Gabapentinoids The Lyrica (Pregabalin) Mega Thread v 2.0

[Toz]

I just do not react to a lesser dose or even no dose, when I run out early, as a lot of you. I am also on tramadol, percocet, and morphine, and just assumed that this is the reason I don't get withdrawal symptoms if/when I run out early. Can anybody tell me if I am correct in this assumption?

Also, would the action from tramadol, since it fondles so many receptors? Again an assumption.

Some people just don't get withdrawals from lyrica/gabapentin. Does the medicine do anything for you? I know my dad was put on gabapentin for several months, although he didn't really think it worked so he just stopped without any withdrawal whatsoever. Personally I get never ending withdrawals that are worse than both heroin and benzo combined. I used to be on both clonazepam and methadone and that barely helped at all with the symptoms so I think it's extremely individual. I have read so much about this medicine and my conclusion is that no one really knows what it does or why it works. It's proposed effect at the alpha2delta subunit of voltage gated calcium channels seem far too weak in my eyes to cause this type of withdrawal or the amount of pain relief actually yielded by the medicine. But what do I know, I'm just a drug-geek.

 

[edgewise1]

Oh yes it works extremely well for my neuropathy and takes that burning, pins & needles pain away. It also relaxes me and really is synergistic with my other medications. I just do not react to the loss of it if I run short before it is time to refill, for which I am grateful.

 

[Claireclump]

I am on 900mg a day of lyrica! It was 1200mg!! Is this normal?!?
I only ever swallow it? Is there a different way to enjoy it?? I don't plug or IV. Wouldn't know where to bloody start!
Thanks claire x

 

[clubcard]

I've tried this and all of the new stuff & plain old amitriptyline works better. It takes the sharp edge off the pain so it's a dull pain - which is much more manageable. YMMV

 

[vortech]

Oh yes it works extremely well for my neuropathy and takes that burning, pins & needles pain away. It also relaxes me and really is synergistic with my other medications. I just do not react to the loss of it if I run short before it is time to refill, for which I am grateful.

What do you tale that synergizes with it?
I found Lyrica to be very synergistic with MXE making for one of the best body buzzes ever.

 

[vortech]

I've tried this and all of the new stuff & plain old amitriptyline works better. It takes the sharp edge off the pain so it's a dull pain - which is much more manageable. YMMV

My doctor had me on amitrytpaline first as a requirement before I could get Lyrica. It is cheaper for the insurance company. It didn't work for me though, I mean yes it DULLED it, but it also dulled all of me and made me sleepy. Lyrica straight up phases out the pain completely while keeping the rest of me in phase. Can't get better than that.

 

[caitir]

Reply to Toz

Well upping the dose is a bad idea. I myself have gotten pretty well addicted to it. I take up to 6g in one shot and it doesn't help like it used to. As for the depression I'm not sure if that is a side effect. You never mentioned what you were taking the gabapentin for. Have you been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia? If so it could actually just be depression. I have major depressive disorder. My doctor, at first, thought my pain was due to the depression. After trying several different medications over the years she has finally realized that it isn't the depression and I have finally found a decent anti depressant that help with minimal side effects. If it isn't due to depression and it is something like Fibromyalgia or if you were in an accident or something I would say talk to your doctor about these side effect and let him/her know that you need the medication for the pain otherwise you can't function and ask if maybe you should start an anti depressant. That's my advice from my experience. If there is anything else I can do to help or any other advice just pm me also I'm sorry it took so long to get your message as I have been busy.

 

[caitir]

Reply to Vortech

I don't think your digging yourself into a whole as long as your taking it as prescribed. Any and every, correct me if I'm wrong please, medication you take you will eventually build up a tolerance and need more. They say there are no addictive properties to this medication but as it stops working you start taking more so yes be careful and again take as prescribed. As for the anxiety... could be a side effect however I'm not sure. Talk to your doctor and let them know about this and ask if it is normal. I hope I helped.

 

[caitir]

Reply to the HappyWonderer

That is the condition and it has been diagnosed in multiple people within my family. As for when it started for each of us... I'm not sure.

