Pregabalin

[Leelee49]

Hello, I called my gp today regarding my pregabalin, I was taking 150mg 2 a day for rls and pain, but it wasn’t helping with the pain at all, it did for the rls for a while, but then the rls started becoming more frequent. So I tried 2 pregabalin together, instead of 2 separate ones, and it helped pain wise and with the rls, at least at night time mostly. Anyway, my usual gp, who was very helpful regarding medication and trying things out has left, so ended up on the phone with the most unhelpful horrible gp whatsoever. He said I can take 2 300mg twice a day, but that is it, basically he said when that stops working, I’m at the end of the road. In other words, he doesn’t give a shit. Am I augmenting on pregabalin? So sorry for the long post, thank you in advance for any replies.

[Dasymoo]

I was on 300 pregablin at night and 75 in the morning

I came off my pregablin at night and I am augmenting

[Leelee49 in reply to Dasymoo]

What do you take now then, if anything? Surely we can’t just be left to suffer this, I can’t take strong painkillers, like codeine or tramadol, they make me have panic attacks for some reason. No wonder some of us get suicidal. I hate this thing. 😪

[Hidden]

yes, I think you are augmenting. the same happened to me though I never got to these higher doses due to side effects. I'm afraid from my experience the only thing to do is to cut down very gradually, which unfortunately increases your symptoms for a while. the last step or 2 was the hardest. then when off consider seeing a specialist. I think it will become more and more apparent that pregabalin causes augmentation. it has been used for a shorter time than the DA's so the effect has been slower to become apparent - that's my view anyway

[Bganim1947]

I have been taking pregablin for 6 mos. It took about 4 years to become fully effective. It works totally for me Now! I no longer have RLS, at all.

I take 100 mgs 3x a day, but the magic part of this is adding in a second med. of 100 mgs of Tramadol taken 3x a day with each pregablin dose.

All the research on RLS treatment protocols say that more than 300 mgs of pregablin a day is not more effective at controlling RLS. Plus the higher the doses, the less effective it becomes. It’s very important not to “try” different doses just to see if something works. Pregablin has to build up in your system to a consistent dose, then maintained at that dose over time. Research also says that combining pregablin with a second med like Tramadol is more effective than pregablin alone.

From my experience, and a conversation I had with my neurologist three days ago (she is a movement specialist, who also has RLS), the combination of pregablin and Lyrica that i’m on, she said, is prefect and apparently working well at controlling my RLS. At some point, she also said, I may want to Very Slowly taper off the Tramadol a bit—not totally. She said taking more pregablin is not a wise idea. Better to stay at 300 mgs /Day but divide it into three doses.

I discovered that the trick with pregablin that most people don’t know is that you need to space each dose exactly 7 hours apart due to the half life of pregablin. In 7 hours your body has too little pregablin to be effective.

For example, you can space it at 8 AM, 3 PM, and 10 PM. Stick religiously to whatever schedule you set.

You have to be patient when it comes pregablin. Personally, I don’t think you are augmenting on pregablin. I’ve been through 4 months of augmentation on Ropinerole. I think you are just being inconsistent with the amount of your doses and when you take it. But this is just my opinion. I’m not a doctor.

Also I have very bad arthritis and I had hoped pregablin would help with that pain—it doesn’t. It works well I hear for pain from fibromyalgia and neuropathy, but not arthritis. I’m just happy it is controlling my RLS, since I tried so many other med protocols unsuccessfully.

Also a last tip, if you can find a jar of MagniLife Relaxing Leg cream in a pharmacy, buy it, and apply it to your leg or legs when you feel an RLS episode coming on. It worked for me like a charm while I was waiting for the pregablin to fully kick in. As soon as it drys in about a minute, the sensation is gone usually for the rest of the night.

Good luck!

[Leelee49 in reply to Bganim1947]

Thank you for that, the problem I have, is adding a 2nd med like Tramadol, I can’t take them, they cause me to have panic attacks, I was on 3 100mg pregabalin for a while, but it wasn’t helping so the dose was changed. From what you have said though, if it takes a long time to work, I think I will go back to that and hold out for it working. The pain is the pain from rls and also back pain, not arthritis. It can get so confusing as to what’s the best thing to do at times, you read 1 thing, then something else comes along and contradicts it. Thank you for your reply, it’s much appreciated.