Am I crazy? Requip making me feel worse....

Use this section to discuss your experiences with prescription drugs, iron injections, and other medical interventions that involve the introduction of a drug or medicine into the body. Discuss side effects, successes, failures, published research, information about drug trials, and information about new medications being developed.

Important: Posts and information in this section are based on personal experiences and recommendations; they should not be considered a substitute for the advice of a healthcare provider.
Cinnamon193
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Location: Alberta

Post by Cinnamon193 »

Sojourner wrote:FWIW, Dr. B's book suggests about 2700 mg. max daily gabapentin for rls.

Out of curiosity, have you heard/read what happens at greater than the recommended daily max? My doc prescribed no more than 3000mg, but I've yet to hear of an overdose or other negative reaction to a high dose? (Not that I'd like to take any more as the side effects are already pretty miserable.) Thx

Wayne
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Joined: Tue Feb 17, 2009 1:50 am
Location: Virginia (USA)

Post by Wayne »

Re: Neurontin.

I've been taking Neurontin about 3 weeks now, having been recently diagnosed with neuropathy by my neuro, not RLS as my GP thought for 3 yrs. I'm glad I made the effort and got the testing done to get the correct diagnosis and have gotten the right medication to address the problem rather than sedating myself every night with Xanax to get to sleep.

I working up to 900mg per day, currently I'm at 600 and it's working great so far. I'm off the Xanax now and can sleep fairly normally. The creepy crawlies still occasionally break through but nowhere near the intensity of before.

When I first started taking it I had a lot of dizziness which has passed now. It's still causing drowsiness (damn near fell asleep at the wheel on my way home from work the other day). So I started drinking a half cup of coffee an hour before leaving work and that seems to chase away the lingering cobwebs of the daytime dose. A Coke would probably achieve the same results and would taste better.

Me drinking regular coffee instead of decaf says a lot. I don't normally take any caffeine and haven't in nearly three years.

Finding the right med is a process.

Neco
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Post by Neco »

Glad things are improving for you Wayne.. I would still keep an eye on the creepy crawlies stuff though.. It may be possible you have both conditions, and it would suck to think you got rid of one and then start having problems again that the Neurontin couldn't address.

stephanm61
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Nov 05, 2007 12:38 pm
Location: New Jersey, USA

Requip has made my symptoms worse

Post by stephanm61 »

Hi, I've been on requip for almost 3 years and after reading the posts in this section, I definitely need to get off of it. A few weeks after starting requip, I noticed that my symptoms worsened within about an hour after taking the pill (1 mg). These intensified symptoms would last for anywhere from an hour or two. I even began to experience pain in my feet, which was quite disturbing. However, when the symptoms finally subsided, and they usually did, I was able to fall asleep. I accepted this side effect because I was able to get enough sleep to function the next day. I mentioned this to my doctor, and he said he never heard of this happening to any of his other patients.

However, in the past year I've noticed that the symptoms are not going away alot of the time. I have tried taking two pills (2 mg) and that relieves the augmentation for now. However, I can see the pattern, and I do not wish to keep raising the dose. Right now, I'm getting about the same amount of sleep as I was before I began the requip. I'm going to stop taking it and concentrate on things like diet and exercise. I just hope that at the very least I can get back to where I was 3 years ago.

Anyway just wanted to say thanks for the comments. I've learned so much about rls from this blog and knowing there are so many others suffering with this curse is helpful.
All to often a literal witness to the old adage "it is always darkest before the dawn."

Neco
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Post by Neco »

Print out the Mayo Algorithm from my signature, and highlight the passages on Augmentation. You need to show that to your doctor immediately and get him to take you off Requip, and possibly provide you an opiate for the transition as your RLS will become much worse. That is also in the Algorithm somewhere and worth highlighting.

After a couple weeks, you can stay on opiates or you can taper off while itroducing another medication like Neurontin or Lyrica.

stephanm61
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Joined: Mon Nov 05, 2007 12:38 pm
Location: New Jersey, USA

Thanks so much

Post by stephanm61 »

Zach,

Thanks so much for the information. I will take this to my doctor, and hopefully he'll prescribe an opiate during my transition.

-Mark
All to often a literal witness to the old adage "it is always darkest before the dawn."

ViewsAskew
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Post by ViewsAskew »

Mark, I hope it's easy, but it may not be (stopping Requip). If you have indeed augmented (and it sounds like it), stopping often causes the RLS to increase dramatically. I've never before or since has RLS like what I had when I stopped Mirapex after augmenting. I tried to stop 3 times before I was successful.