 

[caitir]

To all I have replied to. Most of you have been answered already, as I was dumb enough not to read the forum first, but I did my best to answer as well. I'm sorry I've been busy so I kind of let this thread drop for a few days. I'm back if anyone has questions.

 

[The Happy Wanderer]

Hello Claireclump,
swallowing is just fine. The dosage seems very high. If I remember correctly, 600 mg should be the max dose. However, if your doctor told you so, there's probably a good reason for it. What do you take it for?

To the others:
I never got withdrawals, used to take 200 mg twice a day, sometimes more. Though with 300 mg I was just more confused and walking straight became harder, but didn't make me more happy etc. I think, if I leave it away, the symptoms I am taking it for (anxiety, pain) just come back.
Somebody here hypothesized that only people who have been on benzos/opioids get withdrawals, I guess in a sense of used to be addicted. Don't know if there's any truth to it, hope somebody does a study about it.

 

[edgewise1]

Well upping the dose is a bad idea. I myself have gotten pretty well addicted to it. I take up to 6g in one shot and it doesn't help like it used to. As for the depression I'm not sure if that is a side effect. You never mentioned what you were taking the gabapentin for. Have you been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia? If so it could actually just be depression. I have major depressive disorder. My doctor, at first, thought my pain was due to the depression. After trying several different medications over the years she has finally realized that it isn't the depression and I have finally found a decent anti depressant that help with minimal side effects. If it isn't due to depression and it is something like Fibromyalgia or if you were in an accident or something I would say talk to your doctor about these side effect and let him/her know that you need the medication for the pain otherwise you can't function and ask if maybe you should start an anti depressant. That's my advice from my experience. If there is anything else I can do to help or any other advice just pm me also I'm sorry it took so long to get your message as I have been busy.

I don't mean to insult you, but 6 grams at once?!?! You are only creating a tolerance that will take forever to bring down, not to mention the damage you are doing to your kidneys. I realize that you are in pain but surely you must realize that upping your dose that much is dangerous and a bit foolish. I agree that you should have a talk with your doctor about helping you to lower your dose and jump off of it since, as you say, it is not helping you. At least you would not have to worry about withdrawal from it for 3 weeks out of the month. I would advise you to do a CWE on your Percocet because at 10 a day you are getting 3,250mg of acetaminophen daily and I think I read that the daily limit has been lowered to 3,000mg? If so then you are playing a dangerous game my friend. Bluelight has already lost several good members and doesn't need to lose another one!


Again, please don't take this the wrong way because my intention is not to insult you but to help you and I hope you will take this in that spirit.

Peace my friend...

 

[Toz]

Well upping the dose is a bad idea. I myself have gotten pretty well addicted to it. I take up to 6g in one shot and it doesn't help like it used to. As for the depression I'm not sure if that is a side effect. You never mentioned what you were taking the gabapentin for. Have you been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia? If so it could actually just be depression. I have major depressive disorder. My doctor, at first, thought my pain was due to the depression. After trying several different medications over the years she has finally realized that it isn't the depression and I have finally found a decent anti depressant that help with minimal side effects. If it isn't due to depression and it is something like Fibromyalgia or if you were in an accident or something I would say talk to your doctor about these side effect and let him/her know that you need the medication for the pain otherwise you can't function and ask if maybe you should start an anti depressant. That's my advice from my experience. If there is anything else I can do to help or any other advice just pm me also I'm sorry it took so long to get your message as I have been busy.

6g? Didn't you talk with your doctor about other medications? I've stopped at 900mg daily and even though I want to take more to dull the pain, I know it's just pointless because I will quickly aquire the same tolerance and be left with more side effects and worse withdrawal later.

I'm gonna ask my doctor about trying a combination of memantine+lyrica for my pain as I know ketamine+lyrica works very well. Hopefully memantine will have sort of the same effects, albeit weaker. I've read some promising results of using memantine for fibromyalgia, if it works for that it should work against my central nerve damage.

What do you tale that synergizes with it?
I found Lyrica to be very synergistic with MXE making for one of the best body buzzes ever.

