Gabapentin (Neurontin) Withdrawl Support Group

[[ga...]]

I found this when I was googling around today. I thought it would be very helpful for anybody thinking about tapering gabapentin.

 

https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/2309-tips-for-tapering-off-neurontin-gabapentin/

 

About a third of the way down the page is this really helpful link about how to start slowly and how to know if it is OK to try to speed up a bit. Since some people will have little trouble getting off and don't need to drag the taper out, this is very helpful information.

 

https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/1024-why-taper-by-10-of-my-dosage/

[[va...]]

Thanks Gardener, I'm copying this on my progress log.

[[Ba...]]

Certainly explains why I started off in acute when I quit mirtazapine after 6 weeks.  Drs. said it could not do it.

Then a FB group person gave me terrible advice to get off my benzo, and in fact switch it at that time.

 

I totally fried myself.  But it sounds like one year I may be back...

[Guest [sc...]]

I thought I'd throw this out there on the off chance it might help someone tapering gabapentin.  When I tried to get down to 1200 mg. I started having terrible insomnia, nothing helped including cannabis.  I was taking 400 mg. doses three times a day.  So instead of taking my morning dose of 400 mg., I replaced that with magnesium and then take gabapentin 400 mg. mid-day and 800 mg. at bedtime.  I'm sleeping again and withdrawal has been minimal.

[[ga...]]

I thought I'd throw this out there on the off chance it might help someone tapering gabapentin.  When I tried to get down to 1200 mg. I started having terrible insomnia, nothing helped including cannabis.  I was taking 400 mg. doses three times a day.  So instead of taking my morning dose of 400 mg., I replaced that with magnesium and then take gabapentin 400 mg. mid-day and 800 mg. at bedtime.  I'm sleeping again and withdrawal has been minimal.

 

This is very interesting. Why magnesium?

[[va...]]

I thought I'd throw this out there on the off chance it might help someone tapering gabapentin.  When I tried to get down to 1200 mg. I started having terrible insomnia, nothing helped including cannabis.  I was taking 400 mg. doses three times a day.  So instead of taking my morning dose of 400 mg., I replaced that with magnesium and then take gabapentin 400 mg. mid-day and 800 mg. at bedtime.  I'm sleeping again and withdrawal has been minimal.

 

So interesting.

[Guest [sc...]]

I thought I'd throw this out there on the off chance it might help someone tapering gabapentin.  When I tried to get down to 1200 mg. I started having terrible insomnia, nothing helped including cannabis.  I was taking 400 mg. doses three times a day.  So instead of taking my morning dose of 400 mg., I replaced that with magnesium and then take gabapentin 400 mg. mid-day and 800 mg. at bedtime.  I'm sleeping again and withdrawal has been minimal.

 

This is very interesting. Why magnesium?

 

Well...I was on a facebook group for gabapentin withdrawal and magnesium was strongly recommended for gabapentin withdrawal.  And it is known to be helpful for anxiety.  Of course it depends on what type you take as certain types cause diarrhea...I'm taking glycinate and tolerating it well.

[[no...]]

Neurontin comes in a liquid form is what I was told. Will taper off my 300mg one day.

 

is this in the usa? what's it called?

[[ga...]]

I thought I'd throw this out there on the off chance it might help someone tapering gabapentin.  When I tried to get down to 1200 mg. I started having terrible insomnia, nothing helped including cannabis.  I was taking 400 mg. doses three times a day.  So instead of taking my morning dose of 400 mg., I replaced that with magnesium and then take gabapentin 400 mg. mid-day and 800 mg. at bedtime.  I'm sleeping again and withdrawal has been minimal.

 

This is very interesting. Why magnesium?

 

Well...I was on a facebook group for gabapentin withdrawal and magnesium was strongly recommended for gabapentin withdrawal.  And it is known to be helpful for anxiety.  Of course it depends on what type you take as certain types cause diarrhea...I'm taking glycinate and tolerating it well.

 

thanks 

[[Iw...]]

Hello,

 

I recently walked away from psychiatry.  I am currently tapering Gabapentin and experience an increase in akathisia and panic during drops. I am currently on 600mg and am curious if people find it beneficial to spread the dose out over the day? I currently take 300mg in the am and 300mg in the pm.

 

Edit: Removed text at members request

[[ga...]]

