Gabapentin: What patients and providers need to know
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- Опубликовано: 14 июн 2024
- The way gabapentin is misused-or misprescribed-can be a significant problem. It originally started out as a drug to treat epilepsy. Later, its nerve blockade was found to be useful for neuropathic and chronic pain. But gabapentin has its limits as a pain reliever. What do you need to you're a clinician treating patients who are taking this drug? Pharmacist Tom Viola explains.
00:00 Intro
01:16 What is gabapentin and how is it used?
01:58 The potential for misuse and abuse
04:52 Side effects
05:47: Who should be taking gabapentin?
07:10 Impact on dental care
08:43 Impact on anesthetics
Read more on DentistryIQ.com: www.dentistryiq.com/
"Gabapentin: The most dangerous drug in America": www.dentistryiq.com/dental-as...
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About Dr. Pamela Maragliano-Muniz
Pamela Maragliano-Muniz, DMD, is the chief editor of Dental Economics. Based in Salem, Massachusetts, Dr. Maragliano-Muniz began her clinical career as a dental hygienist. She went on to attend Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, where she earned her doctorate in dental medicine. She then attended the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Dental Medicine, where she became board-certified in prosthodontics. Dr. Maragliano-Muniz owns a private practice, Salem Dental Arts, and lectures on a variety of clinical topics.
About Tom Viola, RPh, CCP
With more than 30 years’ experience as a board-certified pharmacist, clinical educator, professional speaker, and published author, Tom Viola, RPh, CCP, has earned the reputation as the go-to specialist for making pharmacology practical and useful for dental teams. He is the founder of Pharmacology Declassified and is a member of the faculty of more than 10 dental professional degree programs. Viola has contributed to several professional journals and pharmacology textbooks, and currently serves as a consultant to the American Dental Association’s Council on Scientific Affairs.
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Our videos are for informational purposes only and do not provide a comprehensive education on any topic, nor do they provide any medical advice for any patient or medical/dental professional that provides patient care. Seek recommendations from your medical professional for any personal medical care. 
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Chronic pain patients don’t take their meds for “euphoria” , we take them for a little relief and so we can function . Addicts are when you use drugs to continue to chase the euphoric feeling. That’s the huge difference. I had a severe reaction to Gabapentin within 48 hrs of starting it. I have been on opioids for 10 years and never have I had issues . Most chronic pain pts take our meds as prescribed and are very safe. Addicts are not. I wish people would stop putting both in the same category. We are not the same as an addict. Not at all.
Edit: I am writing this edit in because many people cannot differentiate between physical dependence and addiction. Anyone on long term opiates will have a physical dependence on the medication and should be tapered off to avoid withdrawal symptoms. Physical/chemical dependence is NOT the same as the diagnosis/disease of addiction. Please just stop.
Some addicts do have chronic pain, it’s what triggered their addiction usually along w some sort of emotional trauma
I'm an x pain pill addict and I suffered from migraines and neck pain most of my life. I had my first migraine as a child and had to get Botox injections for the migraines which were a saving grace, but pain pills were also my enemy. I had an MRI in 2016 and they found a cyst in my brain which probably aided in my seizures, headaches, tics from tourettes and pain. I had moved to live with my aunt and uncle and they didn't care if I had headaches because what they did see is what I wouldn't see. They saw me depending and took them away. I was enraged and in fear of the pain I didn't want to go through, I was so addicted and in fear I felt like a person angry in the show "intervention " but I had to talk myself into the next part of not having pain med's anymore. They were the only thing that worked and I wasn't willing to be in pain or try but I had to. I've been off pain meds for six years and only now can I see how I revolved my life around them just to be pain free. I take Tylenol with caffeine and tell myself that's all I'm going to get and it was mind over matter. I didn't have a life with the headaches and I didn't have a life with the pain pills, it was a lose lose! When I get headaches they are debilitating but it was an addiction and my head might have been looking to have pain just to have them. It's an addiction no matter if the pain is real or not (in my situation)
Addicts never think they're addicts.
Most people I knew had chronic pain drs over prescribed and even if mentally you don’t get addicted your body does no matter what
@@truethought7288 exactly my point thanks
I take opioids for pain. I never feel euphoric from them only some pain relief. I have not had a raise in dosage for several years. I tried gabapentin and got horrible side effects. I get angry that those people who misuse these drugs make it impossible for those of us with chronic pain to get effective dosage.
I agree so much with you
Chronic pain is horrible.
this is my story as well. gabapentin made me feel just off. I don't know how else to describe it. I have been on opiates for 30 years and have not had to significantly increase them. this is a myth. The only people that need to continue to increase it the way this guy says are people that want to get high off of it. not people that use it for actual pain relief.
Well said
I was in a serious MVA in 2007 at the age of 18. I had 3 craniotomies in the month following the accident. I was once on Percocet, T4s, oxycontin… you name it I’ve tried it. Lyrica worked for a few months, but caused insane anxiety. Then I switched over to Gabapentin with T4s daily. I was still in pain so I skipped a dose because I figured it wasn’t working. Man was I wrong. The following 3 days were hell.
At least it's not benzos like myself. Rather have pain then these seizures
Being pain free is a euphoria in itself.
@@MacchiatoSwirlGirl That's so unfortunate❗May you have healing in time🙏🏼
What is pain free???
Gaperpenton is excellent for people with liver damage as it only goes through the kidneys. I haven't tried it yet.
Amen! I've not been pain free for thirty years.
Like when you were young and would play outside or walk and go to school @@user-gd4ve9pk5o
Psychedelics saved me from years of uncontrollable depression, anxiety, and illicit pills addiction. Imagine carving heavy chains for over a decade and then all of a sudden that burden is gone. Believe it or not, in a couple of years they'll be all over for treatment of mental health related issues.
To be honest, mushrooms are one of the most amazing things on the planet and it is natural, they serve in many ways not only for mental related issues.
Can you help me with a reliable source I would really appreciate it. Many people talk about mushrooms and psychedelics but nobody talks about where to get them. It is very hard to get a reliable source here in New Zealand. Really need!
Yes, Sporeville. I had the same experience with anxiety, depression, PTSD, and addiction... Mushrooms definitely made a huge difference to why I'm clean today.
I wish they were readily available in my place.
Microdosing was my next plan of care for my husband. He's 59 & has many mental health issues plus probably CTE & a TBI that left him in a coma 8 days. It's too late now I had to get a TPO as he's 6'6 300+ pound homicidal maniac. He's constantly talking about killing someone.
He's violent. Anyone reading this Familiar w/ BPD knows if it is common for an obsession with violence.
Is he on Instagram?
I am going to go out on a limb here and say, if your struggling with chronic pain and taking opioid pain killers you don’t feel the euphoria described above.
I agree even though we are treated like addicts
Amen!! I tell people.. if they truly understood chronic pain or could just feel that pain for one day "a walk in our shoes" are my actual appropriate words for that. They might seriously understand, we are not just taking these drugs to feel HIGH! We use these drugs to help us have somewhat of a life. But in the world we live in people do not understand use anymore it's always abuse. I've been taking Gabapentin and a low dose painkiller for 10 years. I have never had a feeling of euphoria and I don't know anyone that suffers that has. #mindovermatter#usenotabuse
That’s exactly correct!!!
I take pain meds for chronic back and hip pain. I have had 5 back surgeries. I do not feel the euphoria feeling from them.
They make you feel drunk when you take extra
When my husband was a cancer patient, people would comment about all the “good” drugs he was getting. He would reply, “I don’t take these drugs to get high, I take them to feel normal.” I’m on gabapentin. It’s the miracle that lets me sleep without pain.
Bless
Yes! Its so important that these drugs stay available for people who really need them . 🙏💕🙏
Does this work for back pain. I have scoliosis and regular pain killers don't work anymore
@@kym1988 I think it might help with back pain because its works differently than some other pain killers. It works for nerve pain which is why it helped my broken ankle pain. If you have nerve pain it tends to not respond to regular pain killers in my experience
I’m going out on a limb here but I use to abuse this medication. I was up to 6000 mg a day and I almost died because it finally gave me a grand mall seizure. This medication should not be prescribed to anyone taking pain killers. I’ve been clean for 11 years and this was my drug of choice. It is now a narcotic in Michigan and it’s just a rotten drug. Get help because this drug will kill you faster than any other drug besides fentanyl. I’m just being honest so others will no the risks with this drug. It gave me a cocaine buzz !
