Sudden Withdrawal From Neurontin (Page 11)

I have been taking 600 mg of Neurontin 4x a day for about 2 years and recentlty ran out of this medication due to excrutiating slow service from mandatory mail order RX company.... I was extremely agitated during this time (approx. 5 days), nervous, stressed out, etc. Has anyone else had these symptons as a result of sudden withdrawal from Neurontin? I can't understand why this happened, I felt so scared and lousy for that time. Is this a known reaction for this med? I haven't been able to find an answer. I take it for relief from carpel tunnel syndrom. Thanks

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My husband is currently on Gabapentin 300MG twice a day and tramadol twice a day for peripheral neuropathy. He wants to get off of Gabapentin. He is also taking Crestor 20MG. In 2002 he had to have a stint put in a artery because of blockage and has been on the Crestor since then. Have been reading articles on Crestor and how terrible it is for you and that it can cause neuropathy, nerve damage, and even lead to diabetes. The doctor took him off of the Crestor this week for a month. At the time of his stint placement he didn't even have high blood pressure or high cholesterol. We think the Crestor is causing the nerve damage and the swings in his blood sugar. He has been on Gabapentin for a couple years, he hates the way he feels, wants to wean himself off of it.

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i have been on gabapentin 300mg, 4 a day. i ended up in hospital, as my blood pressure crashed to 70 over 33. my salt level had depleted drastically and i was put on an i.v drip. my nose bled so much and my eyes, ears and sinuses became infected and i was continuously nauseous and had stomach cramps. i have just decided to stop taking it and have been off it for just over a week. i think i would rather put up with not being able to sleep properly than be like i was. have others had same symptoms

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My Dr prescribed gabapentin for me following a neck injury 9 mos ago. I took 300mg 2x/day. Ran out 4 days ago & decided not to refill my script. I've been feeling edgy & extremely fatigued since I stopped taking the gaba. Any idea how long this lethargy will last?

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I was out of neurontin for 3 1/2 days before I got my refill. the first day was the worst. I took a sleeping pill during the morning and went to bed and I was so restless breaking out in sweats and chills and Irritable. I was so nauseous the whole time and nothing helped.I hardly ate anything a sandwich and a piece of toast with butter that was it. {edited for privacy}. please let me know how you're doing

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i have also had those symptoms since stopping my neurontin. it is an awful feeling but while i was taking it i really had no true feelings, couldnt cry. all emotions numbed, but since stopping it i now have my feelings back again and the blood noses etc have stopped and i am determined not to take it again

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Hi there! I hope you are doing better since your blog but I wouldn't be surprised if you are the same! I have totally dropped my morphine er 15mg and the gabapentin is the worst! I was out on my brothers boat on Thursday and had a tremor! This is the name I give it when I have a seizure like event! Needless to say it freaked my brother and his wife out as they had never seen anything like that and I had not told them about my episodes! I hope that these symptoms stop and you are on your way to a more normal life! I too am on 300mg twice a day and tonight I am going down to 1 a day! These are by far the worst meds I have ever been on and I wish you nothing but success in removing them from your life!<3

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Whew-It's been 10 days since I took any gabapentin & the withdrawal is improving but still present. I'm less lethargic & cranky. I was seriously short fused the 1st week & fatigued. Still low energy but not nearly as irritable. My skin's been sensitive throughout this ordeal & I've experienced twitching like little electrical jolts in some of my back & neck muscles. I've felt the need to explain my erratic behavior to my loved ones who while sympathetic are also clueless as to why cessation of this med has caused the problems I'm experiencing. Doctors beware of casually prescribing gabapentin. Thanks to everyone here for your support & for sharing your experiences. Nice to know I'm not alone :)

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Well done, it's worth it in the end. I have not regretted for a single second coming off both pregabilin, a while back, or gabapentin more recently, horrible mind altering drugs. You just need to keep strong & you can do it as we have proved..

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I went cold turkey from the highest possible dose for almost 3 years. Was the worst 4 to 6 weeks of my life. But I'm so glad I went off the HORRIBLE drug!! Yes the nerve pain, tingling and pins and needle sensations are back but I will cope with them better than what the gabapentin was doing to me. I actually have more energy and I'm no longer in a CONSTANTLY fog that I had with the gabapentin. Best of luck to ALL of you trying to learn about this med and going off it. The doctors just prescribe it but I honestly don't think thru realize all that it does to a person who is on it for extended periods of time or on high doses. One dr did mention stopping cold turkey is VERY DANGEROUS and can cause some serious problems. Fortunately I didn't have many serious problems. Just felt horrible. Someone said my withdrawal symptoms were pretty comparable to stopping H. So be careful stopping cold turkey especially if your on a high dose. DEFINITELY discuss the best way to stop it with your dr or pharmacist if you're having any tough withdrawal symptoms. Good luck to any and all that take this medication. The side effects are worse than the original problems. An old saying the cure is worse than the disease! !

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It's been 2 weeks since I took my last dose of gabapentin & each day I feel better. It surprises me that I've experienced so much withdrawal from it as I only took 300mg twice a day for 9 months. The irritability, fatigue, night sweats-heavy sweats, itching all over, aches & pains, etc... Yikes! I'm back to being pleasant & patient but still don't feel great & am tired which is probably because I'm not sleeping well due to the night sweats. I told my doctor about my experience & she seemed surprised although not skeptical. I'm a college graduate twice so I'm believable because I'm articulate-can't write worth a damn though lol. I tapered from 600mg to 300mg a day & if I had it to do all over again I'd drop the dose even lower before stopping completely. Good luck to everyone that's trying to stop taking this God awful medication. Pharmaceutical companies should be ashamed. There's a special place in hell for some of their employees be them as high as the highest management. God bless all of you for courageously sharing your stories & for offering your support. Good luck & stay strong!

