Pregabalin

[GMarsh]

Hi There

I am new here and wondered if anyone else has been prescribed Pregabalin to help with their anxiety. I am having a really rough time at the moment and not too keen on the way this medication is making me feel???

Thanks

[Melancholia77]

Hi GM
What dose are you on? I'm taking 300mg for neck pain but have found it to be very good for GAD too. It should work straight away (unlike ADs) so I'd go back to your doctor if you don't feel well - they're not for everyone.
Good luck though!

[GMarsh]

Hi Melancholia77
only on 50mg at mo started on higher dose but had bad side affects.
sticking with it though been suffering gad now for 18 months and been down every avenue ,just started acupuncture so i will see how that goes
All the best.

[BubbleBonce]

Hiya,

I got Pregabalin through a Rheumatologist. Was getting Fibromyalgia type symptoms and reckon he thought it'd help with the anxiety state too. GP never offered it to me.

I'm taking 75mg twice a day but only been on it a few days now. I tried it a few weeks back and it gave me awful headaches and made me too sleepy so I stopped. Then I was getting too much adrenaline so I started again. It's only been a day or so and I the anxiety is a bit better already but just hoping I can work throughthe side effects!

What effects are you getting?

Best wishes

Bubble

[GMarsh]

Hi

I have been having headaches but they seem to be easing slightly, I also feel quite dizzy shortly after taking them.

My worse symptoms are fom the GAD though, have chest pains, abdominal discomfort and disturbing thoughts as well as waking almost every day with that 'butterflies' feeling of nervousness.

G

[BubbleBonce]

Yeah I know about that awful waking feeling. Mine is more of a 'jump' to awakening. Horrible. I'm determined to give it a good try though as I can't tolerate the side effects of other medications and I'm off work since January now so somethings got to happen!

Hopefully Lost Soul will see these messages as he's having problems with dizziness. A kind of drunken feeling.

Hopefully starting on a lower dose will help you get there in the end.

Does anyone know when the full effect is supposed to happen?

Bubble:shrug:

[lostsoul]

Bubble

I've just picked up this thread now, I'm still having the dizziness although not quite as bad today since slight reducing the dose. I think the key is to take things slowly with this stuff!

It does work for anxiety quite at the higher doses it seems but getting there is the hard part. Those that can tolerate immediatly starting on a higher dose i.e above 150mg seem to be having great results.

For me taking it slowly and increasing at my own pace has more chance of working. It's encoraging to see that more people are being prescribed pregabalin hopefully it will help us all to get better. I can certainly say that it helps me to sleep better. The effect on my anxiety has'nt been that great at 150mg a day and I've been on it three weeks today.

I know the studies e.t.c say that it works within a week but bear in mind that all of the studies so far have been sponsored my the drugs munufacturer, if you do a similar search for anti-depressants studies conducted by manufactures seem to indicate much earlier onset of action than is actually the case in the real world. So I'm holding out for the four week mark:yesyes:

Good luck to all us guinepigs:winks:

[ballintoysunset]

hey,

just to add to this thread. i've been on lyrica pregabalin now since may this year, so what's that... nearly six months. originally at 150mg per day until beginning of september when upped to 300mg, then since beginning of october down to 100mg per day. i'm on 375mg per day of effexor as well.

initially i reckoned it was a wonder drug... within two months i had went from having been off work for six months and really really bad with gad, to returning to work at beginning of july, it really was that marked a change.

anyway, went back to work... lasted a month, suffered total relapse and off work again since then. psychiatrist upped me to 300mg daily... but it made me feel very 'foggy' unclear thinking, slightly detached and incoherent... and early evening headaches daily. gp then took me down to 100mg daily because he reckoned side effects were out-weighing the benefits.

one note of caution... this is an anti-convulsant drug used to prevent seizures and convulsions in neuro and epileptic patients... it is a serious medication, and i reckon careful consideration should be given before using it for gad.

just my two cents lol

[lostsoul]

ballintoysunset

Could it be the effexor maybe in combination with the pregabalin that made you feel like that. I know I tried Effexor it wasnt for me!!