Was prescribed a very low dose of gabapentin for nerve pain following surgery. It unexpectedly worked miracles for diagnosed cptsd. I now take 300 mg per day for that and feel close to my old self again with no discernible side effects. I noticed a difference after the first 100mg. Slept better than I have in years. Huge fan. No opioid use.
Same
Until you try to come off them and I'm sorry for what you will suffer
I agree with @dianeraucher7100 100%. Coming off of gabapentin is a nightmare. Worse than any opioid withdrawal. And I’ve withdrawn from both, and compared to what I went through with gabapentin, the opioids were nothing. Sweats, freezing, shaking, nauseous, headache, and it goes on for days and days…
@@marcus3060why what will happen...
Be careful my 40 year old wife is in diapers thanks to what it did to her
I took it for about three months after surgery on my leg. It helped my pain. I got off of it when I was feeling less pain. I now have no pain so I was lucky that the neuropathy went away. I was on opioids after surgery before the GABA and also just got off of them. I don’t get the addiction part but I guess I don’t have that addiction thing in me.
But you know I’ve been in pain and it’s horrible and yes sometimes you’ll take anything to get rid of it or at least feel better. 😢
I pray for those who are in that situation 🙏🏻❤️
I've known people, who were living in chronic pain...committed suicide, to get out of the pain. That's terrible, to be in that much pain and take that way out. It happens, everyday around the world, unfortunately!
Old friend killed himself around no pain relief..😔
BINGO
Paolo . I considered it. I spent 10 months begging. I went to the streets. What the public must understand is that when drugs are legally obtained... the abuse is enormous amounts . When a need for 10 milligrams a day ... suddenly skyrockets to 80 .. .. then you have PROOF WITH A DOCTOR THAT SOMETHING MAY BE WRONG. THIS TYPE SITUATION SHOULD DEMAND A REASSESSMENT BY DOCTORS. A LEGAL EXPLANATION. AS FOR US POOR SOULS THAT DEVELOPE SMALL INCREMENTS. NO LEAVE US ALONE . REALLY .
@@cliffordchase319 If you haven't gotten off the drugs, then please try to do so. This is no way to live.
It’s easy for doctors and people to say you don’t need pain medication. Because they’re not in pain. There’s some doctor that have had chronic back pain they understand then.
I took Gabapentin for neuropathic pain from a bad car accident and it covered pain that narcotic’s couldn’t cover. I took it for years and never developed a dependency at all and I can’t say the same for opioids…it actually helped me not to take opioids. I never felt a high from it and I was on a higher dose and to be honest it blocked the “high” feeling from opioids that you sometimes feel which I didn’t take for that I strictly took for pain but did notice the difference when taken together. I eventually started to have an slight allergy to gabapentin so I got of it with no side effects.
I wouldn’t wish pain and this kind of suffering on my worst enemy….neuropathy and severe pain wrecks your mind, body & soul! Stay strong!
Car wreck here too. I then needed neck surgery called micro disectomy and fusion cause my C5-C6 herniated. The gabs I take are for nerve pain.
They had my husband on 2 800 3 times a day I've still got the bottle full to prove it,because nobody would believe it. GABPAMENTIN
I'm fused C;4-C;7 and pray for all pain patients!!! Chronic pain and insomnia wreck your life!
L4L5 fusion going on 4 years and up until a few months ago things were pretty good but now my leg nerve pain basically from my hips down to my entire feet on both sides has become progressively debilitating. After explaining these symptoms and my hot flashes to my reg Dr. she said to make appt with my ortho and she gave me Gab for the hot flashes. She didn't say anything about it's use for nerve pain. Happy coincidence I noticed the next morning after taking 100mg pill I could feel my legs and feet again! Hot flashes unfortunately not gone, but I just started taking. Hopefully it will give me relief for both but I'll take the nerve pain relief WAY over flashes. Best of health to everyone suffering!
@@seisheinso happy its helping you!! I also got prescribed it bc of numbness. The latest study says it helps repair injured nerves to some extent! Hope I get my sense of feeling back!!!
I have noticed a overwhelming feeling of sadness since I started. I've had grief to deal with.
Not everyone abuses drugs/medicine. I resent being treated like I'm an addict because I don't want to be in pain all the time, at the same time having paradoxical effect from most medicine.
My 20 year dog (mini dachshund) has been on Gabapentin for a couple years. 100mg 2x daily. She was living in pain & now she's living life the the fullest extent. My vet told me she'd be taking it for the rest of her life & most importantly don't miss a dose because she'd start withdrawing immediately. It helped her gain her life back:)
So Happy To Hear Your Lil Pup Is Well!🐶❤️🌷⭐️🌹
I have to say, (previously I was Against putting my dog on gabapentin), but it did Wonders for her in so many ways! So I am a reformed anti-gabapentin for dogs, lol 👏
Can my dog have withdrawals after using gabapentin for 2 weeks? The vet gave me a liquid form because of his teeth pain, however I am concerned because he seems off when I don't give it to him 🙏🏼😰😥 please help me out people. Thankyou 💐
@Samantha Meinhardt sorry for the late response. I'm not sure, you'll need to ask ur vet.
Our little dachshund was diagnosed with epilepsy 7 years ago. The vet gave her Keppra twice a day. While it did reduce the amounts of siezers, it didn't stop them . We also noticed that while she had fewer siezers ,when she did have one, it was far worse of a siezer. To the point, sometimes we thought she actually died several times. She hurt her back one night, and our vet was closed, so we took her to a vet emergency clinic. That vet gave her 100mg of gabapentin twice a day for two weeks. Well, we noticed that she didn't have any siezers for the whole two weeks. We talked to the emergency vet, and he agreed to take over her care, and he continued the gabapentin care. That was a little over a year ago, and our precious little dachshund hasn't had any more siezers since. Another note I'd like to add is this....I've been on opiates for 6 years now for chronic inoperable back pain. Because of the government,doctors like this and drug abusers I'm forced to have to go to a clinic and sit next to actual heroin addicts and other drug abusers. I have to go thru urine and blood tests and basically beg every month for a prescription! Meanwhile, an actual drug abuser can walk in off the street and be given free of charge massive amounts or methadone or suboxin without question. I don't get high off of my opiates and I never take more than prescribed ever! I might also add that if I wanted to get "high" I would just drink a beer! I certainly wouldn't go thru the B.S. I'm forced to go through because of drug abusers ! Dr's like this have zero empathy for chronic pain patients and are weirdly more concerned with someone getting high! It's makes zero sense!
My welsh corgi mix couldn’t walk and lost the whole use of his hind legs due to IVD. My vet said he needed surgery and another vet prescribed him gabapentin. When he started taking gabapentin he got better. It healed the nerve endings and he really quickly started walking and running again normally and without surgery. The veterinarian who said he needed surgery was shocked at his recovery. No one can tell me gabapentin doesn’t help.
Wow! Thanks for letting us know.
Same for my dog.
Wow!
Gabapentin does not heal nerve endings. It has zero mechanism for that.
Good nutrition and the ability for restorative sleep are what help.
Lipoic acid is the supplement that actually heals the myelin sheath that surrounds the nerves.
I hated it as have others here. But it does help some. My sister has neuropathy that it helps. It just shows how careless the Drs are in prescribing
I have the spinal cord injury, I take gabapentin in concert with another one that you're going to hate, fentanyl patches. The combination has allowed me to finally have a life. My injury occurred 30 years ago. In the last 10 years of my life I've been able to live again. And gabapentin has played a part in that
@tonialbanesi918 I'm so sorry to hear that. I live in Iowa. I first started with the patches when I lived in Colorado. I moved back to my hometown and my doctor here continued with the pain regimen I was on. I'm going to add you in my prayers tonight. I wish you the best and I am so sorry for your predicament. Danny
Same but with methadone and finally are pain free
@@brockgangell5759 so happy for you, they just found something to manage your pain. I remember when I was much younger and someone would say he has a bad back he can’t work and I thought oh yeah, right. But then when it’s me with the back injury, it is what is going to help me get rid of this pain. I’m happy for you with the methadone, be safe and well, Danny
Thank you, crazy thing I lived in Colorado when I started the patches and moved back to Iowa. Crazy. I live in Red Oak Iowa.
I took it for a while for chronic pain. It didn't do much for pain and it made me a crazy person. I couldn't focus, I wasn't sleeping. I was convinced that I was losing my mind. So I stopped it. I then realized that I was starting menopause and some of the perceived side effects were because of that, but they were not as severe. I was also under a huge amount of stress, so I can't say it was entirely the med., but I have never taken it since.
