Gabapentin (Neurontin) Withdrawl Support Group

That is for your most recent gpentin use?  How long did your 1800 mg one take?

so for the 1800 years ago, which was 3x600mg, i tapered to something like 3x10mg/day and jumped.

I had 0 mental symptoms back then, but bad physical, mostly blood pressure/heart racing. i even ended in the ER with this

but they were over in a week or so. the mental stuff this time around was way worse

Oh that does not sound good.  How did you cut 10mg from each dose, a day, with a scale or liquid?  I am day 21 with gabapentin now, and it is really helping my sleep and depression, but i am horrified by the thought of another withdrawal.  But i was ready to abandon my v taper, and now i'm at 5.7 from 11, so hopefully soon in the home stretch. My first v taper 16 years ago, went really smoothly.  Second time, not good.

Oh that does not sound good.  How did you cut 10mg from each dose, a day, with a scale or liquid?  I am day 21 with gabapentin now, and it is really helping my sleep and depression, but i am horrified by the thought of another withdrawal.

it is great to hear it helps with the sleep. Wondering how much before bedtime you're taking the pill?

I can't take my pregabalin too close to bedtime because it seems to interact with my Trazodone pill, which is a bit disappointing 

Paula, just my thoughts, but why are you even thinking of withdrawing from gabapentin until your valium taper is done? All that worry. And you say it's helping your now, so why fret about the future? I noticed a few posts back, you say you are having second thoughts about it. What thoughts? Are they all about fear of another taper? Good lord, if I were you, I'd worry (if you have to worry) about making my valium taper as smooth as possible.

 

I tapered my gabapentin AFTER my valium taper was over and AFTER my Ambien taper also. It was the last drug to go . . .  and it wasn't particularly hard.

 

Yeah, at some point you will/may have to taper off gaba. Or not.

 

Maybe try to think about the now, Paula.

 

Best,

 

Katz

I agree with oregonK - if it works, focus on valium.

however the problem with the night-time dose is potentially interdose withdrawal. so your V taper might be very very rocky because of 1 nightime GB dose

you probably looking to ramp your GB to 3x day.

there is also a chance that at 21day nighttime only you won't have w/d whatsoever. especially with V still in your system. another option you got is just C/T GB and take a pause with V taper

 

Thank you for all your kind and informed replies.  Yes, i wanted to stop it because this taper has been going so unexpectedly badly, that i am dreading yet another taper.  I am a 61 year old grieving mother and the valium taper just a bout killed me this time.  I was non functional!  I have just started taking 100 mg of gpent early afternoon, and it is helping as well.  My dr says i can still just stop, but i think she is wrong.

I wish you all the best Paula. as nasty as all of this is, it does pass eventually. I had a rough time post K taper. but its all over now.

its all individual, i would not expect this whole thing to be super bad. some people recover fairly quickly once off.

my father in law withdrew V from his wife using ashton protocol over 6 months or so. she had a bit of insomnia and anxiety early on but recovered really quick.

and she wasn't the youngest either.

anyways....good luck.

Paula, just my thoughts, but why are you even thinking of withdrawing from gabapentin until your valium taper is done? All that worry. And you say it's helping your now, so why fret about the future? I noticed a few posts back, you say you are having second thoughts about it. What thoughts? Are they all about fear of another taper? Good lord, if I were you, I'd worry (if you have to worry) about making my valium taper as smooth as possible.

 

I tapered my gabapentin AFTER my valium taper was over and AFTER my Ambien taper also. It was the last drug to go . . .  and it wasn't particularly hard.

 

Yeah, at some point you will/may have to taper off gaba. Or not.

 

Maybe try to think about the now, Paula.

 

Best,

 

Katz

 

:thumbsup:

My first taper from 10mgs of valium in 2005, was ashton and seamless and I no lasting effects.  I am worried now, about having lasting effects from both the v taper and then the gpent taper.  I am super healthy for my age, a 60 year old runner, and had not taken a single prescription med between 2005 and 2022.  Just natural products only.  I am traumitized to be in this position again.

Hey, Katz, tell me again how you tapered and what it was like. I am really not feeling like dissolving the stuff again. I know I should, but I am so sick of dissolving. I think that's why I am not tapering even though I am so close to the end. Librium gone. Seroquel gone. Just  100mg capsule 3x/day left. Sometimes I forget to take my midday capsule with only minor effects. I'm thinking of just switching to 2 capsules 12 hours apart. That did not work during my benzo taper, but I'm well past that. What do you think?

