Gabapentinoids Gabapentin causing PVCs/Heart Arrhythmia / Palpitations????

[DeathIndustrial88]

So, this post is mere speculation.

So I started gabapentin about 3 years ago.
And during the past 3 years, I would have days where after my gabapentin kicked in, I would get funny sensations in my chest/top of my stomach. Kind of felt like my stomach was doing a flip flop or something. It only ever happened like once or twice usually in a 24hr period & then I wouldn't feel it again for weeks or months at a time. So even though I had no idea what it was at the time, it didn't bother me as much since it was super infrequent.

But then in February I had a lung infection & did like 2 weeks on prednisone & antibiotics. And once that started clearing up, I one day took 50mg of ephedrine ontop of my usual meds (subs & gabapentin). And the next morning I woke up & had that flip-flopping sensation in my chest/stomach at least 15 times within the first 2hrs of being awake. And then it continued all through out the day & for several more days after that. It started to freak me out eventually because it was so intense & I didn't know what it was. So I ended up in the ER, where the doc knew almost immediately that it was PVCs. So they hooked me up to an ekg & another heart machine & did xrays & bloodwork. But they didn't see anything wrong with my heart or bloodwork, so the ER doc said it was most likely caused by my caffeine use & that ephedrine I took & that it will go away, but if it doesn't, to see my GP.

So fast forward a few weeks & although it became a little less intense, I was still having them. So I went to GP & he basically dismissed me as a nutcase. Told me it was my caffeine & cigarette usage + anxiety & that I should see my psychiatrist more often. He didn't wanna do anymore testing either & he too told me it would go away. I was a little offended cause he treated me like I was a hysterical housewife from the 1940s just for being worried about what was going on with my heart. And I've been drinking caffeine since I was 12 (I'm 36 now) and have also had anxiety my whole life. Sure anxiety has given me a bit of tachycardia at times, but never anything like this. Not to mention I can be having a good day, anxiety-free & still get the palpitations.

So at this point I feel like I"m left to investigate this on my own & see what could be the cause. I suspected maybe gabapentin & since February have done some "testing", where I stop my gabapentin & see what happens. And so far it seems like when I don't use any gabapentin, I can go extended periods without having any PVCs at all.

I actually just went like 3.5 weeks without my gabapentin & didn't have any PVCs at all during this time. I also experimented with caffeine & drank a whole iced coffee with zero problems. And so last week I decided to see what would happen if I took it.

I started with super low doses at first & noticed that the chest tightness I was having when I was having PVCs returned that same evening and by Monday I noticed I was having mild PVCs again. But wondering if it could just be coincidence, I continued taking the gabapentin. And last night I took 900mg of gabapentin. Started having chest tightness & even some anxiety from it. And sure enough I wake up today and have had at least 20 intense heart palpitations.

So for the hell of it, I googled "Gabapentin & heart palpitations" today. And I couldn't find much medical literature about it (though I did learn that gabapentin can cause heart failure & atrial fibrillation), but damn is there not a complete treasure trove of people on reddit & other forums asking if anyone else is having heart palpitations / arrhythmias while on gabapentin. Including people saying they had to stop their gabapentin because it was giving them PVCS.

So, I'm about 75% sure at this point that gabapentin has something to do with this. But I dunno.
I'm gonna stop again & see if it goes away again.

It sucks cause gabapentin can be a pretty helpful med to have around when my fibro pain is really bad or even if I'm having bad drug cravings.
But if it's going to cause my heart to do all these funky things & possibly even cause heart failure, then it's not worth the risk anymore & I'm going to quit it altogether.


Has anyone else ever had an experience like this with gabapentin?
Could it be something completely unrelated!?

And before anyone tells me to "talk to my doctor" about any of this, as I've said, my doctor was fucking useless. Both him & the ER doctor told me this shit was going to go away & to quit worrying about it, yet here I am almost 3 months after the fact & it has not gone away. It acts like it's gonna go away & does (especially if I stop my gaba) but then seems to come right back. And the only common denominator seems to be my gabapentin. Or at least that's all I've come up with so far.

It also seems plausible that this could be a possibility, since I've read that gabapentin can mess with the conduction in your heart. And if it's known to cause heart failure or AFib, then clearly it has some kind of detrimental effect on the heart. And seeing so many people having the same problem on reddit & other forums seems like quite a coincidence.

