New to pregabalin

[Buttercat]

Hi all,

I posted this thread in the Generalised anxiety disorder section but it was recommended that I post it here instead.

Am looking for some advice from people who are on pregabalin.

Hi all,

Am looking for some advice from people who are on pregabalin.

I have had generalised anxiety disorder for around 15 years now and over that time I have seen psychologists, CPNs and a psychotherapist to help with my condition. I have been on varying doses of citalopram over the years and am currently on 40mg as well as beta blockers (propranolol 20mg when required).

I have had an ok run over the past 3 years and managed not to have any long term sick periods off work. However, even though I have been managing to go to work my anxiety is always in the background meaning I only live half a life as there are many things I can't do such as go on holiday, go out shopping for longer than 15 minutes, comfortably socialise, go anywhere further than a mile or sobering my home, exercise, go out for walks etc.

Anyway, over the past couple of months my anxiety has been spiralling out of control again to an unmanageable level. My GP referred me to a psychiatrist who I saw a couple of weeks ago and she prescribed pregabalin- 50mg three times a day increasing to 100mg three times a day after one week. It has now been almost a week since I started the 100mg dose three times a day and I was hoping some of you could share your experiences and offer advice.

For the first week I was really sleepy, a bit fuzzy and my anxiety levels were still sky high, enough for me to take time off work. Since starting the 300mg a day I have not been able to work or leave the house because of the side effects. I have a constant heavy feeling in my head, am very off balance and dizzy (although not room spin dizzy) and just feel rubbish in general. I have made a telephone appointment with my GP to discuss this but was wondering if any of you can offer advice about how you reacted to pregabalin.

Many thanks

B x

[SmilingAlbert]

Hey B,

Welcome to the board!

Personally I found the side-effects benign: yes i did get a bit of wooziness, but that was much better than anxiety, and a bit of euphoria too. Yes it did help me sleep if taken in the evening (useful!), and did make me hungry. But it did fix my anxiety pretty effectively (150mg a day), very quickly.

The poll on this site suggests Preg helps the majority of people coming here (not scientific of course), and Preg gets good results on Drugs reviews boards for GAD.

So I would try not to worry, and imagine yourself to be one of the lucky ones: ride out those early SEs, and hopefully one day you'll feel better as it kicks in. If no help, then consider upping the dose: the max is 600mg a day.

But generally speaking, Preg has a much better tolerability than SSRIs, which mostly have awful startup side effects, for which patients get no warning in my experience.

Good luck

Albert

[SarahH]

You mention all the side effects (which will subside) but have you still got anxiety?
If the anxiety is being relieved then stick with the Pregabalin. All the Se's you describe I had but they went after a couple of weeks. Each time I upped the dose (eventually to 400 a day) the Se's would return and then subside again.

Sarah

[Buttercat]

Thanks for the replies. I noticed no difference in the 150mg daily to my anxiety levels. I am honestly unsure about my anxiety on the 300mg daily. I haven't felt much anxiety but then again I haven't left the house since I started the higher dose last Thursday due to the side effects. My anxiety is always at its worst when I leave the house so until I do that I suppose I won't really know.

I had a telephone consultation today with my doctor and, like you, she reassured me that my side effects were common and to persevere with the drug as I have not been on it that long. I have been signed off work for the rest of the week so will use that time to hopefully adjust to the meds and leave the house.

Thanks again for the replies, it's greatly appreciated x

[Avasmummy_x]

It's strange you've felt no relief. A lot of us despite the se's had noticed a rapid decrease in our anxiety levels.

That being said, everyone is different and it may just take some time to kick in - the same as anti depressants.

Your se's sound very very normal! I had the woozy / lightheaded / drunk feeling for a few weeks. I found every time I upped the dose the se's came back. I'm on 400mg a day and even though my anxiety is still here - it is a hella lot better than it was!

[Buttercat]

Thanks for your response. It's nice to hear from people who have been/are on pregabalin and can share their experiences.