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Have you seen the ad blitz for Lyrica (pregabalin)? A LOT of money is being spent trying to convince the American public that Lyrica is the answer to diabetic nerve pain. One of the most compelling commercials stars a retired policeman:“Hi, I’m Terry and I have diabetic nerve pain. I worked a patrol unit for 17 years in the city of Baltimore. When I first started experiencing the pain it’s hard to describe because you have a numbness but yet you have the pain like thousands of needles sticking in your foot.”This sounds awful, and indeed people with diabetic neuropathy suffer terribly. Symptoms can include: Symptoms of Diabetic Neuropathy.
Burning, tingling or a feeling of needles sticking into your skin. Numbness in toes and feet; an inability to sense a needle prick; reduced sensitivity to temperature change. Difficulty walking because of numbness, pain or weakness. Intense stabbing jolts of pain, especially in the evening. Sexual dysfunction. Swallowing difficulties.
Pregabalin capsule and oral liquid are also used to treat a condition called fibromyalgia (muscle pain and stiffness). Pregabalin works in the central nervous system (CNS) to control seizures and pain. It is an anticonvulsant and neuropathic pain agent. This medicine is available only with your doctor's prescription.
Poor stomach emptying, leading to feelings of fullness and bloating. Bladder problems.
Dizziness on standingIt’s hardly any wonder that patients with neuropathy and nerve pain would be looking for help. A commercial like the one with Terry, the retired Baltimore police officer, is very appealing.
When Terry says the “pain started subsiding” after taking Lyrica, we imagine that lots of viewers might think that they too might benefit from this drug. Are they paying attention, though, when the voice-over announcer says:“Lyrica is not for everyone. It may cause serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. Tell your doctor right away if you have these: new or worsening depression or unusual changes in mood or behavior, or swelling, trouble breathing, rash, hives, blisters, changes in eye sight including blurry vision, muscle pain with fever, tired feeling or skin sores from diabetes.
Common side effects are dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain, and swelling of hands, legs and feet. Don’t drink alcohol while taking Lyrica. Don’t drive or use machinery until you know how Lyrica affects you.”While you listen to the on-air announcer speed through this long list of complications you see Terry working in his backyard planting and watering pretty flowers. Somehow, the scary side effects seem less worrisome in such a bucolic setting.Here are some real stories from our website to bring the side effects into focus: This comes from LCB:“I started taking Lyrica 10 days ago for RLS restless leg syndrome and fibromyalgia. I was taking gabapentin but it had stopped working. I gained 14 pounds on the gabapentin, and now I’ve gained 5 pounds more on the Lyrica.
I have edema fluid retention as well. I’m sleepy for most of the day and I feel like I’m dragging my body around. I have no energy. My husband tells me I’m irritable with the kids, and that I can’t seem to remember things anymore.“All of this is quite a drastic change from my usual energetic, tireless self. I don’t like how I feel, and to make the most important point: Lyrica doesn’t seem to help much. I still have tons of pain, and RLS at night.
So, I have an appointment with my doctor to ask for a change. I believe that these medicines work very well on some people, but we are all so different. It doesn’t work for me.” T. Had a very scary story to share:“After almost eight years on Cymbalta, it had lost the effectiveness. My doctor added Lyrica to help with fibro. Soon after, I started to have a deep depression and wanted to end the pain that I have lived with for so long. The stress of life was so great, that I attempted suicide.
I was put in the hospital for four days.“At that point, no more meds! The symptoms are what everyone has described. I feel alone and lost in my own brain fog hell.
Not one of my family has a clue what a nightmare this is.” Kathy listed these complications:“I was on the drug eight months for fibromyalgia prescribed by a rheumatologist. I, too, started having problems with eyesight (my eye doctor could NOT update my lenses due to Lyrica causing severe blurriness). I also had memory loss, anxiety, and trouble sleeping. I suffer from chronic constipation due to diverticulitis, and the Lyrica was making this worse. I weaned off over a three-week period. The withdrawal was/is terrible.“I am 9 weeks into it, and still have terrible throbbing ongoing headaches, difficulty swallowing, and went from 134 lbs to 118!