Any insight or experiences are appreciated!

 

[AngelsandFairiesarereal]

Hi amigo good to see you
Yea, I tried gabapentin years ago when all doctors started trying to take pain patients off pain medications. I took it & it felt really bad, I didn’t feel rite at all. My chest felt tight & like it was being pushed down or something … it felt very uncomfortable. I went back & told my doctor & they seemed frustrated & said “Well that shouldn’t be happening” … to which I replied “I know, that’s why I stopped taking it”.

It’s really hard being a pain patient in this culture
Big hug

*hope you’re doing okay as I’m writing this

 

[DeathIndustrial88]

Hi amigo good to see you
Yea, I tried gabapentin years ago when all doctors started trying to take pain patients off pain medications. I took it & it felt really bad, I didn’t feel rite at all. My chest felt tight & like it was being pushed down or something … it felt very uncomfortable. I went back & told my doctor & they seemed frustrated & said “Well that shouldn’t be happening” … to which I replied “I know, that’s why I stopped taking it”.

It’s really hard being a pain patient in this culture
Big hug

*hope you’re doing okay as I’m writing this

Hey my friend!
Always glad to see you on here!

Thanks for sharing your experience!
I too feel that chest tightness. It also feels like there's a big stick of butter or something stuck in the middle of my chest some times.
My roommate also said he felt a lot of chest tightness & strange chest sensations a few weeks ago when he took a gabapentin.
So I suspect it's doing something to people's chests & hearts.

I also had constant costochondritis attacks over the past 2-3 years. Haven't had one in awhile now though, but I wonder if the gabapentin also played a role in that.

At the moment I'm doing okay I suppose. It's been about 3-4 hours now since my last PVC. Haven't taken anymore gabapentin & probably won't.
I just drank another iced coffee & am fine, so I'm pretty skeptical that caffeine just suddenly started causing this out of nowhere after 25 years of drinking it.

I'm a bit disappointed though cause if it is the gabapentin, then I'm gonna have to stop it for good. Which just means I'll have less in my arsenal for helping my pain or depression. But I think I'd almost rather deal with the pain & depression than having PVCs all day, every day. They scare the hell out of me & make my anxiety worse.

I'll also kinda be relieved if it's the gabapentin.. cause then that means I don't have any organic heart issues & can partake in caffeine & stimulants again without worrying.

I know my GP won't be of any help. So I guess all I can do is keep testing things out & seeing what happens. But I think it's also too big of a coincidence to see so many people on forums claiming they too had the exact same problems on gabapentin. So maybe I'm onto something & I can resolve this by just staying away from it.

After reading about how bad gabapentin actually is for your heart today (and this was on actual medical sites, rather than reddit anecdotes), I think I'm going to quit it regardless. If it's true that gabapentin can cause heart failure/disease & AFib (another type of arrhythmia), then it's not too farfetched that it could be causing my PVCs/palpitations either.

Hope all is well (or as well as it can be) with you, my dear!
Have a great weekend!
Cheers!

 

[negrogesic]

Yeah i've noticed some strange increases in heart rate, tightness in the chest from gabapentin. Never stopped me from taking it though.

 

[JackARoe]

When I take it, I usually get very relaxed. So relaxed that sometime I’m comfortable blast off on DMT. That itself has its own chest tightness sometimes ha. I usually check my blood pressure too just before and heart rate and all seem fine.

My wife had these heart issues and on medication. She also says gabapentin relaxes her. This is either a totally individual thing, or something else is going on. But yeah, I usually check my BP and heart rate. Saying that I only take it once every 10 days, and usually at 1500 mg. so I’m not a daily user. I can tell it is a drug I would not want to take every day. And this is first post of this kind.

Pregabalin puts a pressure to my head. That’s why I can only take low doses of that drug. I imagine Pregabalin would do the same thing?

 

[Jnowhere]

They will give that out to pain patients even though it is for Diabetic neuropathy
Any thing but opiods.

 

[JackARoe]

Of course doing a little research found both gabapentin and pregabalin can worsen CHF in people that have it. Also case reports of other issues even edema. But honestly when I researched a few other drugs I found a few other similar case reports. Not totally convincing.

