Going back on Gabapentin after withdrawal
Posted , 2 users are following.
Anyone else return to Gabapentin as 'anecdote' for withdrawal symptoms? Willing to share experience?
My mother (79) fought like a warrior. Started her taper in early July. She stuck with it (100 mg decrease a month) as symptoms increased (anxiety, shakiness, weakness, brain fog, cognition decline,, eventually add stomach pain and nausea). In the beginning, she might have a few good days a week. Later on in the taper, she might have a good day a few times a month. Toward the end it was relentless misery.
She lasted 17 days after her last dose. In that period, she lost 8lbs and was unable to eat. Her anxiety was off the charts (higher than s 10 on the scale we have been keeping. You can imagine what it felt like for her to make the decision to go back on the poison, but...she felt like would not be able to survive another 6 days and 'knew' she could not survive 6 months.
I know she tapered too fast (though like others here she was told this was an extremely slow taper and could not be causing her symptoms). If she were not almost 80, extremely weakened, and now facing 'probable diagnosis' of early dementia (which looks a lot like gaba withdrawal), I would jump on the slow taper band wagon but...at this point, i just want her to have some ability to experience some good days in the few years she has left (she was otherwise in perfect heath before the gaba horror started 3 years ago
Very long post to ask- did going back on Gaba relief symptoms for anyone?
0 likes, 1 reply
babs99203 Jenjohnston06
Posted
There's no good answer to this. Going back on the gab may create an even worse situation. If she's also on other meds or had been on benzos, anti-depressants opioids etc. the brain and body are really struggling. I'm a bit unclear as to when her last dose was or how high her dose was. It seems she was on for 3 years, took 4 months to drop to zero mg and has been off it for 17 days.
In theory, there's a bit of a window to re-instate (go back on) gab if the last dose was within 2 weeks, but everyone varies. I'm so sorry, as I'm still tapering myself and having a bad day with withdrawal, I do understand. It sounds like she's having PAWS Prolonged Acute Withdrawal Syndrome. The very sad news is that there's not true answer to it, adding other meds doesn't help much and then that's another drug to taper from.