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grapefruitmoon
08-10-14, 08:02
Hi, newbie here.
Im starting pregabalin today, having severe anxiety and waking up at 4am every morning with night terrors. Currently tapering off diazepam as well, at 3mgs but struggling. Im also on an AD called agomelatine for the last 7 weeks but hasnt helped so im about to give up on that.

Any advice gratefully received. Hope you're well:)

teej
08-10-14, 14:33
Hiya,

I've found pregabalin really easy to get on with. I can honestly say I've had no problems with it and went up to the full 600mg. I suffer from very bad GAD - waking up early with horrific anxiety.

It's helped me to withdraw from Mirtazapine too.

The only thing worth noting is that it has quite a short half life so the time you take it may affect you. I know Hanshan takes 600mg at night. I'm pondering moving my dose to the night too.

Good luck friend.

SarahH
08-10-14, 15:01
Agomelatine will help with your sleep so I would give that a chance, a couple of months at least. Pregabalin will help you withdraw from Diazepam. Just take it slowly. Things will not change overnight.

What dose of pregabalin are you on at the moment?

Sarah

grapefruitmoon
08-10-14, 17:43
Thanks for your replies :-)

They have started me on the lowest dose, 50mg 3times per day. I'll be increasing it based on how I get on. Im desperate for 1. An improvement in my terrible anxiety 2. Help tapering my diazepam down and 3. A better nights sleep.

Agomelatine has helped zonked me out at bedtime, but I still wake in the night 4am like clockwork exhausted and terrified. My psych says 'if the Agomelatine was going to work for you I would have expected to see some signs by now' but im open minded about staying on for a few more weeks. I just worry about multi meds at the same time.

Crazy news today. I've been offered a dream job I would normally be over the moon happy about, ive accepted it, but I really dont feel well enough to work right now. And of course this is making me worry more. Cant believe the awful timing. Maybe a three week miraculous recovery will take place :-) Please work, drugs.

SarahH
09-10-14, 08:53
I think once you are on the correct dose of pregabalin (and that could be anything up to 600mgs a day) the sleep will come and the anxiety will go. But pregabalin is NOT an AD do the Aglomelatine (or another AD) may be needed for a while.

Keep going. You may have to let go of the job offer for now, your mental health is more important at the moment.

sarah

grapefruitmoon
09-10-14, 13:07
First 24 hours has been good. I can feel a reduction in general anxiety already, zonked out and tired but that's better than being anxious! And last night after taking the 50ml agomelatine and 50mg pregabalin I woke up at 5am, not 4am, with no terrors, which to me is like a lie in!

Despite feeling a bit stoned this morning I managed a 45 min swim as well.

I have good positive thoughts about this med. good luck everyone:yesyes:

SarahH
09-10-14, 15:07
:yesyes:

hanshan
10-10-14, 03:43
Hi Grapefruitmoon,

So good to hear that the first day went well. Just take it slowly - there are often some ups and downs at first as you adjust.

Good luck with the new job! I found pregabalin was helpful here - stressors would come and go without having the effect they previously had. For me, pregabalin doesn't stop all worry and anxiety, but keeps it at a level that's probably normal for most people.

Please keep us posted on your progress.

grapefruitmoon
13-10-14, 10:14
OK, five days in and after initial euphoria and my anxiety totally disappearing, I am now feeling like ive taken a step back, feeling anxious and 'disconnected' again. Is this the point where I should be thinking about increasing my dose from my current 50mg 3x a day? My psych is on holiday but she did say I could increase it when I thought it was 'sensible'. Dealing with small kids at halfterm is increasing the anxiety too!

Thanks everyone.

SarahH
13-10-14, 11:21
This is perfectly normal and yes you could increase your dose. Others may disagree but I would say 50x50x100 for 3/4 days then 50x100x100 for another 4/3 days then 100 three times a day. I went from 3x50mgs a day to 2x200mgs a day in 2 weeks, but remember you will get SE's again but they wont be so severe and will lessen in a shorter period of time. Don't worry about going up the dose some people take 600mgs a day as a therapeutic dose. I take 300mgs a day at the moment. You may find increasing the last dose of the day is enough for you. Everyone is different on this med and you find the right dose "for you" :D

Sarah

grapefruitmoon
13-10-14, 11:39
This is perfectly normal and yes you could increase your dose. Others may disagree but I would say 50x50x100 for 3/4 days then 50x100x100 for another 4/3 days then 100 three times a day. I went from 3x50mgs a day to 2x200mgs a day in 2 weeks, but remember you will get SE's again but they wont be so severe and will lessen in a shorter period of time. Don't worry about going up the dose some people take 600mgs a day as a therapeutic dose. I take 300mgs a day at the moment. You may find increasing the last dose of the day is enough for you. Everyone is different on this med and you find the right dose "for you" :D

Sarah

Thanks Sarah. The SEs don't bother me if it addresses the anxiety and lets me sleep!