There are a lot of people here that take gabapentin and pregabalin daily . So I think this needs the be considered at least. But so many people do so many drugs. I would need to be more convinced. I find it odd though that I do check BP and heart rate when I do GP. Intuitive. But always fine thankfully. My wife has heart issues that started before gabapentin. But she takes it occasionally too now and is actually doing better than a few years ago. So who knows.

 

[DeathIndustrial88]

I read that gabapentin attaches to the alpha 2 delta receptor, which is abundant in the heart & brain. And messing with this for too long can cause arrhythmia & heart issues by messing with conduction in the heart. Especially if you have a certain "splice variant" of the receptor due to genetics. So it's possible some people will do fine with it while some people with certain genetics will get heart troubles from it.


I'm almost convinced that it's gabapentin causing this for me. I didn't take any yesterday at all & so far today I've been okay. Gonna go on another extended hiatus from it & see how I do, but that's like 3 times now in the past 2 months that I've stopped it, the palpitations went away & then I'd resume it & almost immediately the palpitations came right back.

I'll keep experimenting, but I think I may have found what's causing my PVCs, with absolutely no help from my idiot doctors. Won't know for sure though until I take a super extended break (like months) from it.

Thanks for the responses!

 

[JackARoe]

I'll keep experimenting, but I think I may have found what's causing my PVCs, with absolutely no help from my idiot doctors. Won't know for sure though until I take a super extended break (like months) from it.

Thanks for the responses!

Thanks for posting. I mean if it comes out more then we heard it here first! Anything that could be affecting you should be considered. I would say that with anything. I mean we see posts of schizophrenia and cannabis, suboxone and teeth, etc. It is good to have any info. And since I do use gabapentin on occasion I will keep checking those vitals. It is a handy tool for occasion so I want it to be safe! But I am thankful I never took it to any great degree. I have also heard of people throwing out MDMA like effects with gabapentin and I have had my own. But that effect would have to be a stimulant effect too. so who knows.

I know i had posted that I can only take small amounts of pregabalin. I did get a pressure in my head a few times going over 300 mgs and it scared me. Chest pressure and head pressure may very become more common.

Be safe all.

 

[DeathIndustrial88]

Thanks for posting. I mean if it comes out more then we heard it here first! Anything that could be affecting you should be considered. I would say that with anything. I mean we see posts of schizophrenia and cannabis, suboxone and teeth, etc. It is good to have any info. And since I do use gabapentin on occasion I will keep checking those vitals. It is a handy tool for occasion so I want it to be safe! But I am thankful I never took it to any great degree. I have also heard of people throwing out MDMA like effects with gabapentin and I have had my own. But that effect would have to be a stimulant effect too. so who knows.

I know i had posted that I can only take small amounts of pregabalin. I did get a pressure in my head a few times going over 300 mgs and it scared me. Chest pressure and head pressure may very become more common.

Be safe all.

Yeah I find it super ironic that the medical establishment wants to "protect" us from big scary opioids & controlled substances. But has no issue throwing people poisonous junk that injures them or makes them worse.

Today is day 2 of quitting gabapentin again & so far I've been fine today. Had a small palpitation this morning, but if I remember right, it usually took a few days after stopping before they went away altogether.

So I'm gonna try this extended break & see what happens.

Other than the random palpitations here or there over the past 2-3 years, I seemed to be able to handle gabapentin okay too at first. So even if some one is currently using it & is fine, this could eventually happen to them too. It could also come down to genetics. People with certain types of alpha-2-delta receptors might have more issues than other people.

I use to get a "stimulant-like" effect from gabapentin too. Made me more chatty, more energetic & even horny some times. But once I gained a tolerance, all of that mostly disappeared.

I've also had many nights over the past 2-3 years where my heart would beat so hard that I could actually feel it moving my bed at night. I'd kept getting confused & wondering why it felt like some one was moving around in the bed, until I realized it was actually just my heart pumping really hard. And this started after getting on gabapentin as well.

I still can't say for sure 100% that it's gabapentin that's causing my arrhythmia's but so far all of my evidence & experiencing is pointing toward it.

I'm actually pretty pissed that my teeth are being destroyed by subs & my heart fucked with by gabapentin & this is okay but god forbid I take a full agonist opioid. It's so hypocritical. And to have my GP act like I was crazy for worrying about this is just the icing on the cake. I don't know how I'm suppose to trust the medical establishment, at all, ever again.

