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  • BDD Moderators: Keif’ Richards | negrogesic

Gabapentin and benzo withdrawal

truenamebrand

truenamebrand

Bluelighter
Joined
Jul 10, 2016
Messages
269
Hi, guys. So I recently landed myself in the psych ward for 11 days (plus 1 in ICU). For some background, I've been on benzodiazepines for the better part of the last 14 years. Most recently I was prescribed 4mg of clonazepam a day. I'd had a tendency to binge out on them and therefore never really become thoroughly physically dependent, as I had in the past on both diazepam and lorazepam. However, recently I'd started taking them more responsibly and more or less as prescribed.

So, from 4-6mg of clonazepam a day, my dr in psych initially was giving me 5mg of diazepam twice daily, with 1mg lorazepam twice daily in between. After a couple days he cut out the lorazepam. For the last 3-4 days there I was cut down to 2.5mg diazepam twice daily. During the entire time I was also taking 300mg gabapentin 3x daily.

Inside, my anxiety was consistently pretty high but physical withdrawal was staved off. But upon discharge, since my doctor had gone on vacation, the other doctor objected entirely to sending me home with a benzo script of ANY kind. (Two other patients came in during my stay with similar clonazepam regimens and she, being THEIR doctor, cut them off from the get-go with only large doses of gabapentin and fucking seroquel.)

I managed to obtain four 15mg temazepams in case I really have a rough go of it at first, especially at night. But aside from that, I'm going it with only gabapentin. I do have an appointment with a different psychiatrist -- which I had scheduled months ago -- tomorrow, but because of the circumstances which led to me being involuntarily committed, a benzo script is highly unlikely to come my way ever again, or at least any time soon.

My question is... will gabapentin actually prevent seizures or otherwise keep the benzo withdrawal at bay? Is this even a responsible thing for a doctor to be doing to someone with a 14 year benzo habit? My script is still for 300mg 3x daily as of now, but I took 600 immediately upon filling it. So far I'm okay, but I am fully aware the diazepam metabolites will remain and linger for a few days. My question is not about benzo withdrawal, I've been through it. But rather whether or not the gabapentin is adequate to get me through it.

Any input is greatly appreciated.
 
Gabapentin (or especially Lyrica, pregabalin) are very effective for benzo withdrawal, but they are not so powerful that they actually would prevent seizures if the benzo WD is that bad.

So the answer is yes and no, yes, gabapentin will help you through benzo WD but no, it won't prevent seizures if you have very severe benzo WD.

5 mg diazepam is not a heavy dose. Quite the contrary. It's quite unlikely you would get seizures from quitting 5 mg diazepam. So in this case I'd say gabapentin will be adequate to get through it. That doesn't mean you won't suffer from any WD from diazepam though, most likely you will.
 
No, 5mg of Valium is not a heavy dose. However, 4-6mg of klonopin a day is. They were giving me the bare minimum just to keep me functioning. The Ativan in between was very helpful for those few days, but once that was cut out it was a case of just barely not losing my mind.

At any rate, I saw a different doctor today and got a bunch of clonidine in addition to a higher gabapentin dosage. I've done this before and perhaps more than anything I have to stay out of my own head. I just really wondered how effective gabapentin really is for fending off benzo withdrawals. It helps a lot. Seems there isn't any withdrawal it doesn't help in some way.
 
Gabapentin has saved my ass many, many a time when I ran out of benzos (or butalbital during a certain intense few years).

I take 800mg 4x/day anyway, prescribed for mood, pain, seizures, anxiety, fibromyalgia...it's basically a miracle drug for me.

However, I have become not just psychologically, but also physically dependent on this stuff. I've been on it 13 years and have no plans of ever quitting it or pregabalin.
 
Ive also been on diazepam 14yrs and i am sure that is what i mite get it replaced with
 
How are you doing now? It's been 6 months since your post.
I was on Xanax and the Klonopine, for 24 years.
After 30 day detox I was almost back to norm.
Gababentin has helped a lot. I'm just tired of pill popping...
 
