well for starters whoever has put you on that amount over 3 days wants' shooting.

The dose should be increased very slowly and deceased even slower if you come off.

Start on 300 which is usually equal to one tablet 3 times a day. At least a week then increase one tablet only for another week and so on..

That lessens side effects.

Gabapentin and its sister pregabalin are what I call the 'marmite' drugs....you either love them or hate them. There is no middle of the road.

You will know fairly soon after starting if they suit you. If they do then carry on...still increasing slowly...but if they don't then they never will no matter how hard you try.

They are an excellent drug and many many people take them successfully.

Good Luck but sadly too many GPs have no idea about slowly slowly on or off these meds

x

[Cookie16 in reply to Bananas5]

Hi thank for your reply x 😬 hope i dont react at this dosage x

[Pinky2233]

My first doctor prescribed a doseage much like this. I tried and NOT good. You must go up and down slowly and allow the body to get used to it as mentioned

I am not a doctor but a Pt suggested getting the prescription filled in 100 capsules so i could go up in smaller amounts which allowed me to do so.

Best of luck

[Cookie16 in reply to Pinky2233]

Hi pinky x ive taken my 3rd gabapentin 300mg tonight -

- 1st was yesterday and 2nd was this morning and i think its gonna be ok x they seem to be working together nicely im still tingly pain and so but looking good x

[Destiny0321]

Hiya. I am on gabapentine I was put on it slowly, I am on 300mg first 1 in a morning then 1 in the evening. Then gradually 2 in the morning, 2 at dinnertime & 2 at bedtime luckily no problems but each 1 acts different. Good luck cookie 16

[Cookie16 in reply to Destiny0321]

Hi destiny wow i bloody love it, i was so worried about taking it with all scary side effects but damn after 6 years gabapentin and cocdamol are a nice little team for me lol x

[stenosis49]

Hiya, ime on the sister drug pregabalin and yes I love it like marmite. has worked very well for me and still does 5yrs on. at one stage my gp wanted to put me on gabapentin cause it was cheaper but I couldn't bear the pain I was in took to long to get any relief so got my surgeon to re prescribe pregabalin again along side amitriptyline. doctors or gps donot understand nerve pain at all.

[Cookie16 in reply to stenosis49]

Sorry late reply busy day, i think im

The love it side with gabapentin only had 3. Caplusles of 300mg so far but with my cocdamol its keeping pain at bay it still hurts but defo better x

[Jenles]

I have been taking Gabapentin 300mg x 3 daily for a long time- year’s and years! I had also been on Naproxen (which needed to stop due to gastric problems) and 60mg x 2 daily of slow release morphine I decided to reduce then stop the morphine SR about 6 weeks ago and increase the Gabapentin with the support of my GP.

If I am honest, I am not totally sure how much any of these drugs work. I am currently on 500mg Gabapentin 3 x daily and will work up to 600mg. My main concern with Gabapentin is withdrawal. I had an exceptionally bad experience 13 years ago when, following a spinal fusion surgery (and having not taken it for about 24 hours due to nil by mouth) I spent 4days ‘off my head’ in Intensive Care. It was only when a charge nurse managed to make the connection as he had seen it previously that help could be given. My husband insisted that (although it recquired me to be sedated and was in no position to consent) I be given it. The following morning I woke up back to myself.

It does worry me somewhat that it could happen again.

I am in a huge amount of pain despite all the meds - perhaps (definitely!) more than before I began cutting the morphine back. Things have also been much worse since my pain consultant retired and I was discharged,as no replacement was appointed, and my local hospital just wants to ‘educate’ me on pain management techniques although I have already done that, read books and put as much as possible into practice. So I will be continuing to take Gabapentin, paracetamol and may possibly ask for Anatryptaline - not sure spelt that correctly - and try to find someone who will give me steroid injections under anaesthesia if possible. I also take oral morphine some nights as well as 1/2 a Tamazepam (2.5 mg).

Hope you notice a difference with the Gabapentin. I wish you well, Cookie!