Gonna try a month without any gaba & see what happens. I can update this in a month if people are still interested.

 

[AngelsandFairiesarereal]

Yeah I find it super ironic that the medical establishment wants to "protect" us from big scary opioids & controlled substances. But has no issue throwing people poisonous junk that injures them or makes them worse.

Yea you’re so right.
I was kind of loosing it like a week ago in a post saying I should shoot a doctor in the shoulder & tell them to just take Tylenol lol
But for real it’s really been hard dealing with this medical system especially the last couple years

Gonna try a month without any gaba & see what happens. I can update this in a month if people are still interested.

Yea keep us updated if you can
Hugs

 

[Jen X]

Lyrica gave me panic attacks and extreme anxiety. Could the same drug but similar.
The Ephedrine would cause that also. I've taken it for an allergic reaction and I thought I was having a heart attack.
I'm not a doctor so I can't say anything for sure but if you don't absolutely need those drugs you stop it all and see how you feel

 

[Antares]

I've always had random attacks of palpitations (literally no reason unless it's related to POTS), and I didn't notice it get worse on gabapentin. But gabapentin does have a bit of a stimulating effect despite also being relaxing. Caffeine seems to amplify the stimulating aspect, and I wouldn't be surprised if something similar happens with cigarettes too. It really might be the combination of all of them that's making it so bad for you.

Then again, it kind of seems like gabapentin can cause almost any kind of health problem or symptom if it puts its mind to it and gets in the right person's body. And that is not me being sarcastic. I bet you can find a ton of posts online linking gabapentin to this or that symptom (scariest one to me is teeth getting fucked -- I never had cavities until I started it, myself). And I do not believe any of those people are wrong. It's a mysterious drug with surprising effects and doesn't seem to be well understood. It also seems to have extremely individualized negative effects that can't easily be predicted... Like, my mom gets insane withdrawal symptoms from it and easily has minor interdose withdrawals. Meanwhile, the most I can attribute to a gabapentin withdrawal in myself has been a night or two of insomnia. You'd think with similar genes it would behave similarly. But nope.

 

[Jnowhere]

Yeah I find it super ironic that the medical establishment wants to "protect" us from big scary opioids & controlled substances. But has no issue throwing people poisonous junk that injures them or makes them worse.

Today is day 2 of quitting gabapentin again & so far I've been fine today. Had a small palpitation this morning, but if I remember right, it usually took a few days after stopping before they went away altogether.

So I'm gonna try this extended break & see what happens.

Other than the random palpitations here or there over the past 2-3 years, I seemed to be able to handle gabapentin okay too at first. So even if some one is currently using it & is fine, this could eventually happen to them too. It could also come down to genetics. People with certain types of alpha-2-delta receptors might have more issues than other people.

I use to get a "stimulant-like" effect from gabapentin too. Made me more chatty, more energetic & even horny some times. But once I gained a tolerance, all of that mostly disappeared.

I've also had many nights over the past 2-3 years where my heart would beat so hard that I could actually feel it moving my bed at night. I'd kept getting confused & wondering why it felt like some one was moving around in the bed, until I realized it was actually just my heart pumping really hard. And this started after getting on gabapentin as well.

I still can't say for sure 100% that it's gabapentin that's causing my arrhythmia's but so far all of my evidence & experiencing is pointing toward it.

I'm actually pretty pissed that my teeth are being destroyed by subs & my heart fucked with by gabapentin & this is okay but god forbid I take a full agonist opioid. It's so hypocritical. And to have my GP act like I was crazy for worrying about this is just the icing on the cake. I don't know how I'm suppose to trust the medical establishment, at all, ever again.

Gonna try a month without any gaba & see what happens. I can update this in a month if people are still interested.

I am very interested in what happens once you stop.
1st, I hope your heart issues go away, and you healthy
2nd, I hope you don't have any withdrawals but, if you have any withdrawals, I hope they are that they are very mild.
3rd, I take gabapentin so I am very interested in what to expect if I stop using it

 

[JackARoe]

The Ephedrine would cause that also.

Wow I totally missed that. I can't take that stuff either. Total anxiety. Good catch.

This type stuff is always best to get some close up medical advice. As I researched gabapentin and pregablin there are countless numbers of people using it for benzo withdrawal. That would seem odd.