Hello,

 

I recently walked away from psychiatry. I was kindled severely this year and cold turkeyed 18 meds in 2019 not understanding withdrawal. I am currently tapering Gabapentin and experience an increase in akathisia and panic during drops. I am currently on 600mg and am curious if people find it beneficial to spread the dose out over the day? I currently take 300mg in the am and 300mg in the pm.

 

I take the same amount you do. I was dosing twice/day and just recently switched to three times/day. I think it's helping. Also, I think three times is how it's typically prescribed. It's a short-acting medication.

[[Iw...]]

 

I take the same amount you do. I was dosing twice/day and just recently switched to three times/day. I think it's helping. Also, I think three times is how it's typically prescribed. It's a short-acting medication.

 

Thank you. I am trying 200mg three times today instead of twice a day. Today is the first day in 6 days my panic/energy feeling in my chest has reduced since my drop.

 

edit: quotation formatting

[[ga...]]

Iwant2, are you doing cut and hold? I'm planning to start tomorrow with a 10% cut. I did DLMT for my benzo, so this will be a big change for me.

 

Unfortunately, my gabapentin is in capsules, so I will have to liquify. Are yours pills? Just curious.

 

Thanks.

 

 

[[Iw...]]

@[ga...]

 

I'm learning all this terminology right now. I believe I did a cut and hold. Although, not intentionally :-) I had to have my husband take over my meds because during the acute withdrawal I had amnesia and was really messing them up so he took over my mediset and has been giving me my pills. Last Thursday he forgot to give me my morning pills which at the time included 400mg of Gabapentin as I was on 800mg a day We realized this on Saturday after a hellacious day of rage. I figured my body was already reacted to an adjustment so I decided i would stay down 200mg and keep it at 600mg (300mg 2x a day). After days of increased panic and akathisia (and your advise) I tried a day at 200mg 3x a day and it seems to help some. I'm trying to stay at 600mg - I feel so terrible it's tempting to go back up, but at the same time I'm already suffering from withdrawing from all those meds that I don't know how much better I will really feel if I go back up on this one med. But I do know I have an increase in symptoms because of my recent change. Going forward I will try tapering only 10% like you. Yes, right now I have 100mg capsules. How long after your benzo withdrawal did you start tapering Gabapentin? What symptoms do you notice are different or the same with tapering Gabapentin. It's hard for me to distinguish the difference. I just notice an increase in certain symptoms.

[[ga...]]

@gardener99

 

I'm learning all this terminology right now. I believe I did a cut and hold. Although, not intentionally :-) I had to have my husband take over my meds because during the acute withdrawal I had amnesia and was really messing them up so he took over my mediset and has been giving me my pills. Last Thursday he forgot to give me my morning pills which at the time included 400mg of Gabapentin as I was on 800mg a day We realized this on Saturday after a hellacious day of rage. I figured my body was already reacted to an adjustment so I decided i would stay down 200mg and keep it at 600mg (300mg 2x a day). After days of increased panic and akathisia (and your advise) I tried a day at 200mg 3x a day and it seems to help some. I'm trying to stay at 600mg - I feel so terrible it's tempting to go back up, but at the same time I'm already suffering from withdrawing from all those meds that I don't know how much better I will really feel if I go back up on this one med. But I do know I have an increase in symptoms because of my recent change. Going forward I will try tapering only 10% like you. Yes, right now I have 100mg capsules. How long after your benzo withdrawal did you start tapering Gabapentin? What symptoms do you notice are different or the same with tapering Gabapentin. It's hard for me to distinguish the difference. I just notice an increase in certain symptoms.

 

Well, I 've been naughty. I'm only 3 months off my benzo.

 

My goal is to see if I can get my dose in half before I have to move in the spring. Then I will hold again until I am settled.

 

Cut and hold is usually making a cut once/month and then waiting for symptoms to subside before making another. That's my plan. Daily micro-taper is making a tiny cut every day. That's how I did my benzo because I cold not tolerate larger cuts.

 

I find the symptoms to be rather similar to benzo withdrawal but not as intense.

 

I am making my cut today. I had to liquefy. Most of my G is 300mg capsules. It wasn't hard to dissolve them. I just bought 3 tiny bottles at the craft store to put my 3 doses in. Helps me keep track of whether I took them or not. And they fit in my purse. I also have a med alarm the I absolutely rely on.

