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Gabapentin withdrawals never ends

Toz

Toz

Bluelighter
Joined
Oct 2, 2012
Messages
1,973
Hello, this year I decided to end my 7 year long opiate addiction (heroin/various for 2 years then 12mg subutex daily) and my 1,5 year long benzo addiction (5mg clonazepam daily). I went cold turkey from the clonazepam during april, felt better in june. Decided to end the subutex addiction but had I problems doing it cold turkey, here is when I made the second biggest misstake of my life: I used neurontin instead of benzos since I didn't want to go through that hell again, I was told it would be "less addicting" (yea right). Well, I got off the subutex relatively easy, after 1,5 months I started feeling ok again.

Now it was time for the neurontin to go. I quit the neurontin cold turkey too (at 3600mg/day which was used for about a month) and since then I've experienced the worst withdrawal of my life. My whole skin burned like it was on fire, I could hardly see at all (everything was blurred and I saw about 3-12 overlapping transparant images of everything, kind of like double vision but 1000 times worse). It turned out I had switched one bad addiction for something 100 times worse. The only thing that could come close to it is when I got off half a gram of heroin IV daily.

Naturally, I thought this withdrawal would be over quickly since gabapentin has such a short half-life. Boy was I wrong here too... It's now been over 3 months and my skin still burns, everyday I wake up it feels like I've been laying on shattered glass (the pain is the same as if you cut yourself with a knife several times over and over). Sometimes it hurts so much it's unreal. The vision problems still persist to this day but have gotten a little better, same with the pain. But I am still in full physical withdrawal. This is not PAWS. Everyday is worse than it would be when I missed a day of the subutex.

I don't know how much longer I can take this. Today I woke up and the pain was so fucking bad I couldn't stand it anymore. I took some dextropropoxyphene and it only gave me minimal relief :/

How the fuck can a drug I only used for 1 month give me LONGER AND WORSE withdrawal than a drug I used for years, this makes no fucking sense at all? :(

I hate myself for ever taking the neurontin in the first place, all this would have been over now if I had just used clonazepam instead for the withdrawal (which would have been equally, if not more, effective).

I now fear I will relapse to opiates again (I sort of already did by taking the propoxyphene after being clean for 4+ months) simply because the pain/depression is so bad. I have no idea what I should do. Should I go see a doctor and see if I can start the neurontin back up? But then I will have suffered 3 months of the worst possible hell for nothing... I know if I get back on the neurontin there is absolutely no chance in hell I will ever be able to get off them again. I'd rather kill myself than suffer through the pain of the first months again. Maybe it would not be so bad if I tapered it, but I'm pretty sure it would be.

I wish that I could see a light at the end of the tunnel, but there simply is none. This withdrawal gets better for a day or two, then it gets worse and then better again. Ultimately it feels like it's just going around in circles leading nowhere. If anyone has been through this hell I would appreciate comments on how long it lasted and what I can do to make it less horrible, because today, even though I have taken opiates and feel better than I have in months, I still do not want to wake up tomorrow.
 
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now im hesitant.wow.i litterally just decided to start jumping off suboxone.My gf is prescribed suboxone,She gets two 8mg strips per day,but we only take about 1mg in morning and one at night.lately ive been using 0.5 just in the morning and sometimes at nihgt.but just today i told my gf to get some neurontins from her cousin,since they work wonders for me in withdrawl.Now I hope i dont go what u went thru.i will only be using ~400-2100 per day according to the wiyhdrawls. Im hoping i can get some dxm,cuz that works wonders too.

How long were you on the neurontin for?and did you take that amount every day.

The meds that work for me are: Neurontins,DXM,benzos(any really),sometimes

Hope all goes well for you man,im rooting for you.I want to be in a place where i NEVER have to worry about withdrawls,it yakes a lot of will power too.
 
~NaStYNaI~ said:
now im hesitant.wow.i litterally just decided to start jumping off suboxone.My gf is prescribed suboxone,She gets two 8mg strips per day,but we only take about 1mg in morning and one at night.lately ive been using 0.5 just in the morning and sometimes at nihgt.but just today i told my gf to get some neurontins from her cousin,since they work wonders for me in withdrawl.Now I hope i dont go what u went thru.i will only be using ~400-2100 per day according to the wiyhdrawls. Im hoping i can get some dxm,cuz that works wonders too.

How long were you on the neurontin for?and did you take that amount every day.

The meds that work for me are: Neurontins,DXM,benzos(any really),sometimes

Hope all goes well for you man,im rooting for you.I want to be in a place where i NEVER have to worry about withdrawls,it yakes a lot of will power too.
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If you are using such low amounts of subuxone, I would recommend you do not use the neurontin at all. Just stick to bensoz like clonazepam instead if you need some relief from anxiety/cold sweats etc. I've been on and off benzos for 4 years and I can tell you that benzo withdrawal is a breeze compared to the neurontin hell. I only used neurontin for about 1 month at 2600-3600mg daily. Today I have experienced electric shock like pains in my legs the whole day + muscle cramps and double vision. This is a drug that everyone should stay the fuck away from in my oppinion (unless you really need it for nerve pain).

However, on the flip side, my dad was on 2600mg neurontin daily for 5 years (for trigeminal neuralgia) and tapered off of it over a week with only minor discomfort. He did start another medicine for nerve pain tho that's called Topamax, maybe that's why he didn't experience much withdrawal. I've searched the net and it seems really indivdual how serious the withdrawal symptoms will be and how long they will last.

Roll the dice if you want, but if I were you I'd avoid these pills like the plague. Use a benzo instead if you really have to, they give better relief anyway.
 
