crazyethel Posted May 17, 2006 Share Posted May 17, 2006 I've been taking lyrica for a few months for neuropathy. I still have all the numbness, but the lyrica did help the pain. It also had an anxiety reducing effect on me that I didn't expect....nice side effect. I guess I'll have to compensate for that. Anyway, I have to get off this stuff. I finally got over the sedation, but the appetite stimulation is more than I can handle. I've already gained weight, which makes the diabetes worse, which makes the neuropathy worse. So....how to do this? I'm taking 75 mg in the a.m. and 75 at night. It's a capsule, so no cutting the thing in half. It does come in 50;s, maybe even 25s, but that would mean a 3-month wait for the neurologist. Can anyone help me figure out how to discontinue this med with the pills I have.....the 75s? Thanks so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penny Century Posted May 17, 2006 Share Posted May 17, 2006 your neurologist can call in an rx for the 25mg capsules. just leave a message for him explaining why you're going off it, and ask for an rx for 50mg for ___ time and then 25 mg for ___ time. he should know how quickly one can taper off of lyrica. he should know that you are going off it anyway. never discontinue a medication without your doctor knowing and approving. penny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyethel Posted May 17, 2006 Author Share Posted May 17, 2006 your neurologist can call in an rx for the 25mg capsules. just leave a message for him explaining why you're going off it, and ask for an rx for 50mg for ___ time and then 25 mg for ___ time. he should know how quickly one can taper off of lyrica. he should know that you are going off it anyway. never discontinue a medication without your doctor knowing and approving. penny Thanks for replying, Penny. I doubt very seriously he will do this over the telephone, but I guess it's worth a try. I'll try his nurse tomorrow. There's no talking directly to him.....ever.....always the middle person. His nurse is very nice and quite competent, but it's her general policy to have everyone come in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firedancer Posted May 18, 2006 Share Posted May 18, 2006 i have been on this since dec '05 off-label for migraines. i got up to 300mg (150mg/2x day) without any relief (other than the great anxiety reduction - but it's too much to pay for just that - give me xanax!). my neuro told me that i could come off of it at my last appointment but didn't write me a script for the new lower dose. i am now down to 150mg/day. if i miss one day, i get violently ill (think paxil withdrawal). i just called my neuro for the 4th time and get a script for 50mg so that i can reduce more slowly. i was hoping that i could just go off at 150mg, but there is no way. i also had weight gain, about 15lbs. i crave carbs so much. i can't wait til i can get off this med. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyethel Posted May 18, 2006 Author Share Posted May 18, 2006 Hi Dancer, Sorry the stuff didn't help your headaches. I agree there are better ways to reduce anxiety than taking this particular drug. The anxiety reduction is actually the only reason I've taken it as long as I have. I never felt the neuropathy was that much better.....not enough to warrant the side effects. I may just have to cope with it. I put a call into my neuro yesterday, but I'm still waiting for someone/anyone to call me back. I suppose mine isn't a very interesting case. :-( Anyway, thanks for your input about taking the smaller dosage pills more gradually. If I ever get to talk to anyone, I'll try to get this accomplished. I'm afraid I'm in for a 3-month wait, but maybe I'll luck out with an understanding and competent nurse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celestia Posted May 18, 2006 Share Posted May 18, 2006 Hey Jen, Good to see you out and about. I tried Lyrica but couldn't deal with the sedation and actually, it seemed to exacerbate my migraineous pressure behind my eyeballs. Ya know? So I was still taking triptans daily. I don't know if I would have stuck with it, if it would have ultimately had an effect on my migraines or not. We'll never know because I got out after 3 weeks. Before any vicious habituation could occur. I was prescribed Lyrica for pain, fibro, RA, neuropathy from back surgery...but I thought it was cool for the first couple days, made me sleep like a log, but then it became evil. Not as bad as Dopamax, but almost. I'm quite discouraged. About pain mgt. about depression about all these meds. And I'm 40 pounds heavier than I should be a 20 pounds heavier than 1 year ago. Sigh. I HATE this! S9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firedancer Posted May 20, 2006 Share Posted May 20, 2006 finally got a reply for my neuro. the nurse that i spoke to (and she was to call me back) is no longer there. she wasn't that great anyway. the nurse that called me was wonderful. i explained what i needed and within 15 minutes she has called me back telling me she was calling in the script. so i start 100 mg tomorrow. i will be so happy when i'm off this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.