 

Don't feel bad if you have to go back up. It's a temporary setback, like a tactical retreat. Just know that going back up works best of done with  a short period of time. I'm going to guess a week or two, but you could check the Updating Support Group to see what they say.

[[Iw...]]

 

Cut and hold is usually making a cut once/month and then waiting for symptoms to subside before making another. That's my plan. Daily micro-taper is making a tiny cut every day. That's how I did my benzo because I cold not tolerate larger cuts.

 

Thank you for explaining that to me, that helps.

 

I am making my cut today. I had to liquefy. Most of my G is 300mg capsules. It wasn't hard to dissolve them. I just bought 3 tiny bottles at the craft store to put my 3 doses in. Helps me keep track of whether I took them or not. And they fit in my purse. I also have a med alarm the I absolutely rely on.

 

I'll have to check into that. Right now I have the 100mg capsules, but as I taper I have a feeling I won't be willing to do such drastic cuts. I'll need to do much smaller cuts.

 

Don't feel bad if you have to go back up. It's a temporary setback, like a tactical retreat. Just know that going back up works best of done with  a short period of time. I'm going to guess a week or two, but you could check the Updating Support Group to see what they say.

 

Thank you, I'll check out the group.  Curious if you thought the Gabapentin helped with your Benzo withdrawal?

 

 

Edit: Removed text members request:

[[no...]]

I am making my cut today. I had to liquefy. Most of my G is 300mg capsules. It wasn't hard to dissolve them. I just bought 3 tiny bottles at the craft store to put my 3 doses in. Helps me keep track of whether I took them or not. And they fit in my purse. I also have a med alarm the I absolutely rely on.

 

me too! invaluable! i use my cellphone to do this. saved my butt a number of times!

[[ga...]]

 

Thank you, I'll check out the group.  Curious if you thought the Gabapentin helped with your Benzo withdrawal?

 

I think gabapentin can help in the short run, but you habituate to it and then it doesn't help any more. So, no, I don't think so, but that's not why I took it. I have autoimmune neuropathy. I tried it for that, but I don't think it's doing anything any more because I've habituated to it. I'm not willing to go up, so I'm going down. No point in taking a drug that does nothing.

[[ga...]]

I am making my cut today. I had to liquefy. Most of my G is 300mg capsules. It wasn't hard to dissolve them. I just bought 3 tiny bottles at the craft store to put my 3 doses in. Helps me keep track of whether I took them or not. And they fit in my purse. I also have a med alarm the I absolutely rely on.

 

me too! invaluable! i use my cellphone to do this. saved my butt a number of times!

 

[[be...]]

Iwant2, are you doing cut and hold? I'm planning to start tomorrow with a 10% cut. I did DLMT for my benzo, so this will be a big change for me.

 

Unfortunately, my gabapentin is in capsules, so I will have to liquify. Are yours pills? Just curious.

 

Thanks.

 

I tapered by opening the capsule and taking a bit of the powder out, it’s great because you can remove as little or as much as you want. I just sucked the remaining amount out with a straw. It worked well for me.

[[ga...]]

Iwant2, are you doing cut and hold? I'm planning to start tomorrow with a 10% cut. I did DLMT for my benzo, so this will be a big change for me.

 

Unfortunately, my gabapentin is in capsules, so I will have to liquify. Are yours pills? Just curious.

 

Thanks.

 

I tapered by opening the capsule and taking a bit of the powder out, it’s great because you can remove as little or as much as you want. I just sucked the remaining amount out with a straw. It worked well for me.

 

Interesting. How did you measure how much you took out?

[[or...]]

Gardener, I tapered my gabapentin way too fast by reducing 100 mgs a month. That made me feel  However, I have discovered lately (wish I had known it then) that there is a pharma liquid prescription gaba. Hot dog! You might want to look into that.

 

 

Katz

[[no...]]

Gardener, I tapered my gabapentin way too fast by reducing 100 mgs a month. That made me feel  However, I have discovered lately (wish I had known it then) that there is a pharma liquid prescription gaba. Hot dog! You might want to look into that.

