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.
Okay, because I am a total ZOMBIE right now, I am going to paste what I just wrote to someone:
Good morning---it is morning isn't it?? LOL!! So, I take 300mg of neurontin at 10:30 last night. I woke up at 5:30 and had to pee SOOOO bad and my cpap was off. I get up and STUBLE to the bathroom. I feel like my whole body is spinning. Not to mention that it feels kind of numb--like not easy to move. I laid back down and got up a little before 8. Still dizzy feel like crap. But HEY! My legs aren't moving! LOL!! NOTHING is moving! I sure can't take this! I am having a hard time typing too. (more than usual) Not sure if they think it will get better or not, but I certainly can't wait too long because I don't feel safe to even drive--I cancelled my oil change appointment for 8:30. Good grief! I wonder if it is even worth it. I need to get my ferritin up and see if that helps. I don't know if I am willing to try any more drugs until then. This is ridiculous!
My question to you guys is if you have had similar experience and if it got better?? It also has been 10 hours since I took it and I still feel terrible. Any idea how long it will take to get out of my system??
I believe the half-life of neurontin is about 6 hours. "The half-life of a medication is the time it takes for your body to metabolize and excrete a drug so that half of the drug is removed from your body. As a general rule you are considered fully clean in blood and urine after 5 half lives. Keep in mind that the half of every drug varies greatly." Also, we all metabolize medications differently and that also effects the medication half-life.
Believe it or not, I currently take 1800 mg. of neurontin daily and just wish it would make me sleepy. However, it does help satisfactorily with my rls/plmd symptoms. A bit of a long story but my first experience with neurontin (and for a different reason) about 4 years ago (300 mg) also made me loopy, emotionally, labile, and in a fog. Needless to say, after discussing it with my doc we stopped the med. Then about 18 months ago, after exhausting many of the first line rls/plmd meds and being desperate, I agreed to try neurontin again. Had some minor side effects but nothing like my first time around. Had to titrate up several times to my current dosing but that has remained fairly steady now for 8 months or so. Can't really think of any lingering side effects also.
Soooooo, don't really know what that means others than that's my story and I'm sticking to it! This condition and our bodies sure do react strangely. It's hard to know when to say no to a particular treatment or med. Your reaction to neurontin is similar to other posts I have read and also similar to my first experience. Perhaps you could ask your doc to lower the dose a bit and see if that helps. I know I started on 100 mg 3x daily. Some side effects get better with time other side effects never do... we're just all different. Discuss this with your doc, the sooner the better, and maybe you can reach a better plan or at least a more informed decision.
Best of luck, my friend.
M.
This post simply reflects opinion. Quantities are limited while supplies last. Some assembly required.
Thanks for the reply. I just called the nurses line and "they will give them a message and they will get back to me"--yeah last time it took 4 days to hear ANYTHING and then they had to talk to the dr., so I called the pharmacist. She too suggested that I start maybe with 100 mg. She said I should have very little side effects and that they would probalby get better as I get used to it. Bad news is then I have to wait for them to call me back and get a new rx. UGH!! It took a week the last time I had to switch to get the messages back and forth! I wish I could just talk to the dr. already! All I know is that I cannot do 300 mg if this is how I will feel! No way could I have gotten to work this morning!!
I worry about weight gain, has that been a problem for you? But at least for now, I don't want to eat, I just want to go back to bed! LOL!!
J, Can't remember what the 300 mg tab looks like as mine are now 600 mg tabs. But, while you're waiting, and assuming you want to try the 100 mg, are you able to score your 300 mg tab in thirds (or are they a capsule). If you are getting a new script for 100's, which I think are capsules, it may not make a difference if you ruin a few of the 300 tabs. Do you have a pill cutter. A bit off point, but pill cutters are very inexpensive and a handy little tool to have around.
I did have some initial weight gain and food cravings but not much. Actually, I have dropped about 10 lbs in the last 6 months so weight gain has not been an issue for me at this point. I think weight gain has been a concern with neurontin and perhaps even more with Lyrica----as well as many other meds I'm sure.
I know it seems you are not able to tell if the neurontin is helping your rls because of its general, overall numbing of your body and psyche but, if you think it's helping, it may be worth trying it at the reduced dose.
Good luck.
M.
This post simply reflects opinion. Quantities are limited while supplies last. Some assembly required.
