bluesteyes
Bluelighter
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2016
- Messages
- 126
I am a chronic pain sufferer who has everything from a minor bulging disc in my neck to fibromyalgia to IBS to interstitial cystitis.
I also suffer from acute generalized anxiety disorder and depression (between mild and severe).
For the latter, doctors have tried to give me a number of different meds over the years: Prozac, Zoloft, Cymbalta, Lexapro, Viibyrd, etc. The problem with these meds is that every single one of them, even at non-therapeutic doses, make me feel like I am on 4 doses of Sudafed....like I am on a bad dose of speed. Viibyrd, for instance, kept me up for 48 straight hours. I just couldn't sleep, period, and I already have insomnia issues. I recently tried just 5MG of Lexapro, and I had to take Benadryl to calm down. I was so anxious and irritable. These meds also strip my mouth of saliva, which scares me because I have already had dental problems from taking Ditropan and Gelnique for my IC.
I am not manic depressive, so that doesn't explain why I get so amped up and anxious from these drugs. Numerous doctors have confirmed this.
When it comes to chronic pain, doctors have tried to get me on Neurontin and Lyrica. My pain issues can't be fixed thru surgery. I couldn't do Neurontin because it upset my stomach too much and caused too many interstitial cystitis flares. I also hated taking pills 3x per day. Lyrica just made me feel totally drugged. I also was paranoid about weight gain (I need to lose 15 pounds right now) and fluid retention. I have a friend of a friend whose ankles swelled so bad on Lyrica that she couldn't walk. On the other hand, I have talked to people who have taken it without any issues.
So what I am thinking is this.......maybe if I combined Lyrica with an SSRI with a low side effect profile like Lexapro, that maybe their respective side effects would cancel out?? Moreover, Lyrica is actually approved by the World Federation of Biological Psychiatry for GAD (not as a first line treatment, however), and some studies indicate that it promotes slow wave sleep. There some studies that show that antidepressants, even at therapeutic doses, can assist with chronic pain.
Anyone taking these two kind of meds at the same time? What is your experience? I have to try something new. Nothing has worked thus far. I've been thru two rounds of physical therapy, acupuncture, etc.
I also suffer from acute generalized anxiety disorder and depression (between mild and severe).
For the latter, doctors have tried to give me a number of different meds over the years: Prozac, Zoloft, Cymbalta, Lexapro, Viibyrd, etc. The problem with these meds is that every single one of them, even at non-therapeutic doses, make me feel like I am on 4 doses of Sudafed....like I am on a bad dose of speed. Viibyrd, for instance, kept me up for 48 straight hours. I just couldn't sleep, period, and I already have insomnia issues. I recently tried just 5MG of Lexapro, and I had to take Benadryl to calm down. I was so anxious and irritable. These meds also strip my mouth of saliva, which scares me because I have already had dental problems from taking Ditropan and Gelnique for my IC.
I am not manic depressive, so that doesn't explain why I get so amped up and anxious from these drugs. Numerous doctors have confirmed this.
When it comes to chronic pain, doctors have tried to get me on Neurontin and Lyrica. My pain issues can't be fixed thru surgery. I couldn't do Neurontin because it upset my stomach too much and caused too many interstitial cystitis flares. I also hated taking pills 3x per day. Lyrica just made me feel totally drugged. I also was paranoid about weight gain (I need to lose 15 pounds right now) and fluid retention. I have a friend of a friend whose ankles swelled so bad on Lyrica that she couldn't walk. On the other hand, I have talked to people who have taken it without any issues.
So what I am thinking is this.......maybe if I combined Lyrica with an SSRI with a low side effect profile like Lexapro, that maybe their respective side effects would cancel out?? Moreover, Lyrica is actually approved by the World Federation of Biological Psychiatry for GAD (not as a first line treatment, however), and some studies indicate that it promotes slow wave sleep. There some studies that show that antidepressants, even at therapeutic doses, can assist with chronic pain.
Anyone taking these two kind of meds at the same time? What is your experience? I have to try something new. Nothing has worked thus far. I've been thru two rounds of physical therapy, acupuncture, etc.
