Gabapentin - any advice?

[kinderbuenonomnom]

I'm due to start gabapentin today. For nerve pain and chronic sickness after chemotherapy. I had no idea it could be used for digestion but my stomach rejects food completely after chemo so it's a slow and steady journey to get me eating again after being on a liquid diet mostly for so long and they've prescribed me gabapentin for that and also nerve pain in my hands and arms and restless legs from chemo.

I always get very nervous when it comes to new medications as I've been taking so many awful things for the past few years that have had awful side effects and I've read up about it and all I've read are horror stories about side effects and dependency. I'm starting today on a low dose to build up to over a week. I was discharged from hospital yesterday with my tablets. At the moment I'm on omeprazole, iron, and cocodamol occasionally when the pain is bad but that tends to make me sick too so I don't like taking it.

Has anyone had any experiences with gabapentin, good or bad? If it works for me I will be on it for the long run. I've decamped to the bedroom with Netflix today as I'm totally wiped from my latest hospital stay. I'm so excited to be able to eat real food again and build up some muscle and strength.

Thank you :)

Hopeful bump!

For nerve pain nothing else works for me, I have a hereditary peripheral neuropathy that means my nerves die painfully. It doesn't make me nauseous at all but the "loading phase" where you're finding your dose, can make you tired or floaty feeling. Once you're there it is amazing at tackling the pain and you don't get the tired and floating feeling at all in my experience

I was on that for a few years as it was good for my nerve pain and epilepsy. I did feel a little spaced out at first. It settled down quickly though apart from that I didn't have any side affects. It helped a lot with pain for me. I had to stop as I was pregnant and it wasn't that bad. It was a bit uncomfortable but nothing major for me. I really hope that it helps you.

Thank you both so much.

Ive had my first dose and I feel a bit floaty but it's not a bad feeling it's actually quite nice! The docs said to expect some tiredness for a week or so until dose is built up.

I was on it last year having slipped a disc in my back and being bedridden for 7 weeks.

It took me a while to get used to it so you need to remember that you must give it time to start working.

Once it started to work, it was great. Just give it a chance to start working. It's not an overnight cure.

I find it works; but I also keep gaining weight on it. I'm desperate to come off it but the only thing offered, everyone but the GP says I can't have.

Thank you both.

I'm currently underweight due to all my treatments so a bit of weight gain would go in my favour. I've always struggled to gain weight even during pregnancy so hopefully it will help a little.

I've got quite strong side effects. I feel very lightheaded and floaty. Sort of like the side effects of codeine but a bit more so. I'm on x3 100 mg twice a day but building up to it.
How long did your side effects last if any?

👍🏻 fingers crossed 🤞🏻 that it does what you want it to. Just a heads up though, apparently it has a street value 🤷🏼‍♀️ so be cautious who knows that you have it in the house!

Floaty tiredness lasted a couple of days at most after I reached my dose 3x 300 per day

Sorry, so I actually take 900mg 3 times per day 🙂

I'm so glad I found this thread - I've been transitioning up from 200mg a day (for nerve pain) to 900mg a day on the advice of my neurologist (for neuro symptoms), but the last step from 800 to 900mg a day has made me feel a bit swimmy and then more recently very sleepy at times. I only made the last step up on Saturday.
I've tried and failed to make my own thread over the last three days so I'm very grateful to come across this.
I've been wondering whether or not to stick it out in the hope that I'll get used to it, so I'll give it more time to let it all settle.

I took it for nerve pain and even on the highest dose possible it did nothing for me. The drs kept warning me about side effects, but didn’t have a single one. Really odd, it had no effect good or bad.

I’m on amitryptaline now and it’s helped me loads

@SnoopyNoseTits, I take amytriptyline as well (50mg at night).
I posted on another thread about how no-one can predict how a drug can affect you.
I guess you and I can illustrate that!