Hey Gar. Sorry to hear your taper is pi**ing you off. Mine did, too, so I did a very unscientific thing. I dropped by loads from 2300 mg (can't quite remember) until I got to 100 3X a day. Then . . . like a dope, I just dropped the midday dose. I felt headachey and malaisey (a little like the benzo taper) but it was okay. Then I just dropped the nighttime dose. It wasn't helping me sleep, so WTF I figured. The headaches and malaises got a little worse, then cleared up. Hallelujah! Now for the last 100 mgs, I figured. Trying to be a little cautious,  I emptied out half the capsule, and took the rest in the a.m. I really felt no s/x. So  I took 50% of my last 100 mgs for a week, then tried to empty 75% of the capsule, took that for a week, and then just stopped. I expected to feel NO s/x . .  but the headachey malaises came back. Crap. BUT they didn't last. Nor were they debilitating. Just annoying. After about 2 weeks, I felt fine. Listen, once you've been through the tortures of hell with benzo reduction, a little headachey malaisey crap is nothing. So anyhow, that's my unscientific reduction story.

 

The fact that you sometimes miss the midday dose with minor ill effects suggests to me that you can maybe skip it? Or . . . you could start cutting it in half if it's a pill or emptying out half the contents if it's a capsule. Seems like a conservative way to start. What do you think?

 

Wishing you the best,

 

 

Katz

Hey Gar. Sorry to hear your taper is pi**ing you off. Mine did, too, so I did a very unscientific thing. I dropped by loads from 2300 mg (can't quite remember) until I got to 100 3X a day. Then . . . like a dope, I just dropped the midday dose. I felt headachey and malaisey (a little like the benzo taper) but it was okay. Then I just dropped the nighttime dose. It wasn't helping me sleep, so WTF I figured. The headaches and malaises got a little worse, then cleared up. Hallelujah! Now for the last 100 mgs, I figured. Trying to be a little cautious,  I emptied out half the capsule, and took the rest in the a.m. I really felt no s/x. So  I took 50% of my last 100 mgs for a week, then tried to empty 75% of the capsule, took that for a week, and then just stopped. I expected to feel NO s/x . .  but the headachey malaises came back. Crap. BUT they didn't last. Nor were they debilitating. Just annoying. After about 2 weeks, I felt fine. Listen, once you've been through the tortures of hell with benzo reduction, a little headachey malaisey crap is nothing. So anyhow, that's my unscientific reduction story.

 

The fact that you sometimes miss the midday dose with minor ill effects suggests to me that you can maybe skip it? Or . . . you could start cutting it in half if it's a pill or emptying out half the contents if it's a capsule. Seems like a conservative way to start. What do you think?

 

Wishing you the best,

 

 

Katz

 

Thanks! I'm going to do that, dump out half the capsule. Would love to at least get rid of the daytime doses. As you said, not overly concerned about short-term annoying daytime symptoms. The only thing I worry about is sleep (restless leg syndrome, obstructive sleep apnea).

 

Curious: how long did you feel the effects of skipping? And when did you decide it was OK to cut more? I micro tapered my previous tapers, so this will be different.

 

I do notice minor effects from missing a dose, but nothing at all like the godawful benzo stuff. I see the dang pill still in the pill compartment at bedtime and say to myself, "Oh, that's why I've been on edge this afternoon." I could totally deal with that as long a I don't lose any more sleep. I have not been able to find a CPAP mask I can wear due to facial neuralgia. The lack of sleep becomes more and more disabling as time goes by.  Desperate, now paying a chiropractor to work on my jaw and neck, hoping that's where the neuralgia is originating. I suspect it is. But I have a connective tissue disorder that makes all my joints lax, so not sure if she can fix that. Crossing fingers.

Hmm, Gard, given your need for sleep and justified anxiety about not sleeping (as well as physical reasons for difficult sleep) I would work on getting rid of the daytime doses and leave the nighttime dose to the last. It evidently IS helping with your sleep. Hmm . . . what about this: getting rid (gradually) of the daytime doses then water tapering the last 100 mgs mixed with 100 ml of water, 1 ml at a time. Tedious, but it would be gentle and you might not have a bunch of rotten s/x . . . And it might not wreck your sleep. Or wreck it so abruptly. I know you don't want to water taper . . . but just a thought.

 

Best,

 

 

Katz

Hmm, Gard, given your need for sleep and justified anxiety about not sleeping (as well as physical reasons for difficult sleep) I would work on getting rid of the daytime doses and leave the nighttime dose to the last. It evidently IS helping with your sleep. Hmm . . . what about this: getting rid (gradually) of the daytime doses then water tapering the last 100 mgs mixed with 100 ml of water, 1 ml at a time. Tedious, but it would be gentle and you might not have a bunch of rotten s/x . . . And it might not wreck your sleep. Or wreck it so abruptly. I know you don't want to water taper . . . but just a thought.

 

Best,

 

 

Katz

 

That sounds like a good plan. One water dose per day is not so bad. I did dump half of my afternoon capsule today, set it down, and almost forgot to take it again.