Gabapentin has saved my life. Like others have mentioned, I probably would’ve taken my life if it weren’t for the medication.
I was thinking the same way until this wonderful drug I could not live with the pain
Hot flashes for 10 years. GABA helps me sleep. 😊
@@patriciareece9289 works for all nerve pain. I take about 600 mg too 900 mg day depending on my pain level that day. I have fibromyalgia and ms and migraines and arthritis, and painful bladder syndrome. Also helps with tooth pain.
😔😔😔😔🙏🏽🙏🏽
What dose?
I was prescribed Lyrica for chronic wide spread pain quite a few years ago. Didn’t do squat for the pain but certainly made me gain a lot of weight. Then I found a doctor that took away the Lyrica and put me on gabapentin. The gabapentin has been consistent in controlling my nerve pain. Thanks for this info!
I was on Lyrica for several years. I have osteoporosis and have broken many bones. During surgery and hospital stays it was discovered the Lyrica was causing my blood pressure dropping. I'm off now and all the things associated with low blood pressure stopped. Now I do have severe pain back but I must stay off Lyrica.
@@linann1970 The names of these drugs are a joke. Here`s some Lyrica says that doctor. Sounds like it could be lyrics to a song. Big pharma know exactly what they are doing when naming these drugs.
Lyrica made me retain so much fluid that it was pitiful!! Never again!
Same happened to me on Lyrica. Gabapentin does help me with nerve pain but the dose got pretty high, not to mention I couldn't have, um, the big O anymore.
Gaba. Is what I was first one didn't help me at all lyrica im now at the highest dosage helps me get a few decent hours without stabbing pain nonstop I do have to take a biologic to help bring down inflammation with the lyrica though. I think whats important is that not all meds work the same on all patients.
I was put back on Gabapentin after a second car accident. High dose for CRPS, a chronic nerve pain condition that is hard to treat. For me, it was a miracle drug for pain the first time around. The second time, I had an extreme reaction to it. My face and the bottom of my feet turned bright red, I could put my finger under the skin on my face and peel my own skin off. It looked like I had a terrible sunburn. The bottom of my feet had small blister-like bumps, including bright red, and peeling off, very painful!! My Physician told me I wasn't the only one who came back at him with these "side effects." He had never had these reports with Gabapentin years ago; he had felt that perhaps the Pharmaceutical company had changed the way they formulated Gabapentin and had not reported it.
I'm on Gabapentin and Ducolextine and even with the two meds, they still don't cover all the pain but I'm thankful for the relief it gives me. Without gabapentin I would be at level 11 for nerve pain. As it is I'm on several meds for different symptoms of Fibromyalgia but THC covers the pain the other meds don't cover.
Yes that sounds very similar to what I’ve found a balance that works for me as well xx
I was on gabapentin for 3 weeks. One day I felt like I was having a heart attack - pain in my chest, arms, back, even my jaws. Went to my doctor and he did an EKG, said my heart was fine. He asked if I was on any new drugs, I told him gabapentin. He said that it can mimic a heart attack, as was my case. He told me to list it as a full-blown allergy. From then on, no other doctor has questioned why I list it as a drug that I am allergic to.
I took gabapentin exactly as prescribed. It did nothing for my pain. It made me gain 50 lbs in 2 months, from a thin 120 to 170! My feet and ankles swelled up like balloons. I couldn’t put shoes or even socks on. My dr thought I was in heart or kidney failure, had me go through all kinds of tests. It was a nightmare. Never again.
It made me be hungry constantly
I lost 30 pounds
Exactly this is why I stopped taking it .. it works for some but not others! I truly believe that gabapentin has put my step father in kidney failure and is now on dialysis after taking it for years and believe it has caused cardiovascular issues as well!
I am taking it for 4 years for the pain in my hand due to nerve damage,it’s giving me some relief,no side effects,I have regular blood test and everything is ok
I do have constant pain ,but now I can cope
Before the gabapentin my pain manager prescribed me some med.which used to be antidepressant
and I couldn’t take it, lot’s of unpleasant side effects such a mouth dryness,dizziness,gained some weight,mood swings….
No problem with gabapentin and I had learned to live with constant ,annoying but now bearable pain
Keep healthy 🌹
Same
I'm not addicted to Gabapentin because I've never tried to get any sort of high or euphoria from it and I take it as prescribed, but I'm definitely physically dependant on it in that if I run out or there's a delay in getting my prescription I get horrendous withdrawal: sweating, tremors, anxiety, anxiety attacks, agitation and I even get frequent, long (often several minutes) absence seizures from withdrawal even though I'm on it for diabetic nerve pain, NOT epilepsy. But at the same time it massively improves the pain in my legs and allows me to function whereas before the gabapentin I'd have days so bad that I needed a wheelchair. So I definitely see both sides.
I took Gabapentin once for my neuropathy. It made me feel like a zombie. I threw the rest of the bottle away. It’s one of the main reason I turned to natural remedies to cope with the discomfort. Your body will tell you through so-called side effects if a drug is right for you.
What did you use for pain??
@@GV710 Nothing natural works lol.. she's probably in too much pain to respond to you 😂
You made the right decision, gabapentin gave me a cognitive impairment within a few months. They were trying to find the "correct" dosage, as it turns out no dosage would have been best. One last thing, people can totally become physically dependent on gabapentin, and I hear that's also horrific.
Gabapentin has been a huge life saver for me. Used as intended, it is safe. The way the topic is introduced is misleading and sensationalized. For me, that erases any trust in anything said in the video. We need to be better consumers and beware of stuff like this.
High doses of this, will do damage to the body.
everyone's metabolism is different. I took it and had no pain relief at all..I was prescribed 200bpills for hip pain..
Agreed, It is a nerve blocker. I take it only when needed for severe jaw & facial pain. It only takes the edge off. Since I have Severe Complex Sleep Apnea, I must be careful...or might not wake up. Nothing else offers any decrease in the pain.
@@stargazer1359 It seemed like a placebo to me, couldn't tell it did anything, other than making me angry and mad for no reason.
@@gsp49 Hey Greg...oh, I definitely feel it. 300 ..is my dose. Kind of loopy, bit of a headache.
I take Gabapentin 600mg in AM, 600mg again the early afternoon, and 1800mg in PM. Helps my fibro pain, and works well with my QUEtiapine, Propranolol, and Duloxetine that I take in the PM for anxiety and depression. I have never had ANY problems. I was on vacation and due to travel delays, I was without my meds for 3 days. Other than having trouble sleeping, there were no ill effects.
Have you ever considered medical Marijuana for Fibromyalgia?
How do u even stand upright
I take Gabapentin 600 in the am 600 in the pm with an optional 600 in the afternoon if needed. It is the only thing I have found to stop the nerve pain that developed with fibro. No noticeable side effects aside from not writhing in pain.
@ChocoBeauty8 I tried medical marijuana for fibro, it helps but gives me massive migraines.
You sound overmedicated
I had so much back pain before having surgery so I was given gabapentin. I became so depressed taking gabapentin that I sat and cried like a baby. I will never use this drug again.
It has been used for a ton of different issues. Holy moly! Not just pain either. Mental health issues too! I have never seen so many different people using it for as many different things.
Took it for a year- year and a half. Helped the nurralgia, but I gained 50 pounds and became a scatter brain. Then I just so happened to be in a conversation with a guy who spontaneously mentioned he was prescribed Gabapentin for psychological reasons. I immediately weaned myself off it and never looked back. Still have the neuralgia, but now I’m overweight and am a scatter brain. I should mention my prescription was 300mg 3x a day. I never took that. I only took it twice daily. I wonder would I be 25
lbs heavier, or 50% loopier had I taken the full prescription? My advice: stay away from meds unless you’ve literally tried everything else twice, and it is absolutely necessary.
I was on 800mg 3 x.a day and only took it at bedtime. I'm now knocked down to 400mg 3x a day. I still only take it at bedtime unless I'm going to be home all day then I will take another. But I get what you're saying!!
Exactly the same thing here! I have found safer ways to manage my neuropathy , far infrared therapy, electromagnetic pulse device KT Recovery + Wave, Brad & Bob physical therapists on you tube are a wealth of knowledge. I very rarely take Tylenol or Ibuprofen. My doctor just wanted to inject steroids into my spine, no thank you to steroids.