Oh yes, although I've never used MXE, using PCP with lyrica makes your body feel like it dissolves into liquid pink clouds

 

[caitir]

Thankfully losing tolerance to Lyrica isn't very difficult. After being off of it for a few weeks it will start to work again at a smaller dose for a day or two. Then I need to increase, for a day or to, and so on and so on. As for dangerous... look into Lyrica more and you'll find it is very safe and extremely difficult to overdose on so I don't worry about it and I can only see it as being dangerous because of the damage it will do to my kidneys. Also I wouldn't say I go through a withdrawal from it... I just have to deal with the pain. For some reason I don't see to withdrawal from Lyrica. Also I have currently stopped taking the Lyrica. For how long is unknown but at least long enough to not think I need it to function. And I mean need more or less in an addicted way because I do need something for pain to function well (sometimes function at all). And I didn't just stop because I ran out either I have a half full bottle sitting in my safe. As for the Percocet I would love to CWE it but I am honestly worried that I'll end up loosing some, if not a good portion, of the active ingredient which would make it pointless. I have not heard of the daily dose of acetaminophen being lowered, I'll have to look into that, however even at 3,250 mg daily will kill my liver eventually (even if I am only doing it 9 days out of the month, I used to have a script for 180 a month and then took a 6 month break for my tolerance to drop and when I asked for my script back this time I asked for half of my regular scrip to make sure it is 9 days instead of 18). I thank you for your concern edgewise1 and appreciate it That's why I love BL... because it's an ever growing community of people whom use all sorts of drugs and can give you advice and help. Also every once in a while you run into an individual who actually cares and it makes things easier.

 

[caitir]

I have never heard of memantine before and I don't think my doctor will give me ketamine. I could be wrong but isn't ketamine used for general anesthesia? If so I don't see/understand how it would help with pain unless your just trying to sleep through it lol

 

[Toz]

I have a question: Does anyone else think this drug sucks with weed? It's like I'm almost not getting high at all anymore no matter how much I smoke, I mainly get tired and dizzy ;(

I have never heard of memantine before and I don't think my doctor will give me ketamine. I could be wrong but isn't ketamine used for general anesthesia? If so I don't see/understand how it would help with pain unless your just trying to sleep through it lol

It's all about the dosages, ketamine has provided me with alot of relief when the pain has been extremely bad. In lower dosages it actually acts as a weak stimulant rather than being sedating.

 

[caitir]

I'll have to ask my doctor about the Ketamine... however I don't think she would go for it. Especially since it's a schedule I controlled substance, which correct me if I'm wrong here, I believe is the worst schedule that a drug can be in. That being said, and after looking into Ketamine a bit more as I'm writing this message (I run duel monitors), I'm actually absolutely positive that she wouldn't prescribe it to me. In fact on wikipedia it states, "No prescriptions may be written for Schedule I substances, and such substances are subject to production quotas by the DEA." So even if she decided to help me out with that I don't see how she could. Thanks to all who have answered this thread. It pretty much seems dead now but I'll check back in a day or two to see if there is any more activity.

 

[The Happy Wanderer]

Hey caitir,

take a look around if there's some kind of specialist for fibromyalgia in a city reachable for you. I've had good experiences with seeing a specialist right away.
Is this a possibility for you?
I've read Tropisetron seems promising in treatment of fibromyalgia...

 

[caitir]

I've never heard of Tropisetron and I didn't even know there were doctors who specialized in just fibromyalgia. I'll do some research into the Tropisetron as well as see if there are any fibromyalgia specialists anywhere reachable to me... or if there is any period. I noticed your location said your in Europe, I'm in Canada. We may not even have that sort of thing here and if we did why didn't my doctor tell me about it :S lol any ways, thank you for the advice. I really appreciate it

 

[caitir]

Quick update. I looked up Tropisetron and found the Wikipedia page for it. Wikipedia states that it is marketed by Novartis in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines as Navoban, but is not available in the U.S. It is also available from Novell Pharmaceutical Laboratories and marketed in several Asian countries as Setrovel.

I didn't see Canada on that list anywhere and if it isn't available in the U.S. chances are it wont be up here. However I will do more digging and see if I can find out if it is.