My wife has heart issues that started some years ago. She needed medical care. As much as we get conflicting info it is still important . PVC can be serious or can be just a by product of anxiety. But should be checked out. I mean I love BL but who could really say here? My wife takes the occasional gabapentin now too and seems ok, but posts like this make me look a little closer as we all should.

 

[DeathIndustrial88]

Well today is day 3 of stopping.

I had one mild PVC yesterday morning & that was it. I also drank 2 20oz cokes (totaling about 100mg of caffeine) and didn't get anymore palpitations.
I also took like 60mg of DXM last night & was fine too.


However, today I've had like 3 big ones since I got up.
But I'm not discouraged & still suspect the gabapentin. I just think it's probably going to take a few days after stopping for the electricity in my heart to die down & go away. It seemed to be this way the last 2 times I stopped too. I'd stop, continue to have mild PVCS for a few days after & then I'd have like 2-3 weeks without any PVCs at all.

In fact, last week I was talking to a friend & had been PVC-free for almost 3 weeks. I then decided I was going to take my gabapentin & said to her "Now if these PVCs come back, I'll know it's the gabapentin doing it & not caffeine/anxiety/whatever". And sure enough they came back, along with the chest tightness and discomfort.


So i'm a bit reluctant to believe it's caffeine or anxiety. Cause I can drink iced coffess & sodas one day & not have any issues at all (besides some slight jitters).
And most of the time when I do have a PVC, it's when I'm relaxed & not really anxious. But of course feeling the PVC then makes me anxious.


Only gabapentin-withdrawal symptoms I've really felt are a little bit of whole-body soreness. But feeling sore all over my body was one of the original reasons I got on gabapentin in the first place. And I've had a few episodes of hot flashes, but hard to say if it's from gabapentin or something else.

I'm gonna try to go a whole month without gabapentin & if the PVCs get better & disappear & stay gone for the whole month, then I think I'll have my answer.

Ideally, I would be working with a doctor to figure this out, but clearly my GP can't be bothered. And all my mental health docs will probably just pass it off too, if not try to stick me on MORE shitty drugs. So unfortunately I'm left to investigate it & figure it out on my own.

Yea you’re so right.
I was kind of loosing it like a week ago in a post saying I should shoot a doctor in the shoulder & tell them to just take Tylenol lol
But for real it’s really been hard dealing with this medical system especially the last couple years

Yea keep us updated if you can
Hugs

This also angers me to hear! I really hate this system.
You should have a right not to be in pain & to have a better quality of life.
it just boggles my mind that our government doesn't want people to be pain-free & able to work & function. Like wtf.

I'll for sure keep this updated. If gabapentin caused this, then I think it's important for everyone else to be aware of what they could potentially be doing to their hearts by using it.

Lyrica gave me panic attacks and extreme anxiety. Could the same drug but similar.
The Ephedrine would cause that also. I've taken it for an allergic reaction and I thought I was having a heart attack.
I'm not a doctor so I can't say anything for sure but if you don't absolutely need those drugs you stop it all and see how you feel

True.
Although I haven't taken anymore ephedrine since February.
And I'm somebody who use to be able to smoke bucket-fulls of methamphetamine, ontop of dextromethorphan & never had any problems with palpitations from any of it. But I think ephedrine is actually worse for your heart than actual amphetamine & meth.

It sucks cause I kinda need the gabapentin for pain & depression, but not at the cost of fucking up my heart (if it is indeed the gabapentin causing this).

I've always had random attacks of palpitations (literally no reason unless it's related to POTS), and I didn't notice it get worse on gabapentin. But gabapentin does have a bit of a stimulating effect despite also being relaxing. Caffeine seems to amplify the stimulating aspect, and I wouldn't be surprised if something similar happens with cigarettes too. It really might be the combination of all of them that's making it so bad for you.

Then again, it kind of seems like gabapentin can cause almost any kind of health problem or symptom if it puts its mind to it and gets in the right person's body. And that is not me being sarcastic. I bet you can find a ton of posts online linking gabapentin to this or that symptom (scariest one to me is teeth getting fucked -- I never had cavities until I started it, myself). And I do not believe any of those people are wrong. It's a mysterious drug with surprising effects and doesn't seem to be well understood. It also seems to have extremely individualized negative effects that can't easily be predicted... Like, my mom gets insane withdrawal symptoms from it and easily has minor interdose withdrawals. Meanwhile, the most I can attribute to a gabapentin withdrawal in myself has been a night or two of insomnia. You'd think with similar genes it would behave similarly. But nope.

