Has anybody any experience of Pregablin? My GP has recommended it to replace Amitriptyline for pain relief.
The side effects look a bit scary but I need something .
Also i experience a lot of stiffness in my neck and shoulders, any tips? x
hi jacquar
I was taking pregabalin for approx 5 yrs. 600mg daily. it did most certainly help my neuropathic pain , which was severe. It also sedates and , I found that it cause brain fog in a big way also when I tried to think about anything , it felt like a pair of hands were squeezing my brain to suppress any thoughts and the more I tried to think the more my brain was squeezed. It got so debilitating that I had to ask my doctor if I could come off it completely. One of the huge problems that I personally found was that folk around me were effected as much if not more than i was, I lost a friend because of the effect it was having on me despite me trying to explain how it was effecting me, don’t really blame them in a way but it hurts just the same. There is lots of information about pregabalin and it’s side effects on the manufacturers websites , also there are data sheets available that gives so much more information than you could ever get from the patient information leaflet that come in the box of medication. There is a lot of information to be learned from going onto U.S. patient forums where they share their own experiences of using pregabalin. Even when coming off it it’s far from straight forward and takes a lot longer than I thought it would because our nervous systems have got to get used to doing without it. Good news is that it’s far easier to lose any weight that was put on when taking it when withdrawing from it. It’s really down to our individual circumstances whether we want to use it or not and something that has to be talked over with our doctors. It’s good to get as much information you can about it first then with that knowledge you can discuss it with the doctor.
Personally, I am glad to be off it now, without a doubt it did help me when I was in severe pain but I’m not sure if being like ‘a zombie’ or losing friends was worth it.
david
Thanks for that David. I feel that GP’s are at a bit of a loss at times. Im keeping an open mind but I dont want
to feel any more ‘foggy’ than i do already.
Ive gone down this route because people close to me have persuaded me to.
I came off Amitryptyline because of the zombie effect…out of the frying pan into the fire perhaps??
Jackie
Gabapentin is usually seen as the starter before Pregabalin (they are both from the same family).
I found no side effects from Gabapentin (but that is a sample of one - of course).
Geoff
jackie you will find out that pregabalin is a great deal more potent than even higher doses of amitriptyline. david
Gabapentin is much cheaper to prescribe than Pregablin. Pregablin is sort of a more refined version of Gabapentin, but although it works in pretty much the same way, I think it binds to a different side of the neuron (or something) the capsules are smaller and you only take them twice a day whereas Gabapentin is three times a day. Some people prefer one to the other and I know of people who take both. Supposedly Gabapentin has more side effects than Pregablin, but that as most of those listed are the same as the reasons I take them in the first place, it’s hard to know.
I was taking amitryptiline but it was doing nothing for my facial nerve pain. I was then given Gabapentin, which I took alongside the amitryptiline. The pain improved, but was still bad and I was incredibly drowsy. I then switched to Pregablin and my husband remarked that I was much more like myself on it. The trigeminal pain improved a lot and I came off the Amitriptyline, but did have a period of finding it difficult to sleep. My neuro has suggested I add Amitriptyline back in to help with back pain, but at the moment I’m holding off to see if I can sort it with physio.
So the bottom line is that I would overlap rather than try to deal with getting used to Pregablin at the same time as coming off Amitriptyline, and if you have nerve pain or parasthesia that is really getting in the way, pregablin or Gabapentin will deal with it much better than the Amitriptyline.
all best with that jackie whichever way you choose to go
david
I take pregabalin (lyrica) 150mg twice a day I was taking 150 mg that three times a day although it dealt very well with nerve pain at That dose the side effects were not good mainly making me very intolerant and bad natured,also generic versions
Make me ill and are a no no at least my gp let’s me have lyrica.
Thanks for the info folks, it seems its a “suck it and see” thing so ill give it a go. x Jackie
Hi, I tried pregabalin for chronic heel pain, which amitriptyline doesnt shift…although it does keep other nerve pain away successfully…
I found pregabalin caused rapid weight gain and a feeling of deep sadness!
I came off it and felt better, but the heel pain persists!
pollx
Yea the weight game is a big issue for me
I’ve heard a lot of people say this, but for me Pregablin has reduced my appetite and given me an aversion to sugary things. Amitryptiline made me crave cake. Just shows that drugs really do work differently on different people.