I have a friend who takes the maximum dose of pregabalin for cluster headaches, he does not suffer from anxiety at all - off subject slightly but I also have a friend who suffers from depression (self harms too) but she also has no anxiety she's just been given prozac. Interestingly neither of these two have any side effects at all from taking their medication. They both say its like taking smarties.

I'm just wondering wether as anxiety sufferes we generate our own side effects. I know I read the information sheet and within a couple of minutes of taking the pill I have em all lol:roflmao:

There were countless people at my old job who were on anti derpressants and none of them ever reported any bad side effects. I'm sure they do exist and a very really because I tried crypralex and I had to spend 4 days in hospital after taking only two tabs. I know thats an extreme reaction though.

Just an off topic observation, just thlinking out loud really-I'm trying to tell myseld that any side effects I may be experiencing are being made worse by my overactive imagination.

I know that the side effect of pregabalin is dizziness so now all of a sudden I'm Mr dizzy cant go anywhere or do anything incase I'm dizzy which leads to dizziness me thinks:D

It would be nice to hear from some more people who take pregabalin for its orginal use i.e seizure control to see what side effects they experience. (not easy on a panic forum)

[sarah jayne]

Hi i started pregabalin a couple of weeks ago but stopped taking it because they made me more anxious then ever. I was given them for pain relief and my anxiety. I had to have 3x 50mg a day. They hepled with my headaches but they seemed to make my chest sore and tight, or do you think that could of been my anxiety ? I really dont know what to do, i want to try taking them again to get rid of this headache but im scared because of hoe they made my chest feel and because they made me feel more anxious. Can anyone give me any advice ?
Sarah x

[Melancholia77]

Hi i started pregabalin a couple of weeks ago but stopped taking it because they made me more anxious then ever. I was given them for pain relief and my anxiety. I had to have 3x 50mg a day. They hepled with my headaches but they seemed to make my chest sore and tight, or do you think that could of been my anxiety ? I really dont know what to do, i want to try taking them again to get rid of this headache but im scared because of hoe they made my chest feel and because they made me feel more anxious. Can anyone give me any advice ?
Sarah x

I wouldn't have said it was the pregabalin because it's not like SSRIs where it makes you more anxious initially - it works more like benzos. Maybe it's your anxiety. I take a higher dose than you and have not had any problems apart from dizziness which passed in a week or so. I would say give them a chance. It's worked well for me ...

[nutteetart]

Hi all,

Ive been on Pregabalin 150mg for 7 days and initially i felt a little spaced out and dizzy and then 6 days in i completely flipped. Feel so disoriented and dizzy, my head is full of pressure or tension and i feel like i have gone back weeks.

I wonder if we are all guinea pigs. I had such hopes for this drug and i am left devastated. Is it just getting in my system? i'm not sure because some people report it having an instant affect. I truly need some hope here. Struggling.

XX

[sarah jayne]

Thanks for your replies, i really dont know what to do. I feel so ill at the moment, im scared if i take any more i might feel worse. I might take one tonight to see what happens...x

[Melancholia77]

It definitely takes some getting used to. I remember struggling with dizziness (and that spacey feeling) for a while. But it helped with sleep and anxiety almost immediately for me. And I started out on a really high dose (600mg!) which I've reduced now. I suppose it's not for everyone ... but I personally think it's 10 times better than SSRIs when it comes to anxiety ... X

[sarah jayne]

has it ever made anyones chest feel sore and tight ? x

[sarah jayne]

Ive been back on them for 3 days now. Ive just been taking one 50mg at night before bed. Im doing this for about a week and then im going to increase the dose. I feel tired, sick and dizzy and ive also been waking up with a banging headache. Ive still got my constant dull headache aswell but im going to give them a chance as i feel this is my only hope of ever feeling 'normal' again ! I'll keep you informed !
Sarah x