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I have been on Gabapentin for a total of 4 almost 5 years although I didn't realize I was on it that long when I started writing on this blog! I was taking 1800mg a day and Dr wanted to put me up on 2400mg which is the highest dose! I can say that I went off 900mg which is 1/2 of what I was taking and thought I had something horribly wrong with me and all it was , was the withdrawal from it but even my EM didn't know what was wrong with me and you are so right that the doctors don't know anything about the drugs they give you! I am having a hard time going off the last 600mg a day and I am on a super vacation discovering America and have decided to wait till I get back home in September to get off these last two doses a day! I have gone totally off my morphine ER this trip and think I have done a super job but SOME DAYS were a challenge! I am thrilled that another patient has gone off this cruel horrible medication that should be banned and used only for people who have seizures which is what is was originally for! I am almost back to my old self and have hurt some feelings of both family and friends saying mean and angry things which I don't remember and had no idea I was doing or did it! GREAT JOB !

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I've been on gabapentin for almost 5 yrs,I take 300mg x 4 pills...2 times a day.I feel it's not working much anymore,I have nerve pain issues and fibromyalgia. I read you are NOT suppose to quit this RX suddenly or COLD turkey,if you do that it can cause depression, anxiety, suicide thoughts,etc. So,I will be calling my Dr to find out the right way to go off of it........When I 1st took this med it seemed to really help me, but now I question if it's very effective anymore.I still have nerve pain off an on.

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Was on morphine er (120 mg/d) for 18 months following cancer surgery, and quite that with with relative ease. Now I'm on gabapentine 300 x 4 and it is relatively effective in dealing with my nerve pain. The main problem I'm encountering is the fatigue. After three weeks of this I'm ready to wean myself off before I head back to work in two weeks.

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100MG is very little, I took 300MG for a whole month and my withdrawal symptoms are just as bad as the people here. Night sweats, Tingling / numbness sensations, anxiety, panic attacks, and LOTS OF DEPRESSION leading to lost of appetite and less social.

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Anyone having difficulties with withdrawal symptoms at 100mg taper reduction can ask their GP for liquid gabapentin thereby being able to reduce by 50mgs or less if needed. If your GP is reluctant to support your request it is because a 100 mils bottle of gabapentsolution liquid costs in excess of £100 ! Also listen very carefully to your gp regarding dosing With my liquid solution 2.5mils = 50mg capsule form (but as you know you can't get lower than 100 mg capsule form)

I had to resort to liquid because I just could't tolerate 100mg taper the withdrawal was unbearable awful anxiety & severe depression. Even 50mg drop is difficult compounded by the fact that I also get withdrawals between doses of Solpadol (codiene & paracetomol) at a prescribed level. Unfortunately those of us struggling with trying to manage chronic pain also build up a tolerance to the opiates/pain relief drugs and experience very unpleasant withdrawals ie depression, anxiety etc sorry for going on but hope info of use to those struggling with reducing gabapentin. Good luck

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HELLO, I take it for the same reason however I agree doesn't work but pregabilin does work but gp don't want to prescribe it as it costs them 3000 pounds

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That med also has gabapentin in it! Be very careful of what you take and look it up on WebMD because there are several meds that contain gabapentin in them!

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I am currently waiting for a gabapentin compound in the mail and hope it gets me off the last 2 pills I take a day! At one point I was taking 1800mg a day and was only110lbs. Gained a lot of weight and now weigh 124lbs which another side effect of weight gain. I am 5ft short and am walking, doing some light weight workout, going to physical therapy(traction) and the chiropractor 2 times weekly.

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I took 600mg a day for at least four months, ran out, and had no issues whatsoever. Zero ill effects as a result of stopping the medication suddenly, but I guess I'm an unusual case? I was warned, but I couldn't afford to refill at the time...and nothing happened. Guess I'm lucky!

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My Husband is doing better and less agitated and eating better the more I read about withdrawing from those meds especially gabapentin/neurontin alot of his behavior from even the early years on that drug till now are explained . The withdrawal from neurontin /gabapenton alone can cause nausea, severe headaches, insomnia, fatigue,extreme agitation,violent outburst,pain, and seizures even in controlled slow withdrawals under the guidance of a doctor.

He also told me he felt like at times he cannot breath properly if he takes pain meds so he has stopped taking it and switched to Tylenol only.So far we are lucky he suffered no permanent damage but will have to be on anticonvulsives for a period of time and followed by a neurologist until they determine if he can ever come off of them or ever drive again.

This unnerves me. He was taking gabapentin / neurontin for his back for years.He continued to complain to doctors about pain so they added lyrica, cimbalta vimova and celebrex over the years. Doctors and pharmacy gave no warning about cutting gabapentin/neurontin and other drugs. So when he had surgery He didn't restart thinking he could just get off it.

A Google search of gabapentin / neurontin withdrawal also reported nausea, somatic pain, respiratory infections in elderly and in other rare cases epilepsis in patients who didn't have a syndrome before , and I just now dredged up the reason why, along with the fact that He had 2 grand mal seizures after bypass surgery and we were not sure if he was throwing a clot or stroking from the surgery. He finally free of pain and calmer but still has periods of agitation but nothing like the last few weeks.

Just pored over pfizer's documentation. If you read the medication pamplets that are provided with the prescription, in the side effects that are listed with the prescription it lists that it is important to take as prescribed and not miss a dose. Additionally there is information regarding Sudden WITHDRAWAL FROM THE DRUG CAN CAUSE SEIZURES. This was never told to us. In warning (Never handle withdrawal on your own, but contact your doctor. )

Look up defective drugs and find the danger in this drug.

God willing we are over all the worst part and heading for normalcy.

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