Also, in the last 3 years your RLS may have gotten worse along with the augmentation. When you stop the Requip, it will take a month or two before you sort of know how bad the RLS is going to be at this time in your life.

You may need help from another drug during this time frame if you have to work, take care of children, or do anything that requires you to be functional. I was not functional for over a month, I'd guess. I probably had a very tough time, but many others here have had an equally tough one that we're probably not outliers but the norm.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

stephanm61
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Nov 05, 2007 12:38 pm
Location: New Jersey, USA

OUCH!

Post by stephanm61 »

I hope it's not that bad, but I think I need to do this. I have tried on numerous occasions to go without the requip for one night and it was unbearable. I never made it through. I know what I'm in for, I just hope I can get a little help from my doctor with an opiate prescription. I'm not worried about the addictive aspect. I don't have an addictive personality. Thanks so much for the advice and well wishes. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

-Mark
All to often a literal witness to the old adage "it is always darkest before the dawn."

ViewsAskew
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Post by ViewsAskew »

I didn't worry about the opiate addiction potential either. I just didn't know the first two times I tried that I could use an opiate to help. I made it 3 or 4 days one time and 5 another. I didn't sleep any during that time period. It was unbearable.

BUT - with the opiate? It was not bad at all. I tried a low potency first and it didn't help. Then a moderate - I don't know if it would have helped but it and I didn't get along (projectile vomiting). The methadone was great.

I absolutely agree that you need to do something. And, it sounds like you've thought it out carefully and have read all about it and are prepared. Good luck.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

stephanm61
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Nov 05, 2007 12:38 pm
Location: New Jersey, USA

Post by stephanm61 »

I'm going to see my doctor tomorrow. Fortunately, I have plenty of sick hours to fall back on in case things get difficult. Take care and thanks so much for the information and the words of support. It means a lot to know you are not alone.
All to often a literal witness to the old adage "it is always darkest before the dawn."

Neco
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Post by Neco »

Let us know how it goes

stephanm61
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Nov 05, 2007 12:38 pm
Location: New Jersey, USA

Requip withdrawal

Post by stephanm61 »

Saw my doctor and explained my situation. I showed him the Mayo Clinic Algorithm, which he barely acknowledged, and I even showed him these blog entries to help my case for an opiate prescription. Nevertheless, he wouldn't give it to me. He did give me a prescription for lorazepam, a mild sedative, and a referral for a neurologist. Didn't sleep a wink on night one. However, I didn't have the leg pain I had the last time I tried to go without requip. Slept a little better on night 2 (maybe 2 hours), again no leg pain. See what happens tonight. If it's not any better, I'm going to flashback to my college days and try a little weed before bedtime, which I have seen works well for many people in this blog. Meanwhile, I'm going to start searching for a new doctor with better rls knowledge. It's frustrating when you know more about an ailment than your doctor, and he ignores the research you have done. And I have to pay for that! Just makes me even more determined to succeed. Talk to you soon.

-Mark
All to often a literal witness to the old adage "it is always darkest before the dawn."

Polar Bear
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Post by Polar Bear »

Hi Mark, sorry your doc has not been cooperative with you and wish you well in your search for a new one. Its such a pity he would not take heed of the algorithm. Good luck with the neurologist.
Betty
https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/a ... 0/fulltext
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation

ViewsAskew
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Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 6:37 am
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Post by ViewsAskew »

My vision for the future is signing into here each day an NEVER hearing another story like this one.

It is amazing that we have to pay for that type of treatment. Makes you want to just say, you know, I've decided not to pay you since you decide to ignore information and ignore what was best for me.

I wish you speed in finding a doc who gets it.

Good news is that you seem to be doing a bit better stopping the Requip this time, if I am reading your post correctly. I hope so.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

Neco
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Joined: Tue Oct 04, 2005 10:18 am
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Post by Neco »

I wonder what would happen if one of us finally had the balls to go into an office and say something like that, and actually drag it out into a court/arbitration if it goes that far.

It's really pathetic the way RLS patients get treated. However at this point, if you don't foresee any drug tests in your future (pre-employment, random, etc) then yeah M.J might be a good substitute for lack of decent treatment.

A lot of people seem to have decent success with it, and I know I tried a small amount a few months ago, and it seemed to work pretty well although made me a bit tired. I didn't have enough to do anything decent like a week-long test though.

Hopefully you'll find a good doctor soon.

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