Cross Atlantic flights/timezone changes

[wantokporo]

Have those of you on gabapentin or pregabalin flown on long haul flights with many time zone changes? How do you manage your dosages? For myself, if I am delayed more than 1.5 hours in taking my 175 mg pregabalin my body starts shaking. Thanks in advance.

[SueJohnson]

Book your flight for early in the day and book an aisle seat so you can get up and walk around and preferably an emergency exit or bulkhead. Pack activities that serve as distractions. If you belong to the Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation, download the Restless Legs Syndrome Special Accommodations Card to give to the flight attendant. You can join for $40 even if you don't live in the US and it is well worth it. RLS-UK also has a medical alert card available to members for things like flights. Otherwise be sure to talk to the flight attendant and explain that you will be walking a lot.

Also taking an extra dose of your medicine can help or even .25 mg of ropinirole or .125 ,g of pramipexole.

As far as adjusting your medicine to the new time zone, do it 1 hour each day and adjust when you go to bed similarly.

[wantokporo in reply to SueJohnson]

Thanks, Sue. I already do all of your recommendations. Only you didn't mention hydrating. I usually drink 8oz an hour. I keep busy with all of this as I have suffered serious leg cramps after flights. But the suggestion of the ropinirole or pramipexole to get me through is new and helpful. I am in the US and belong to the RLS foundation for many years now. Because I do keep moving on flights I don't especially suffer my PLMD or RLS. What I am principally concerned about is adjusting the schedule of the medication as my body knows quickly if I don't take it in a timely manner.

[Niewiem in reply to SueJohnson]

How to survive long flights..... maybe what I suggest is not for everybody but there we go (unless you fligh v.often don't do it) well have a plan B, which could be slipping pills and tramadol, works for as long as you want . No fuzz with walking or keeping 1/4L of water consumption per hr (I think it's too much) or adjusting your meds, cheers

[SueJohnson in reply to Niewiem]

I think you meant this for wantokporo. You might want to repeat it in a reply to him as he won't be notified of it otherwise.

[SueJohnson]

As an example if you fly through 4 time zones going west and you take your gabapentin at 10:00 and go to bed at 11:00, the first night you would take your gabapentin at 9:00 and go to bed at 10:00 your old time zone which would be 5:00 and 6:00 in your new time zone. The next day it would be at 6:00 and 7:00 in your new time zone etc

[wantokporo]

I am hoping to fly east 9 time zones. My concern is that if I delay the pregabalin by as much as two hours my body convulses. This is not RLS or PLMD (in my case)--it is withdrawal from the drug. I think I just have to take the dose when my body starts convulsing which will make me considerably off schedule for sleep.

[SueJohnson in reply to wantokporo]

WOW 9 time zones. Ouch!

[Moonwalker1967]

I don't do long flights anymore. It's torturous. Try to avoid if you can!

[gobojo]

Yes, I've been on pregabalin for a couple of years. In March this year I flew to Australia with a few days in Bangkok on the way. I didn't have any trouble. I think I stuck to English dose times and then switched to other times. I basically just stuck to having the dose at bedtime. Seemed to work and helped with jet lag too. Enjoy your flight and I hope it all works out.

[Simkin]

It is very tricky. I try & work out what the time would be in the UK & take the pills at my regular UK time.But it is hard to get it right & I still always find I suffer 3 or 4 days of RLS on arrival until my body settles into the new time zone.

[Munroist]

As Sue said your body and the circadian rhythm will adjust to new times zones at the rate of about a hour a day although like most things I suspect we will all be a little different. However that only help if your RLS is very predictable and follows the circadian rhythm. Otherwise there will probably be some trial and error.

[wantokporo]

Thanks all for sharing your experiences. No one seems to have the withdrawal problem I am talking about -- on top of the RLS/PLMD problem? I know jet lag will be an issue, or it usually is for me.

[Niewiem]

How to survive long flights..... maybe what I suggest is not for everybody but there we go (unless you fligh v.often don't do it) well have a plan B, which could be slipping pills and tramadol, works for as long as you want . No fuzz with walking or keeping 1/4L of water consumption per hr (I think it's too much) or adjusting your meds, cheers

[HipHop1972]

Hi wantokporo. This isn’t much help in answering your question but 28 years ago my wife and I went to stay with my cousin in South Carolina. I was suffering from Undiagnosed RLS at the time but it wasn’t chronic and I had not yet started on the slippery slope of being prescribed Dopamine Agonists. Anyway it was a night flight and my RLS really kicked in, I walked around inside the Delta Airlines aircraft all the way home, up to and across Newfoundland and then the Atlantic to Manchester Airport in the UK. I suspect very few people can claim that they walked all the way from the USA to England.

I hope your find a solution Kind regards HipHop1972

[SueJohnson in reply to HipHop1972]

My laugh for the day - walked all the way from the USA to England.🤣🤣🤣