Gabapentin (Neurontin)

[goofysmom1]

For those of you who take Gabapentin (Neurontin):  Just curious what side effects you have experienced (and at what dosage), and how long they lasted?  I just started this last weekend, 300mg once a day at bedtime.  I am having a really hard time waking up in the morning and for the first half of the day I feel a little "loopy" or my head feels "swimmy"....if that makes any sense.....

My Internist warned me that I may feel tired/groggy in the morning, but that it should go away after a week or so.

Thanks for any input...

Chrisy

[LATW]

I started out on 300mg at bed time.  I am now up to 2100 mgs through out the day.

I know it is helping me.  But my weight has become ridiculous!

LA dx'd MS

[Celery47]

Hi Chrissy!

I'm sorry it's making you so wonky :(  I think it's probably worth it to stick with it, though - just going off my experience, it really does get better :)

I started it about four weeks ago now - I did 300mg for over a week, then 600, and now I'm up at 900.  For me, it took about a full week (sometimes more) for the side effects to truly go.  I had some big-time dizziness and clumsiness that was usually down by a couple days, but the grogginess lasted.  I've been about 10 days on my current dose (300 mg morning, afternoon, and night) and I'm FINALLY feeling symptom-free :)  

I hope you have a similar experience! :)  I hope the medicine is really working for you, too.  I started noticing a BIG benefit after 5-6 days at 900 mg.  

Good luck to you!

Louey

[RedFlame]

I currently take 300mg 3 times a day.  It does help me but the effect wears off within 2 hours.  I haven't felt groggy or sleepy.  I still have great difficulties sleeping, I can get to sleep after taking a klonipin and ambien but wake up 4-5  times per night so I never really feel rested.

I am going to suggest that we increase the dose at my next appointment.  

I don't think I have had any negative side effects.  I think it is a good medication for nerve pain

hope this helps

lois

[Sparkysarah]

Just to add to everyone else's posts. I am taking 300mg of gabapentin 3x a day and 10mg of amitriptylin at night also.  I started on 100mg 1x a day and slowly increased it after a few days to 100mg 2x a day and then again up to 100mg 3x a day. My neuro told me to go up to 900mg a day but to do this very slowly and see how I felt. I was initially extremely tired and at that time I was also taking 20mg of amitriptyline but I found this just made me too groggy in the morning and that I was needing at least 9-10 hours of sleep every day.

The dose I am on now keeps the edge of my tingling and pins and needles but in the day I am aware of feeling it wearing off after about 3-4 hours. I probably need to increase the dosage a little but I am reluctant to take more than I really need and am still waiting for my body to settle down after last relapse so will wait and see.

I think that if you were started on 300mg a day it would have been better to have taken this as 100mg 3x a day rather than giviing your body a blast when it has not got used to the drug. It is still a low dose..but as everyone else has said seems to work best by gradual introduction and I would vouch for that.

Cheers

Sarah

[sandynx820]

Wow, I must be a "lightweight"!  Doc started me on 300 mg. gab a night for 3 nights, then 1 more in the am for 3 days and then another one at 3:00pm.  By the time I got to the second pill a day I was a zombie.  So sleepy (like narcolepsy) and I kept stumbling off to the right side!  He then gave me 100 mg pills and said to take 1 or 2 three times a day instead for a few weeks.  I have worked up to 2 pills 3X a day and I am not even functional.  Its has been three weeks now and all I want to do is lay down and sleep.  I am also having some headaches and I am starving all the time!  Does anyone else have this problem?

[Glenislay]

I have submitted to a couple other posts, but thought I would add my two cents here too.  I have been taking 4x900 for 10 point pain attacks. It finally took the max to stop these attacks.  Here's my unique side effects- swollen feet, slight weight gain, plus:

I think my vision changed slightly as the dosage of gabapentin was changed, so I had to update glasses a few times. Catching the vision change thing for me reduced the ongoing feeling of dizziness because it was just the need for different glasses.  There's room for it to be a coincidental age thing, but eye exams showed changes matched dosage changes. Noticed certain fluorescent lights take time to adjust to, but can't say if it is connected to gaba.  

Initially when on 300mg/d, I learned if I skipped gaba more than a day, I would pay with adjustment side effects of dizziness, etc. all over again the next time I took it.  I have gerd/acid reflux and initially had to be careful of med timing because of certain gerd meds blocking the amount of gaba dosage absorbed and causing side effects. Not as much of a factor now. I do get a 30 minute buzz in the afternoon some days.

Even though it says on the insert to stay away from grapefruit and maybe other citrus while on gaba, I also discovered that drinking Squirt and some other popular clear sodas with citrus will greatly interact with gaba and cause dizziness and other negatives like feeling of being slightly drunk.  

My concentration definitely changed, but improved in the long haul.  I still asked the doc if I could cut back after a year or so, but quickly learned I needed the high dosage. I learned to use additional tools to help keep organized and reminded. I would be 100% disabled without gabapentin.