Gabapentin (Neurontin) Withdrawl Support Group

[[ga...]]

I am up to 800 at night for my sleep dose and take 100 in tham and 200 in the pm.  So my gpent dose has gone up, but my valium dose has been dropping nice n steady so far.  Am just below 4mgs now, 3.8 so hopefully the end is in sight.  I am dreading another taper looming with the gpent, but am trying not to think about it right now, but it is hard not to.

 

One day at a time! That is something tapering taught me. 

[[Pa...]]

Yes, that is very hard for me to do.  I will have to work harder on that.

[[ga...]]

Yes, that is very hard for me to do.  I will have to work harder on that.

 

Distraction! It will be easier once you are off the benzo.

[[Pa...]]

I agree!  Once I'm off valium, I am looking forward to getting some of my life back, and the hobbies and projects I love, that will help me ovecome the tragic loss of my son.  Starting a benzo taper so soon after my son's death was a huge mistake, in hindsight.  I was anything but stable!

[[Pa...]]

I'm getting major anxiety And panic attacks this week.  Same percentage drops in valium as the past two weeks, where i was quite fine.  I am taking a big dose of gabapentin at. Night, 800mg for sleep, and only 300 total during the day.  I have been taking gpent for 2 months.  I am getting alot of new anxiety spikes during the day.  Could they be from gopentin intradose withdrawal already, after only 2 months? 

[[ga...]]

I'm getting major anxiety And panic attacks this week.  Same percentage drops in valium as the past two weeks, where i was quite fine.  I am taking a big dose of gabapentin at. Night, 800mg for sleep, and only 300 total during the day.  I have been taking gpent for 2 months.  I am getting alot of new anxiety spikes during the day.  Could they be from gopentin intradose withdrawal already, after only 2 months?

I guess it could be, but the Valium is a player in this, too. Waves are not predictable.

[[Pa...]]

My dr has said I can increase the daytime dose to help deal with sx, i am just hesitant to, but I know my gpent dose should be more evenly distributed.

[[ga...]]

My dr has said I can increase the daytime dose to help deal with sx, i am just hesitant to, but I know my gpent dose should be more evenly distributed.

 

Your doctor is right. 800mg plus 800mg isn't a horribly high amount of G. Furthermore, the bioavailability of G goes down markedly as the dose goes up. Doubling isn't really doubling, if that makes sense.

 

I wouldn't recommend making a lot of changes close together whether you are increasing or decreasing meds. The brain likes predictability.

[[dj...]]

Hey I’m 6 months off benzos and really struggling.  My doc gave me some Gabapentin months ago but I am scared to take it consistently.  I have used it sparingly on a one off basis and found it useful.  But things have gotten worse of late and I feel like using it daily may be necessary. 

 

I’m considering taking 100mg each night to help with sleep and just calm my system down some.  Like I said, I’ve done this on a one off basis a few times and it helps.  Do you think it would be pretty easy to get off just 100mg at night?  I’m dying.

[[ga...]]

Hey I’m 6 months off benzos and really struggling.  My doc gave me some Gabapentin months ago but I am scared to take it consistently.  I have used it sparingly on a one off basis and found it useful.  But things have gotten worse of late and I feel like using it daily may be necessary. 

 

I’m considering taking 100mg each night to help with sleep and just calm my system down some.  Like I said, I’ve done this on a one off basis a few times and it helps.  Do you think it would be pretty easy to get off just 100mg at night?  I’m dying.

 

I'm sorry you're still struggling. Personally, I found I habituated to the sedating effects of gabapentin pretty quickly. In fact, people generally do habituate to most effects of gabapentin and then need to up the dose. But it could help temporarily. I don't think trying it for a week would hurt you or make you dependent on it. That's just my opinion.

 

As far as tapering off of 100mg, once you are healed from the benzo and not before that, I would expect a gabapentin taper to be much easier than a benzo taper no matter what your dose.

 

My 2 cents. Hopefully others will chime in.

[[dj...]]

Hey I’m 6 months off benzos and really struggling.  My doc gave me some Gabapentin months ago but I am scared to take it consistently.  I have used it sparingly on a one off basis and found it useful.  But things have gotten worse of late and I feel like using it daily may be necessary. 

 

I’m considering taking 100mg each night to help with sleep and just calm my system down some.  Like I said, I’ve done this on a one off basis a few times and it helps.  Do you think it would be pretty easy to get off just 100mg at night?  I’m dying.