Do you get that whole "flip-flopping" weird sensation when you have a palpitation?

I've never had any problems like this until recently. And I'm 36.
ER doctor said they didn't see anything wrong with my heart or bloodwork. And my GP didn't care to do anymore testing.
You're right though. I read that some people with certain genetics have different alpha-2-delta receptors in the heart, which might be more sensitive to gabapentin than others. So theoretically, gabapentin could cause heart issues for some & not others.

I am very interested in what happens once you stop.
1st, I hope your heart issues go away, and you healthy
2nd, I hope you don't have any withdrawals but, if you have any withdrawals, I hope they are that they are very mild.
3rd, I take gabapentin so I am very interested in what to expect if I stop using it

Thanks man!
So far the gabapentin withdrawals have been mild.
I think they're mild this time around though because I had 3 weeks off of it originally. And then I started taking it again a little over a week ago. And right after that the PVCs returned. And they seemed to follow my dosage increase. As in, I took a low dose of gabapentin one day, and had some really mild PVCs & chest tightness that night & next day. And then once I took my gabapentin dose back up to 900mg, I started having constant, intense PVCs the very next day.

I'm still not 100% sure it's the gabapentin, but there seem to be a lot of coincidences so far.
I'll keep everyone updated. Gonna try to go a whole month without gabapentin & see how that works out.

 

[Jnowhere]

Yeah, gaba drugs are strange and who knows they could be like certain other drugs that have effects a while after stopping use

 

[Antares]

Well today is day 3 of stopping.

I had one mild PVC yesterday morning & that was it. I also drank 2 20oz cokes (totaling about 100mg of caffeine) and didn't get anymore palpitations.
I also took like 60mg of DXM last night & was fine too.


However, today I've had like 3 big ones since I got up.
But I'm not discouraged & still suspect the gabapentin. I just think it's probably going to take a few days after stopping for the electricity in my heart to die down & go away. It seemed to be this way the last 2 times I stopped too. I'd stop, continue to have mild PVCS for a few days after & then I'd have like 2-3 weeks without any PVCs at all.

In fact, last week I was talking to a friend & had been PVC-free for almost 3 weeks. I then decided I was going to take my gabapentin & said to her "Now if these PVCs come back, I'll know it's the gabapentin doing it & not caffeine/anxiety/whatever". And sure enough they came back, along with the chest tightness and discomfort.


So i'm a bit reluctant to believe it's caffeine or anxiety. Cause I can drink iced coffess & sodas one day & not have any issues at all (besides some slight jitters).
And most of the time when I do have a PVC, it's when I'm relaxed & not really anxious. But of course feeling the PVC then makes me anxious.


Only gabapentin-withdrawal symptoms I've really felt are a little bit of whole-body soreness. But feeling sore all over my body was one of the original reasons I got on gabapentin in the first place. And I've had a few episodes of hot flashes, but hard to say if it's from gabapentin or something else.

I'm gonna try to go a whole month without gabapentin & if the PVCs get better & disappear & stay gone for the whole month, then I think I'll have my answer.

Ideally, I would be working with a doctor to figure this out, but clearly my GP can't be bothered. And all my mental health docs will probably just pass it off too, if not try to stick me on MORE shitty drugs. So unfortunately I'm left to investigate it & figure it out on my own.

This also angers me to hear! I really hate this system.
You should have a right not to be in pain & to have a better quality of life.
it just boggles my mind that our government doesn't want people to be pain-free & able to work & function. Like wtf.

I'll for sure keep this updated. If gabapentin caused this, then I think it's important for everyone else to be aware of what they could potentially be doing to their hearts by using it.

True.
Although I haven't taken anymore ephedrine since February.
And I'm somebody who use to be able to smoke bucket-fulls of methamphetamine, ontop of dextromethorphan & never had any problems with palpitations from any of it. But I think ephedrine is actually worse for your heart than actual amphetamine & meth.

It sucks cause I kinda need the gabapentin for pain & depression, but not at the cost of fucking up my heart (if it is indeed the gabapentin causing this).

Do you get that whole "flip-flopping" weird sensation when you have a palpitation?