Jitter- if your doc started you on 300 mg-- that's too high to start out with for most people. I started out at 100mg and went up by 100 mg every month and am currently on 900 mg at night. Just so you know- it does get significantly better over time but it takes a while. When I first started neurontin I was woozy, sleepy, etc. all day. But I also was sleeping so much better that I just stuck it out. It took about 3 weeks but it did get better. The other thing I've noticed is that when taken with narcotics, the neurontin seems to "augment" both the pain relief AND the side-effects of my narcotic. Same thing with alcohol-- so be careful!
I've been prescribed Neurontin/gabapentin for various conditions since the year 2000...RLS, Plms, depression, anxiety/panic, etc.
I currently take 800 mg before bedtime to help with sleep. Not sure that it's working for my primary RLS (made worse by recent back surgery). I originally started the med at 100mg doses taken at night, and gradually titrated up to more than 1200mg at one point.
Because of the approx. half-life of 6 hours, I don't currently have any "drugged" or hung over feelings in the mornings, but as was said earlier, everybody responds to medications differently.
I remember maybe 5 years ago taking 600mg at 8am (for panic disorder, if I rember correctly), and my mind went completely goofy...I couldn't remember passwords, names, numbers which I had used literally thousands of times over the years. The experience scared me from taking gabapentin during daytime hours for a few years.
I saw a neurologist last week for neuropathic "shocking" pain in my right foot which began maybe 2 months ago, and he prescribed 800mg three times each day. I took one dose of it at 2pm yesterday, and my response was different...just made me really sleepy. I didn't have to drive or go anywhere, so it wasn't a big deal. I've got a message in for him to call me back to talk about trying another med. for the pain.
I think that you should listen to your body, and make decisions (with your doctor's help) about how you're going to proceed. Don't be too affected by what others' experiences with Neurontin have been...We're all different, and many of us individually respond differently to the same medication taken at different points in our lives.
Best wishes for a "speedy" reply from your doc. I know how frustrating the wait can be, especially regarding advice about our medications. I'm personally waiting to hear from my Neuro who was supposed to call me 4 hours ago, and from my primary care doc who was supposed to call me last night.
Thanks so much for your replies. I did hear back already from the nurse, expressed my concerns. She at first said to just stick with the 300mg at night and it will probably be better as this was the first time my body was exposed to the drug. Really not what I wanted to hear. I also called the parmacist this morning and she said also starting at 100mg may be a better choice, I can always raise it. I'd much rather go slowly and take longer than endure what I had to today for any lenghth of time. The nurse also said to maybe take it earlier in the evening. Problem with that is that I cannot drive like this, and it is rare that I have an evening to just stay home. Also, I get up at 5 and have to be to work at 6:30. Today the effects lasted at least 12 hours before I even started to feel like I was returning to normal. I understand that my body "may" get used to the drug, but I am with you that I should start at a lower dose. So, anyway, I asked the nurse to call in a rx for 100's (yes, unfortunately, my 300's are capsules) just in case because if I am still feeling poorly in the morning by Saturday, I will NOT be able to take it Sunday night as I work early in the morning on Monday. She was going to check with the dr. and get back to me.
Now I just wonder what to do about tonight?? I don't have the time to waste here--I do all the office work for my husband's business (besides my "real" job) and I am way behind and need every alert hour I can get! I sure hope the nurse calls back today!
Thanks again for all your replies you guys are great!
For many months I have been cutting (with a small knife) the 300 mg capsule in half and divided the contents in 2. Of course the 2 parts didn't weigh exactly 150 mg, but I think I was pretty good at it. Of course you are not supposed to do that (I think), but if it works it works. Maybe it will be difficult to divide a capsule in 3 parts instead of 2, but you can try. Hope it works for you.
I did pull apart the capsule and dump some out as I am waiting for the dr. to send in the rx for 100's. Assuming she is going to. The nurse sounded like it would be fine, she was just trying to get a hold of the dr. Anyway, this morning I feel MUCH better!! I can actually walk and function! And, my legs aren't doing the jitterbug! Hopefully this will be the ticket!! 3rd time (med) is supposed to be the charm, right??
I'm really happy to hear that the decreased dose of Neurontin is working out for you! The decreased dose, and the adjusting that your body's going through will make it much easier for you to get the relief that you're after.
Maybe a smaller dose is all you'll need. Just listen to your body.
Keep us posted on your progress, and have a great day.
I sure can't take this! I am having a hard time typing too. (more than usual) Not sure if they think it will get better or not, but I certainly can't wait too long because I don't feel safe to even drive--I cancelled my oil change appointment for 8:30. Good grief! I wonder if it is even worth it. I need to get my ferritin up and see if that helps. I don't know if I am willing to try any more drugs until then. This is ridiculous! 
Hopefully this will be the ticket!! 3rd time (med) is supposed to be the charm, right??