How long has it been since you stopped taking this medicine....and you still feel scattered brained?
Question was for Jackie Murphy
In elderly dogs gabapention mixed with a bit of meloxican has been a recipe that truly works. Just tried some and noticed no buzz!
For years used to take enough hydromorphone for my chronic pain to kill about 9 naive patients a day, this was after years of morphine sulfate, and a specific VA study that came out that determined that hydromorphone was the least likely to be addictive. For 20 years, I never experienced euphoria from any drug prescribed to me for pain. I never had an addiction or dependency issue. I was highly tolerant, and did have a constipation issue.
It seems I have been highly tolerant for lots of drugs, including CNS Depressants like Valium, which a plastic surgeon had to put me on the max dose of at 17 to keep my muscles from tearing apart some tendons he had to repair in my foot. His chasing the tendons several times after his stitches pulled apart was not pleasant. Yes, I was awake.
Along the road of chronic pain I have had all the blockers, pregabalin, and gabapentin, while I was taking "deadly" doses of dilaudid. Guess what, they aren't safe. They aren't safe for anyone else if I am taking them. Gabapentin, in particular, makes me angry. When I say angry, I mean that I literally feel as if killing annoying people might make me feel better, and everyone is annoying.
After the War on Pain Patients started, some bright spark in the VA decided that with the couple of decades of opioids I had taken, I surely would do better with a different, synthetic opioid to deal with my chronic pain because it was also the "go to" for addiction, and obviously tolerance could be addiction, and everyone is going to die because everyone is addicted, and someone had problems with her pain getting worse because of opioids.
So, titrate off hydromorphone, and on to methadone!
Monday... Guess what? Methadone was nearly instantly like wrapping my brain in a fuzzy blanket, and the red eyes make me look like a junkie.
Wednesday... And the constipation was 4x as bad. Like rock hard concrete block bad...
Thursday... I do not like this feeling, I can't function, and I do not want to take anymore Methadone.
"But we can't change your meds up this quick, finish the titration off and on and see what happens..."
Friday... I will just stop taking both.
Monday... "You can't just stop taking all that hydromorphone and methadone! You'll die from withdrawal!"
Nope. I didn't even twitch.
"What?"
I already quit taking them, because the methadone is intolerable for me.
"You can't do that!"
I already did.
"When they wear off you're going to have severe withdrawal. You have to be under observation for a while..."
12 hours into direct observation by nurse... yawn. "Oooh. That could be a symptom of withdrawal."
Yeah, sure, or it could be a symptom of my usual lack of sleep because of chronic pain. And when I scratch my elbow in a few minutes because the armrest on this chair I have been sitting in for hours is leaving an impression, that won't be a symptom of anything either.
6 years now without any relief from my chronic pain.
If you are going to push a narrative that makes it sound like "everyone" is dependent... I am going to say "fuck you ignorant asshole."
I'm assuming you're over your constipation at this point.
But ffr if given any drug that may constipate, taking magnesium could help!
But you can't just take one & expect a miracle, they should be taken daily.
Even if you're not on meds, listen now & thank me later!
Liar. You would’ve had withdrawal if you had taken opiates for so long.
@@ccinSFfruitloop - Idiot. No. I did not.
Gabapentin made my husband turn into a very angry man. I was so mad that the doctor and pharmacist didn't warn us beforehand. It almost ruined our family and our kids were young and I'm sure scared of him back then.
Your story sounds like practically a carbon copy of mine…..once all my teeth started to loosen after 12 yrs on all the pain management cocktails, I had to get them all pulled and get dentures a couple of yrs before I turned 50! Come to find out, Gabapentin erodes the bone around your teeth! Thanks for the heads up Doc! I too was able to stop all the meds and only use cannabis now. Definitely not rid of pain, but, I’m also not filling my body with all that garbage anymore! Blessings to you always, my friend….🙏🏼
I've been taking Gabapentin for yrs due to Interstitial Cystitis.
It has been very beneficial for the pain when I'm in a horrible flare.
When my doctor recommended gabapentin I tried it. It made me feel kind of crazy. I told my doctor and he said he’s never heard anything like that. Time for a new doctor!
You're not alone, it messed me up bad
I was on gabapentin 300mg for several years along with different muscle relaxers. I finally had lumbar surgery in 2021 and cervical earlier this year with no withdrawal once I healed. It helped immensely with pain and insomnia.
Bravo I don’t have addiction’s either
I can't take gabapintin in the mornings, when I get up. It makes makes me too sleepy.
They gave it to me for the same problem and I don’t think it did anything for me. Stopped taking it. But I was a smidge from being paralyzed (which would have at least felt better)
Surgery was the ticket!
@@katelynchanslor423 I had a new MRI today hoping it’s negative for tumors
What surprises me is how both this doctor and all the doctors I have had, never mentioned to me that should I decide to come off Gabapentin (Neurontin), that don’t come off of it “cold Turkey”. I had been taking Neurontin for years for neuropathy that resulted from a failed Lumbarnectomy many years ago. About 2 1/2 years ago, I decided to come off all pain killers and just eat anti-inflammatory food. When I stopped taking Neurontin after about 3 days, I had all the effects of withdrawal. I suffered through it, but it wasn’t fun at all. You fail your patients when you don’t keep them informed about this reaction, if you decide to stop taking!!
I hope this helps someone.
I was able to stop gp no problem! But I was rotating the lighter pain killers such as Tylenol so I didn’t get breakthrough pain. I never took more than I needed though. I went from 2x a day to 1x a day than every other day to few days and eventually just basic over the counter pain relief. So I guess I weened off the stuff wo realizing. But my spouse is an RN so he prob he knew what he was doing. I had a painful double mastectomy! GP really helped with that nerve pain! I can see how people could get use to that relief, if it even works, I heard it doesn’t work for most. But I rather this over opiates, plus those had constipated me horribly and I was glad to get off of those and use gp instead! But I guess I was very lucky gp had worked for me and it wasn’t difficult to come off of them in my case
@@user-bv7mk8id5t I have been on gp for a few years. I have Fibromyalgia, Neuropathy, back pain, disc problems and Ostenpia.
The Dr put me on Belbucca.750mg. two times a day. It helps. I still have pain problems if I bend over or walk to much. I guess the GP helps nerve pain.
You should never stop a drug or change a dose without talking to your Dr first. There may be side effects they did not mention because they only happen if you make changes. Telling them what you are planning to do is not asking their permission, it is giving them the chance to give you any warnings or suggestions and to update their records.
I have no idea what a " lumbarnectomy" is .
@@georgeadcock2347 Lumbar is the lower part of the spine. Laminectomy is surgery that creates space by removing bone spurs and tissues associated with arthritis of the spine. It usually involves removing a small piece of the back part (lamina) of the small bones of the spine (vertebrae). Laminectomy enlarges the spinal canal to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or nerves. Laminectomy is often done as part of a decompression surgery.
This pressure is most commonly caused by bony overgrowths within the spinal canal, which can occur in people who have arthritis in their spines. These overgrowths are sometimes called bone spurs. They're a side effect of aging for some people. Bone spurs can also be inherited.
Laminectomy is generally used only when more-conservative treatments - such as medication, physical therapy or injections - have failed to relieve symptoms.
This medication has helped me tremendously with no issues at all let alone addiction issues with it.
Gabapentin is very addictive! My daughter’s doctor put her on it and when she told me how much her doctor had her on I flipped out! She became so addicted. She also died at home and my grandson had to call 911 to save her life. Thankfully they revived her. I began to talk to her about getting off of it. She asked her doctor for help. She is off it, but she is struggling in every way. 😢
I was prescribed gabapentin, but stopped taking it as I became extremely forgetful. Not the run of the mill forgetfulness, but where it was affecting my life and work. I stopped taking it and fortunately my memory returned to normal. Found it didn't lessen my pain issues either. So difficult for people who find it helps, but then look at long term effects.
It made me very forgetful as well. I couldn't concentrate on much at all.
It also affected my memory.
I have what I call brain fog sometimes. I attribute this to the gabapentin prescribed while suffering from a bad case of shingles last summer June - August. It did help greatly with the pain from the shingles - enabled me to get the rest needed to heal. When feeling better in last week of August I stopped the gabapentin little by little over a 2 week period. The doctor had told me to come off a little at a time when I felt ready. But did not understand she meant to stop it over a 1-2 month period. Sort of freaked out briefly when she found out what I had done. She regained composure and told me to report back with any side effects and not to restart the gabapentin. Yes there were bad side effects for a good month after quitting. I would get loopy - whole days wasted - no good for driving. etc.