Are you sure that all this is from WD? have you been checked out by a doctor? It sounds horrible and I am really, really sorry.8(
 
Yea there is some other medical issue going on or your withdrawls are from the suboxone...12mg is ALOT. I understand you said you quit the suboxone but you didnt really tell us how? Did you taper at all or cold turkey?

When you say you got off suboxone "relatively easy" i find that hard to believe if you quit suboxone cold turkey and replaced it with gabapentin.

If you really did just quit suboxone cold turkey and used gabapentin for 5 months though then your symptoms could not be from anything else but the gabapentin and in that case...i think there is another medical issue going on.
 
gabapentin is such a horrible drug. i still have a giant bottle of it and even at my lowest moments i'm not even tempted to touch the stuff.
 
highhooked said:
Yea there is some other medical issue going on or your withdrawls are from the suboxone...12mg is ALOT. I understand you said you quit the suboxone but you didnt really tell us how? Did you taper at all or cold turkey?

When you say you got off suboxone "relatively easy" i find that hard to believe if you quit suboxone cold turkey and replaced it with gabapentin.

If you really did just quit suboxone cold turkey and used gabapentin for 5 months though then your symptoms could not be from anything else but the gabapentin and in that case...i think there is another medical issue going on.
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Yes, I just jumped right off at 12mg. I also jumped right off 5mg clonazepam 2 months earlier. The issue is neither the clonazepam nor the opiates. I've tried taking both with only very minimal relief. The problem is something else, what else could it possibly be? When I got off the gabapentin these problems developed during the following week and have persisted ever since. They get better, but it happens very, very slowly. This month there has been no change, I am losing hope. I really do not want to believe the problem is because of something else other than the gabapentin, neither am I thrilled to go see a doctor. I've googled gabapentin withdrawals and found people that have described similiar symptoms and it seems to have lasted them anything from 3 weeks to 1 year or more. This is really bad news and I wish I would have done more research myself before taking the pills.

Edit: When I say I got off the subutex "relatively easy" I mean in comparison to the clonazepam. There really was nothing easy about it otherwise.

You see, in this country where I live, everytime I've gone to see a doctor for my addiction problems, all they have ever tried to do is get me locked up in the psych ward or something like that. There is a law here that can send you to "rehab", and I will use the term "rehab" very loosly cause it is more like lockup for 6+ months if you so much as mention addiction problems. Last time I seeked help I ended up having to get a lawyer and go to court (they still need a court order for this thank god) instead of actually getting any help at all. So you can see why I am hesitant. And I don't really see how I can get adequate help without being honest with my doctor, which I feel I can not be. Well, I guess if it doesn't get better by the end of the year, then I will have to go see a doctor whether I want to or not.
 
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I have never experienced problems from neurontin. I don't take the recommended 900 a day, only 300 at night but then again I don't take such a high dosage.

I agree with what was stated above; I would get checked out seriously! This sounds like a nightmare for you. Also neurontin has to be tapered slowly or you can risk seizures.
 
I take up to 3 pills a day 300mg at the most I only use with my sleeping med. I have never had any problems with it, been on it for a year now.
 
Gabapentin OFF-LABEL use. Hang in there Toz. My husband. 77, was on Gabapentin after chemo for chemo induced neuropathy. He decided to discontinue I after 9 months, it wasn't helping. His does 1,200mg 3Xdayliy. Not so for me. I was on 600mg 3x daily for trigeminal neuralgia. I have post traumatic stress syndrome and started noticing changes, instability.
I have lived with sever chronic pain since age 5. I fell injuring head and neck. Before cervical surgery for spinal cord compression, does was increased to 1,200mg 3X daily. When I begun to taper off I started my decrease at 300mg holding there for a week. Went back up to stabilize. Next try, reduction of 100mg. Worse still, excruciating muscle pain and spasm, headache, visual disturbances and when tired entire body spastic movements, we are talking major, staying upright is not always possible.
Gabapentins off-label use is to treat bi-polar. It works on GABA receptors. So give it to people who are not bi-polar, no problem. Yeah right! Would you give diabetic meds to a non-diabetic? So for some of us, it really messes with our brain. Our oncologist has said my husband can never have chemo again, so to prevent or treat cancer we must do so with nutrition, herbs n spices. If I have this right, it is high quality proteins that will support neurotransmitters.
For those who are wondering about my med and drug use...my 5 siblings n I have really wierd reactions to meds so we avoid them almost completely. I occasionally use Xanax n at this time am reluctant. Xanax depresses respiratory function and that is another symptom of withdrawal, difficulty breathing.
My practioner is frustrated n angry. Had she known of it's off-label use she would not have prescribed.
I am angry in so many ways, those okaying this med are not paying the price and others are benifiting financially. I will use my anger to fight like hell to get off this so called med.
For all others, you have my compassion. God bless
 
Since I have gotten a few private messages about this thread and gabapentin withdrawals I am going to write this here: This never resolved. I went for 2 whole years with these symptoms (although they did lessen over time of course) untill I finally caved in and reinstated back in march this year. This solved the mental withdrawal symptoms and most physical however the vision problems that resulted from over-rapid withdrawal from this medication are permanent and did not go away with reinstating the drug. Neither did the dizzyness since it's a result of the vision problem.

This drug is a spawn of satan. I thought benzo withdrawal was bad but this took it to a whole other level. I will probably never be able to get rid of this drug.
 
reminds me, how another neurotransmitter drug by the name seroquel,made some lady photosensetive for life after she quit it and also withdrawing can make skin rash and burning sensations..theres something similar ,but I dont know whats happening ,shit probably no one knows,those bastards.. Searched for gabapentin ,but most the studies of its mechanism isnt fully clear
 
The rash from the seroquel is extremely rare. I believe it is cash diskenisia? I think seroquel is great drug however nuerontin is garbage.
 
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