Lyrica for Depression?

@marjou, you're right. Lyrica (pregabalin) isn't typically presribed for depression. It is a medication used to treat epilepsy, neuropathic (nerve) pain, and fibromyalgia. Sometimes it may be prescribed (off label) for generalized anxiety disorder. Pregabalin works by reducing the number of pain signals that damaged nerves send out.

There are many discussions about Lyrica, especially in the neuropathy and fibromyalgia group. They are not specific to depression. You may wish to read the posts in this discussion:
- Lyrica - Looking for Patient Experiences https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/lyrica-looking-for-patient-experiences/

Marjou, are you needing to switch medications? What prompted the recommendation of Lyrica for depression?

@colleenyoung Thank you. Just got off of lorazepam which I took many years primarily for sleep and occasional anxiety. However, I noticed my sleep hasn’t improved in recent years and anxiety has gotten worse so have tried to very slowly taper off. My depression has worsened, no energy, don’t care about anything, etc. along with being medication resistant. Years ago tried Gabbapentin but side effects of shakes. Not too thrilled to try Lyrica for depression as it’s primarily for pain or fibromyalgia.
My mom is also on this awful medication (lorazepam) and has gotten worse plus has been taking it now 3 times a day…yikes. Have seen her reaction and addiction to this medication and she’s 90 years old. So my need to get off this medication.

I find that lorazapam helps me with my anxiety but not much with depression. It can be hard to tease those two things out, but if you can it gets easier to manage the lorazapam and reduce the use of it. I take lyrica for fibro and it helps me sleep from the pain but I don’t think it does much for depression or anxiety but it does help me sleep!

@szucker99 Have been on lorazepam for years and just tapered off very slowly. Both depression and anxiety have gotten worse and GP has suggested Lyrica which seems odd to me. Tried Gabbapentin but side effects were shakes which can be one of the side effects for Lyrica. Appreciate your input.

Is Lyrica addicting?

Lyrica isn’t a narcotic if that’s what you mean. So it’s not addictive. A person would have to taper off the medication like any other, when stopping it’s use but it’s not addictive. Hope this helps!

When I become so depressed that I become suicidal, a single dose of Lyrica fixes my depression and suicidal thoughts in about an hour.

I stumbled across this life-saving side-effect on accident, and it happened few times before I made the connection. I have absolutely no doubt that it’s saved my life though.

Lyrica may not be a narcotic but it most certainly is addicting. I have been on it for over 10 years, before the commercials. I was on 600 mg a day. I tried to get off of it and thought I had the flu for a whole week. I took a Lyrica and all symptoms went away. I worked in a clinic and asked one of the nurses, and she said yep that's the withdrawal from Lyrica, we see it all the time. Crazy I know but any drug that your body gets used to then take it away, and your body reacts. Even sugar, caffeine, and many other things. Lyrica is one of the hardest drugs to come off of if you've taken it for a long time. It even put me in a better mood when I was down. I still take it but at a lower dose. I hope this helps someone.

With most medications we experience symptoms when it’s discontinued, especially if taken for long periods of time. I tried Lyrica many years ago but had an allergic reaction. I was simply talking about narcotics, and Lyrica isn’t one. There is a difference between taking a narcotic and becoming addicted to it and non narcotic medications. We all become dependent on medications to help our conditions and symptoms. However addiction is when a person craves a drug, both psychologically and physically and will go to extreme lengths to get their drug of choice. Be it alcohol, heroin, pills, etc. I’m familiar with the kind of addiction that I spoke of in my comment. We become dependent on meditations like antidepressants, blood pressure medication, etc. however it’s simply not the same as an addiction to a narcotic. That’s not to say there are not difficulties stopping those medicines! There certainly can be. But our bodies and minds don’t crave those medicines once we get through the tapper and often harsh withdrawal periods. I hope I’ve helped make my comment easier to understand!

I'm a bit late to the party, but I had googled "lyrica and depression" and found this thread.

I have chronic pain in my back due to arthritis and also sufffer from depression/anxiety/etc. I am on Cymbalta, Adderall and Abilify through my psychiatrist and my pain managemenent doctor prescribes the Lyrica. I have totally noticed though that if I run out of Lyrica, I am 100% going to get his square in the face with my depression/anxiety symptoms. I'll also not be able to focus or get anything done. There's absolutely a link for me. Even if I tell myself there's no connection and I blow off picking up my Lyrica RX, I am always shocked in retrospect at how bad my depressive symptoms get. Maybe it's more a matter of going through withdrawal from Lyrica as it's half life is only 6.3 hours, so it's out of my system quickly. Or maybe it really is a fast-acting anti-depressant.. All I know is that as soon as I refill my RX and take the pill, it's an hour or two at the latest before I'm feeling normal (and good) again...

I'm sure it's not the case for everyone, but it's absolutely necessary for me as both a method to manage pain and a way to manage my mental health issues, so if you're struggling, it's definitely something worth looking into.