Gabapentin side effects?

Gabapentin was horrific, my reaction to it was frightening.

@pfbacon I feel for you! My pain is bad enough for me ...! 😦

My pain doctor tried several things until we found one that worked for me and doesn't have bad side affects. We're all different. Having a bad reaction doesn't mean that the medicine is bad, just that you and your doctor should discuss trying something else. I have seen people on this loop ranting on and on about how horrible gabapentin is -- No It's Not! It saves my life and I have no side affects.

Having a bad reaction indicates you aren't metabolizing it well. Gene testing can predict that for many meds.

@pfbacon you’re very fortunate to have found a doctor who hears you and listens to what you have to say!

As far as I know, Gabapentin or Lyrica are not drugs that Gene testing can predict your ability to metabolize. Psychotropic meds, mood-stabilizing meds, drugs for depression and analgesics. Someone told me the website does not mention analgesics are narcotics but when I had mine done I got a section in the report that talked about narcotics and other analgesics and my ability to metabolize them. It can also predict if you will metabolize it given Med to quickly which means you would need smaller doses more often or if you metabolize it too slowly you could become overdose if it was taking you six hours metabolize a narcotic but say you were taking it every 4 hours. My testing came from a company called Genes
Sight. If you search the web you can go to their site and they'll guide you in from there. They can line you up with a doctor who will read your results or explain to you how your doctor can become registered to request the test and process the results. They send you a package with two swabs in it, you swab the inside of your cheek and send it back and then they send the report to the doctor. Once you have the testing done you can make it part of your permanent medical record and make sure your doctor knows it's there so if they have to prescribe for you when you're not conscious they have some guidance. This is a really big deal. This means for most people, no more bouncing around from one drug to another, being made sick or not helped by a different psychotropic meds before you find the right one.

Is there a specific type of doctor or specialist that can provide Gene Testing? I brought it up to only one of my many specialists and that doctor said they didn’t know of Gene testing to try to figure out why my body reacts very poorly to most all prescriptions. I’m only able to tolerate Tylenol literally. Prescription drugs & injections have caused me serious & immediate issues. Your comment is so true about bad reactions and not being able to metabolize it well. I have TBI from car accident injuries and it’s caused SO much damage in my body. I’ve changed my eating to all organic, no sugar, no preservatives etc, taking a few supplements & vitamins (per blood tested deficiencies), chair yoga & doctor recommended home exercises (due to Covid). I did a year of in person physical therapies prior. Thanks for your input as I’ve read a few of your posts and your input resonates with me. Keep posting 🙂

Thsnk you for your kind words. Any kind of doctor can order Genesight testing and go over the results with you. They must call the company, Genesight, and take about 15 minutes to become registered but it doesn't cost them anything to do so. You can also go to their website and put in your zip code and they will give you a list of doctors in your area who are already registered to order the test and inform you of the results. That was what I had to do. It's really very simple and the average person could make sense of the report even without the help of a doctor but I wouldn't recommend it. It doesn't replace the input of the doctor it just tells them if you are going to be able to metabolize a particular drug and at what rate you will metabolize it. If you can't digest the drug it can't do you any good. If you digested too quickly you may need smaller doses more frequently. If you digest it too slowly it could lead to overdoses. Say You're supposed to take it every 4 hours but it takes you 7 hours or 8 hours to metabolize it. After a couple of days of that you would have taken way too many doses. Good luck trying to find the right meds can be very frustrating and this does make it a little bit easier. The Mayo Clinic has also developed a gene testing protocol but I don't know anything about it. And I don't know what you have to do to avail yourself up their test. The company Genesight was the first on the market that I ever heard of and the one I would recommend because it worked for me.

Thank you very much for this information and explanation! Much appreciated!

If U every gave real NERVE pain, it feels like you are ' on fire'!! You are correct, those, nerves do carry the pain, when u have pain. Different things, though.