I feel like I’m dying most of the time. I went to my current neurologist today and was told there were no such symptoms from Lyrica withdrawal!“Google it, doctor! Please, if anyone reading this is considering taking Lyrica, reconsider! If you have side effects like I did, then decide to go off; you may be looking at a long recovery and NO help from a doctor. They are all denying any problems with this medication. Please read the “Lyrica Withdrawal” posts first!”Getting off drugs that affect the central nervous system can sometimes be challenging. As we mentioned recently with our post on Abilify, the track record of psychiatry and neurology has been abysmal when it comes to studying sudden withdrawal from commonly prescribed medications.
It took years for researchers to discover that when patients suddenly stopped benzodiazepines such as alprazolam ( Xanax), diazepam ( Valium) or lorazepam ( Ativan) they often experienced very unpleasant withdrawal symptoms. Ditto for antidepressants like citalopram ( Celexa), duloxetine ( Cymbalta), escitalopram ( Lexapro), sertraline ( Zoloft) and venlafaxine ( Effexor).The story of Lyrica (pregabalin) withdrawal is also murky.
There is very little in the medical literature on this topic. The prescribing information does mention, though, that some patients report symptoms such as insomnia, nausea, headache, anxiety, sweating or diarrhea if they stop suddenly. The advice: taper the dose over at least a week rather that stopping suddenly. We fear that such information is not always that helpful, especially since there is not much practical information about actual dosage reduction.
I have been taking Lyrica for years. I was prescribed this medication as a pain reliever, as I was already on so much Oxycodone.
I have greatly reduced the Oxycodone due to insistence from my doctor. When prescribed Lyrica, I asked if it was addictive. I was told no, not at all.
I have twice been in a position that I had to go for a day or two without Lyrica. I did not sleep at all. My body hurt so badly that I could not get comfortable. I had bad headaches. I had cramping and gas. This was after missing (1) dose. Reading the ‘withdrawal’ symptoms and side effects of this medication that I was told was not addictive, I found that I have many of them.
With the recent addition of a video doorbell, I have gotten to see that my ‘gait’ is also affected. I also have significant memory issues, weight gain, foot numbness and poor stomach emptying (massive constipation) (along with others. Just these past (2) days (and nights) when I realized that I was out of Lyrica, I reduced my allotment to half. In so doing, I slept less than (4) hours total these past two nights, not to mention the achy pain.I hope this helps someone. I will be looking to get off this medication, but I am very concerned after this fresh experience. Is there another medication that can be used to help?
My almost complete inability to sleep, along with the pain etc, have me worried. Any suggestions? I am off now to pick up my prescription.This episode is over, but I cannot say that I do not foresee that I will again have at least (1) sleepless night (etc) again in my future. I was put on lyrica 18 months ago for severe anxiety and social anxiety disorder. I was originally put on 75mg x2 daily. At first I thought this drug was amazing. My stomach anxiety disappeared, and I began socialising again, but my medication over the following months was upped to 200mg x2 daily, and I became withdrawn and avoided any kind of social event.
I gained 3 stone in weight. I would stay in bed for days on end never washed or got dressed.I managed to wean my self down to 100mg x2 daily, and 3 times I got down, with the doctor’s advice, slowly to 0 Lyrica per day. The withdrawal symptoms from this drug are horrendous. I only ever managed a couple of days off the drug, and I was back on it. Lyrica was turning me into a zombie. I hated myself.
I was having suicidal thoughts. It stripped me of my whole identity. I needed to get off this drug.I am currently coming off lycria but I am using codeine for the pain and diazepam to help me sleep. It is the only way I am ever going to get off this horrible drug. If I knew what was ahead of me I would have never have taken it. This drug is soul-destroying, and I find it crazy that a lot of GPs don’t know how horrid being on and coming off this drug is. If anyone is thinking of starting Lyrica I would say “NO.
Don’t do it.” Reply. I don’t see anyone on here talking about the price. I hate that my previous Dr. Took me off very addictive drugs just to put me on a drug that costs me over $400 a month, makes me feel horrible, and will probably cause suicidal thoughts if I try to get off it. Gabapentin did cause suicidal thoughts.
