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Gabapentin side effects?

Posted by Sundance(RB) @sundance6, Apr 13, 2019

I am a regular on the Mayo Board! I don't know what I would do without it! Our doctors don't want to discuss openly the things about illnesses and side effets of drugs and other things. Anyway, my question to all of you is Gabapentin and it's side effects. I have been on it now for 6 months. My doctor raised me from 100mg. to now I am on 400mg. three times a day.
The problem is my tiredness! I happen to be in a friends office yesterday and she was taking some medicine. She said she was taking Gabapentin. I asked why and she said she had, had shingles back when and it still helped with the pain. I know the drug is percribed for many things that is why I take it for my issues.
I told her I had been taking it for about 6 months. She asked if I had been tired all the time, just out of the Blue. OF COURSE I SAID YES! She said it took her a year before she got out of the tiredness.
Let me know if any of you have experienced the same thing. Also let me know at what dosage you may be on? I know this is all confidential!
Again Thanks to The Mayo Clinic and Everyone who is kind enough to be open with their lives!
Sundance!

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Chronic Pain Support Group.

pfbacon | @pfbacon | Dec 16, 2020
In reply to @spondi64 "My Dr prescribed Gabapentin 300mg caps last Friday. I took one at bedtime & woke up..." + (show)
@spondi64

<p>My Dr prescribed Gabapentin 300mg caps last Friday. I took one at bedtime & woke up at 3:30a.m. in horrible pain. Has anyone else experenced anything like this?</p>

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Stephen, thank you for describing the pain pump. I wonder if people can drive, work, etc. after they get a pain pump installed ... Peggy

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1 reply
Stephen | @wsh66 | Dec 16, 2020
In reply to @pfbacon "Stephen, thank you for describing the pain pump. I wonder if people can drive, work, etc...." + (show)
@pfbacon

Stephen, thank you for describing the pain pump. I wonder if people can drive, work, etc. after they get a pain pump installed ... Peggy

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Absolutely. There are no side effects. 1 milligram per 6 to 8 hours. Thata a tiny dose. No intoxication, no constipation, won't make you sleepy.

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1 reply
Stephen | @wsh66 | Dec 16, 2020
In reply to @pfbacon "I have to ask those of you who quit narcotics: Did you start taking the narcotics..." + (show)
@pfbacon

I have to ask those of you who quit narcotics: Did you start taking the narcotics because you wanted to get high, or because you had neuropathy? If you had neuropathy, what do you do about the pain instead of using narcotics? My doctor has told me that when my condition progresses beyond the level that gabapentin and lyrica can mitigate, I will have to segway into narcotics. I am scared of that ...Peggy

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Narcotics are not to be feared if you don't use them to get high. The doses do increase over time and at least for me, became ineffective. That took several years. Make sure your doctor has experience using these meds.

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1 reply
eternityphysics1 | @eternityphysics1 | Dec 16, 2020
In reply to @wsh66 "Absolutely. There are no side effects. 1 milligram per 6 to 8 hours. Thata a tiny..." + (show)
@wsh66

Absolutely. There are no side effects. 1 milligram per 6 to 8 hours. Thata a tiny dose. No intoxication, no constipation, won't make you sleepy.

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Excellent, thank you!

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eternityphysics1 | @eternityphysics1 | Dec 16, 2020
In reply to @wsh66 "Narcotics are not to be feared if you don't use them to get high. The doses..." + (show)
@wsh66

Narcotics are not to be feared if you don't use them to get high. The doses do increase over time and at least for me, became ineffective. That took several years. Make sure your doctor has experience using these meds.

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After ten years on them,it really made me almost psycho

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1 reply
Erika | @erikas | Dec 22, 2020
In reply to @eternityphysics1 "After ten years on them,it really made me almost psycho" + (show)
@eternityphysics1

After ten years on them,it really made me almost psycho

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@eternityphysics1 I wanted to extend my welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. I'm wondering if there is anything I can do to connect you with members like you that may be able to give you support?

