Interesting you raised this question. I was fortunate enough to go to Mayo in MN in 2020. I have axonal sensory motor PN, no pain, all numbness and poor balance. The neuro doc at Mayo asked me if I had been prescribed any medication for the PN. I told her that my primary had tried Gabapentin in 2018 (bad reaction, anger issues) and the then Lyrica ((groggy). The Mayo doc said do not take those, with your PN it could make it worse. She did not elaborate any further, perhaps because of the axonal diagnosis? Not sure. I will say it did not help at all for numbness, I was on each med for about 10 days, had to taper off on both when stopping. Again, each of us are different with different causes for our PN. I do see that Gabapentin does help others with control of pain. Perhaps your prescriber can give you best advice. Good luck!
Hi-
As Ed said, we’re all different in how we respond to various therapies for PN. Most of us have some degree of differences in our symptoms and types of PN. I have been on Gabapentin for almost 8 years. It has not “cured” my PN, nor has improved (or worsened) my balance, gait, or strength. What is HAS done for me is help the extreme & once intolerable cold & heat in my hands and feet. Without Gabapentin, I couldn’t function because of the pain the temperature feelings caused; whether inside or outside, with heavy gloves & socks or with being completely naked & hot and unable to sweat, I was miserable. Gabapentin has helped reduce that to where it’s just a minor nuisance
now.
I unfortunately have pain with my PN, an internal nerve pain, as if in my bones from the knees down & elbows down. Gabapentin has helped that tremendously too. Things trigger extra pain sometimes, like over-use, being exposed to high temperatures, and some things I haven’t figured out yet trigger it. But generally it’s very manageable with Gabapentin and doesn’t interfere with the activities I can do since I’ve been living with PN. I’m fortunate I’ve had no side effects with it, with the exception of maybe a little brain fog, but I can’t prove that my aging doesn’t have a role in that! I’ve learned over these 8 years to stay on schedule taking the medication. Sometimes when unusual pain or freezing sets in, I realize I’d missed a dose and that was the trigger. It may take a day to get the level in my body restored to “normal” again, so I think it’s important to keep the level in my bloodstream maintained.
As Ed said, we all react differently to it, but for me and knowing how I had a couple of months of complete helplessness and suffering when I had this very sudden onset of PN, I can’t imagine how I could have made it without Gabapentin. I have heard other contributors talk about similar drugs that have helped them - it’s often trial & error with the help of your doctor. I wish you the best!
Hi-
As Ed said, we’re all different in how we respond to various therapies for PN. Most of us have some degree of differences in our symptoms and types of PN. I have been on Gabapentin for almost 8 years. It has not “cured” my PN, nor has improved (or worsened) my balance, gait, or strength. What is HAS done for me is help the extreme & once intolerable cold & heat in my hands and feet. Without Gabapentin, I couldn’t function because of the pain the temperature feelings caused; whether inside or outside, with heavy gloves & socks or with being completely naked & hot and unable to sweat, I was miserable. Gabapentin has helped reduce that to where it’s just a minor nuisance
now.
I unfortunately have pain with my PN, an internal nerve pain, as if in my bones from the knees down & elbows down. Gabapentin has helped that tremendously too. Things trigger extra pain sometimes, like over-use, being exposed to high temperatures, and some things I haven’t figured out yet trigger it. But generally it’s very manageable with Gabapentin and doesn’t interfere with the activities I can do since I’ve been living with PN. I’m fortunate I’ve had no side effects with it, with the exception of maybe a little brain fog, but I can’t prove that my aging doesn’t have a role in that! I’ve learned over these 8 years to stay on schedule taking the medication. Sometimes when unusual pain or freezing sets in, I realize I’d missed a dose and that was the trigger. It may take a day to get the level in my body restored to “normal” again, so I think it’s important to keep the level in my bloodstream maintained.
As Ed said, we all react differently to it, but for me and knowing how I had a couple of months of complete helplessness and suffering when I had this very sudden onset of PN, I can’t imagine how I could have made it without Gabapentin. I have heard other contributors talk about similar drugs that have helped them - it’s often trial & error with the help of your doctor. I wish you the best!
Thank you for your insights
I would like to of course like yourself and millions of others
treat and solve the origin of the
neuropathy rather than use
gabapentin..
With me I am very confused about the origins of it..
Thanks again
Thank you for your insights
I would like to of course like yourself and millions of others
treat and solve the origin of the
neuropathy rather than use
gabapentin..
With me I am very confused about the origins of it..
