2 questions about neurontin

Hi everyone,

I've just been started on neurontin (gabapentin). I was on 300mg 3 times a day for 2 weeks, am now on 600mg 3 times a day for a week, next week I need to take 900mg 3 times a day, and the week after 1,200mg 3 times a day which will be my maintenance dose.

2 questions:

1,200mg 3 times a day seems a heck of a lot. For folks here who are or have taken neurontin, what dose is/was effective? I'm not at all sensitive to drugs, I'm quite the opposite, but 3,600mg a day still sounds a lot.

Has anyone here found it peters out? During the first week on it I felt like someone had turned a light on in me. I was bright, chatty, welcomed interactions with ppl rather than avoided them, wanted to potter and be active, didn't feel depressed and wasn't thinking depression type thoughts etc. I've been on it 2.5 weeks now and about 3/4s of the initial benefit has worn off. This happened last time I was on it so I just quit taking it.

When it was really helping it seems like it was the depression it helped. My response to pain was much more positive and I didn't feel like I was suffering all of the time. The amount of pain I'm currently in is about 20% less than it was but I think that's because the doc also put my on 100mg tramadol, ibuprofen and panadol (tyenol) 3 times a day.

Meg

Hi Snowbunny,

What do you define as short term? He wants to see me again in 6 months so for 5 of those months I'll be on 3,600mg a day.

Some of the side effects are mood related - depression, anxiety, agitation etc. Maybe I got lucky and had a temporary positive mood side effect. lol

I'm on 100mg of nortrityline at night. I was on effexor but the psychiatrist decided to stop it and take the low dose nortrip I was on for fibro up to an antidepressant dose in the hope it lessened the amount of pain I was in - which it didn't. It also doesn't help much with the depression.

Yea I'm pretty pleased with being in 20% less pain. Be nice if I wasn't in any but no one said life was meant to be fair =p. I'm planning to check out the availability of malic acid here. I'd far rather be putting something "natural" in my body than all these chemicals. As far as doing some of the other things that will help - a healthy diet, losing some weight, regular exercise and doing stretches - I'm a dismal failure.

Meg

Meg...I have just read about that dosage for a few months....but obviously I am not a medical professional so it's best to ask your Dr. and see what works for you. I was just speaking on "averages"...

As Karen mentioned...it's very likely that the cause of your mood lifting is more due to just having less pain...I know it does for me! As opposed to it being a direct effect of the medication and mood stabilization.

I'm not sure what you mean by "dismal failure" in reference to your eating, weight, and exercise....but as long as you are working in the right direction....than that is good. Maybe as soon as you get the medication situation more stable...you can concentrate more on these things as they are crucial to not just helping Fibro symptoms...but obviously our general health overall.

I switched to eating all Organic over a year and a half ago. It's been pretty amazing at how much better I feel with my energy, digestion, and yes...maintaining a healthy weight. I'm not a vegan/vegetarian as I do eat meat once/twice a week....but I just eat things in moderation.

It also helps that I have a dog so he gets me out of the house for my 45 minute walk each night. I put on my headphones and listen to a book on my phone. This has also helped my sleep, energy, and mood.

Just make sure that any of the supplements you are possibly going to try that you run it by your Pharmacist first and make sure it won't interact with any of your medication.

I look at pain control as a puzzle and every single thing we do adds a piece to this to keep me at a 5-7 each day....(I have spine/disc issues so this is my main source of pain)...

I also add in aqua therapy, yoga/stretching, massage, acupuncture, injections....A muscle relaxer when needed. And my sleep medicine once a night.

I am also like Karen in that I tried the Neurontin many years ago before my 3rd fusion and had intolerable side effects within the first 24 hours so I switched over to Cymbalta that I used for years.

I hope it keeps on providing you with some relief!

Maybe they will come back in a way that you can use it to your advantage.

I really do hope this med works for you...