Gabapentin stops brain cell growth.
@@marymorvant2813 Hey Mary. How are things now 4 months on?
I can't imagine my life without it.I was born with Spina bifida,and have had childhood abuse,...and it has helped so much with pain and sleeping
Thanks for this information. I have horrible leg pain when I lay down. This has worked wonders and am so thankful for it.
Thank you for the information. It is important to be informed because I can tell you that many medical providers know less than their patients or are not able to explain their medical concerns in easy to understand ways for their patients. Timely and informative information. Thank you.
My husband had spinal surgery 18 mo again and was on high doses of gavapentin. He’s never been the same person since. His personality is completely different. Once a funny , kind , caring person is now cruel speaking and uncaring, rude, demanding and more. I will never stop blaming this med for the change
Same with people I know who take it.
Back in 2020, I took a prescription medication- changed my personality- looked into it and I found out it depressed my serotonin production- so, I started taking a supplement- NOW 5HTP -- right as rain now. FYI Gabapentin..
“may cause some people to be agitated, irritable, or display other abnormal behaviors, such as feeling sad or hopeless, getting upset easily, or feeling nervous, restless, or hostile. It may also cause some people to have suicidal thoughts and tendencies or to become more depressed.”. Gabapentin (Oral Route) Side Effects - Mayo Clinic
Several years ago it was prescribed to me for chronic nerve pain. Within 3 weeks, I became depressed (for no reason), and started planning my suicide. My wife read the side effects, I quit taking it. Then I returned to my normal self mentally. I think it is a very dangerous drug.
Several years ago it was prescribed to me for chronic nerve pain. Within 3 weeks, I became depressed (for no reason), and started planning my suicide. My wife read the side effects, I quit taking it. Then I returned to my normal self mentally. I think it is a very dangerous drug.
@@robertlamkin3555 I am glad your wife read the side effects and warned you. It makes you think about the suicide rate and what may be underpinning it.
14 years of Gabepetin and opioids. I suffer severe chronic pain from disc degeneration, herniations, arthritis and nerve damage from singles. Ruined my life but without the drugs I would not have not survived. I resent having to use drugs but it does afford me a few hours of relief a day.😔
I suffer from the same conditions 😢
@@steverobinson795I am so sorry for you😔
I am a chronic pain patient, I have an internal pain pump, it’s targeted at my problem area. I have mid back pain, doctors answer was Gabapentin which I reluctantly tried again having taken it in the past.
Never once did it make me feel euphoric, even the first time I tried it years ago, this time it made me a bit sleepy, didn’t help the extra pain and made me urinate more at night than ever before. I stopped taking it, and just put up with the extra mid back pain knowing I won’t ever get any help for the added pain, most times thankfully the pump covers the lower back.
I hate chronic pain, it’s been part of my life for the past 17yrs, four failed lower back surgeries and other stuff as a result, but just got to deal with it.
It did nothing for the nerve pain I had screaming down my arm for days on end, I understood back then how people could end their life from constant pain and with nerves they don’t shut off, it’s maddening.
Best way I can get through to people who "feel bad for people with chronic pain" is to recommend to place a binder clip on your earlobe and DO NOT EVER TAKE IT OFF. See how fast you'll be looking for an answer. Bet you don't make it 24 hours. Back injuries with nerve involvement are among the most painful and debilitating there is.
I was given this for neuropathy then a few months later after spinal surgery. When I hit 300 three times a day i felt like I was on an acid trip. My husband said my personality changed. I immediately cut back and weaned myself off and told my spine guy I would deal with the pain because I could not take the risks. I have since had two vets try to prescribe it to my elderly dogs. Was hesitant but it is helping one dog but he gets a small controlled dose. He is ironically getting it to change his aggressive behavior.
When you are in pain you don't take meds to get high they just help you function normally.
Gabapentin really made a world of difference for me for spinal pain. Unfortunately, my heart would race, so I had to discontinue it. ☹️
I've had 4 relatives, ranging in age from 50 to 85 prescribed Gabapentin for different reasons. None of them abused it and after reaching their prescribed dosage levels (which were all different), all of them began to have serious memory problems and personality changes. All of them stopped using it and thankfully went back to being themselves. As far as I'm concerned this is one of the worst medications on the market.
Originally, gabapentin was used for people with seizure's. It affects the brain. It made me dizzy and loosing my balance until i had a very bad fall one day. Still hurting ever since in my lower back.
It saved my life.
My go
@@paulao7022 decision on PM
Agreed..my sister takes 3600 mg of gabapentin a day and it has destroyed her thyroid and see is suffering from cognitive and memory issues bordering on dementia. Sadly she is only in her 40s and is so hopelessly dependent on the gabapentin (over 10 years now and is over 350 pds, another side effect of the gaba). She defends and clings to her gaba use more desperately than a heroin addict and although I am her medical contact, her doctors dismiss my concerns. As soon as she takes her morning dose she starts shaking uncontrollably. The gaba is destroying her. My once beautiful tall slim sister spends her days in her lift chair or riding a scooter. Horrible.
Yes the drug when not used appropriately, yes can be very dangerous. Every one is different. What works for one may not work for another person.
I am taking Gabapentin for acute femural nerve pain originating in the spine. When I was in the ER they gave me morphine for the CT scan and it did not work. A most painful CT scan expeiance. The Tylenol IV they gave me from the ER just put me to sleep. I am having to wait over a month to see a spine doctor. I was given a script for gabapentin and it elimiated all pain in my body. The side effect is it makes me sleep like I am on Propofol. Some of the best naps in the world. At 73 I enjoy a good painfree nap with my cat.
I have degenerative disc disease and a whole bunch of other spinal issues. Gabapentin has never done squat and it certainly doesn't give me a "europhoric" feeling. There is nothing wrong with opiates for chronic pain. Sometimes it is the only thing that make daily life bearable.
Im glad someone is finally talking about the side effects of this drug and how dangerous it can be.
It seems like the doctors were giving it out like candy since they can’t use pain pills and the side effects are worse.
Thank you for coming out and making people aware of this
I take gabapentin, I was in soo much nerve pain before it, this drug had been amazing for me. I have not had the crazy bad side effects I hear other people have, only relief.
When I go the the pharmacy to pick up my Gabapentin they ask for an ID I asked why? They said it was a mild narcotic.
GTFOH you POFS 🤬🤬
Idiots
I was on it...I had dizzy spells. I was loosing my balance, like never before.. then one day, I fell backwards. Never fell backwards in my life! I injured my back and inflamed the arthritis in my lower back.. I've been hurting for 2 months now. Can't sit for too long. Like long car rides and such..
My prescription is Gaberpentin 300 mg, which I take once a day at bedtime. Never in the 3 months of it's use have I experianced euphoric effect. I did notice total relief from back pain resulting from my lower lumbar stenosis from the first day of use. Opiods were no longer nessasary. It works like a miracle on me! My pain often was a soloid10 on the pain scale. Back surgery is recommended, but I first need an Amulet device implanted so I can get off Eliquis, which is scheduled for tomorrow.
I agree, I have RSDS/CRPS and my Doctor put me on Gabapentin. I was taking 3600 mg a day with Baclofen also. It got to the point where I started to pass out. I stopped taking both drugs now. Today I use compression sleeve to control my nerve pain in my arm. I take NO pain medication at all.
Well done.
I don’t know why but gapapentin wired me out. Was hyper organized. Would only sleep an hour or two a day. Was neurotic. I quit after less than a week. Creeped me out. Still have neuropathy in my legs and arms but weight loss helped a lot and have very little pain thankfully. I’m thankful I have always resorted to just pushing through the pain. Much love to everyone. We all got to get through to tomorrow first.
I am definitely having trouble sleeping and I am taking low doses of gabapentin.
Some people have paradoxical reactions. Especially if you have certain seizure disorders like JME.
It works fine for me and I’m on a lower dose. Back pain and fibromyalgia. I never abuse any med! And my dose has only gone up once in about 10-12 years. I’m on 400 a day. It changed my life from doing nothing in so much pain to having a life. I will never have the money to do dental care on what I get as a disabled person. I try to brush and take care of my teeth but…. Thanks you guys!
If your old enough to get medicare... I suggest that you get on the Medicare- Care Source Plan. It gives up to 4500.00 per year for dental. Thought I would let you know. Plus, a lot more benefits!