[Cookie16 in reply to Jenles]

Hi jenles yes funny enough.. after the first gabapentin i felt like wow this is not bad.. and then my second one this morning indidnt need to grab 2 cocdamol first thing in the morning however i didnt need to few hours later but thats still a big improvement and taken 2nd tonight and feel ok like pains turned down abit x sorry to hear all yiur pains too its awful, see if you can get cocdamol too they seem to be working well for me at the start early days but going the right way xx

[Emma2017]

Hi Cookie, I had Gabapentin for a while but it affected my eyesight so I was switched over to pregabalin which I can handle much better. Apparently you need to take a much lower dosage of pregabqlin to receive the same result (about a third). I am on 500/600 mg a day and up to 240 mg dihydrocodeine. I could not stand tramadol so abandoned that. Nerve pain is just the worst. Mine just increased tremendously lately so an MRI showed a significant disc extrusion at the same level as before. After discussion with the surgeon it was agreed upon to operate again. Hopefully this will deal with the horrible pain that just keeps me up most nights.

Why have you been put on gabapentin?

[Cookie16 in reply to Emma2017]

Hi 6 years ago i had sudden pain in lower back couldnt get out of bed had toRoll out of it went docs was told muscular skeltal, went back several times in agony was in tears at home with the pain told them paracetamol and ibruprofen do nt do anything nothing at all she then tells me oh dont even bother with ibruprofen just paracetamol, wtf? Went home like a div went back saw same dif gp who tapped my reflexes and told me

Its mucaular skeltal! Still stick with paracetamol!, dr always right right...?...

went bk to see woman gp who told me not to bother with ibrprofen just pracetamol, i said i cannot sleep i cannot move with pure agony in lower back and left leg! Its numb shooting pians spasms and i have to walk bloody walk! My 2 kids to school 2.2miles away i do that 4 times aday there n back there n back again - that was after 5 bloody weeks though! It was Well slightly better but not much at all with numbness and spazams. I asked for mri she sent for one and i got a letter saying it was refeused and she said it was because they asume id get better and its muscular skeletal! Ive had 3 babies all big 1st 8.8 2nd 9.15! And 3rd 7.10 so i know pain on only gas n air and i never ever cried in labour but was crying in pain with this, she sends me to physio for my muscluar skeletal back! Got there hardly able to walk almost in tears, and the lovely man rob took one look said i know whats wrong and said l5/&S1 disks in your back says can u touch your toes i said no chance cant even put my socks on anymore! He said bend back wards i nearly died with pain and he said yep defo, how on earth did gp let you go on like this for by the 6/7 weeks i said god knows and he wrote a note on paper saying of course this paitant NEEDS a antiinflamotries AND cocodamol 30/500! Please prescribe them asap told me to take letter back to her well I went straight there and had to wait but saw another gp who took one look at the note and gave me 200 cocdamol and tons of diclofenic once diclofenic ran out they didnt prescribe them Anymore so just on cocdamol 100 to last a month (bloody stupid i was in agony. Oneday went physio and he said hes dischanrging me bk to gp with excersize plan wow, no MRI no muscle relaxants, just atay in pain the same, he said could do injections never got one even when i was at home one morning was late for school jumped up and oh my god i thought i was gonna die with the pain, i phoned physio rob crying shaking panicing begging for this injection into my back and he bloody says “this is it now the dosc is burning out as in its like toothpaste consistancy leaking onto spinal nerves causing all the pain you will start to feel better soon! No injection he said i could have - no actual xray/MRI to actually confirm he wa right, ive spent 6 years going to gp with the same pain. The jan 17 finally saw a doctor gp who put me on repeat for cocdamol as id had to keep asking as wasnt on repeat, constant blood tests kept coming back with inflammation in body and low vit d so he’d put me