 

I'm sorry you're still struggling. Personally, I found I habituated to the sedating effects of gabapentin pretty quickly. In fact, people generally do habituate to most effects of gabapentin and then need to up the dose. But it could help temporarily. I don't think trying it for a week would hurt you or make you dependent on it. That's just my opinion.

 

As far as tapering off of 100mg, once you are healed from the benzo and not before that, I would expect a gabapentin taper to be much easier than a benzo taper no matter what your dose.

 

My 2 cents. Hopefully others will chime in.

 

Thanks.  I think I may just stick to use it sparingly.  It helps me sleep and calm things down when I’m in a bind.  Unfortunately, I’ve tried some other things and just get weird reactions. 

[[ga...]]

Hey I’m 6 months off benzos and really struggling.  My doc gave me some Gabapentin months ago but I am scared to take it consistently.  I have used it sparingly on a one off basis and found it useful.  But things have gotten worse of late and I feel like using it daily may be necessary. 

 

I’m considering taking 100mg each night to help with sleep and just calm my system down some.  Like I said, I’ve done this on a one off basis a few times and it helps.  Do you think it would be pretty easy to get off just 100mg at night?  I’m dying.

 

I'm sorry you're still struggling. Personally, I found I habituated to the sedating effects of gabapentin pretty quickly. In fact, people generally do habituate to most effects of gabapentin and then need to up the dose. But it could help temporarily. I don't think trying it for a week would hurt you or make you dependent on it. That's just my opinion.

 

As far as tapering off of 100mg, once you are healed from the benzo and not before that, I would expect a gabapentin taper to be much easier than a benzo taper no matter what your dose.

 

My 2 cents. Hopefully others will chime in.

 

Thanks.  I think I may just stick to use it sparingly.  It helps me sleep and calm things down when I’m in a bind.  Unfortunately, I’ve tried some other things and just get weird reactions.

 

Yeah, I tend to get weird reactions to meds, too.  

[[dj...]]

So is Gabapentin withdrawal really as bad as benzo withdrawal?  Has anyone here tapered Gabapentin while also not dealing with benzo withdrawal? 

 

I went through gaba withdrawal myself after using for two months.  It was really intense for about three days but then it was over.  The general consensus seems to be to steer clear of Gabapentin, but many of the people here are tapering benzos or not too far off benzos and trying to taper Gabapentin.  Getting off any drug while still dealing with the benzo injury is a bear.  I couldn’t get off mirtazapine during benzo withdrawal, despite having gotten off a much higher dose of it easily some 15 years ago. 

[[or...]]

So is Gabapentin withdrawal really as bad as benzo withdrawal?

 

Not for me. Benzo w/d was horrid -- 3 years of suffering. Gaba w/d took about 6 months. Mainly malaise, dizziness, headaches. And they weren't bad.

 

Hope this helps you.

 

 

Katz

[[ga...]]

So is Gabapentin withdrawal really as bad as benzo withdrawal?  Has anyone here tapered Gabapentin while also not dealing with benzo withdrawal? 

 

I went through gaba withdrawal myself after using for two months.  It was really intense for about three days but then it was over.  The general consensus seems to be to steer clear of Gabapentin, but many of the people here are tapering benzos or not too far off benzos and trying to taper Gabapentin.  Getting off any drug while still dealing with the benzo injury is a bear.  I couldn’t get off mirtazapine during benzo withdrawal, despite having gotten off a much higher dose of it easily some 15 years ago.

 

I tapered the first bit of my gabapentin not long after my benzo withdrawal. It was a little rough. Then I waited a very long time until I felt healed from the benzo. I tapered again. It was much easier. No comparison.

[[dj...]]

Thanks for the replies.  I am just dying.  Can barely get up and walk around without pain or weird nerve stuff going on.  I can’t get stimulated at all - laughing, excited, angry or upset without feeling my body freaking out.  Zero quality of life.  Debating trying 300mg for a bit and seeing what happens.  Would prefer not to go over 600mg. 

 

I’ve read people say it can be just as bad but from what I’ve seen they typically aren’t close to being healed from benzos.  I had my own experience with it a year ago but it was over in a few days. 

[[dj...]]

So is Gabapentin withdrawal really as bad as benzo withdrawal?

 

Not for me. Benzo w/d was horrid -- 3 years of suffering. Gaba w/d took about 6 months. Mainly malaise, dizziness, headaches. And they weren't bad.

 

Hope this helps you.

 

 

Katz

 

The withdrawal was 6 months or the taper was 6 months?  You were on a pretty high dose of Gabapentin.