Gabapentinoids are great for mitigating withdrawal symptoms. The issue regarding the potential seizures is such, although Gabapentinoids are well-known to be and are marketed as anti-convulsants, they are not typically viewed as medications effective as a seizure prophylactic. Gabapentinoids also can produce non-epileptic myoclonic convulsions in high dosages. So, they are a little confusing in some ways. As far as your situation is concerned, I think they will be a big help.

Firstly, you should educate yourself regarding how to best take Gabapentin. I could sit here for an hour elaborating upon the theoretical intricacies of Gabapentin bioavailability, but it short, you can only absorb so much at a time, so you need to stagger your dosage. Also, taking with a high-fat meal greatly increases bioavailability. You want to get the most out of these that you can, because the withdrawal syndrome might be rough.

I don't expect Gabapentin (Neurontin) to relieve all of your symptoms, but it's absolutely awesome for Restless Legs/Akathisia. This symptom is the worst aspect of both sedative and Opioid withdrawal. That skin-crawling need to move your body while you're trying to sleep is a nightmare. So, while you may have some uncomfortable symptoms, the Gabapentin could be the difference between a few hours of sleep and rolling around all night.

I say, proceed with taking the Gabapentin. If you're familiar with Benzodiazepine withdrawal, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by how effective this drug is. It's funny, because I beg docs for this drug and they assume I use it to get high, which granted, is partially true, but really, there's no better non-controlled medication for dealing with withdrawal symptoms.
 
Gabapentin has been a life saver for me while withdrawing off different things at different times - heroin, amphetamines, alcohol, prescription opiates and benzos. It will make withdrawal much tolerable, however the biggest predictor of seizures or strokes from Benz withdrawal is going to be your blood pressure. It would be good if you could get some clonidine to help with these. Check BP often. If you notice it's high, act immediately and go to the ER if you have to. Benz withdrawal where high bp comes into play can kill you.
 
Gabapentin is great for benzo wd's. Gabapentin is also good for opiate wd's for restless legs.

Too bad they didn't give you more and let you take 1800mg a day. I found relief at that dose by breaking the 600mg tablets into halves and taking them every few hours
 
Anna_Aurora said:
How are you doing now? It's been 6 months since your post.
I was on Xanax and the Klonopine, for 24 years.
After 30 day detox I was almost back to norm.
Gababentin has helped a lot. I'm just tired of pill popping...
Click to expand...


I totally forgot about this post. Mentally, I'm still adjusting to life without benzos. The gabapentin helped a lot at first, but I almost never take it anymore. I find little benefit at this point. The last symptoms of the benzo wd were the muscle spasms in my eyes, which subsided a month or two after that.

I'd actually like to go back on diazepam (instead of clonazepam) but my GP likely won't go for it after that, and I doubt my psychiatrist will either.
 
Hello all; thank God I found this thread! Here's my deal- 20 yrs off ETOH, 3 yrs off Vicodin; the VA put me on Suboxone, jumped off at 5 weeks! Then they added Clonazepam, 2 mg. per day. Last visit with new psych doc and he tells me that Klonopin isn't what I need. Wans me to do a 5 day detox in 1West VA in Tucson AZ. I started a taper and am looking at Kratom and Kava. High stress job, and memory issues are driving me batty!!! A recent article I read had pros/cons to Kratom; however I think it's all bull and the FDA's pals won't make anymore money. So, I have a bottle of 100 mg Carbamazepine which I used once before on my last trip to detox; private firm. I want a quick detox; without going to the VA, no insurance at the moment. Anyone have success with Kratom? TIA!

Stever
 
I?ve been taking 3 mg Xanax for about 3 years and I am trying to stop. I took my last 2 mg and I have gabapentin I took 2 600 mg for the first time today because I started feeling withdrawals. I c/t before at a detox facility and they sent me home after 4 days and that?s when I felt all the withdrawals and I thought I was going crazy because I didn?t know what was going on until I did my own research and found out that it was benzo withdrawals.. my question is how long should I take the gabapentin? I read that it works but that you can also have withdrawals from it. Any help or suggestions please.
 
Gabapentin 2400mg a day, for chronic pain after years 35+years of addictions has saved my a** I still have pain, but I rather have a some pain then ever go through the hell I put myself through, wasted life, all that crap! Now I live a life worth living! #4GodNRecovery
Peace and Blessing
 
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