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magneticcenter | @magneticcenter | Dec 22, 2020
In reply to @spondi64 "My Dr prescribed Gabapentin 300mg caps last Friday. I took one at bedtime & woke up..." + (show)
@spondi64

<p>My Dr prescribed Gabapentin 300mg caps last Friday. I took one at bedtime & woke up at 3:30a.m. in horrible pain. Has anyone else experenced anything like this?</p>

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Persons taking oxycotin for pain have tried gabapetin, cymbalta and nortriplin with no luck going on to a low dose of oxycotin

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pfbacon | @pfbacon | Dec 23, 2020
In reply to @spondi64 "My Dr prescribed Gabapentin 300mg caps last Friday. I took one at bedtime & woke up..." + (show)
@spondi64

<p>My Dr prescribed Gabapentin 300mg caps last Friday. I took one at bedtime & woke up at 3:30a.m. in horrible pain. Has anyone else experenced anything like this?</p>

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Magnetic Center, which 'persons', where, under what circumstances, what was their diagnosis, what else did they try? Please tell us your own experience. Thank you. Peggy

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razzle50 | @razzle50 | Dec 25, 2020
In reply to @wsh66 "I am appalled that he was given those drugs for cancer pain. I was given Lyrica..." + (show)
@wsh66

I am appalled that he was given those drugs for cancer pain. I was given Lyrica for the tingling in my feet caused by large doses of chemo. I was in a very compromised situation when this happened, not thinking clearly and definitely experiencing "chemo brain". Lyrica is really expensive and they know damn well it doesn't do much for pain. Lyrica is no better than gabapentin but costs much more. What is really insidious about the scam is that if you take 25 mgs. per day and I take 1200 mgs. per day, which was my actual dose,m we both pay the same price. There is no relationship between how much you use and what you pay. You pay for the privilege of using the drug. Lyrica was instrumental in inspiring the now common term among honest Doctors and Pharmacists, "There are no new drugs, just new names. The thing with pain is that it can really vary in intensity from day to day based on your activity, your mood and the amount of stress you are experiencing due to Medical personnel treating you like a drug addict. It's one thing to pull this smoke and mirrors game on someone with a bad back but to do it to someone with cancer is absolutely unconscionable. Most things like off label uses for drugs that don't work for pain, CBD oil, stretching, meditation, back braces and all forms of electrical stimulation are mostly snake oil and lies that at best will trigger a placebo effect, which can be very helpful but there are better, more effective and cheaper ways to use the placebo effect to improve your health. I am treated for chronic and persistent pain resulting from cancer by one of this countries most respected authorities on pain treatment and deep brain stimulation. According to him, implanted stimulation works for some people with back pain, the rest of it is a bunch of b.s. I saw him yesterday to have my intrathecal pain pump refilled. A little ritual we repeat every 12 weeks. I get the miniscule dose of 3.5 mgs. per day of hydromorphone. It has the effect of about 1000 mgs. taken orally. It has the side effects of 3.5 mgs. or no side effects at all. No sleepiness, no constipation and certainly doesn't get me high. The patient is beyond the suspicion of half assed doctors and nurses who think anyone on pain meds is a drug abuser. That's the best part right there. The availability of these pumps is increasing and just about all insurance and medicare pay for them. I don't think the availability will continue to increase as the number of Medical students pursuing the field of pain management is dropping. When the truth is known about the opioid crisis it will be revealed that the manufacturers were selling these drugs out the back door to organized crime and that well meaning doctors were not the cause. That's what we learned about Quaaludes in the 1970's. If you don't use opioids to get high, you don't experience the euphoria they can create and you do not get addicted. Truth, Love and Blessings

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Gabapentin puts weight on big time so if you dont want to gain weight I would go for something else.. Also it is bad for causing cavities ...

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wheelerma | @wheelerma | Dec 25, 2020
In reply to @spondi64 "My Dr prescribed Gabapentin 300mg caps last Friday. I took one at bedtime & woke up..." + (show)
@spondi64

<p>My Dr prescribed Gabapentin 300mg caps last Friday. I took one at bedtime & woke up at 3:30a.m. in horrible pain. Has anyone else experenced anything like this?</p>

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Thank you for your reply! I don't take it anymore as it didn't do much for me.

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