The LYRICA (pregabalin) Mega Thread

[Craftypisces]

I would like to say something about Fibromyalgia. Now, I experience pain daily in every part of my body. It drastically decreases my quality of life and makes me really miserable. It would be easy to diagnose myself with Fibromyalgia and I have gone to the doctors and said thats what I think is wrong with me.

The thing is, I just dont think any more that it is a real illness. Yes, the symptoms are real but I think they are the physical symptoms of psychological problems such as depression due to dissatisfaction in life. Actually, I think the symptoms are a normal reaction to the crazy pressures of modern life and all the stuff we have to deal with that we are not really evolved to do.

I thinks that realising the symptoms are psychological is the first step to recovery. If you give yourself a label like 'Fibromyalgia' then you are creating a belief that you have some kind of disease and you are stuck with it since there is no cure.

I think that, in fact, that you have to sort out the problems in your life, improving your psychological health, in order to recover.

However, this is easier said than done.

LS, I would like to say that I respectfully disagree
I am in my mid 20's and when Fibro struck me, it was during the happiest time of my life. I went to the gym daily, I went out with friends, and had just gotten married and landed a job at a company I was dying to work for. BUT when I was diagnosed with Fibro I will say that I thought it was a load of horse s#!t. I honestly thought the same thing you did. So much that I quit taking Lyrica and just let myself be in pain for 3 years following that diagnosis. That being said, those years were so hard for me. My husband and i desperately searched for answers and even chronicled my symptoms with photos and journals. Did I become a little anxious and depressed, yes, but I also would pull out of it as soon as I possibly could. I was still working and able to do some things. In January, I could not possibly have been in more pain and I was living on adderrall and lortab. I was ingesting more pills than food because I couldn't take the pain. My family and doctor urged me to go to Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. I was called to come for an appointment and my father and I flew up there. I saw three neurologists and they did seperate testing. The day after i had the classic "tender point test" I was so sore I could barely get out of bed. My father and I watched the doctor hit these spots on my body and I would literally almost climb the walls in pain. Not until then, confronted with proof from 5 days of intense testing and 9 doctors telling me this, did I believe in Fibro. Now I am home and take Lyrica as well as do physical therapy. It is working and I feel better than I have in 3 years.
Don't dismiss Fibromyalgia though. It's actually not a disease --it is a syndrome (collection of symptoms).
If you think you may have something like Fibro, go see a doctor and get the proper diagnosis. Not everyone uses FMS as a crutch or an excuse to be sad and lazy. I will post pictures of my worst symptoms. Maybe if they look familiar you could relate. I hope this didn't come across as angry or rude. I just wanted to post my experience with FMS and Lyrica. It's a good one.
3 years ago I trashed my Lyrica and swore it off, now it works like magic.

 

[Cane2theLeft]

^I am with you sneaky fish.

I have waxed and waned on the issue for years and researched until my eyeballs bled and today I look at it similar to ADHD... I think its a real syndrome affecting a small amount of people and is at times over-diagnosed as a catch all and a lot of people (generally women, no offense) believe they have it or its worse than it is because of mental illness or co-morbid mental illness (of which the correlation is significantly higher than in the general population).

There are a lot of GP's who diagnose fibro based on people saying "I'm tired and I hurt", tossing some lyrica at them and that is the extent of it. I firmly believed that right now FMS can only really be accurately diagnosed by a trained professional like a rheumatologist administering the tender point test and such.

Whether its downplayed or wholly disbelieved, people suffer as a result. I think most FMS sufferers would likely benefit from mental health evaluation and treatment because of the high co-morbidities with clinical disorders like depression, but to completely discredit the condition is to deny A LOT of anecdotal evidence as well as scientific research.

 

[Craftypisces]

LOL Sneaky fish? That cracked me up. I agree with you 100% on
"There are a lot of GP's who diagnose fibro based on people saying "I'm tired and I hurt", tossing some lyrica at them and that is the extent of it. I firmly believed that right now FMS can only really be accurately diagnosed by a trained professional like a rheumatologist administering the tender point test and such."

My goodness, I'm sure half of the people I see riding a scooter around my local Wal-Mart (or as I call it "The Crossroads of Hell") have been diagnosed with FMS. I honestly believe some GP's just tell that to patients who complain a lot, like you said.
I saw a psychiatrist for over a year because I thought it might be depression or anxiety that was causing me pain. After a few visits he told me that I am not depressed and that I might be a little anxious at times. Even so, to deal with chronic pain annoyances, I went to see him just to talk because he offered wonderful insight.
I thought FMS was kind of a wastebasket disease until I saw those neurologists. These guys were not even in white coats, they wore 3 piece suits and spent 2 hours at a time with you. I was impressed. None of the @$$clowns where I live would even spend 20 minutes with you. They even had an outpatient program there for people with FMS. It was a 3 day program and I didn't get to go b/c I couldn't get in for a few weeks. Oh well, I go to PT now and it works for me.

 

[Craftypisces]

Oh, Cane, the reason my name has "crafty" in it is because I design jewelry and home decor. haha. But I guess I can be sly every once in awhile too.

 

[the_undertow]

Cool thread. Thanks to all for the info. I was just prescribed 60 75mg Lyrica a month. 3 pills within an hour fucked me up fairly decent. It's like being hyper and drunk. Not an every day thing, for me, but it's kinda cool

 

[Craftypisces]

I usually don't get hyper. I don't know if it's the Lyrica, but does anyone else feel like they can't take a good deep breath when they have taken Lyrica?
Lyrica makes me feel drunk, but in a Does anyone notice I'm walking with a slight limp?? kind of way. I feel like I'm being pulled to one side.