Miss a dose and your body will tell you such a nasty feeling...so glad I weaned off this drug...
@@paulao7022 What the heck is a Medicare Source Plan, i have been on Medicare for 20 yrs, none of the plans pay over 1 to 2 thousand per year on dental,I think you must be tripping.
@@kaygrace5250 Just get on line and check out Care Source Medicaid HMO. I contacted my broker, agent and he said he's checking it out. I'm going for it.
@@kaygrace5250 iam on disability and receive Medicare and the highest dental I have seen is 2500. This year and going up to 3000 this coming year
My wife took both gabapentin and opioids for multiple chronic pains. It worked well for her, but in the end (she died in 2015) she was taking gabapentin, lorazepam, Vicodin, and morphine all together. All those drugs did affected her cognition but when all is said and done, they helped her more than they hurt her...
All well and good. I would hope you give full disclosures on side effects are made clear, including the withdrawal implications.
In nursing homes ive worked, we went from oxicodone for everyone to gabapentin in extremely high doses for many people with pain problems. I didnt see it help people a lot but it looked good on paper that the patients were "being cared for."
It looks great on paper and the patient is suffering, sounds like a democrat move there, so sad
That IS just SAD 😢😭💞🙏How AWFUL 👎🙄
Gapepentin has been a miracle for me. Before i was prescribed it i would cry in bad pain.
Gabapentin was prescribed to me by a back surgeon, and he told me to find my best dosage. In one night I took so much that I lost the ability to speak English and in the meantime, my left foot became numb.
My life has never been the same.
And I felt so guilty after that because for years my dog had been prescribed gabapentin. And he always looked so miserable.
And about the seizures: I used to be a linguist, with an absolute quickness and facility with language. Since that episode, I often go blank or have a slowness which I never had.
I took it for years because it was the only thing that controlled my nerve pain. I took it Half the prescribed dose and not in conjunction with any other pain control. I got off it because the side effects had gotten intolerable. The withdrawal was NASTY. Full body burning, searing pain, restless legs, the works. Took SIX MONTHS for the burning to go away.
When I got online to research the gabapentin withdrawal every article told me withdrawal was impossible unless I was abusing it. I was scared to try to get help from my dr because I didn’t want him to think I was a drug abuser. When I finally told my doctor that I was in Withdrawal hell and I needed help, he told me exactly what those articles said and looked at me sideways. He didn’t believe me. I can’t describe how awful it was. This drug is a serious problem.
I've been on Gabapentin for almost 20 years, I have a lot of nerve and soft tissue damage from a head on collision by an idiot. I'm getting nerve blocks that have helped a lot and in fact have been able to reduce my dosage because the block along with lidocaine 12 hour patch, I was able to do light gardening for the 1st time in years!
I honestly think I would have done something unfortunate without the Gabapentin with the amount of pain I was in, but I do know for a fact that you build a tolerance to the drug, which my Doctor then sent me to a spine clinic. I'm so thankful for that.
I'm allergic to every opioid they tried me on, both in and out of the Hospital and after watching this I'm thanking God for because I could see how desperation could drive someone into an even worse problem all together.
So I understand the necessity for this drug, but I also acknowledge that this is a drug and should be treated by physicians and patients with great caution.
I'm only take 1- 300mg Gabepentan at night for pain in my legs, was in really bad pain last night, the gab wasn't helping, so I took 2 Tylenol, and then the pain lessoned and I was able to go to sleep
I don't take gab during the day, it makes me feel loopy✌️
Thank you for this video! I took Gabapentin along with an opioid to help me with horrible sciatica! It was a miracle drug!!! I had a golf ball sized cyst sitting on my spine… losing my mind in pain and it helped me survive until I had surgery!!! Happily no addictions! All I wanted was pain relief! I’ll forever be grateful for the gabapentin/opioid combo!
Good talk. Very helpful and love the frank talk
Here is an important point you touch on! When a doctor interviews a patient and is trying to get to the truth of what medications they're taking, it is super important that the patient be able to trust the doctor and to be able to trust that this process of giving this information does not damage the patient. It used to be you could tell your doctor something in confidence. Now everything goes in a computerized record about you that is literally universally available if someone decides they need it.
I'm not about to tell my doctor that I'm abusing anything or misusing anything even if I've got health problems going on, until I'm absolutely sure myself that that thing is causing my problem and that my doctor can help me somehow quit using that thing or feel better or both. Patients are not motivated to be honest in this information age I sure wish we could be.
I completely agree with you. I'm mentally ill and the stigma is very hard to deal with. I can literally see at least 7/10 doctors behavior change once I mention it. Nurses as well. I completely understand the frustration but what am I supposed to do??? If I'm in pain and mention it most doctors would let me suffer... and it's worse if I'm seeing psychiatrists because most things that help can be abused and sometimes they even just assume everyone that understands how medications work knows it because they're an addict??? Like okay thanks I guess. If doctors routinely treat patients like shit and are so ridiculously suspicious of anyone how can you expect patients to tell the truth?
Gabapentin has helped me a lot with anxiety, sleep and pain... if it were less accessible I am almost certain I wouldn't have gotten it
I'm an RN and once took care of a woman who had to be hospitalized to be weaned off a dosage of gabapentin that up to over 5000 mg a day. She had been taking the drug for years, and the dosage had increased over the years. She had to be in restraints at first and was completely psychotic. It was amazing to watch the sane version of this patient emerge over the 6 weeks she was in our care.
Was it the dose she was on or was it the length of time that patient was on it that made it so she needed a taper I've been on this med for 5 years or so at varrying doses and am interested in coming off of it
@@outreach8348 The doctors seemed to think it was the cumulative effect of two decades on the stuff. She had chronic pain issues and over time the dose gradually increased. It is amazing to me, the adjustments our physical bodies can make to accomodate these kind of exposures to keep alive! I'm not completely sure how it got so out of hand and remember we had a run of patients like this -- way over medicated --right after the DEA shut down one of the 'pain clinics', so probably more than a little malpractice, too. You need to know, too, that there were other medications she was on that may have been compounding the problems. I just remember that the gabapentin was the first thing they took on and what a difference it made in her when she was off. I'm sure your issues are no where near this poor person.
@@darlenebradley6756 thanks for replying unfortunately I've gotten to high doses of gabapentin a couple benzos one of which I'm almost off completely (done over time) and another benzo that I've been on in high doses in one way or another for years I too had a doctor who was shut down by the fbi and have been trying to work my way through the webs of medications he prescribed that I willingly accepted and consumed a little clarity comes back with every dose reduction however I've been trying to ween off them all at once instead of the more practical approach of weening them one at a time thanks for your insight and reply
@@outreach8348 I detoxed gab, and zanax, it was horrible my doctor had me on for years. Xanax are not worth it, I cut back, but I had to go cold Turkey. I still have insomnia, but I’m clean of zanines
Sounds like she was tortured, and she was
Reassuring that I'm not the only chronic pain sufferer that took offense at the "euphoria" allegation. I remain incredulous how invisible are plight is in this crazy war on narcotic analgesics. As my quality of life approaches non-existent I wonder if at some point in the future the medical industry will recognize how cruelly we've been treated?
I have suffered with sciatica for years. I was put on Lyrica for a period of time when I couldn't take nsaids. I have tried to come off it many times, each time with horrific withdrawal problems. Thankfully, it's a very low dose. I feel like I am stuck with it the rest of my life. It helps and I have never felt high from taking it. Just know it can be very difficult to come off of!
Yes, he is right. It is not the drug. It is the people who use it. My chronic long term pain has taught me that no drug truly negates pain. A wise person once said to me “imagine what the pain would be like if I had not taken the drug.” So I have settled down and accepted that taking more drugs is not the answer. Live the best you can and keep moving, stretching, walking, giving and getting hugs. Hang in there and stay safe.
That's nice for some chronic pain issues. Many suffer with Trigeminal neuralgia & atypical Trigeminal neuralgia. Trigeminal neuralgia is called the suicide disease because such a high percentage of people kill themselves to end the horrific pain. Walking, stretching & keeping active does nothing but exacerbate the pain. For pain like this & other severe neuropathies, there is no other choice.
It is constant pain. All day everyday. My choice is to move. It is pain whether I stay still, hunched over with pain or curled up in a ball under my blankets. If I remain still, my body loses the ability to move. I lose. The pain never goes away. I choose to live and to move and be as happy as possible.
