Drug vacation?

[wantokporo]

Anyone heard or had a successful experience going off a drug because of intolerable side effects, taken a vacation from the drug, and gone back on it without those side effects reoccurring?

[SueJohnson]

Which drug are you talking about? And how much are you taking?

[wantokporo in reply to SueJohnson]

I should apologize as I am jumping the gun way ahead. I just started methadone 1 mg. The question would be about trying to change from this back to trying pregabalin (years ago when I started pregabalin I only needed 50mg to do the trick, although I wonder if my PLMD was just in a milder period or something). Of course it is too soon to know what will happen with the methadone.

[SueJohnson in reply to wantokporo]

The side effects you had on pregabalin will unfortunately most likely reoccur if you go back on it. The methadone should work. You are starting on a low dose. According to the Mayo Algorithm the usual starting dose is 2.5 mg to 5 mg. and the usual effective dose is 5 mg to 20 mg .

[wantokporo in reply to SueJohnson]

Years ago I tried 5mg methadone. It worked all right. Put me dead asleep all day and all night. Unfortunately the sleep doctor would not give me a liquid form to titrate from a lower dose. I won't really know what is happening with the methadone until I get off the gabapentin in a couple of weeks, but already the legs have stopped although I am waking up like 5 times during the night.