Gabapentin OR Pregabalin ?

[Help1963]

Hi everyone, just looking for some honest advice? I'm almost ready to start coming off pramipexole which i have been on for over 10 years as its losing its effect and also causing me augmentation.

My doctor wants me to switch over to gab , which I have no problems with , she contemplated putting me on pregabalin however eventually decided that Gab would be a better fit for me, obviously I only want to do this once so Im just wanting to know if others would choose Gab over pregabalin? and why ? ..

[Madlegs1]

I had to give up Pregabalin (Lyrica) because of the cost.

But didn't stay on it long. Or Gabapentin.

[Tbone87 in reply to Madlegs1]

What are you taking if you’re not taking either of those?

[Madlegs1 in reply to Tbone87]

I'm on opioids. Oxycontin and Oxynorm. 25mg pday.

[SueJohnson]

I always suggest one start with gabapentin since you can increase it in smaller doses and once you find out the dose that works for you then you can switch directly to pregabalin by dividing the gabapentin amount by 6. In fact you can switch back and forth on different nights. The advantage of pregabalin is you can take it all in one dose.

Be sure you don't just stop pramipexole. Instead reduce by half of a ,088 tablet every 2 weeks or so. You will have increased symptoms. You may need to reduce more slowly or with a smaller amount. Wait until the increased symptoms from each reduction has settled before going to the next one. You will suffer and may need a low dose opioid temporarily to help out with the symptoms especially as you near the end. Some have used kratom or cannabis temporarily to help. But in the long run, you will be glad you came off it.

On the gabapentin beginning dose is usually 300 mg gabapentin . Start it 3 weeks before you are off pramipexole although it won't be fully effective until you are off it for several weeks. After that increase it by 100 mg every couple of days until you find the dose that works for you. Take it 1-2 hours before bedtime as the peak plasma level is 2 hours. If you need more than 600 mg take the extra 4 hours before bedtime as it is not as well absorbed above 600 mg. If you need more than 1200 mg, take the extra 6 hours before bedtime. (You don't need to divide the doses on pregabalin) Most of the side effects of gabapentin will disappear after a few weeks and the few that don't will usually lessen. Those that remain are usually worth it for the elimination of the RLS symptoms. According to the Mayo Clinic Updated Algorithm on RLS: "Most RLS patients require 1200 to 1800 mg of gabapentin ." If you take magnesium even in a multivitamin, take it at least 3 hours before or after taking gabapentin (it is OK with pregabalin) as it will interfere with the absorption of gabapentin and if you take calcium don't take it within 2 hours for the same reason (not sure about pregabalin). Check out the Mayo Clinic Updated Algorithm on RLS which will tell you everything you want to know including about its treatment and refer your doctor to it if needed as many doctors do not know much about RLS or are not uptodate on it as yours obviously isn't or s/he would never have prescribed a dopamine agonist at Https://mayoclinicproceedings.org/a...