Thanks again
I completely understand. My general philosophy and statement to doctors on any medical issue is “I don’t want to mask the symptoms, I want to remove them!” In my case, I needed some relief while we searched, and searched, until we couldn’t think of anything else to look for. I haven’t given up hope for knowing what caused mine or hope that we can find a cure for it, but with the help if a lot of people in this forum, I realized after a long time I needed to spend a lot of focus on living life to my fullest while seeking answers and solutions. I hope you find the source of your PN and am rooting for you that you won’t need medication. I hope you have a Neurologist helping you with thorough scans and bloodwork.
Interesting you raised this question. I was fortunate enough to go to Mayo in MN in 2020. I have axonal sensory motor PN, no pain, all numbness and poor balance. The neuro doc at Mayo asked me if I had been prescribed any medication for the PN. I told her that my primary had tried Gabapentin in 2018 (bad reaction, anger issues) and the then Lyrica ((groggy). The Mayo doc said do not take those, with your PN it could make it worse. She did not elaborate any further, perhaps because of the axonal diagnosis? Not sure. I will say it did not help at all for numbness, I was on each med for about 10 days, had to taper off on both when stopping. Again, each of us are different with different causes for our PN. I do see that Gabapentin does help others with control of pain. Perhaps your prescriber can give you best advice. Good luck!
Interesting you raised this question. I was fortunate enough to go to Mayo in MN in 2020. I have axonal sensory motor PN, no pain, all numbness and poor balance. The neuro doc at Mayo asked me if I had been prescribed any medication for the PN. I told her that my primary had tried Gabapentin in 2018 (bad reaction, anger issues) and the then Lyrica ((groggy). The Mayo doc said do not take those, with your PN it could make it worse. She did not elaborate any further, perhaps because of the axonal diagnosis? Not sure. I will say it did not help at all for numbness, I was on each med for about 10 days, had to taper off on both when stopping. Again, each of us are different with different causes for our PN. I do see that Gabapentin does help others with control of pain. Perhaps your prescriber can give you best advice. Good luck!
I had been suffering with toe and foot pain at night with no relief from Gabapentin. However,
I have started using High adsorption Curcumin from Turmeric Root by Doctor's Best and have received total relief from pain or burning in my feet. Hope this helps.
Yes I’ve used it along with other
“Misc” paste on my feet for over six months: I have no answer for your question other than it works for me:
I’m concerned about it making a drug slave out of me:
Hi-
As Ed said, we’re all different in how we respond to various therapies for PN. Most of us have some degree of differences in our symptoms and types of PN. I have been on Gabapentin for almost 8 years. It has not “cured” my PN, nor has improved (or worsened) my balance, gait, or strength. What is HAS done for me is help the extreme & once intolerable cold & heat in my hands and feet. Without Gabapentin, I couldn’t function because of the pain the temperature feelings caused; whether inside or outside, with heavy gloves & socks or with being completely naked & hot and unable to sweat, I was miserable. Gabapentin has helped reduce that to where it’s just a minor nuisance
now.
I unfortunately have pain with my PN, an internal nerve pain, as if in my bones from the knees down & elbows down. Gabapentin has helped that tremendously too. Things trigger extra pain sometimes, like over-use, being exposed to high temperatures, and some things I haven’t figured out yet trigger it. But generally it’s very manageable with Gabapentin and doesn’t interfere with the activities I can do since I’ve been living with PN. I’m fortunate I’ve had no side effects with it, with the exception of maybe a little brain fog, but I can’t prove that my aging doesn’t have a role in that! I’ve learned over these 8 years to stay on schedule taking the medication. Sometimes when unusual pain or freezing sets in, I realize I’d missed a dose and that was the trigger. It may take a day to get the level in my body restored to “normal” again, so I think it’s important to keep the level in my bloodstream maintained.
As Ed said, we all react differently to it, but for me and knowing how I had a couple of months of complete helplessness and suffering when I had this very sudden onset of PN, I can’t imagine how I could have made it without Gabapentin. I have heard other contributors talk about similar drugs that have helped them - it’s often trial & error with the help of your doctor. I wish you the best!
Hi Debbie ~
I found myself nodding "yes" to almost every word of your post. The exception is that Pregabalin works for me (side effects immediately with Gabapentin) and that I've been taking it for "only" 5 years, along with Tramadol. I pray that over time its effectiveness doesn't diminish, because like you, I don't know how I would ever be able to handle it otherwise.
Hope summer is going well for you and that you're staying cool!