 

[Cane2theLeft]

^A lot of people compare it to alcohol and it makes sense because they both work on GABA.

What is your dose?

 

[Craftypisces]

400mg per day, 100 a dose

 

[pallidamors]

Just checking through the side effect profile of Lyrica, it says that about 3% of people who take pregabalin experience shortness of breath (dyspnea) as a side effect, so while its kind of rare to feel like you cant take a deep breath, it certainly does happen, Craftypisces.

Does this happen to you mostly when laying down, or when you're up and actively moving around?

 

[Cane2theLeft]

400mg/day is not a small dose by any means so I'm not surprised it produced pronounced sedative effects like alcohol.

Good call, Palli on the dyspnea.

 

[the_undertow]

when i first started lyrica, i was taking 75mg twice a day. after the morning dose, i was afraid my coworkers would think i was drunk or stoned, since it made me slur my speech, stumble often, and just wasn't "there"...
since then, my tolerance is up and the same dose does not impair me at all. i did take 3 or 4 at once a week or so back and the onset of drunken silliness took about 45 mins. i then stumbled around and acted stupid. for me, 300mg is equal to about 5-6 beers crushed within 30 mins (low alc tolerance).
the one thing they were prescribed for, migraines, have not let up one single bit.

 

[Cane2theLeft]

^Hm, I've never heard of them being prescribed for that. Have you tried triptans at all?

 

[pallidamors]

I could see pregabalin working for the symptomatic pain of migraines, although I'm not sure if it would truly "treat" them in the sense of treating their immediate cause. If someone had migraines that weren't responding to the usual suspects of triptans, naproxen, Migritaine, etc., pregabalin might be a nice option, especially if the doctor is reluctant to prescribe opiates (which I don't feel do much for migraine pain anyway).

Cane, as usual, is on point suggesting triptans, since most people respond to these very well.

 

[Cane2theLeft]

^thanks, palli... the main problem with the triptans is their exorbitant cost!

If the migraines are severe and infrequent or someone is rich/has great insurance, I could see this being worth it, otherwise that's quite steep.

Being the only true migraine-abortive medication on the market makes them pretty unique and fascinating though!

 

[ycomp]

I take 1200mg.... I take a lot of other stuff too... biut lyrcia is probalby the most effective. I go out, drink some drinks too... I take it about 9 in evening... at first there is no problem walking but around 5 in morning I zig zag... lol... but if I concentrate walking straight is no problem.

I love the stuff.... [not because of the zig zag and stumbling]

 

[ycomp]

Hi, I'm overseas now.. there will be no problem leaving... I don't think... but I want to go back to Canada for a while. Can I get in trouble for brining a few (like 2) boxes of lyrica and maybe some other nice things like stablon (tianeptine) and phenibut and gidazepam which is a benzo... without having any prescriptions ?

if I do have problems, what's the worst that would happen ? confiscation?

 

[vanderhoven]

I was prescribed Lyrica for chronic pain and I'd read a couple of posts suggesting it had some recreational value so I was looking forward to taking it, but honestly not only did it do absolutely nothing to help with my pain but it was not the least bit "fun". I took it for about three weeks and I couldn't find any reason for which to continue taking it. In fact, I had been told by my doctor that it would help with sleeping- and in my case it did the opposite. I found that while it did make me sleepy, it would take an additional 2-4 hours for me to fall asleep and that I would wake up (with no hope of falling back asleep) at the slightest disturbance. Honestly, I don't have any idea what the fuss is all about when it comes to Lyrica. Huge disappointment both from a recreational and a medicinal POV. I wouldn't suggest wasting your efforts trying to obtain it, and if you have it I suppose it`s worth a shot but I wouldn`t get your hopes up...

 

[the_undertow]

^thanks, palli... the main problem with the triptans is their exorbitant cost!

If the migraines are severe and infrequent or someone is rich/has great insurance, I could see this being worth it, otherwise that's quite steep.

Being the only true migraine-abortive medication on the market makes them pretty unique and fascinating though!

Exactly! Even co-pays are insane.

And, I've tried triptans...don't work...opiates work as a great breakthrough, but no doc will prescribe them for headaches...I know because when I took percs for a toothache, they dulled my headaches nicely, with less rebound than an NSAID...and aspirin eats my stomach up. But no neuro would believe that story, so I don't even try.

Back to lyrica, they are meant to be a preventative, but no luck yet... Having daily headaches sucks, as does the 2-3 times a month migraine attack

 

[Cane2theLeft]

I was prescribed Lyrica for chronic pain and I'd read a couple of posts suggesting it had some recreational value so I was looking forward to taking it, but honestly not only did it do absolutely nothing to help with my pain but it was not the least bit "fun". I took it for about three weeks and I couldn't find any reason for which to continue taking it. In fact, I had been told by my doctor that it would help with sleeping- and in my case it did the opposite. I found that while it did make me sleepy, it would take an additional 2-4 hours for me to fall asleep and that I would wake up (with no hope of falling back asleep) at the slightest disturbance. Honestly, I don't have any idea what the fuss is all about when it comes to Lyrica. Huge disappointment both from a recreational and a medicinal POV. I wouldn't suggest wasting your efforts trying to obtain it, and if you have it I suppose it`s worth a shot but I wouldn`t get your hopes up...

You say this in a thread where, of the nearly 500 posts, MOST are people talking about enjoying this drug or having success using it medicinally... but I suppose since YOU didn't like it or find it therapeutic, it must not be.

 

[ycomp]

You say this in a thread where, of the nearly 500 posts, MOST are people talking about enjoying this drug or having success using it medicinally... but I suppose since YOU didn't like it or find it therapeutic, it must not be.

If a tree falls in the forest... does it make a sound?