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Help!!

Posted , 3 users are following.

olivia21471
olivia21471

I was prescribed gabapentin 100 mg 3x a day then 300mg 1 time at night. I've taken the 100mg a few times with no effect on pain same with the 300mg I'm bad at remembering to take pills. last week I remembered to take them and took 300mg 1 a day for 5 days with no effect on pain if anything it felt worse. i took my last one 6 days and since then I've had the absolute worst burning skin pain. its driving me MAD. all i can think of is coming off the gabapentin. it's a lower stomach top of thighs radiating burning pain. theres no redness on my skin or Marks it's just unbearable burning pain

this is going on day 7!!! I've tried aole vera lotion, ibu, benadryl, advil nothing at all takes the pain away

does anyone have any advice??? I've put in a call to the nurse 3 days ago no reply.

0 likes, 9 replies

9 Replies

  • JohnAk
    JohnAk olivia21471

    Posted

    Hi Olivia 21471

    You do not state why you have been perscribed these very strange class A drugs, before you go any further with them you need to do some research online and also speak with your GP about all the side effects that come with them, Do not just stop taking them, you need to come off them very slowly . Please be very careful

    Good luck

    • olivia21471
      olivia21471 JohnAk

      Posted

      I was prescribed them for bladder pain. unsuccessful:( I have an apt with my GP next week seems like a very long time away when in pain. I appreciate your reply thanks

    • JohnAk
      JohnAk olivia21471

      Posted

      Hi olivia21471

      Your doing the right thing going back to your GP its possible she/he may put you on a higher dosage as your on a low dose and may not be high enough, It also takes awhile to get fully into your system,

      Great advice from babbs 99203

      good luck and hope your pain gets a little easier

  • babs99203
    babs99203 olivia21471

    Posted

    Sadly Olivia, you're learning it's a complicated drug. It's actually a seizure medication approved for only two other kinds of pain. All other uses are because doctors hope it may help, with no research or science to back it up. The drug must be taken at the same time, on a regular basis as missing doses can cause withdrawal symptoms. The pain you're feeling is likely that--the nerves are involved so they fire up causing that burning pain. The drug/brain are creating the pain, it's not an injury. A lidocaine product like Bio Freeze or Aspercreme with Lidocaine may offer some relief, but there's little else that can be done but wait.

    It's a bit unclear as to how much you're taking when, but missing doses and then restarting can make it worse. Are you still taking the drug? If so, how often and at what dose? How long were you on the drug? Stopping cold turkey can cause withdrawal, some people are more sensitive than others. Usually if you're on the drug for less than a month the withdrawal will be shorter. But you may still have weeks of your body adjusting to being off the drug. It IS the drug, not you or a new problem. If you are OFF the drug and you were only on it a short time, don't restart it, just wait it out. It's miserable, believe me, I know. I've been decreasing (tapering) for 3 years, from 2700 mg/day and I'm not off it, but withdrawal is hard. Is stinks, but we just have to accept it and wait it out.

    If you have any other questions, we're here. You can do it, it will get better, but we can't predict anything.

    • olivia21471
      olivia21471 babs99203

      Posted

      thank you for reply. I was on the 300mg 1 time a night for 4 days. I was prescribed for bladder pain and it was making that worse. I stopped taking them 6 days ago. before the 300 i had tried 100mg 1 time a day off and on and I've never had any reactions to that. it's like a burning pain that comes in waves and radiates on stomach and top of thighs. I'm driving myself mad trying to figure out

    • babs99203
      babs99203 olivia21471

      Posted

      If this was for interstitial cystitis, my niece was prescribed it also and had so many memory problems, she started struggling in her college courses. She stopped it too and surprisingly, her pain improved. However, she seems to be one of the lucky ones as she didn't get any major withdrawal symptoms.

      John is correct in warning about stopping the drug abruptly, but you're in a different situation. The normal recommendation is a 10% or less drop over 4 weeks or more, or using liquid gab or a method where it's dissolved in water. However, once you get down below 300 it's hard to decrease so many people just stop taking it, which is what I did. You're on a low dose, for a very short time. Your body should heal more quickly. But the waiting and not knowing is tough.

      The pain is caused by the drug, the nerves are reacting during withdrawal. There are many other symptoms which can occur, depression, fatigue, sleep problems, abdominal problems, anxiety, memory issues etc. SO, on a brighter note (if you can laugh at yourself a bit) stop driving yourself crazy, it's the drug, not you. The best thing is self care by resting, accepting this may take a while, using the methods I suggested that may relieve some of the discomfort and just wait it out.

      Some doctors try and add other meds, and that complicates and increases problems. Your body is healing as the GABA in your brain adjusts to no longer getting the gabapentin. GABA is a chemical the body creates. If you want more details you can look up GABA (an acronym for a very long phrase) and how gabapentin works. I hope this puts your mind at ease. I find distraction like music, being on the computer, watching TV, light exercise, talking to others helps a bit. But time IS the great healer.

    • olivia21471
      olivia21471 babs99203

      Posted

      yes for IC. havent been able to find any help for it tried so many things 😦

      I was so hoping it wouldn't be withdrawls seeing as I was only on a low dose for short term. unfortunately I must be sensitive to it. hope this will pass quickly I've been counting the days. I appreciate your replies and talking with me about this

    • babs99203
      babs99203 olivia21471

      Posted

      I too hope it's done soon for you, A higher dose of the meds won't likely help. Doctors try various drugs, hoping something works. That's the saddest part of all this. Many of us have conditions that don't have good treatments. So they give it to us and we're left with the original pain or problem plus the new issues with the med.

    • JohnAk
      JohnAk babs99203

      Posted

      Yes our GP s give us this drug hoping it will rid us of our nerve pains but it seems to start other avenues with other parts of our bodies.I am writing this at 04/40am in the morning just waiting for 05/00 so I can start a new day. No the gabapentin dont rid me of my pains but they do take the edge off them.Good luck everyone and God Bless

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