How to handle prescribed medications

[WPoint]

My son has been prescribed gabapentin 3 x day at a dose of 300 mg. Also trazadone and librium ( do not know dose level). He is literally in a fog all day and is unable to work or function. His gabapentin prescription is for 30 days. He needs to be able to work and function normally. By the way this all stems from alcohol abuse. My question is, can he back off from all of this medication without serious results?

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

You have to go back to the prescribing physican, but in general if a person is in a fog and can't function, he is taking too much and should back down, but under medical supervision.  Make this state known to his doctor.

[SmallVoice]

Your son may be able to come off these drugs without serious results, but I'd strongly suggest he bears in mind that many people have serious withdrawal problems that can persist so to get the relevant information before even starting, as doctors are often slow to recognise withdrawal effects (such as akathisia for instance) and mistake them for an emerging 'mental illness' and so add more drugs to the mix instead of recognising withdrawal and working towards a tapering method suitable to that persons reaction to a drop in dose.

Here's some starter info on the three drugs he's on, with a parent looking out for his wellbeing, as you obviously are, and able to help him on this he has a far better chance of getting through this:


1.   Withdrawing from Neurontin / Gabapentin / neuroleptic drug.

http://www.rxlist.com/rxboard/neurontin.pl?read=516
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Clearly there's a withdrawal problem and so it would be best that he slowly taper off.  Please see thread below and the SSRI withdrawal advice for a general guide as to how to do this (only general guide because Gabapentin is not an SSRI, so obviously ignore the switching to prozac reference).  

Or here's the link to that SSRI withdrawal advice in pdf format,  the tapering method is maybe half way down it:
http://www.ssri-uksupport.com/files/protocolwithdrawalssris.pdf


It may be that, like SSRIs, withdrawal symptoms can show after missing even one pill so its probably best NOT to do an 'every other day' type of tapering or anything that misses a pill just in case, but to taper slowly down over a time period that your son can cope with as per the SSRI withdrawal advice (a pill cutter, razor and a metal nail file for tiny reductions are useful with pills).

Perhaps check on whether this drug should be tapered off BEFORE tapering off Trazadone, because if akathisia and similar withdrawal symptoms happen, then the benzo trazadone will help to keep them at a minum.




2.  Librium Withdrawal

http://www.benzo.org.uk/hollister.htm




3.   Trazadone Withdrawal:
Specific Withdrawal advice for benzodiazapines is here:

http://benzo.org.uk/manual/index.htm