Barb
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Interesting you raised this question. I was fortunate enough to go to Mayo in MN in 2020. I have axonal sensory motor PN, no pain, all numbness and poor balance. The neuro doc at Mayo asked me if I had been prescribed any medication for the PN. I told her that my primary had tried Gabapentin in 2018 (bad reaction, anger issues) and the then Lyrica ((groggy). The Mayo doc said do not take those, with your PN it could make it worse. She did not elaborate any further, perhaps because of the axonal diagnosis? Not sure. I will say it did not help at all for numbness, I was on each med for about 10 days, had to taper off on both when stopping. Again, each of us are different with different causes for our PN. I do see that Gabapentin does help others with control of pain. Perhaps your prescriber can give you best advice. Good luck!
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4 Reactions@thighirritationno1, You might want to read through the following discussion on gabapentin where others asked a similar question.
-- Can Gabapentin make neuropathy pain worse?: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/can-gabapentin-make-neuropathy-pain-worse/
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3 ReactionsHi-
As Ed said, we’re all different in how we respond to various therapies for PN. Most of us have some degree of differences in our symptoms and types of PN. I have been on Gabapentin for almost 8 years. It has not “cured” my PN, nor has improved (or worsened) my balance, gait, or strength. What is HAS done for me is help the extreme & once intolerable cold & heat in my hands and feet. Without Gabapentin, I couldn’t function because of the pain the temperature feelings caused; whether inside or outside, with heavy gloves & socks or with being completely naked & hot and unable to sweat, I was miserable. Gabapentin has helped reduce that to where it’s just a minor nuisance
now.
I unfortunately have pain with my PN, an internal nerve pain, as if in my bones from the knees down & elbows down. Gabapentin has helped that tremendously too. Things trigger extra pain sometimes, like over-use, being exposed to high temperatures, and some things I haven’t figured out yet trigger it. But generally it’s very manageable with Gabapentin and doesn’t interfere with the activities I can do since I’ve been living with PN. I’m fortunate I’ve had no side effects with it, with the exception of maybe a little brain fog, but I can’t prove that my aging doesn’t have a role in that! I’ve learned over these 8 years to stay on schedule taking the medication. Sometimes when unusual pain or freezing sets in, I realize I’d missed a dose and that was the trigger. It may take a day to get the level in my body restored to “normal” again, so I think it’s important to keep the level in my bloodstream maintained.
As Ed said, we all react differently to it, but for me and knowing how I had a couple of months of complete helplessness and suffering when I had this very sudden onset of PN, I can’t imagine how I could have made it without Gabapentin. I have heard other contributors talk about similar drugs that have helped them - it’s often trial & error with the help of your doctor. I wish you the best!
-
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Helpful -
Hug
5 ReactionsThank you for your insights
I would like to of course like yourself and millions of others
treat and solve the origin of the
neuropathy rather than use
gabapentin..
With me I am very confused about the origins of it..
Thanks again
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
2 ReactionsI completely understand. My general philosophy and statement to doctors on any medical issue is “I don’t want to mask the symptoms, I want to remove them!” In my case, I needed some relief while we searched, and searched, until we couldn’t think of anything else to look for. I haven’t given up hope for knowing what caused mine or hope that we can find a cure for it, but with the help if a lot of people in this forum, I realized after a long time I needed to spend a lot of focus on living life to my fullest while seeking answers and solutions. I hope you find the source of your PN and am rooting for you that you won’t need medication. I hope you have a Neurologist helping you with thorough scans and bloodwork.
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4 ReactionsTrue Debbie never give up hope
Like you said live life to the fullest while doing this..
Learning to do that now!!
Peace to you
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2 ReactionsThanks so much for sharing your story!!
Truly
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1 ReactionI had been suffering with toe and foot pain at night with no relief from Gabapentin. However,
I have started using High adsorption Curcumin from Turmeric Root by Doctor's Best and have received total relief from pain or burning in my feet. Hope this helps.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
6 ReactionsYes I’ve used it along with other
“Misc” paste on my feet for over six months: I have no answer for your question other than it works for me:
I’m concerned about it making a drug slave out of me:
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 ReactionHi Debbie ~
I found myself nodding "yes" to almost every word of your post. The exception is that Pregabalin works for me (side effects immediately with Gabapentin) and that I've been taking it for "only" 5 years, along with Tramadol. I pray that over time its effectiveness doesn't diminish, because like you, I don't know how I would ever be able to handle it otherwise.
Hope summer is going well for you and that you're staying cool!
Barb
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
5 Reactions