Gabapentin works wonders for my anxiety in ways no other medication has. The problem is the effects last for one or two days before it shits the bed. Pregabalin does the exact same thing and costs an arm and a leg. I'm prescribed 2.4g daily and have negative side effects at this dose. Naturally, I assumed the supposed increase in GABA concentrations was the reason for gabapentin's therapeutic effects. I had this in mind while reading a thread mentioning l-theanine and excitedly jumped on it. Increased GABA = happy me, right? Well, it had no noticeable effects (besides sleepiness) at doses ranging from 200mg-2g. I tried it with and without gabapentin, which I dosed at 3g total, taken throughout the day. Part of my question is whether or not gabapentin actually does increase concentrations of GABA and if my experimentation with l-theanine is enough to rule this out as the reason it works (when it works). If this is the case, my next question is whether or not gabapentin binds to NMDA receptors and if this explains anything. I'm assuming there are other mechanisms at work I know nothing about; if this is true do they offer any clues? Finally, I'm wondering if anyone knows of medications I could ask to try, supplements that may help, or if anyone is/has been in the same boat as me and can provide some advice. I'm at somewhat of a loss, my only idea at the moment being ketamine which I somehow doubt is going to fly.
To explain what I mean by "therapeutic effects," gabapentin allows me to enjoy myself, feel comfortable in my own skin, and do things that need doing. I make the less-than-enjoyable phone calls I've been avoiding, catch up with friends, run errands, exercise; all the things I normally berate myself for not doing without the inexplicable and irrational fears and doubts I'm otherwise plagued by. I'm honestly happy and talkative when normally the fear of saying something stupid makes me irritable and dismissive. I can leave my house and go to work without the paralyzing feeling that everyone is judging me and criticizing my every move. Food actually has a taste and I'm not too nauseous to eat it. In other words, gabapentin allows me to experience what most people consider a normal day. I have no clue why or how this happens, but it only does If I wait a week between doses. I can't decide if this is a glimmer of hope or a weekly kick in the nuts.
I ask for help because I'm about to see a new psychiatrist and they all seem to immediately brush aside the fact that gabapentin is the only drug that's shown promise for me. They quickly jump to benzos and antidepressants which have proven ineffective time and time again. This has been happening for almost a decade and is, quite frankly, ridiculous. The only reason I was put on gabapentin to begin with is because I asked after seeing it mentioned here. I feel as though I need to approach this psychiatrist armed with the sort of knowledge and ideas I can only seem to find on this forum.
I appreciate anyone taking the time to read this and would be very grateful for any input whatsoever. I realize this is a tall order and needs to be discussed with a psychiatrist, but it can't hurt to actually bring with me some ideas to discus.
In case any of this proves relevant:
I've suffered from fairly intense anxiety for as long as I can remember. Problems arising from severe discomfort interacting with others kicked the shit out of me in college; coming to a head in the form of depression and depersonalization. Not realizing the cause, I ran the gambit with antidepressants (several ssri's, a couple snri's, buspirone, bupropion, and finally selegiline TD). The best results were none, the worst being increased anxiety, insomnia and anhedonia.
Eventually, I was put on Adderall (I also have ADD) and clonidine. The Adderall did help improve my mood, confidence, motivation, and concentration (speed tends to do that). On the down side, I lost 15 pounds that I didn't really have and now considered two hours of sleep quite the accomplishment. I also tried a number of benzodiazepines: diazepam, clonazepam, alprazolam and settled on lorazepam. While these provided moderate comfort at home, beneficial effects on my daily life were minimal. Even skipping doses of benzos and taking them all before a particularly stressful activity did nothing more than make me tired, clumsy and dim-witted. The real problem is these were never real solutions. Fucking with them was nothing more than a waste of my time (though I do enjoy amphetamines). I'm just not interested in the medicinal equivalent of a band-aid to make me think I'm being helped and a shot of morphine to stop my bitching about it.
Thanks, again!
To explain what I mean by "therapeutic effects," gabapentin allows me to enjoy myself, feel comfortable in my own skin, and do things that need doing. I make the less-than-enjoyable phone calls I've been avoiding, catch up with friends, run errands, exercise; all the things I normally berate myself for not doing without the inexplicable and irrational fears and doubts I'm otherwise plagued by. I'm honestly happy and talkative when normally the fear of saying something stupid makes me irritable and dismissive. I can leave my house and go to work without the paralyzing feeling that everyone is judging me and criticizing my every move. Food actually has a taste and I'm not too nauseous to eat it. In other words, gabapentin allows me to experience what most people consider a normal day. I have no clue why or how this happens, but it only does If I wait a week between doses. I can't decide if this is a glimmer of hope or a weekly kick in the nuts.
I ask for help because I'm about to see a new psychiatrist and they all seem to immediately brush aside the fact that gabapentin is the only drug that's shown promise for me. They quickly jump to benzos and antidepressants which have proven ineffective time and time again. This has been happening for almost a decade and is, quite frankly, ridiculous. The only reason I was put on gabapentin to begin with is because I asked after seeing it mentioned here. I feel as though I need to approach this psychiatrist armed with the sort of knowledge and ideas I can only seem to find on this forum.
I appreciate anyone taking the time to read this and would be very grateful for any input whatsoever. I realize this is a tall order and needs to be discussed with a psychiatrist, but it can't hurt to actually bring with me some ideas to discus.
In case any of this proves relevant:
I've suffered from fairly intense anxiety for as long as I can remember. Problems arising from severe discomfort interacting with others kicked the shit out of me in college; coming to a head in the form of depression and depersonalization. Not realizing the cause, I ran the gambit with antidepressants (several ssri's, a couple snri's, buspirone, bupropion, and finally selegiline TD). The best results were none, the worst being increased anxiety, insomnia and anhedonia.
Eventually, I was put on Adderall (I also have ADD) and clonidine. The Adderall did help improve my mood, confidence, motivation, and concentration (speed tends to do that). On the down side, I lost 15 pounds that I didn't really have and now considered two hours of sleep quite the accomplishment. I also tried a number of benzodiazepines: diazepam, clonazepam, alprazolam and settled on lorazepam. While these provided moderate comfort at home, beneficial effects on my daily life were minimal. Even skipping doses of benzos and taking them all before a particularly stressful activity did nothing more than make me tired, clumsy and dim-witted. The real problem is these were never real solutions. Fucking with them was nothing more than a waste of my time (though I do enjoy amphetamines). I'm just not interested in the medicinal equivalent of a band-aid to make me think I'm being helped and a shot of morphine to stop my bitching about it.
Thanks, again!