DO WHAT YOU CAN...THEN Try a little bit more each time !!!
I was given gabapentin following open heart surgery at 300 my 3X a day, I hated it at first as it would knock me out. After a while I got used to it and tried several times to come off of it and each time I could see that my pain was coming on so I decided to stay with it and eventually went down to 100 mg 3X a day and then 2X a day. I can tell it can cause dependency.
I had a similar experience when I first stared it. I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I think I was 12, yes they freely give to children, and it was only 100mg I think. At one point in high school they had me up to 300mg 3X a day at that point I was fine and made it through the day. Today I rarely use it, but I do use it as needed for my chronic pain.
All knowledge of these matters Great to know. Thanks! ❤👍🙏
I had two doctors put me on Gabapentin for peripheral neuropathy from receiving IV Taxol for chemotherapy. One doc put me on 300 mg at night only, the other doc wanted me to triple up on the dose 300 mg 3X a day. I found I could barely function taking the one pill at night. I didn't really have pain with my neuropathy, just numb/tingling. I did double up the dose to 300 mg morning and night and felt like a zombie. I decided to slowly wean myself off completely and did very well. I knew Gabapentin was NOT for me. It should be used for people who are possibly near death for pain relief. Or people who are already bedridden. But if you are walking and exercising and trying to move and live, Gabapentin stops all of that. And BTW it didn't help my neuropathy at all. Be warned.
You appear to be the exception
I have nerve damage in my hand they put me on two three hundreds a day i have some pain but mainly hot and cold stuff gives me pain i read the side effects of it so im just gonna keep that hand away from hot and cold stuff just not worth it unless it was crippling pain for me
How were you able to stop the tingling and numbing. I am experiencing that and don’t know what to do. Went to see doctor and he prescribed me Gaben, that doesn’t help. Please share. Thank you!
For you, for me it works a miracle to help my chronic pain and allows me to have a life and not be stuck in a chair all day. I take 300mg in the morning and 600mg in the evening.
I have fibromyalgia, gabapentin seemed to work well for me for awhile, but the brain fog became more and more evident until I had to stop. Now I see all these warning videos, it’s like, now you tell me!😂 Brain fog is crippling, it can be completely incapacitating, I thought I had Alzheimer’s! (I’m not, my mother had me tested! 😂)
Edit: UPDATE: OK, I didn’t stop everything all at once, I’m down to one pill, but HOLY CRAP! I’m a totally different person! I feel so much better! The brain fog is way down, I can remember my name! (jk). I remember things much better, I’m not confused and disoriented, my pain increased, but it’s better than the alternative! I’m so happy I cut back!
I take this 300 mg two times per day
Try CANNABIS
Lemon juice for brain fog
I have Fibromyalgia too, diagnosed in 2009 age 33. I thought Brain Fog is a symptom of fibro. I've been taking two, 300mg capsules of gabapentin 2-3times a day. I have noticed that in the last year or so, my gums are receding and the dentin is showing & stained. Some of my Molars are broken , I'm now 46 yrs old. I had one lower back molar pulled in 2016. I'm not sure what the Dentist injected into my gums to numb, but I was getting dizzy sitting in the chair. I was in pain all over in a few days from tensing up, as tooth was being yanked. I think I could have done better without the needles in my gums which hurt more than the yanking & braking at the time.
I need to get to the Dentist again to have lower right back molar yanked, due to breaking.
I have an opioid pain med Agreement with my PCP- Primary DR. She prescribes all of my medication. She added Chronic Pain to my chart. Due to the issues with My Spine, being diagnosed with a birth defect and my spine is 20yrs older than my age. I had surgery on my neck, disc removal with a spacer in 2016, due to the surgeon being concerned that if I were in an accident, I would not live. I still have two herniated discs in my neck. My lower back lumber disc, tore open two times in 2016 with the disc material blocking my spinal fluid. I had an MRI of lumbar and the same surgeon was shocked I walk into his office....
I want to let people know that I have experienced a miracle of Godly proportion of a few weeks of No Pain without opioids & no withdrawal, and being filled with the Holy Spirit & feeling Jesus' LOVE in 2-22-2020. Some pain has come back, but GOD says his mercy and Grace are enough. May you all be Blessed and have an amazing experience with the filling of the Holy Spirit! In Jesus name, Amen.
@@patriciarubio6228 A.N.Y. MEDICATION YOU USE (TOPICALLY/ORALLY/SUPPOSITORY), INCLUDING OTC VITAMINS/HERBAL MEDICATIONS, HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO NEGATIVELY AFFECT YOU - ALLERGIES/INTOLERANCES ARE A MAJOR ISSUE WITH MEDICATION & PEOPLE SHOULDN'T SELF DIAGNOSIS (n.e.v.e.r. WebMD your symptoms) ANY PROBLEMS AS IT EVEN COULD BE AN INTERACTION WITH ANOTHER MEDICATION, EATING/DRINKINGCERTAIN FOODS (GRAPEFRUIT IS A BIG ONE), FOOD DYE ADDITIVES TO MAKE THAT YELLOW, RED, PINK, BLUE, ETC. EDUCATE YOURSELF BUT UNLESS YOU HAVE A PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL DEGREE FROM A COLLEGE, YOU SHOULD NEVER THINK YOU KNOW MORE/UNDERSTAND SOMETHING YOU "THINK" YOU HAVENTHAN YOUR DOCTOR. YES, YOU CAN/SHOULD DEFINITELY BE YOUR OWN ADVOCATE BUT YOU NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT EVEN YOUR MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL IS "PRACTICING" MEDICINE & THEY CANNOT KNOW/BE UP TO DATE ON EVERY SINGLE POSSIBLE MEDICAL COMPLICATION AS THAT IS IMPOSSIBLE!! BE PATIENT, BE EDUCATED, BE SAFE. THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF MEDICATIONS, MEDICAL DISEASES, ALLERGIES, INTOLERANCES, RARE COMPLICATIONS OUT THERE AS WELL AS EVERY SINGLE PERSON WHO LIES/EXAGGERATES/DOWNPLAYS OR "FORGETS", OR DELIBERATELY MISREPRESENTS THEIR COMPLIANTS (hypochondriacs) TO OBTAIN DIFFERENT NARCOTICS/ATIVAN/XANAX/ANY CONTROLLED MEDICATION TO TELL THEIR MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL.
I suffer from chronic pain from a SCI 43 years ago. I’ve found through experience( my own experience) that eating an anti-inflammatory and loosing weight works miracles for me.
Thanks for the information. I have chronic pain and take gabapentin. I have had over 2 dozen surgeries so I am always getting anesthesia. Food for thought.
Gabapentin made the walls melt for me. Spent 4 long years on opiods, hydrocodone and morphine, detoxed myself off that and now I'm medication free. I did try Lyrica and that gave me sleep paralysis, what a HORROR that was, I was so terrified to fall asleep. Once off, the sleep paralysis went away, that was 3 months of terror. I am not pain free by any means, but I'm not in worse pain due to breakthrough pain and I'm not in hell anymore either.
Good for you, not an easy thing to do, I know. I now take ibuprofen for pain and sometimes it seems to work better.
So did the gabapentin cause the night terrors or the lyrica? I’m just curious I’ve just been put on gabapentin 300mg for plmd I’m not sure if it’s the right choice
Thanks for the insight
wow thanks for the complete info.
Gabapentin works very well for me. I have been taking it for over three years, and I can't get to sleep at night without it. Please note, I am taking it as prescribed, and only taking it at night, because I get super drowsy at that dosage.
Sat with my 90 year old father in law in the hospital for a full week 24/7 after a VA doctor told him to stop taking it. It was terrible. Withdrawal from it absolutely awful. That was not something you ever want to see anyone go through and especially an elderly person.
I was told that there was no withdrawal. BS. I took a THIRD of what I was prescribed. One or two 300 MG pill(s) a day for a month and then stopped cold. I was in HELL for days. It took me a full day to realize what was going on. My heart goes out to your dad.
@@reagandow850 I'm so sorry you went through that. And thank you. He's not with us now, but we did what we could to help him.
Yeah I took it for several years for neuropathy. I got sick and tired of the side effects so I stopped taking it. The withdrawals were pure HELL. Brain zaps, massive anxiety, repetitive uncontrollable thoughts, all kinds of things. NEVER AGAIN. I'd rather be in physical pain.
That’s messed up. I always assumed older people are given drugs until they die. To have a doctor stop giving a drug like this seems like abuse.