[[dj...]]

So is Gabapentin withdrawal really as bad as benzo withdrawal?

 

Not for me. Benzo w/d was horrid -- 3 years of suffering. Gaba w/d took about 6 months. Mainly malaise, dizziness, headaches. And they weren't bad.

 

Hope this helps you.

 

 

Katz

 

So the withdrawal period was 6 months after last dose or the taper was 6 months?  You were on a fairly high dose.

[[or...]]

My highest dose of gaba was 2300 mgs. It wasn't doing me any good (prescribed for a foot neuropathy) and I tapered it down to 300 mgs pretty quickly. No real s/x to speak of. (This was during my benzo taper.) As I recall I "sneaked" the dose down to 100 mgs then kinda got stuck. So I finished my benzo taper and concentrated on the gaba taper. That took me 6 months -- that was when I had the s/x I mentioned. After the last dose of gaba I don't recall that I had lingering s/x. It was that last pesky 100 mgs that gave me trouble. I wish I'd known that the drug was soluble in water . . . that would have made tapering less uncomfortable. Eyeballing the contents of capsules didn't help the accuracy of my taper.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Katz

[[ja...]]

Hi guys.... I used Gabapentin for the last three months at the end and post taper.  I wasn't sleeping much at all, and very scared that I never would....  my highest dose 150mg, I was able to tolerate, but I soon got it down to 70mg... which actually worked better.  I had a strange side effect with it.  It really made me vibrate, particularly in my chest and arms.  I tolerated it because it bought me a few hrs sleep. 

It's awhile now, but I remember tapering off it in a week or two.  I remember a headache... some added withdrawal,  but who knows really?

I know it prolonged my acute symptoms, but it got me through a very bad time.  I would use as little of it as possible.....

[[va...]]

Hi everyone. I see this thread is a bit dead. I hope someone reads me and even better, replies.

 

I'm STILL tapering valium. Down to 0.40 in what seems eternity but I can't go slower.

 

I'm tapering valium at snail pace and if I went faster I wouldn't be able to keep up with all my responsibilities, and unfortunately nobody will take over.

 

I'm down to 0.40 from 0.45 mgs. I made that cut seven days ago. Now I'm cutting 0.5 mgs a month more or less.

 

In the meantime I'm taking gabapentin, 600 mgs daily, prescribed by my psychiatrist four years ago when I went into acute benzo wd during a taper that went wrong due to having been kindled by coming off and going back on valium many times over the years (little did I know).

 

That would be the history.

 

The problem today is:

 

I was planning to finish de valium taper, prolonging it for as long as it took, and then eventually start tapering the gabapentin.

 

Then, we now suddenly have a shortage of gabapentin 100 mg capsules in my country (the ones that are on my prescription), and I guess the doctor won't mind prescribing the 300 mg capsules but I suddenly fear a lack of supply in any other presentation, and I thought it might be a good idea to hold the valium at 0.40 mgs (I have a huge stash of that), and start tapering the gabapentin.

 

I started watching videos of gabapentin withdrawals with some horror stories and I'm "oh no, hear we go again".

 

Well anyway, I thought of tapering down only 60 mgs from my 600 mgs of gabapentin (that would be 10%), this month. But today I just took 200 mgs from my morning dose instead of 300 mgs. And tonight I'll take the whole 300 mg dose. So that would be cutting from 600 to 500 mgs daily. I'm planning to stay at that dose for one month, and then make another cut. All this, of course, only if the sxs are tolerable, because otherwise I'd try the 60mg cut instead of the 100 mg cut a month.

 

While I do this, I'm still in bezo wd because since my visit to acute wd in 2019, I updosed the valium and managed to kind of stabilize and tapered from there, but my brain has always been damaged since then. I've never, ever been stable and have never been the same since, and I have accepted I probably never will be. But if I wait to be stable from the benzo wd: 1)That might never happen, and 2) The fear of lack of gabapentin supply doesn't give me much peace to wait forever to be stable from the benzo.

 

If someone reads this and cares to express their opinion I would appreciate it.

 

Good luck to everyone in their struggles with these drugs.

[[or...]]

Wow. You're in a pickle for sure. So let me tell you what I would do, given your situation. I'd finish the valium taper, then deal with the gaba.