SarahH
14-10-14, 09:29
Me too! So if you take the extra dose as your last dose it will help you sleep...I think:D.

If your psych has told you you can up the dose then I would do it. I play around with my dose and times of taking all the time. The "therapeutic" dose is anything between 225mgs and 600mgs a day. You will find the right dose "for you". Keep us posted.

Sarah

hanshan
17-10-14, 10:20
My experience is that it it is okay to increase the dosage as your body adjusts to pregabalin. It doesn't mean you will keep going upwards forever. Most people find the level that is right for them with time and a bit of experimentation.

grapefruitmoon
29-10-14, 07:04
Hi everyone.

My experience with pregabalin has been positive overall so far, although after 4 days I thought it was some kind of miracle drug it worked so well! since then I've found that I need to keep increasing the dose to continue the positive effect. But it's still much better than before I started. I am currently on 350mg a day, and will probably increase as I continue to taper off the diazepam (currently 2.5mg, will drop to 2mg next week).

My new job starts next week. Eek. Wish me luck and calm:D

hanshan
29-10-14, 13:37
Hi Grapefruitmoon,

Good luck in the new job. You will do fine, I'm sure.

If you are tapering down from benzodiazepines, you will probably need to increase the pregabalin. You are still somewhat short of the maximum dose of 600 mg per day. Take it slowly, and all should be well.

grapefruitmoon
06-11-14, 17:46
Im having really terrible anxiety and 'head detached from body' sensations, two days after dropping from 2.5 to 2 mgs diazepam. Its a 20% drop which is more than some people recommend. I increased my Pregabalin from 400mg from 350mg only three days ago to hopefully address this but its not helping. First week at new job hasn't helped!

Dont know what to do. The choice is, slow the diazepam taper down to 2.25mg (or keep it at 2.5mg for a while) or increase my Pregabalin again to counteract the diazepam withdrawal. The problem is, I still have a lot of diazepam withdrawl 'steps' to make before I clear it out of my body completely in the Spring, and only a few more 'increase steps' of Pregabalin before I get to the maximum dose of 600mg.

Feeling really horrible.

SarahH
06-11-14, 17:56
slow the diazepam taper.

:hugs:

sarah

grapefruitmoon
06-11-14, 20:37
I think you're right. :mad: I just hate being on the damn stuff. Thanks:hugs:

hanshan
07-11-14, 11:08
Anything around 2 - 3 mg of diazepam per day or lower won't bother your doctors, so just reduce at the rate that you feel comfortable with.

grapefruitmoon
15-11-14, 09:17
I slowed the diazepam taper and am currently on 2.25. The 20% reduction was definitely too fast for me! Will try another drop to 2mgs in 10 days. Still on 400mg valdoxan, I've been on this level for two weeks. I don't want to increase the valdoxan unnecessarily, especially as I expect some difficult times ahead with continuing tapering down of the diazepam. Im not sure if 400 is the right level for me, nothing has been as good as that first week on 150mg!

hanshan
15-11-14, 09:55
Just take the diazepam taper easy, whatever suits you.

Do keep us posted about the Valdoxan / agomelatine, as it's a relatively new drug with a different mode of action, so there will certainly be people doing searches to know about its effects.

grapefruitmoon
28-11-14, 12:51
All id say about agomelatine (Valdoxan) is their claim to have 100% no 'discontinuation symptoms' isnt true in my case. Ive forgotten my 50mg dose twice and the following day felt extremely depressed. But I guess that might be evidence of the fact the drug works. Shrug. Maybe something for another part of the forum.

hanshan
28-11-14, 13:48
Hi grapefruitmoon,

Despite the discontinuation effects, did you notice any positive effects?

grapefruitmoon
30-11-14, 09:24
Hanshan, I would say it was/is fairly neutral for me in terms of influencing my depression. I was on 25mg for 4 weeks, and 50mg thereafter. I am still taking it now because in combination with the pregabalin it seems to be stabilising my anxiety and my depression is manageable and I don't want to rock the boat/make any changes when my focus is coming off the diazepam. But I credit pregabalin for most of my improvement. When I was just on agomelatine alone I was still really ill, it was only when I went on pregabalin that I felt as if I could function properly again.

The obvious effect for me is when I take agomelatine at 10pm it usually knocks me out and gives me 5 hours sleep, which is good because I had problems with insomnia. But other than that I haven't noticed any big improvement from it.


