Alien Navel Cord Posted November 22, 2016 Share Posted November 22, 2016 So... when anxious, I have this "gagging" thing that my throat does. My gag reflex is extremely high, and without any (noticable) trigger, especially in the mornings upon wakening, I'll gag a lot, and this leads to vomiting. The only way to fix it is to take a clonazepam, but I don't want to take that in the morning because it will make me sedated or sleepy or foggy headed the rest of the day, and I have to go to work! I'm sure the gabapentin (for anxiety) would help *if I could swallow the big pill without gagging on it!!!* Yesterday I had a lump in my throat all day, and had to eventually take a klonopin at night a few hours before bed to get rid of it. Or else, I knew what was going to happen. I choked them down, and nearly gagged on those, as well. Ugh. It is absolutely the worst. But it's the only thing that helps. I wonder if there's "anti-gagging" medication out there... lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikl_pls Posted November 23, 2016 Share Posted November 23, 2016 The typical antipsychotics trifluoperazine (Stelazine) and prochlorperazine (Compazine) have very strong antiemetic properties as well as anti-anxiety properties and don't sedate in low doses used for such purposes (1-2 mg for Stelazine, 5 mg for Compazine). They could be taken alongside or in lieu of the clonazepam in the mornings. Another possibility is a low dose of promethazine (Phenergan), like 12.5 mg, which hopefully wouldn't be too sedating (25 mg might be too sedating to take in the mornings). If you want to avoid the typical antipsychotics, these meds won't have much in the way of anti-anxiety properties, but they will most likely help with the vomiting, which would be the 5-HT3 antagonists, the most commonly used one being ondansetron (Zofran). Another med that can be used that would have anxiolytic properties as well as antiemetic properties would be the antidepressant mirtazapine (Remeron), but it would probably sedate you if you took it in the morning. The benzodiazepine lorazepam (Ativan) it actually used not only for anxiety of course, but also for nausea and vomiting, so that could always be a possibility. I've read alprazolam (Xanax) is used in combination with other medications for nausea and vomiting due to chemotherapy, which medications though I'm not sure... But whether that says alprazolam has antiemetic properties in and of itself or not, I don't know. I hope this information helps. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted November 23, 2016 Share Posted November 23, 2016 Have you tried the ODT form (the oral disintegrating tablet) that you put under your tongue and just dissolves? No swallowing or anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IcePrincess88 Posted November 25, 2016 Share Posted November 25, 2016 I frequently feel nauseous or throw up due to anxiety. It doesn't really go away until the anxiety does. Xanax was always the cure for me. I'm even prescribed Promethezine but that doesn't really help if it's anxiety naseua. You could try a lower dose of Klonopin and hopefully that won't make you so sleepy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted November 25, 2016 Author Share Posted November 25, 2016 I don't know if promethazine would work because it's not really nausea that I feel initially. It is a gag reflex. And my gag reflex is so strong that if I did gag a few times in a few seconds, I would throw up, but there's no nausea involved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted November 26, 2016 Share Posted November 26, 2016 18 hours ago, 2Spirals said: I don't know if promethazine would work because it's not really nausea that I feel initially. It is a gag reflex. And my gag reflex is so strong that if I did gag a few times in a few seconds, I would throw up, but there's no nausea involved. Have you thought about the ODT form of klonopin? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted November 28, 2016 Author Share Posted November 28, 2016 On 11/26/2016 at 2:08 AM, melissaw72 said: Have you thought about the ODT form of klonopin? I don't know if my doc would go for it, but I could try it, do you think it is more expensive? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted November 28, 2016 Share Posted November 28, 2016 59 minutes ago, 2Spirals said: I don't know if my doc would go for it, but I could try it, do you think it is more expensive? Idk, but if I had to guess, I would say yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
march Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 A compounding pharmacy could possibly make a liquid or smaller tablet version of gabapentin. It's usually just a little more expensive. I had Xanax made liquid for a taper. I just spoke to the pharmacist first about how my dr should write the rx. You could also get a pill crusher and put it in applesauce to swallow it down easily, on your drs okay of course. A throat numbing spray is great for gagging issues (how wrong does that sound?). Try a few sprays of that with a placebo horsepill (magnesium?) and see if that helps. Good luck to you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heilmania Posted December 4, 2016 Share Posted December 4, 2016 I get this, too. Not as much now that I am going to a positive workplace rather than the toxic one I was in before. It's definitely part of my anxiety, so Klonopin (which I take) would help. At the end, right before I was officially fired, I was waking up already shaking and crying before I could even think about taking my morning dose of Klonopin. My doc said I was metabolizing the afternoon dose so that it was completely out of my system when I woke up. He gave me a "right before bed" dose so I would wake up with the Klonopin already in my system and wouldn't have to suffer through my morning before the morning dose kicked in. It worked. I didn't wake up groggy, but Klonopin doesn't make me sleepy in the first place, just more relaxed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 7, 2016 Author Share Posted December 7, 2016 On 11/26/2016 at 2:08 AM, melissaw72 said: Have you thought about the ODT form of klonopin? I don't know if I could get it in prescription because of insurance On 12/4/2016 at 4:16 AM, heilmania said: I get this, too. Not as much now that I am going to a positive workplace rather than the toxic one I was in before. It's definitely part of my anxiety, so Klonopin (which I take) would help. At the end, right before I was officially fired, I was waking up already shaking and crying before I could even think about taking my morning dose of Klonopin. My doc said I was metabolizing the afternoon dose so that it was completely out of my system when I woke up. He gave me a "right before bed" dose so I would wake up with the Klonopin already in my system and wouldn't have to suffer through my morning before the morning dose kicked in. It worked. I didn't wake up groggy, but Klonopin doesn't make me sleepy in the first place, just more relaxed. Yeah I am supposed to take about 4mg a day (2mg 2x daily) so supposedly in the morning before I have the chance to open my other eye (I'm usually a cyclops in the mornings) I should be taking one but I do not take them everyday - I try to save them for if I really really need them because they make me goofy, or, as has happened before, they don't help. So in theory in the mornings I shouldn't have a gag reflex because I already took my klonz but it is not a perfect world. If it were I'd have a car again and be 30 lbs lighter :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted December 7, 2016 Share Posted December 7, 2016 1 hour ago, 2Spirals said: I don't know if I could get it in prescription because of insurance Mine are covered ... and I don't think we needed to send a prior auth either. I'd at least try to get it, The worst they can say is 'no,' right? And if they say it isn't covered, then I'd ask your DR to do a prior Auth for it. The ODT form is totally worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heilmania Posted December 8, 2016 Share Posted December 8, 2016 10 hours ago, 2Spirals said: I don't know if I could get it in prescription because of insurance Yeah I am supposed to take about 4mg a day (2mg 2x daily) so supposedly in the morning before I have the chance to open my other eye (I'm usually a cyclops in the mornings) I should be taking one but I do not take them everyday - I try to save them for if I really really need them because they make me goofy, or, as has happened before, they don't help. So in theory in the mornings I shouldn't have a gag reflex because I already took my klonz but it is not a perfect world. If it were I'd have a car again and be 30 lbs lighter :-D If you take them every day, you'll probably adjust to them and not be goofy. I started out on .5, then 1mg, then 2mgs. Maybe trying to slowly get back on them would help with this. Anxiety makes me hyperventilate, gag, and sob. All that adds up to vomiting. It's more of a physical reaction or something. I don't feel nauseated, I just start gagging and throw up. Klonopin kills the anxiety that makes me puke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 13, 2016 Author Share Posted December 13, 2016 On 12/7/2016 at 5:58 PM, heilmania said: It's more of a physical reaction or something. I don't feel nauseated, I just start gagging and throw up. Klonopin kills the anxiety that makes me puke. Exactly. So I am not a freak, this gagging thing is a real thing? And yup the clonz helps. I take gabapentin for anxiety too but it is less helpful lately with acute attacks of panic and anxiety due to the size of the meds. I frequently forget to take them, because I will gag on them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted December 13, 2016 Share Posted December 13, 2016 4 hours ago, 2Spirals said: but it is less helpful lately with acute attacks of panic and anxiety due to the size of the meds. I frequently forget to take them, because I will gag on them. Can you either cut them in half, or crush them to mix with applesauce or something (so you don't taste it). I had this problem with lamictal, and when I cut them in half, I still gagged. I wasn't thinking back then about crushing them, but as I am thinking now, it might be a PITA to have to crush every dose, unless it is an easy thing to do for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 13, 2016 Author Share Posted December 13, 2016 5 hours ago, melissaw72 said: Can you either cut them in half, or crush them to mix with applesauce or something (so you don't taste it). I had this problem with lamictal, and when I cut them in half, I still gagged. I wasn't thinking back then about crushing them, but as I am thinking now, it might be a PITA to have to crush every dose, unless it is an easy thing to do for you. Hmm.. never thought of that. Maybe I should try it. I have cut them in half before and that worked much better. I stopped doing it though because they are so thick that it was a pain to try and snap it in half, and I don't carry a pill cutter around with me to work and such, so I'd have to use my hands... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted December 13, 2016 Share Posted December 13, 2016 29 minutes ago, 2Spirals said: Hmm.. never thought of that. Maybe I should try it. I have cut them in half before and that worked much better. I stopped doing it though because they are so thick that it was a pain to try and snap it in half, and I don't carry a pill cutter around with me to work and such, so I'd have to use my hands... You're right, it would be a pain to do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 13, 2016 Author Share Posted December 13, 2016 Yeah. Lately I've just been putting it in my mouth, and then swallowing a huge gulp of something to wash it down without me even knowing it is there. Last week I took an Omega3 Fish Oil pill that was even bigger than my gabapentin, and swallowed it down with water. Of course it was a smooth capsule, and not a white dusty pill... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted December 13, 2016 Share Posted December 13, 2016 3 hours ago, 2Spirals said: Of course it was a smooth capsule, and not a white dusty pill... Ohhhh ... I hate those dusty pills. Especially when they get caught in my throat, or stick to the back of my throat. The feeling on my fingers just touching one bothers me, and I pretty much have to wash my hands every time I touch one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 14, 2016 Author Share Posted December 14, 2016 Me too. My lamictal is chalky as well and gets caught in my throat frequently. Bleh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted December 14, 2016 Share Posted December 14, 2016 4 hours ago, 2Spirals said: Me too. My lamictal is chalky as well and gets caught in my throat frequently. Bleh. These were the exact reasons my pdoc change me to the ODT kind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 14, 2016 Author Share Posted December 14, 2016 4 hours ago, melissaw72 said: These were the exact reasons my pdoc change me to the ODT kind. I will definitely ask next time I see her (in April, can you believe that! So far out). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heilmania Posted December 14, 2016 Share Posted December 14, 2016 1 hour ago, 2Spirals said: I will definitely ask next time I see her (in April, can you believe that! So far out). That IS a long time! Can you call in a change? I'd imagine they will talk with you since your next appointment is so far away. But yeah, I am nodding in agreement about dusty white pills. I always "forget" my Metformin. The worst is my Effexor, as it is not XR. They taste like death and are pink, round and chalky- I have to take three in the am and two in the pm. UGH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 14, 2016 Author Share Posted December 14, 2016 4 minutes ago, heilmania said: That IS a long time! Can you call in a change? I'd imagine they will talk with you since your next appointment is so far away. But yeah, I am nodding in agreement about dusty white pills. I always "forget" my Metformin. The worst is my Effexor, as it is not XR. They taste like death and are pink, round and chalky- I have to take three in the am and two in the pm. UGH. Yeah I might be able to call in a change... the pdoc is on maternity leave, but she still does partial work. She'll be back in January, but since she was gone so long I imagine everyone got in earlier than me to see her all at once so I am stuck with April. Oh man.. yeah, see I don't know why they make meds that way, don't they realize people are more inclined not to take them? lol... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted December 14, 2016 Share Posted December 14, 2016 1 hour ago, 2Spirals said: I will definitely ask next time I see her (in April, can you believe that! So far out). I agree with heil that April is awhile away! I would absolutely call your DR before then. FWIW ... I stopped taking the lamictal because I couldn't get it in, and called my pdoc and said that I was not taking it anymore (and I said why). He immediately called in the ODT. And there were no problems of interruption of not taking it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 14, 2016 Author Share Posted December 14, 2016 7 minutes ago, melissaw72 said: I agree with heil that April is awhile away! I would absolutely call your DR before then. FWIW ... I stopped taking the lamictal because I couldn't get it in, and called my pdoc and said that I was not taking it anymore (and I said why). He immediately called in the ODT. And there were no problems of interruption of not taking it. I will ask!! Just... not for a while. lol... I already 'bugged' my pdoc who's on maternity leave and has 'some' access to helping patients twice now within the same 2 week period... so I feel bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 15, 2016 Author Share Posted December 15, 2016 Ugh it is happening really bad today. The gag reflex just happens whenever it wants to. It's like a tic or something. I try to quell it with positive thoughts but let's be honest here... that doesn't always help. And my pdoc hasn't called in my clonz to the new pharmacy yet. I am battling this with just the gabapentin which doesn't seem to help with the gagging thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heilmania Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Totally threw up in the sink at work as soon as I got there. I'm anxious as all hell because of health shit (see my blog for details if you want). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 15, 2016 Author Share Posted December 15, 2016 6 minutes ago, heilmania said: Totally threw up in the sink at work as soon as I got there. I'm anxious as all hell because of health shit (see my blog for details if you want). Yikes, that sucks. I am sorry to hear that!!! I hope it all resolves itself soon. I'm about one more gag away from vomiting, myself... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nervousbat Posted December 17, 2016 Share Posted December 17, 2016 (edited) --- Edited May 9, 2017 by nervousbat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted December 17, 2016 Share Posted December 17, 2016 7 hours ago, nervousbat said: Oh my god, that's horrible! I'm so sorry you have to deal with that! Maybe you've already tried this but I'll put it out there anyway. Do you still have your tonsils? You should ask to get your throat examined by the doctor and see if they're causing this problem. I've heard that having big tonsils can make a person more sensitive to gagging and vomiting because they touch your uvula, the waggly thing in the back of your throat that does the gagging reflex. (I think... *flips through medical book*) lol, no I'm not a doctor, but you should definitely get it checked out by the doctor, you can't be living like that! Hope you feel better soon. That is a really good point! That has never entered my mind before ... learned something new! I had my tonsils out in the late 80s. I would get checked out by a DR also. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 19, 2016 Author Share Posted December 19, 2016 Oh hey, interesting. Yes I should ask next time I'm at the dr. I didn't know this either, you learn something new every day! Just this morning I had a gagging thing, brushing my teeth, then on my walk to work in the pitch black dark, I had to breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth to feel 'ok'. I was about 20 yards from the 7-11 on the corner when I almost heaved. I just don't know what is causing it, I don't really have anxiety lately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted December 20, 2016 Share Posted December 20, 2016 10 hours ago, Alien Navel Cord said: I just don't know what is causing it, I don't really have anxiety lately. For me personally, I have anxiety even when I don't think I have it ... the only way I know I had it is when the anxiety goes away, and then I realize, 'I must have been really anxious about this.' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted December 20, 2016 Author Share Posted December 20, 2016 Yeah today I realized it *was* anxiety, just a different kind. How many different symptoms can one person have?? I did mostly ok this morning. It happens a lot in the morning. I'm still not sure why, I have nothing to be nervous about at work, so hmmm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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