On high vitamin D3 for 3 months retest still low another 3 months vitamin D3 he was adamant all this pain was cuz of low vit d, kept saying i cant refer you for an MRI and kept retesting tried narproxen 3 doc times but done nothing for the pain just put my already high bp higher ffs. I finally snapped and deamaded he send me for a referal to rheumy for a check and MRI, she saw me did my bloods and xray then and there and go home and wait if she sees something on Xray she will then refer me for an MRI well i got a letter to have mri on 30th july, got letter for follow up that was 13th aug. And omfgg results are

severe Herniated S1 disc on left collapsed and sereverly causing impingment of nerve roots also narrowing of left side of disc and mild herniation on right side of serverly hernitated S1 & also L5/S1 dehydrated DDD discs of both so wearing down said shortening of discs and crushing nerve roots. I swear 6 years of this it didnt “burn out”

Its been like it 6 f ing years x

[Emma2017 in reply to Cookie16]

My goodness what a demented GP you’ve got. You should sue her for medical negligence with one of those no win no fee solicitors. I am no fan of those but that GP needs to be brought for a medical council. Absolutely appalling what you had to go through. I know exactly what you are going through. I had a severely herniated disc at the same level which got to incipient cauda equine. Got operated on. Had some issues after which I won’t bore you with. Unfortunately it has herniated again and will go for another op. Like you I had kids on just gas and air which was painful but this nerve pain is of the Richter scale. I think you should push for an operation. Good luck.

[Loramay]

Hi listen to your doctor and DO what he says. He knows your medical history. There are too many people who will tell you that this or that is bad for you especially on forums.

I have been on gabapentin for a few years now and found its a very good drug for blocking nerve pain, which is what I take it for so I can comment on.

[Jay67]

Hi cookie, I feel your pain and thank you for sharing the circumstances leading to the situation. Unfortunately, some gps are f ing clueless. Do not listen to them and always ask for second opinion if your not satisfied with anything they say. Don’t forget there are different classes of doctors ie junior senior. Now that mri shows herniated disc. And your in severe pain. I would go for op. But think this through with family. They told me I might get paralysis. But I could not bear the pain and had l5s1 disc op. It went well. I was taking gaba , cocod. I had taken all sorts including morphine, diazepam, tramadol( had mad reaction)

Since seeing pain specialist I’m now on pregaba and dulexetine. These drugs just mask pain. I have incontinence, anxiety depression neuropathy. Still get pain in buttocks anc shooting pains down legs. It’s a nightmare. However since op I can move , whereas previously I was bedridden.

I’m sorry to bore you with my long story. My only advise is try to take the lowest dose if possible. You’d a strong woman. Dependence on these man made drugs iced a period of time is not good.

[Lindyloo53]

I was on four gabapentin three times a day. I started on cbd oil and am reducing gabapentin. The withdrawal from it has not been nice. No extra pain but I’ve had a bell flop in my mood so I’m consolidating at this dose for now.

[kev60]

Hi, I had a trapped nerve and was prescribed 100mg x 3 times a day for the first week and 300mg x 3 times a day from the second week (I didn’t get to the second week), but I was cautious and only took 100mg once a day for five days and then my life changed forever. On day six I started swaying,speech was slurred and I couldn’t think straight. Went to the GP who sent me to hospital who thought I was having a stroke they sent me to another hospital (under blue lights). Any ho three days later discharged as it was not a stroke, but they didn’t know what it was my wife came to the hospital as I couldn’t walk properly, talking was a bit better but had brain fog. It took 18 months before I was diagnosed with FND caused by the Gabapentin apparently after 11 scans and 100+ blood tests they said I had a reaction to the medication that was in 2018 . So now I still suffer with FND and also have COPD, GORD, AO of the spine and this year have developed a functional tremor in the hands . Sorry it’s a bit of a horror story but just keep an eye out for any changes but hopefully I am a rare case and you will be fine. Good luck with the future. Kevin

[Nnabuike]

Helo. I was on gabapentine 1800mg per day for more than 2yrs, it took away all my back and leg pain but i gained a whooping 17kg . I finally stopped it and lost all d weight.