Hugs, Karen

Hi Meg. I agree, that seems like a high dose, but depending on your doctor's plan for you it may be normal. The does you are suggested to take is the same as my grandfather. He uses it for post-chemotherapy foot pain. I take gabipenten (neurontin) as well. 600mg tabs 3 times a day.
If you're unsure or uncomfortable with the dose, call your doctor. It never hurts to double check.

Good luck!!

~Kristie

Thanks everyone for your replies. I guess I just feel really bummed out feeling so much better only lasts a week or so. Here I am 3 weeks into it and the heavy depression is well and truly back. I want to give up and stop taking it. I honestly don't think it's helping reduce my pain. One way to find out (stop taking it) but I'll stick with it for another month or so. And with  feeling really depressed again the 8 hourly tramadol, ibuprofen and tyenol doesn't seem as effective as before.

Big miserable sigh,

Meg

P.S. please don't suggest I talk to my doctor. My GP is pretty much only good for signing disability forms (which is important), the psychiatrist I see stubbornly refuses to try me on a dif antidepressant or augment or increase the nortrip and my next appt with the pain specialist who prescribed the neurontin is 5 months off. I guess I'm just needing to vent. Thanks for listening.

 

You should be calling your psychiatrist and letting them know you are depressed. Call twice a day if you have to. What he is doing is not working. Good Luck!

MegNZ,

Sorry the Neurontin isn't working better for you. I take 900 mg at night, for sciatic pain. It's hard to say how well it's working, because since I started it when my pain was terrible (before surgery) and have kept it up for months after, I have nothing to compare it to.

I did have twitches when falling asleep, I guess from it, in the beginning...and then again when I raised the dose. But they went away. My mood is not so great. But whether it's that or Hydrocodone, or frustration with my limitations, I don't know. I take Nortriptyline too. All these chemicals we take - yuck! But I know I need them, at least for the forseeable future.

I hope you do get to feeling better.

Debbie

Debbie

Hi Meg,

I take gabapentin 3x a day 600mg I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 2007. Now I started off with a lower dose but it has increased but it has remained at 600mg for the last 3 years. Now I also take tramadol if my pain get very bad or I get a flare up. My fibro is worst during the winter or when it's colder. In Aug 2010 I broke my ankle so bad I had surgery that I had plates n pins put in it but after winter time and therapy I started to walk at the beach in April 2011. That year I lost 85 pounds! I had gained so much weight with the medication I have taken with my fibro illness BUT walking in the sand helped my recovery, my stress, my fibro & help my sanity. I still take my gabapentin & tramadol but not has much. I also have changed my diet to eat more diary, green veggies, I did research on what fruits & vegetable to eat for some one who has fibromyalgia.

Thanks again for your replies. I'm up to 900mg 3 times a day and in a few days I'll be increasing it for the final time to 1,200mg 3 times a day as per the pain specialists instructions.

Bad fibro fog and neurontin's cognitive side effects are making life "interesting". Thankfully I'm still laughing some of the time about the utterly ridiculous things I'm doing, or I'm trying to prevent myself from doing them by being very focussed and intentional - which usually involves talking to myself out loud about how to do what I'm doing. You should hear me when I'm e.g. making a cup of coffee or driving the car.

The jerky twitching in my hands and fingers is a pain. Keep dropping my cigarettes and spilling drinks etc. I feel quite drugged some of the time at my current dose but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I'll take feeling like this over feeling really depressed any day.

I don't know how much it's helping as I started 8 hourly tramadol (100mg), ibuprofen and tyenol at the same time. Whether it's one of these drugs, some of them or all of them, I'm not suffering as much as I was about half of the time so YAY!

Retail therapy helps too (my poor credit card!!) but the biggest help of all is the time I'm spending talking with Jesus, listening to worship music and doing a really cool Beth Moore Bible Study (called Jesus the One and Only). I haven't been a Christian very long and I've had a few struggles along the way but it's amazing what a difference it's made to my life.

It's nice to make a posting when I'm feeling happy.

Thanks again to all of you for your support,
Meg