 

 

Katz

 

thanks to oregonkatz...i looked it up and found this: https://www.uspharmacist.com/article/gabapentin-100-mgml-oral-suspension

 

Gabapentin is available as oral capsules of 100 mg, 300 mg, and 400 mg; tablets of 100 mg, 300 mg, 400 mg, 600 mg, and 800 mg; and an oral solution of 50 mg/mL. However, the need often exists for a higher-concentration oral liquid, and if tablets or capsules are used as the drug source, a suspension will result. In the literature, the 100 mg/mL concentration used in this formula also used an alternative second vehicle: simple syrup and methylcellulose 1% solution 1:1. Both formulations had the same stability and beyond-use dates, so the alternative formula could be used if desired.1 In the event that tablets are used as the drug source, the 600-mg tablets also may contain hydroxypropyl cellulose, copovidone sodium, and calcium stearate. The capsules also may contain lactose, cornstarch, and talc, and the oral solution may contain glycerin, xylitol, purified water, and strawberry-anise flavor. Gabapentin may be compounded into numerous dosage forms, including topical gels, transdermal gels, creams, and injections.

 

Gabapentin (cyclohexaneacetic acid, Neurontin, C9H17NO2, MW 171.24) occurs as a white to off-white, crystalline solid that is freely soluble in water and in alkaline and acidic solutions. A 2% aqueous solution has a pH of 6.5 to 8.0.

 

Ora-Plus is an oral suspending vehicle that accepts dilution of up to 50% or more with water, flavoring agents, or syrups while still retaining its suspending properties. It has a pH of approximately 4.2 and an osmolality of about 230 mOsm/kg. Ora-Plus is a thixotropic vehicle with a viscosity of approximately 1,000 cps at 25°C. It contains purified water, microcrystalline cellulose, sodium carboxymethylcellulose, xanthan gum, carrageenan, sodium phosphate, and citric acid as buffering agents, simethicone as an antifoaming agent, and potassium sorbate and methylparaben as preservatives.5

 

Ora-Sweet syrup vehicle is a flavoring vehicle for oral extemporaneous preparations. It is flavored with a citrus-berry flavor blend and contains glycerin and sorbitol to prevent cap lock, a problem associated with many syrups. Ora-Sweet is buffered to a pH of approximately 4.2 and has an osmolality of about 3,240 mOsm/kg. It contains purified water, sucrose, glycerin, sorbitol (5%), flavoring, sodium phosphate, and citric acid as buffering agents and potassium sorbate and methylparaben as preservatives.6

 

Methylcellulose (Methocel) is a practically odorless and tasteless, white to yellowish-white granule or powder that is widely used in both oral and topical formulations. The pH of a 1% solution ranges from 5.5 to 8.0. Methylcellulose is hygroscopic and practically insoluble in acetone, ethanol, saturated salt solutions, and hot water, but is soluble in glacial acetic acid. Its solutions are stable to alkalis and dilute acids with pH values between 3 and 11.7

 

Syrup (simple syrup) is a clear, sweet vehicle used as a sweetening agent and as the base for many flavored and medicated syrups. It contains 85% w/v sucrose in water and has a specific gravity of not less than 1.30.1

 

also: https://www.pfizermedicalinformation.com/en-us/patient/neurontin#how-should-i-store-neurontin

 

How should I store NEURONTIN?

 

Store NEURONTIN Capsules and Tablets between 68°F to 77°F (20°C to 25°C).

Store NEURONTIN Oral Solution in the refrigerator between 36°F to 46°F (2°C to 8°C).

 

For more information go to http://www.pfizer.com or call 1-800-438-1985.

 

What are the ingredients in NEURONTIN?

 

Active ingredient: gabapentin

 

Inactive ingredients in the capsules: lactose, cornstarch, talc, gelatin, titanium dioxide and FD&C Blue No. 2.

 

The 300-mg capsule shell also contains: yellow iron oxide.

 

The 400-mg capsule shell also contains: red iron oxide, and yellow iron oxide.

 

Inactive ingredients in the tablets: poloxamer 407, copovidone, cornstarch, magnesium stearate, hydroxypropyl cellulose, talc, and candelilla wax

 

Inactive ingredients in the oral solution: glycerin, xylitol, purified water, and artificial flavor.

 

This Medication Guide has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

 

This product's label may have been updated. For current full prescribing information, please visit www.pfizer.com.

 

also: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5393583/

 

Stability of gabapentin in extemporaneously compounded oral suspensions...