It changed my bro in laws life though, and I know its worked for lots of others.

grapefruitmoon
10-12-14, 18:15
Having a bit of a low point. Anxiety very high, avoiding all conversation with everybody outside my immediate family. Feel spaced out and like my head has been chewed up and spat back out. Been on 400mg for 3 or 4 weeks now, considering upping to 450mg but im just concerned to ration' out my increases to coincide with my drops in diazepam. I wish I could go back to that feeling when I first started pregabalin.

SarahH
10-12-14, 18:42
Sorry to hear that Grapefruitmoon. Has anything happened which may have triggered a blip?

Sarah

grapefruitmoon
10-12-14, 19:22
Job involves some human interaction and dealing with competitive types which I find tough. My psych cancelled our 6week appointment with less than 12 hours notice. Which makes me feel that nhs mental health doesn't really exist. Also I have been on 400 for a lot longer than previous 'steps' so my body might just want a pregabalin increase?

Or it might just be a bad day:unsure:

grapefruitmoon
31-12-14, 18:23
On second week at 450mg. Tapering down to 1.75mg diazepam, still taking 50mg agomelatine every night too. Alcohol is not a good mix with this combination so I'll be having ONE beer tonight.

I wish you all happiness, calm and peace in 2015.

grapefruitmoon
28-02-15, 14:00
On 1.1mg now, will drop to 0.95 next week. Dealing with some tough times but still here. Cut my agomelatine to a half dose (25mg) because I doubt its working. 450mg of pregabalin.Good luck everyone.

Dazza123
28-02-15, 20:17
In my experience, mental health services are just pure rubbish. I stopped going to see my Psychologist and Psychiatrist because they were doing nothing at all to help me, thankfully I have an amazing Doctor who ignores appointment limitations, lets me chat to her for as long as I need, and also lets me have an appointment whenever I want just by giving her a ring to arrange them, she really is fantastic and actually cares about me and how it affects my other half.

How are you getting on with 450mg compared to the lower dose you were on, is there much of a difference in how you feel?

grapefruitmoon
01-03-15, 10:13
In my experience, mental health services are just pure rubbish. I stopped going to see my Psychologist and Psychiatrist because they were doing nothing at all to help me, thankfully I have an amazing Doctor who ignores appointment limitations, lets me chat to her for as long as I need, and also lets me have an appointment whenever I want just by giving her a ring to arrange them, she really is fantastic and actually cares about me and how it affects my other half.

How are you getting on with 450mg compared to the lower dose you were on, is there much of a difference in how you feel?


Thanks for responding.

I know what you mean about mental health services; to all intents and purposes I'm getting no care at all. I see my nhs psych every three months, which is all she can give me. Apart from my family I'm on my own.

450 vs 400? I've no idea really. When you're on three different meds, and also stuff happening externally in life, it's hard to tell what's making a difference and what isn't. I THINK it's given me more cushioning against the anxiety and fear of dealing with everyday life. But with me Pregabalin is definitely a drug where you feel a short term boost when you up a dose, but then your body gets used to it and you feel little difference again.

My eventual aim is to be med free and hopefully have a lifestyle that allows me to live like that till I'm old. At the moment I'm having issues at work, and my young daughter is having panic attacks which is really upsetting. I'm just stumbling around trying to keep a lid on things.

Good luck everyone:bighug1:

SarahH
01-03-15, 10:18
Hi Grapefruitmoon,

Just hang in there. Things will get better, it just takes time. You say you have dropped the aglomelatine dose, why was this? Also could you try to add a different AD to help?

Take care

Sarah

grapefruitmoon
03-03-15, 20:03
Thanks Sarah.
To answer your question, I just felt that the agomelatine wasnt working. Im not sure it ever worked really. So I cut from 50 to 25 with the intention of going to zero as soon as I feel up to it, probably when im completely off the diazepam. Ive tried almost every AD out there and none if them suit me. I hate depression, but my body doesnt like ADs. Its just the way it is.:doh:

SarahH
03-03-15, 23:02
My body doesnt like them either to begin with but I have found that if I titrate them upward very very slowly over a few months I can tolerate them. I take Citalopram and started on 2.5mgs ( cutting the tablet into 4 pieces) this minimised the start up side effects. Now I am up to 20mgs and now the Citalopram is doing the job of the pregabalin so when the spring comes I will reduce the pregabalin.
Is it the start-up SE's that you have problems with? If so you could try my method.
#Sarah

hanshan
10-03-15, 11:05
Hi Grapefruitmoon,

Have you tried mirtazapine? I take it, and the start-up isn't quite as bad as other ADs (intense sleepiness seems to be the start-up SE most reported, but it does go away).

If mirtazapine works, it can help both anxiety and depression.