 

Okay,  so there will be no more 100 mgs caps of valium. You can deal with that. I'd let your doc prescribe the 300 mg caps. You can work with those. The good news is that gaba is water soluble and you could dissolve your caps in water, and taper from the water/gaba mixture. All you would need is a glass beaker (I got mine from amazon) or some container to hold your mixture, and a big syringe to measure your reduction (also got from amazon). You could remove as much or as little as you want, say weekly, and before you know it, you'll have reduced 300 ml of your solution.

 

I did this for my valium taper and valium is sure not very soluble in water, ugh . . . but it worked. I, too, did a gaba taper but not realizing gaba is soluble in water I opened 100 ml capsules and "eyeballed" the amount to remove.

 

Hope this helps you. Congrats on your valium taper! I know how hard all of this is.

 

Best,

 

Katz

[[va...]]

Wow. You're in a pickle for sure. So let me tell you what I would do, given your situation. I'd finish the valium taper, then deal with the gaba.

 

Okay,  so there will be no more 100 mgs caps of valium. You can deal with that. I'd let your doc prescribe the 300 mg caps. You can work with those. The good news is that gaba is water soluble and you could dissolve your caps in water, and taper from the water/gaba mixture. All you would need is a glass beaker (I got mine from amazon) or some container to hold your mixture, and a big syringe to measure your reduction (also got from amazon). You could remove as much or as little as you want, say weekly, and before you know it, you'll have reduced 300 ml of your solution.

 

I did this for my valium taper and valium is sure not very soluble in water, ugh . . . but it worked. I, too, did a gaba taper but not realizing gaba is soluble in water I opened 100 ml capsules and "eyeballed" the amount to remove.

 

Hope this helps you. Congrats on your valium taper! I know how hard all of this is.

 

Best,

 

Katz

 

Thank you Katz. That does help a lot for sure.When I came in here I thought of you and Gardener who've gone through similar struggles.

 

Today I have such a bad wave but IDK if it's the 100 mg gabapentin reduction or just my usual waves plus menopause plus whatnot.

 

I'm going to consider what you said and I'll probably do that. Now that I've cut today, I might keep at 500 mgs for three days to see if it doesn't make much of a difference. The thing is, I'm scared they can suddenly also run out of the 300 mg gabapentin pills! And I have valium for a lifetime, considering my current dose is 0.40 only. Hence my doubts 

[[or...]]

The good news is that gaba tapers are not as challenging as valium tapers. Mine wasn't and other ppl on here have found the same thing. So you have the option of cutting bigger/going faster.

 

Best to you,

 

Katz

[[ga...]]

Wow. You're in a pickle for sure. So let me tell you what I would do, given your situation. I'd finish the valium taper, then deal with the gaba.

 

Okay,  so there will be no more 100 mgs caps of valium. You can deal with that. I'd let your doc prescribe the 300 mg caps. You can work with those. The good news is that gaba is water soluble and you could dissolve your caps in water, and taper from the water/gaba mixture. All you would need is a glass beaker (I got mine from amazon) or some container to hold your mixture, and a big syringe to measure your reduction (also got from amazon). You could remove as much or as little as you want, say weekly, and before you know it, you'll have reduced 300 ml of your solution.

 

I did this for my valium taper and valium is sure not very soluble in water, ugh . . . but it worked. I, too, did a gaba taper but not realizing gaba is soluble in water I opened 100 ml capsules and "eyeballed" the amount to remove.

 

Hope this helps you. Congrats on your valium taper! I know how hard all of this is.

 

Best,

 

Katz

 

Thank you Katz. That does help a lot for sure.When I came in here I thought of you and Gardener who've gone through similar struggles.

 

Today I have such a bad wave but IDK if it's the 100 mg gabapentin reduction or just my usual waves plus menopause plus whatnot.

 

I'm going to consider what you said and I'll probably do that. Now that I've cut today, I might keep at 500 mgs for three days to see if it doesn't make much of a difference. The thing is, I'm scared they can suddenly also run out of the 300 mg gabapentin pills! And I have valium for a lifetime, considering my current dose is 0.40 only. Hence my doubts 

 

I did a bit of googling and found no current shortage of gabapentin in the US. I found a report of a temporary shortage of the large capsules in Australia. A past shortage in the UK was only of one size and that was due to a shortage of what they called the "packaging" rather than the drug. I was relieved to find there seems to be no worldwide shortage but rather localized shortages that are predicted to come and go.

 

Perhaps if you google gabapentin shortage with the the name of your location, you can find out what the current situation is where you are? That may help you with your decision.

 

https://apps.tga.gov.au/shortages/Search/Details/Gabapentin

 

https://www.drugs.com/drug-shortages/