 

The liquid form available in the USA is a simple aqueous solution containing glycerin, xylitol, purified water and artificial flavor [2]. This solution requires refrigeration [2]. Considering its biopharmaceutical properties, a compounded liquid formulation of gabapentin should be equivalent to the commercial products as long as it is compounded as a solution. The absence of precipitation and no change in potency would be two critical quality attributes that will need to be controlled during the shelf life of this compounded product. Storage temperature also need to be evaluated; as stability of compounded preparations is usually evaluated under a shorter period of time (3 months) compared to commercial preparations (2 to 5 years), storage for 3 months at controlled room temperature should also be considered in the stability protocol.

 

With regards to compounded preparations, stability is generally defined as the absence of organoleptic changes, the absence of physical changes, a difference of pH of not more than 0.5 compared to the initial pH as well as a drug substance concentration of not less than 90.0% relative to the initial concentration [9–16].

 

A few studies reported the stability of compounded oral suspensions of gabapentin. In 1999, Nahata evaluated preparations of gabapentin 100 mg/mL compounded from gabapentin capsules in both methylcellulose 1% and a mixture of Ora Plus and Ora Sweet (1:1) conditioned in plastic bottles [17]. These preparations remained stable at least 91 days at 4°C and at least 56 days at 25°C [17]. In 2012, Sorenson reported that gabapentin 50 mg/mL in SyrSpend SF conditioned in low actinic bottles was stable at least 90 days when refrigerated or stored at room temperature [18]. In 2014, Soliman tested the stability of gabapentin 100 mg/mL suspension in a methylcellulose vehicle after three months of refrigeration. The assay of this preparation fell from 95.1 mg/mL initially to 69.9 mg/mL after three months (73.5% of initial concentration) [19]. This result was unexpected considering that Nahata and Sorenson previously demonstrated stability under similar conditions.

Methylcellulose vehicle is cumbersome to prepare, while SyrSpend SF is not readily available in Canada. Furthermore, conflicting information is available regarding the stability of compounded preparations of gabapentin under refrigerated conditions.

 

...Conclusions

Compounded preparations of gabapentin 100 mg/mL prepared using Oral Mix or Oral Mix SF, bulk drug powder or capsules and packaged in amber PET bottles or amber oral syringes remained stable for at least 90 days at 25°C. As physical changes were observed at 5°C, these preparations should be protected from cold and should not be frozen. Preparations should always be shaken prior use.

 

apologies if this has already been posted...i was researching for myself and thought it may be useful to others here.  seems like a simple glycerin solution would be easiest to make for a batch that needs to last for u pto 3 months.

 

 

[[be...]]

Iwant2, are you doing cut and hold? I'm planning to start tomorrow with a 10% cut. I did DLMT for my benzo, so this will be a big change for me.

 

Unfortunately, my gabapentin is in capsules, so I will have to liquify. Are yours pills? Just curious.

 

Thanks.

 

I tapered by opening the capsule and taking a bit of the powder out, it’s great because you can remove as little or as much as you want. I just sucked the remaining amount out with a straw. It worked well for me.

 

Interesting. How did you measure how much you took out?

 

I had to eye ball it. I used a straight razor blade. Almost like those people do with cocaine. I would take one third out, the same for a week or 10 days, and then take two thirds out, etc. at the beginning I was on 700 mg so I cut more. Like half a capsule each time. Make sure it’s on a very dry surface as the capsule is designed to melt. I had no withdrawal. When I tried to cut 100 mg a month like Katz did, I had the same problem. Good luck 🍀👍.

[[va...]]

Iwant2, are you doing cut and hold? I'm planning to start tomorrow with a 10% cut. I did DLMT for my benzo, so this will be a big change for me.

 

Unfortunately, my gabapentin is in capsules, so I will have to liquify. Are yours pills? Just curious.

 

Thanks.

 

I tapered by opening the capsule and taking a bit of the powder out, it’s great because you can remove as little or as much as you want. I just sucked the remaining amount out with a straw. It worked well for me.

 

Interesting. How did you measure how much you took out?

 

I had to eye ball it. I used a straight razor blade. Almost like those people do with cocaine. I would take one third out, the same for a week or 10 days, and then take two thirds out, etc. at the beginning I was on 700 mg so I cut more. Like half a capsule each time. Make sure it’s on a very dry surface as the capsule is designed to melt. I had no withdrawal. When I tried to cut 100 mg a month like Katz did, I had the same problem. Good luck 🍀👍.

 

Benzo girl, were your capsules 100 mgs each?