I went off a bunch of drugs. It was an opioid cold turkey because I was suicidal and had to be on an antidepressant. Lyrics is what they put me on.
I can’t afford it but am scared to death to withdraw! My doctor prescribed Lyrica for 1 month trial for Labyrinthitis-(constantly dizzy.
Only when I lie down does my dizziness stops). I have now been on Lyrica for almost 2 weeks but my dizziness has worsened. I am sleepy and feel fatigued all day. I have been retaining fluid in feet, legs and hands, have a hard time concentrating. I didn’t weigh myself before I started Lyrica but I know I have gained weight. I am also feeling depressed. I just wanted to share my experiences while taking Lyrica.
It’s definitely not working in MY case. I am 6 days Pregablin freeso I guess that means I am almost over the withdrawal! I wish I had never been put on it. It took me a while to figure out what was going on as I was very low, I had suicidal impulses (ooo look a bridge-lets jump off it), I cried a lot, I had no energy, my legs and arms stopped working and this was scary as I drive a lot for work, I got larger (and I eat crazy healthy) and overall it had a huge impact on my life. I was told to up my dose to 300mg morning and nightand things got worse-this is when it finally clicked that pregablin was not working for me! I was not told about how bad it can be for people and was not told how awful it was to come off it-so on advise from my doctor I did just stop!
Nowthe most worrying thing I think was that I looked online at the symptoms to figure out what was happening to me and realised that I was going through withdrawal symptoms and that I was actually very poorlyheadaches, diohrea, hot and cold, flu like sypmtoms, didn’t sleep for 5 nights, no interest in ANYTHING! No concentrationsickhungry and sickhotcoldpain! I had no idea it was like this. I posted on some online groups and people being useful told me to go back on itI didn’t as I figured I was over the worst by that part (so far I’m right but who knows).I guess all I know is its horrible. I’m sure it has a use and I’m sure for some people its amazingbut it ruined me!
I lost a lot of friends over the last year of my lifeim starting to feel human and I slept last night which was lovely. I’m going to try running this evening but it still hurts to lie down (feels like people are pricking me all over) but this is nothing compared to the past week! Doctors need to tell people all about this drug before they take it!If like me you have googled withdrawal and are wanting positive storiesI do want to say you can do it! I don’t know what life brings, or how long it lastsbut I do know I am starting to hear things I haven’t heard for agesto dream againto like cups of tea, to fidget.and I’m back in my size 12 clothes (not even a week after my last dose so that is some water retention right there) Reply. I was om gabapentin from a psychiatrist who worked for Contra Costa County of Northern.California. He prescribed it as an off use-med that was originally for strokes or similar.It makes you fuzzy and sleepy.its been known to give you Edema.NOW they prescribe it for nerve pain, cause i have nerve damage in MY FEET.WELL,I got more info. From home-care givers of Oregon,and many of them say,by experience, gabapentin does nothing for nerve pain.I also have fibromyalgia.
I wish I had not been given that drug. It made my body pain or fibro worse. It also made me return to ultram 50mg 2x day. I had been weaning myself down to 25mg.
But then caught flu virus, and something triggered severe nerve pain; went to hospital and given pregabalin. Now I want off of it. Stomach too bloated, feel feverish, mood is cranky, weight gain, a.m. Headaches every morning. I am also weaning off of zopiclone. The pregabalin can be useful for initial sleep. Overall it did stop the pain in my armpit.
Found out I have tendonitis and bursitis and waiting to see neurologist for nerve test. GP said h1n1 flu virus can attack nerves.
Many drugs are capable of causing physiological dependence, so that when a person quits taking the medicine he immediately experiences side effects. In many cases, these reactions may be similar to the original problem for which a person might have been given the prescription in the first place.This can lead the patient or the physician to conclude that the original condition is still a serious problem, but this is not necessarily the case. The symptoms could be due to a rebound phenomenon. This reader has had a really difficult time withdrawing from Lyrica because of the rebound effect. Stopping Lyrica suddenly can trigger a range of miserable reactions, as we have described.Q.