Good luck, Gard. Seems like you got this!! Keep us posted?

 

Katz

Yeah, I will. Though, last night I suddenly got a sharp sore throat in a weird spot, high up, more the back of my mouth than my throat. Then had a lousy night with little sleep. Must be because I cut my gabapentin right?

 

Actually wondering if I may as well just drop the midday dose entirely if I'm going to be sick and miserable and not sleeping anyway. Or a not so bright idea?

I understand just wanting to be done with the middle dose . . . but why not cut it in half for a week, THEN drop it? Cutting it in half would let you see if you are beset by rotten s/x. You might not be. A week might be long enough to get used to half its absence, then if all goes well (enough) you could chuck it. I dunno, Gard, I'm just winging it here. This drug reduction is such pile of c**p . . . no one knows how to help us or advise us. (The partly sighted leading the blind, oy!) Grrrr.

 

Let us know what happens?

 

Best,

 

Katz

I understand just wanting to be done with the middle dose . . . but why not cut it in half for a week, THEN drop it? Cutting it in half would let you see if you are beset by rotten s/x. You might not be. A week might be long enough to get used to half its absence, then if all goes well (enough) you could chuck it. I dunno, Gard, I'm just winging it here. This drug reduction is such pile of c**p . . . no one knows how to help us or advise us. (The partly sighted leading the blind, oy!) Grrrr.

 

Let us know what happens?

 

Best,

 

Katz

 

You're right, of course. I just needed a kick.

Hello, everyone.

 

I stepped off of Librium at the end of July.

All is ok,  really. I was just super lethargic for a few months. Some waves here and there. But those have mostly gone away.

 

My question is, when is it a good time to start micro tapering?

I am in school and am doing better than I ever have before.

I don’t want to lose myself again.

 

The last time I cut gaba was seven years ago when I was in acute withdrawal from Benzos.

I cut 100 and it was terrifying.

 

How do I do this in a way to keep my life the way it is? I have come so far.

 

Thank you!

Hello, everyone.

 

I stepped off of Librium at the end of July.

All is ok,  really. I was just super lethargic for a few months. Some waves here and there. But those have mostly gone away.

 

My question is, when is it a good time to start micro tapering?

I am in school and am doing better than I ever have before.

I don’t want to lose myself again.

 

The last time I cut gaba was seven years ago when I was in acute withdrawal from Benzos.

I cut 100 and it was terrifying.

 

How do I do this in a way to keep my life the way it is? I have come so far.

 

Thank you!

 

If you are still having benzo symptoms, and you make a cut, how will you know if it is the gaba cut or the benzo? For some people not knowing may not bother them. Others it would set them back. Something to think about.

 

Perhaps I should wait for the one year mark. Or maybe start around Christmas break. A little past -

 

I plan on using liquid per my old neurologist’s orders. She moved, so I plan on finding another female doctor who actually cares.

 

Thank you!!

I read some horror stories today on a fb group about people's teeth falling out and rotting on gabapentin.  It totally freaked me out in my already agitated state of valium wd.  Is this common or rare?

people's teeth falling out and rotting

 

 

Really. The fact that ppl had dental problems while on gabapentin most likely is coincidental and has nothing to do with gabapentin. Maybe they didn't brush. Who knows? Paula, don't scare yourself with nonsense like this. And consider the source. Facebook? Uh huh. Listen, I was on 2300 mg of gabapentin for quite a few years and I still have all my teeth lol.

 

Again, just concentrate on your valium taper imo. You're on 100 mg of gabapentin and it's helping? Stay  out of FB groups. Just my opinion of course.

 

Katz

people's teeth falling out and rotting

 

 

Really. The fact that ppl had dental problems while on gabapentin most likely is coincidental and has nothing to do with gabapentin. Maybe they didn't brush. Who knows? Paula, don't scare yourself with nonsense like this. And consider the source. Facebook? Uh huh. Listen, I was on 2300 mg of gabapentin for quite a few years and I still have all my teeth lol.

 

Again, just concentrate on your valium taper imo. You're on 100 mg of gabapentin and it's helping? Stay  out of FB groups. Just my opinion of course.

 

Katz

 

And my opinion, too.  :thumbsup:

Thank you for the reassurance. It was the gabapentin withdrawal support group on fbook.  It is terrifying me, so i left it.  Not just 100mg of gabap  I take 600mg at night for sleep and last week, starting taking 100mg around 2pm.  I am going to try to keep it low, but realize it will probably go up as my valium lowers.  I am at 5.3mgs of v now, down from a start of 11.3 jan. 20, so halfway there, hopefully the rest of the taper will go ok,  with the help of gabapentin. I was really nonfunctioning without it.