I've never had any problems like this until recently. And I'm 36.
ER doctor said they didn't see anything wrong with my heart or bloodwork. And my GP didn't care to do anymore testing.
You're right though. I read that some people with certain genetics have different alpha-2-delta receptors in the heart, which might be more sensitive to gabapentin than others. So theoretically, gabapentin could cause heart issues for some & not others.

Thanks man!
So far the gabapentin withdrawals have been mild.
I think they're mild this time around though because I had 3 weeks off of it originally. And then I started taking it again a little over a week ago. And right after that the PVCs returned. And they seemed to follow my dosage increase. As in, I took a low dose of gabapentin one day, and had some really mild PVCs & chest tightness that night & next day. And then once I took my gabapentin dose back up to 900mg, I started having constant, intense PVCs the very next day.

I'm still not 100% sure it's the gabapentin, but there seem to be a lot of coincidences so far.
I'll keep everyone updated. Gonna try to go a whole month without gabapentin & see how that works out.

You can't really know for sure without controlling for the idea of the combos with it being the issue. It might be worth experimenting with temporarily eliminating one of them while keeping gabapentin, for example, especially if gabapentin is so useful for your pain and depression.

Also, I find it hard to describe feelings sometimes, but I think my heart flip flopping sounds like a decent descriptor of what my palpitations feel like.

 

[Skorpio]

Hey Deathindustrial, I'm sorry you are dealing with the heart bullshit (and the doctors not listening bullshit). I'll be forthright and tell you that like many real life medical issues, yours isn't clear cut and is confusing; I'll probably not clear up much, but I've read a few articles from when I saw this on Friday, and I may be able to share some of the confusion.

Starting with the physiology of PVCs, they seem (according to wiki, citing a cardiac physiology book) to often be caused by excessive cyclic AMP (cAMP) signalling leading to excessive calcium release. This is often caused by drugs which act on norepinephrine receptors to produce cAMP, or drugs which inhibit it's breakdown such as caffiene. Lists of drugs causing PVCs include many different drugs working along these pathways, and don't primarily cite drugs that fuck with ion channels.

Now gabapentin fucks with ion channels, but in a weird way. It interacts with calcium channels, but unlike the many calcium channel blockers, which block the channel pore that transmits calcium into the cell (often of a specific channel class like L-type, N-type, P/Q-type, or R-type).

Gabapentin on the other hand binds to α2δ subunits, which are found in all of these channels. It also doesn't block the channels, instead it messes up their trafficking, causing them to both not get inserted into the cell membrane (instead residing in processing organelles) or to mislocalize. Cells cluster proteins together to respond to a given stimulus (like calcium influx from a calcium channel). Their response often depends in downstream effector proteins nearby, and if any proteins involved are not near one another, the cells won't function properly.

Because gabapentin hits so many different channel types, which are expressed over a wide range of tissue (and cell) types, it is hard to narrow down if there is a specific interaction in the heart (or elsewhere) that contributes to PVCs.

At the end of the day, I think it is always good to do the experiment, and see if something is causing you trouble by taking some time off from it. Knowing if it correlates with gabapentin use is going to be a lot more valuable than knowing a few things about the physiology of it all.

 

[negrogesic]

Lyrica gave me panic attacks and extreme anxiety.

At what doses? That is quite uncommon. Pregabalin has the strongest anxiolytic effect out of all the gabapentinoids, far stronger than gabapentin and phenibut.

It can definitely make one feel weird. There can be some racing thoughts and it has a unusual, and at higher doses an almost psychedelic/empathenogenic headspace. So i suppose this shift could be alarming to some. But it was designed specifically placate a large group of people who were afflicted by disease of questionable etiology..."fibromyalgia" -- a disease essentially invented by pharmaceutical companies to give a name to normal symptoms that accompany menopause and aging. And they made billions of dollars doing so.

I personally had zero business taking pregabalin but I talked my psychiatrist on putting me on 900mg/day of it. It is such an oddball drug, i liked it very much, but it was putting me into this ambitious, nihilistic state where nothing really matter, and doing nothing seemed justified by the intriguing yet destructive existential mindset it put me it. Once i got off, i essentially "woke up" and realized as a young man i need to go onward with my life, so shortly after wound up applying to grad school which led to gainful employement etc. But that pregabalin headspace was pretty neat, i wish i had some to take occasionally, it was a neat mindshift.