Same shit happens with caffeine and nicotine. Cold sweats, shakes, anger, etc. Opioids are WAY worse. You'll wanna tear your fuckin skin off!! Have hallucinations, literally shitting yourself as you're pukin.
Not every person is the god damned same man. Just cuz gabapentin is bad for one doesn't mean it's bad for all. Dumb. Whole worlds dumb. People hear shit, then just parrot it back out with their now misconstrued perception of what they think they heard. Dumb. There was a time we had heroin cough syrup for children!! Everyone was cool with that. Pot was legal until some racist cunt said hispanics and blacks wanna rape white women when they smoke it!! Now I'm just rambling. My point is
not everyone is the same.
Thank you for this information. I have MS and was prescribed both Lycra and opiods as I suffer chronic pain. My aim now is to cut down on both until I get to a level that is comfortable for me, alongside my doctors guidance of course.
This guy is a tool. Ignore this stupid video. Gabapentin works well for many individuals for pain. This idiot is trying to spread rumors for the purpose of his own self righteousness and greed. There is not one doc or pharmacist I personally know who would agree with his arrogant observation. I have take the medication for over 20 yrs and at a fairly high dose. Lyrica was too much for me. The side effects were not worth the benefit. I am on Oxycodone as well. My illness, like MS presents neurologically. What works best for me over all with all my symptoms (my illness is very progressed and I know longer go into remission) is my Faith in God and the Strength and Hope He gives me. Prayer often works instantly.
I’m glad you made us aware of possible seizures and/or A-Fib with Neurontin at high doses. 🙏💞
I had this toxic, life destroying drug for 6.5 years, I took myself off it despite my doctor telling me I should not. You see I had chronic bi-lateral neuropathy in both arms and hands....turned out to be a vitamin B deficiency but by the time I discovered that my balance had gone completely and i was falling almost daily and was covered in bruises.
Wow!! Sue that idiot for misdiagnosis
I'm on gabapentin for neuropathy in my thigh. I've been on it for 8yrs. I havent had any side effects, and it really helped. I have started having balance issues (maybe 6 yrs now), and I've fell several times (which hurts like hell ). When it happens, I literally just lose my balance and topple over. Any stumble or misstep effects my balance. Is this like your balance issues? And what B vitamins were an issue for you? I take B12 but none of the others.
@@dispeaking1 My 73 year old mother had these balancing issues. Her primary doctor said comes with age..4 months later took her to her annual oncologist appt. I told him of this new issue and he ran bloodwork and her B12 came back depleted. I took her once a month for 3 months to get B12 injections. Afterwards, over the counter B12. Three years later and no issues. Thank god for her caring oncologist.
My grandmother would completely hallucinate on it fell so much that one time she got any infection in bone had to have leg cut off above knee it really makes some people wacky but it works for nerve pain really well
I found out I was extremely low on b12 and b6 and was never tested for years by my doctor. Finally, he tests me and a simple b12 shot could have helped the pains in my legs and feet a few times a week but my insurance did not cover it. So he prescribed b12 2000mg. Still did not help as I had this for too long...I still take the b6 and b12 regularly hopefully I am absorbing them ok. I never see him. He is only in the office 2 times a week and always booked up so I get online telephone appointments? This medication did not cause this btw...
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I was prescribed gabipenton for pain after surgery for a full rotator cuff repair ,with a biceps tendon repair. Gabipenton was God sent i literally had no other side affects it went right at the pain and gave me major pain relief the surgeon told me it's about 50/50 chance it works like that on people but I'm thankful it did for me. I was also prescribed ocxys wich I did not take and wanted to avoid taking at all cost due to there adictictavness.
I have prostate cancer and on lupron that makes me have terrible sweats. They said this drug may reduce the sweats. Is this true as it worked at first but now it does not. Never any mention of using it for this. Can this be explained?
I used just it for pain 2 years ago and it really helped me. Having nerve issues and back on it
I had severe, couldn’t move, constant shooting down my arm pain from a pinched nerve. I can’t take opioids/pain meds at all due to unable to function(stay awake). My dr prescribed me Gabapentin and I got great relief without any side affects. I had to take it for quite a while until PT worked the pinch out. I had no withdrawals and no problem decreasing the amount I was taking as the pain decreased. I think it’s a miracle drug for nerve pain!
I had also never increased the opiods. I have used Gabapentin for years. I take 2400 mg of Gabapentin and have never felt euphoric from it. I have been off opiods for years due moving to a new state and to the whole hype thing with Doctors. My pain has gotten better due to so many new techniques that help to reduce my pain in addition to medication
Any advice on if it's used regularly and as directed for so long you become tolerant, my mother sometimes takes breaks from it (she takes it with muscle relaxers). Can taking breaks from it cause any potential problems? Alsp a curious general question, how should she get rid if them because she has a lot from her breaks just piling up. Do you soak them in coffee grounds and throw them out or return them to the pharmacy? I worry some dr.s just throw whatever at you without considering possible side effects or even help to try coming up with a plan for things like a built tolerance. My mother's dr seems like he gave up on my mother like she's a lost cause so any opinions or advice is much appreciated!
Very good video, thank you.
My doctor had me on it for years, but I don’t like any medicine, so I didn’t take it at all. It made me feel weird . I prayed for my health . Thank You Doctor For Telling The Truth .
Trying
Having pain stop IS euphoric. On the rare occasion mine does, even having not taken painkillers for years, it feels like a buzz. Just so euphoric. 🤤😑
Be aware of the risk of serotonin syndrome!!! I had it for 6 months before I finally realized that gabapentin was the cause. No Doctor knew what was wrong with me so I just kept taking them until I did my own research. Thank God for that! I pray that there's no permanent damage 😕🙏
My question is how many MG is too much in a day?
I ask this because I was on Gabapentin for a few years going from 300mg a day to 1800mg a day. Then I lost my insurance due to a work related injury (couldn't pay it while on work comp) so I then had to come off of them cold turkey which I was told was VERY bad, but I didn't have a choice. It did help with my chronic pain, but my medication tolerance is already high which is why my dosage increased so much over a short span of time (as far as I know). I refuse to take narcotics & opoids, so this was the option my doctor came up with. Now I have chronic headaches & migraines (from the work related injury) on top of the preious chronic pain in my body & am wondering if this medication would be bad for me to get back on to help. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Thank you for covering this topic. Used a low dose for many years for shoulder nerve pain until I realized it made the pain worse to make it better. Meaning if I missed a dose the pain was even worse. I discovered there are OTC medicines, supplements and proper PT that I can use to get the daily relief I need. Much more focus should be put on helping people use PT via gyms in addition to the medicines. Unfortunately, all this abuse of pain medicine is only hurting the people who truly have pain.
Take a B vitamin complex which includes B 1; B 6 and B 12; it will cause a bright yellow urine but it relieves neuropathy!
You're lucky because I was misdiagnosed and pumped with opioids for the system's mistakes.
I'm envious.
I starting having more pain since I started I was prescribed gabapentin for my alcoholism
I have to take this medicine. I do not like the side effects. But ever DR I’ve been to it’s always gabapentin. Live in pain or take the meds 😢.
The main abuse of pain medicine... is found basically in the people, who are on street drugs.. when they can't afford their cocaine, heroin and meth, they turn to pain meds and muscle relaxers....then if they can't afford that... they end up in ER wanting pain shots and pills. I have seen this with my own eyes!! Many street drug, addict's have many script's for pain reliever's and such!!
I was put on Gabapentin as a anti-convulsant when it first came out. It made me suicidal. When called, my Neurologist’s nurse said to double the dose. (I didn’t) I ended up in a psychiatric ward. Though no longer on it, I’ve never been the same.
It made me suicidal as well... it did nothing for the pain.
I think it has something to do with ones liver enzyme profile.
Check out info on the cytochrome p450 gene
Would 800 mg per day of Gabapentin be considered a high dosage?
I have peripheral neuropathy.
I do not take opioids.
I would love to discontinue this med, but afraid that my neuropathy will worsen.
Tylenol doesn't cut it alone.
Thanks
I was placed on gabapentin for neuropathy from cancer treatments. It provided little help but had a huge side affect that needs to be talked about. When on this medication I had suicidal thoughts throughout every day. I had never had them before, and never had them again, since I removed myself from this terrible affect.. I carry-on day to day without medication, in constant pain, but with out the terrible affects it had on my will to survive. How many subsides are directly linked to this medication?