Tapering off neurontin nightmare!

There are other seizure disorder medications that might give you a better quality of life such as Depakote which I take 500mg at night for Bipolar but it is an anticonvulsant. Also I take Clonazepam 2 mg per day for anxiety and agoraphobia. My ex beat me and I had a head trauma too after the car accident and I wanted to leave him then he tried to kill me. I also take Lamotrogine and my NP started me at 25 mg per day. That is the smallest dose possible since Depakote causes the Lamotrigine dose to rise in the blood. It is also classified as an anticonvulsant/antiseizure medication. Maybe what you need is to find a Nurse Practioner because laying in the dark all day because of seizures and (not to be rude but it sounds like you got agoraphobia like I did) will not help you. You probably have some form of disorientation when you go outside too. I have that too. I try my best to walk carefully. I do better on bike rides. Make sure if you start exercising outside or at the gym that you wear a medical bracelet. I cannot drive because of my medications and I have to be so careful getting off of the bus because they don't pull up to the curb here in the Portland Oregon Area. I would ask about exercising and find a Female PMHNP (Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner) that can maybe wean you off of Gabapentin and help you with your emotional issues toward your weight and possibly switch you to some better anticonvulsants. I would try getting on just plain Lamatrogine, going down on the gabapentin (she can help you with that too) and then clonazepam to relax when you need to. It will help you to not have seizures too. Ever since I've been on the Lamotrogine at 25mg I've been only sleeping 5 to 6 hours per night. Everyone is different. I just think Gabapentin is a really bad drug. And you have been on it 18 years? You will need help getting off of it. If your GP (General Practitioner) is the one you've been seeing 18 years there are new and better treatments and maybe its time you tried something else. Do your research first but all I know is I'm exercising and feeling much better. I have had a seizure before. Not fun. Do you even still have seizures? If you do or don't the PMHNP (a female) not male would be a good way to go. This could be more of a fear and emotional thing and I hate for you to be overweight and lay in bed. I did it for over a year and then struggled to walk and had 3 surgeries the next 1.8 years. I feel better now than I have in a long time. Change is good sometimes. All you have to do is go into your insurance network and pick up the phone or go to the website and set an appointment and you might be surprised what happens. Don't be afraid to get help. You dont' have to tell anyone that you have a psychological disorder even if you find out you do. Just say you are going to the NP and talk about your feelings about what is happening to you. Sufferring while detoxing and losing weight because of gabapentin withdrawal sounds worse than getting help getting off of it and getting on more stable anticonvulsants. Lamotrogine makes me have energy too Good luck. It has side effects so they have to start you off on a very small dosage and increase over time. You can look it up on web md and it will have a list of another 15 antiseizure/anticonvulsant medications.  

I'm on 500 mg of Depakote and I started getting small cavities on my teeth. I was wondering why. Now I know. Thank you for the information. I already told my NP that I want off of it and she said that it will take two months to taper me off and increase my dosage of Lamotragine. I'm glad you have the Lorazepam, the only thing is that I was on that too and I have had a severe concussion, hematoma and seizure due to physical abuse too. If Lorazepam works for you great. I was on it and it made me want to sleep all of the time. Klonopin/Clonazepam is different in that if you take .5 mg every couple of hours per day you wll be able to stay awake and maybe excercise to help get your weight down like you want too. I do not believe that the Gabapentin withdrawal will make you lose that much weight. I think I lost 10 pounds when I went off of it. How much weight are you looking to lose? You would have to exercise, stretch, and do some type of cardio. Riding a bike is easier for me because it works your whole body and strength trainig wiith help make your muscles come back. You need strenght and agility. Keep me posted on your situaion/ Just beieve you will get better. It is the law of the universe that if you want something to happen so bad such as getting well you would not want to let anything get in your way. It may help to find a work out buddy or do tapes at home. You are in a situation where you wll probably have to exercise ike ridiing a bike, treadmill or eliptical or even swimming for 10 minutes at a time. After only 3 weeks I have lost weight and am working my way up to doing stretching, crunches, plank lifts for my stomach and then a Jane fonda video where she does stretching, weight training and cooling down. Then I have to do my chart of stretching again to loosen up my back. I have to then rest the next day to let my muscles recover using a tens unit, aspercreme, and Lidocaine patches along with more stretching. Its a long process but if you believe in yourself you can do it.