I have Lyme disease that was originally misdiagnosed as fibromyalgia. I was put on Lyrica to help with the constant pain.For a while I thought it was working because if I accidentally skipped a dose I felt like I was dying. The awful pain, tremors, nausea and migraines I got when I didn’t take Lyrica were really a sign that I was totally dependent on it.I’m now working to slowly wean myself off.
That will take a long time because I’m on a high dose. I’m relieved to know that the depression, irritability and restless legs I’m experiencing is just my body coming down from the Lyrica. Stopping Lyrica SuddenlyA. Pregabalin (Lyrica) has a reputation as a safe and well-tolerated treatment for nerve pain (neuropathy) and fibromyalgia. But readers have reported side effects such as dizziness, fatigue, confusion or brain fog, dry mouth and weight gain.Stopping Lyrica suddenly can trigger symptoms such as insomnia, headache, anxiety, nausea, excessive sweating and diarrhea.
The official prescribing information specifies gradual tapering over at least a week. Some people may require a much slower withdrawal process.We are sorry that your misdiagnosis meant you took a medicine that was not helpful for your condition-and didn’t get the antibiotic that could help. To learn more about what a Lyme disease misdiagnosis can mean, you may want to listen to, author of.
Doctors are completely ignorant about this and Neurontin. While on Lyrica, I developed tinnitus, interstitial cystitis, dizziness, complete emotional flat line, and after a month, I started having interdose withdrawals. My body demanded that I take more. When I didn’t my pain intensified. I stopped for over a week, as I had only been on it for seven weeks. I went through two weeks of withdrawals including anxiety attacks, insomnia, and nerve pain like I had never experienced.
There is a group on Facebook that helps people to come off of Pregabalin gradually and provides emotional support. I know this is an older thread, but most people who comment are very negative about their experience with this medication(Lyrica). If you do an internet search on any medication, you’ll find comments from people who think that medication is the worst thing ever, that it’s poison, etc.I’ve been on Lyrica 600 my a day for 12 or 13 years now, and it’s been a lifesaver. I have peripheral neuropathy with an unknown cause, and have very bad numbness, pain, burning, pins and needles, shooting nerve pain, etc. I’ve had very few side effects, other than apparently i now talk too much, but I do know that if my script runs out, I will suffer from withdrawal and terrible burning pain in my feet again. I accept that, and do everything I can to make sure I don’t run out.I tried gabapentin before Lyrica, and I couldn’t think, couldn’t wake up, was severely depressed, etc. What I want to convey to people on this thread and others that read it is that I know I’ll be on lyrica the rest of my life, so I don’t worry about withdrawal.
What’s important to know is anything that crosses the blood brain barrier will cause changes that put you at risk for withdrawal symptoms. Everything.The other thing to know, is we are all very different in how we metabolize drugs, so something that causes terrible side effects in one person can be another person’s salvation. Science and drug research already know about this, but practice lags way behind research. Much of the blame is due to lack of reimbursement for genetic and metabolic testing. There are ways to know which meds would be best for your individual body to avoid, due to the way your body processes them, before they are ever prescribed. Insurance won’t pay for these tests.There are people out there who would tolerate Lyrica without a problem, who would read these postings, and never want to try the med, when in fact it could change their whole life for the better.
All I’m trying to say is that it’s not the med, it’s the refusal to acknowledge that we are all very individual in the way that we process them. For anyone wanting to delve into this further, do a search on the CYP/P450 metabolism charts.
It will show which meds are processed by which enzyme in our livers.Never having been tested, but having tried incredible numbers of meds, I can see most every one I had trouble with was listed under one enzyme system. I won’t take any meds that are metabolized by that system, because that system in my body is inadequate to take that med.
Hope the explanation isn’t too complicated, but just want people to know this can be a very good med.My life isn’t perfect. I still have pain, but less of it, and I no longer want to die because of it. Just know that if a med is going to affect your brain or nerves, you will have withdrawal symptoms from stopping it. Believe me, I’ve been through it and know how bad withdrawal can be from stopping other meds.
Hope you all find something that can help your physical symptoms associated with your specific diagnosis. Don’t give up. If a medication doesn’t work or you have awful reactions, try something else, and keep trying until you find something that works. It’s difficult to have nerve pain, and it’s worse than any other pain I’ve ever had. It’s not visible to others when they look at you, but the burden of that suffering is tremendous. My best to all.
