Gabapentinoids Is pregabalin similar to phenibut?

[ItsclearlyFake]

Phenibut worked really really well for the social anxiety / shame energies inbalance that I have been experiencing for a LOT of time. Problem is I had to stop because It would feel so caustic for my stomach.

I am looking for a substitution, ideally that I can do 2 times a week (going out/socialization). But if 2 is too much in the long run 1 time a week can do it for me too. I´ll find other med to rotate it with.

How would you say it compares to phenibut in terms of A)Mood elevation/ego inflation B) Anxiety reduction ?

Is it safe to use it in such a way for maybe 1-2 years?

 

[negrogesic]

Pregabalin is far superior to phenibut in terms of mood enhancement and anxiety reduction.

I would stick to once a week at most though.

Some find it to be a bit more sedating than phenibut however.

 

[Lil'LinaptkSix]

I think they are in the same drug class (gabapentinoids) but I find phenibut at ones optimal dose is much more energetic, empathetic and social.
Prebabalin is more effective for getting "high" and can cause some serious issues with balance/coordination at higher doses (but feels great lol) like alcohol and benzos kinda mixed.
My take anyway.
They both seem to have long half lives so no need to keep re-dosing once you find your "sweet spot".

 

[Nucynta_80]

In my view, while Phenibut is a Gabapentinoid, it is notably different then both Pregabalin and Gabapentin (both of which are very similar).

Phenibut in my opinion is closer in some ways to a muscle relaxant, having some of the properties of Baclofen (Gaba B receptor agonist activity). It also builds tolerance more quickly then other Gabapentinoids in my view. It’s duration of action is longer, but it takes about twice as long for the effects to kick in, so that delay can cause you to redose too soon and overdo it. ALL three drugs bind to the a-subunit, causing anti-anxiety and anti-seizure effects.

Do I think it’s overly harmful? Not in standard doses, but I *do* think it’s safety profile is inferior to Pregabalin. I also feel it’s effects are inferior by comparison, possibly due to its poor blood brain barrier crossover (Gabapentin is notably better here, which is why a much smaller dose is effective).

I see it in the same way that I do cough syrup compared to gold standard ketamine. One *does the job* while the other is notably safer, with more medical effects, uses, and euphoric effects.

I think Phenibut (obviously using responsible doses), is ok for occasional use, for example on the weekends over a solid period of time. However, I would *STRONGLY* caution against frequent daily use. Sudden withdraw after using for multiple weeks can cause not only similar effects to Pregabalin withdraw, it can also cause a baclofen-like withdraw. Because of its activity at the Gaba B receptor, this could be very unpleasant and at high doses over time, a sudden withdraw could be dangerous too.

 

[plumbus-nine]

I think (but don't know for sure) that one difference is that phenibut has a different tolerance curve than gabapentin/pregabalin. These can't be sustained as recreational substances, you need to continuously increase the dosage, worse than with any opioid, and some time soon you'll reach complete tolerance where even an increase in dosage won't bring the effects back. Pregabalin is the single worst tolerance inducing substance I've sampled so far. Even when sticking to therapeutic 600mg/d it lost its efficacy very soon.

Phenibut is a GABA-B agonist quite like baclofen if I'm not wrong, while pregabalin/gabapentin lack this but have affinity to glutamate decarboxylase (or something similar) which converts glutamate to GABA and to the glutamate transporter GLT-1.

 

[ItsclearlyFake]

I think (but don't know for sure) that one difference is that phenibut has a different tolerance curve than gabapentin/pregabalin. These can't be sustained as recreational substances, you need to continuously increase the dosage, worse than with any opioid, and some time soon you'll reach complete tolerance where even an increase in dosage won't bring the effects back. Pregabalin is the single worst tolerance inducing substance I've sampled so far. Even when sticking to therapeutic 600mg/d it lost its efficacy very soon.

Phenibut is a GABA-B agonist quite like baclofen if I'm not wrong, while pregabalin/gabapentin lack this but have affinity to glutamate decarboxylase (or something similar) which converts glutamate to GABA and to the glutamate transporter GLT-1.

Damn...so probably even with once a week regimen tolerance would build?

In my view, while Phenibut is a Gabapentinoid, it is notably different then both Pregabalin and Gabapentin (both of which are very similar).

Phenibut in my opinion is closer in some ways to a muscle relaxant, having some of the properties of Baclofen (Gaba B receptor agonist activity). It also builds tolerance more quickly then other Gabapentinoids in my view. It’s duration of action is longer, but it takes about twice as long for the effects to kick in, so that delay can cause you to redose too soon and overdo it. ALL three drugs bind to the a-subunit, causing anti-anxiety and anti-seizure effects.

Do I think it’s overly harmful? Not in standard doses, but I *do* think it’s safety profile is inferior to Pregabalin. I also feel it’s effects are inferior by comparison, possibly due to its poor blood brain barrier crossover (Gabapentin is notably better here, which is why a much smaller dose is effective).

I see it in the same way that I do cough syrup compared to gold standard ketamine. One *does the job* while the other is notably safer, with more medical effects, uses, and euphoric effects.

I think Phenibut (obviously using responsible doses), is ok for occasional use, for example on the weekends over a solid period of time. However, I would *STRONGLY* caution against frequent daily use. Sudden withdraw after using for multiple weeks can cause not only similar effects to Pregabalin withdraw, it can also cause a baclofen-like withdraw. Because of its activity at the Gaba B receptor, this could be very unpleasant and at high doses over time, a sudden withdraw could be dangerous too.

I had to quit phenibut as I said because of too many stomach issues. Also apart from that it just felt overall toxic. I don't know why but It just felt like that.

Good news that you say pregabalin is safer!

 

[izo]

I would compare phenibut more to gabapentin although it works on different receptors bu I find it not that different. Pregabalin otoh is much stronger than those 2 with a normal low dose being possible to bring you into dangerous situations.