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I am concerned for addiction withdrawal , and any physiological side effects. I suffer from pinched nerves and muscle soreness. I have been offered cortisol injections or the medication. I have heard good things about the cortisol, but cant see getting injections 5 times a year. I am indecisive about what to do.
Do you mean cortisone injections? Supposedly one can be given 3 months apart. There are positives and negatives to these injections. I've had a couple in my life and don't go after them. The hospital MD's did one on my knee when they had no idea what was going on, it did nothing. A doctor I hear on radio every weekend says cortisone can break down cartilage. If the injection works the relief is different for everyone. I got no relief with my issue, which turned out to be an infection, bad stuff.
There are so many options to work with and one can seek them on our own too. There are stretches that help with the muscle and nerve issues. My body has been thru years of wear and tear and I don't seek the drugs but do try alternatives.
I have neuropathy and Fibromyalgia and I take 2400 miligrams a day, I have no side effects at this amount and it just barely keeps the pains at bay. Previously I overdosed on it trying to keep the pain under control and ended up in the hospital with total halucinations for about a week. However I really don't know what I would do without it since nothing else helps at all.
I have neuropathy and Fibromyalgia and I take 2400 miligrams a day, I have no side effects at this amount and it just barely keeps the pains at bay. Previously I overdosed on it trying to keep the pain under control and ended up in the hospital with total halucinations for about a week. However I really don't know what I would do without it since nothing else helps at all.
Do you work with other alternatives for your issues. There are many alternatives to work with, B vitamines are major for Nerve Damage. Fibro, so many issues need to be addressed, I was told I have Fibro in 1999 and found so much info on the connection between Fibro and a dsyfunctional thyroid. Got that fixed after a lot of struggling years.
I take it for my idiopathic peripheral neuropathy. The neurologist prescribed it for me at 4x per day, but I usually only take it 2x a day, depending on whether the neuropathy is flaring up. He said that was a good idea. So, I'll increase to 3x if things get worse and taper back to 2x when it eases off. I've never yet had to go to 4x.
I haven't had any noticeable side effects and I've been on it for over two years now. The neurologist did say not to go "cold turkey" quitting, but to taper it off slowly.
It doesn't completely knock out the neuropathy but it sure does lessen the severity.
I was given gabapentin about 7 years ago when I developed adult-onset epilepsy and it was the most horrible medication that I've ever taken. It made me feel like a zombie; couldn't concentrate and still felt tired after sleeping 14 hours! Dizziness, dry mouth, staggering like I was drunk, rash, and pretty much any other adverse effect that you can imagine. I was mercifully taken off the drug and put on topiramate and lamictal which I am currently on and control my seizures well.
On the other hand, my sister-in-law has severe fibromyalgia and takes gabapentin for her pain. It has been a wonder drug for her and she has no side effects with it other than slight dry mouth which doesn't bother her much. Her doctor had tried literally a dozen other medications to try and give her some pain relief before gabapentin so the drug has been her wonder drug.
One of my friends has diabetic neuropathy and she takes gabapentin with no major issues.
It's all individual I guess.
I would go ahead and at least ask your healthcare provider about it if s/he thinks that it might be helpful for you. It has a lower potential for addiction/tolerance than do some of the opioid based painkillers. Cortisol injections are helpful as well for acute flareups of soreness but are not really considered a long term solutions due to some of the side effects associated with them such as potential bone loss and issues w/ the adrenal glands. Physical therapy can be helpful as well, so look into that route if you haven't.
My husband took it for pain, and if he had stayed on it we would have divorced. His IQ dropped to single digits.
I used to take Lyrica, and had no side effects. If you can afford it, it is much better (it's the improved version of gabapentin I think).
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any good / bad experiences with this medication. I will be using it for nerve pain, but I am skeptical in hearing the horror stories.
I was prescribed and used it briefly for traumatic amputation "phantom pain" which for me was mostly a tingling sensation that faded over several months. I think I took a low dose, not sure if it really did much, I think I just got used to the amputation and the nerve endings calmed down.
With any new medications I like to look at them the way a health professional would. Try an internet search for the following
Gabapentin
1. mechanism of action
2. onset , peak, duration
3. elimination - how it is metabolized
if you look at those three, side effects will probably be in those explanations as well
Alpha lipoic acid will help with neuropathy. It will not replace the need for gabapentin at first, but you can take them together, and it will help heal the nerves over time.
I didn't feel like I had any addiction to gabapentin. I tapered the dose when I stopped taking it because my dad stopped taking it suddenly, and had a seizure two days later that was so severe he broke his shoulder from the force of the muscles contracting. He was taking it for neuropathy and had never had a seizure before.
I took alpha lipoic acid and gabapentin for several years. I'm not taking either one right now and I don't have any neuropathy issues. No burning, no dropped foot feelings, no crawling sensations on my legs. I really thought once you had it, it was with you for life, so I'm happily surprised that's not the case.
B vitamins won't do squat if you are not deficient in them. What you don't seem to understand is neuropathy is one of the hardest things to treat. Your friend got lucky that grape seed extract worked. It is not the great elixir you make it out to be.
People suffering from neuropathy have a few choices, none of them good. Gabapentrin - if you can handle the side effects. Older antidepressants such as Elavil - which I take that sort of helps. Pain meds - which sometimes do not address this type of pain.
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