I have a dear friend who says his life was ruined with Lyrica. He had to get an ambulance because the withdrawal symptoms were so bad, and he didn’t sleep properly for months properly. He had been pysiclally dependent on opiate medication before and said coming off the opiates was a gentle walk in the park compared to the living hell of Lyrica withdrawals.If this chemical is supposed to heal then I’m Donald Duck!It’s a nasty evil chemical pushed by big Pharma and doctors who have no idea what they are prescribing.
I’ve been on lyrica for years for seizure control. But, 10 days ago, I was about to need a refill. Turned into a total mess because a NP prescribed it, but under a Drs supervision. Shouldn’t have been an issue, but I was calling both the pharmacy and the Drs office daily, and finally today I just went in, got a RX, and got it filled. I have been feeling so sick for those 10 days; shakes, diarrhea, severe anxiety, insomnia. It took me a bit to realize it was withdrawal.
Id like to eventually wean off of it, but don’t look forward to being this sick! I was only taking 50mg Lyrica for one week, then increased to 100mg for second week, with goal of 150mg by third week. I had reaction to it in second week. Shortness of breath and tremors. I stopped taking it immediately and contacted my doctor’s office about it.
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They told me they were not surprised and that often patients end up having problems with it.So here I am only one week after stopping and have shakiness all over, shortness of breath, heightened anxiety (I have PTSD so this made it worse), restless, hard time falling and staying asleep, and nausea. All this from only being on this crap for 11 days!This truly sucks! I’ve been on pregabalin 150mg for 4 years now. I don’t have any illness, I just take t for the high. On average, I take 7-10 pills at once. I also smoke weed with it. Sure feels good and gives you the energy.
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However, to lower my tolerance I would stop for a day (longest days ever).Without weed, it’s impossible to sleep. I usually open the capsules and fill up a cup with the powder which gets mixed with water and then bottoms up. By the way, for every 10 strips (1 strip has 10 caps) I buy, I get one strip for free:).I once had 10 caps, a lot of weed, and alcohol.
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I blacked out and my whole body started to spasm(?). That one was scary.
I stopped for a day and then started my same routine.I want to know how this will effect my health. Be VERY wary of this man, I can’t say for sure but I feel like lyrica has something to do with what I’m going through. I’m 22 and have used lyrica recreationally on a virtually daily level for about 2 years. I now am having symptoms like stomach pain, anxiety and depression, no appetite whatsoever, and now symptoms that seem like muscular dystrophy.
All of the symptoms prior to the muscle wasting (like literally entire muscle groups disappearing), would ease up upon lyrica dosing.Just be warned man, I’ve been to many doctors that say lyrica doesn’t do this shit, but a lot of doctors also seem to have no idea that a drug like this could even be so easily abused. Especially when everyone I’ve ever given it to have reacted like I’ve just opened their eyes to some new drug. If you can’t see shit that obvious, then maybe complex ramifications are just way out of reach. A lot of em still don’t agree lyrica can even cause debilitating withdrawal symptoms.So mate, the point is IF lyrica does start affecting your health in some way.
Don’t expect it to be picked up by doctors before it’s too late. This is the most horrible substance I have ever come across. I only took it for a week and it gave me extreme withdrawal effects that lasted around a month! I have experienced cold-turkey from opioids and a rapid taper from benzos, but neither was a bad as coming off Lyrica.I was awake for 5 days (not even a moment of sleep), shaking, vomiting, paranoid, confused, boiling hot but shivering and covered in goose-pimples at the same time this feeling of utter terror that I cannot even describe. I really thought my brain had been damaged beyond all repair. I could not believe just a week of taking this shit did this to me.Thankfully things improved pretty fast, but it took a month for me to be able to sleep properly again and not feel anxious.
Please do not start taking this drug, if you are on it then taper off. I would have tapered but I had been on it such a tiny amount of time that I just stopped.
I can’t believe doctors are prescribing this poison to people who are already suffering pain and anxiety, they must have been duped by the pharma-sponsored studies.
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