I have been taking Gabapentin for 2 years now due to nerve damage suffered before and during my backsurgery. I had to basically learn to walk all over again so lack of balance and clumsiness were issues from the start. I still have slight problems with balance. BUT I have noticed increasing problems with short term memory loss. So much so that my family becomes agitated with me and now it has apparently filtered into my ability to do my job as I have just been written up at work for "not paying attention". 2 years later and I am still taking 3200 mg daily, I have tried backing off the dosage but can't stand the pain to do so. I'm 50 years old and absolutely don't want to go on disability. I have sticky notes everywhere and have people text me with things I need to remember, but these steps just aren't helping anymore. I'm becoming more and more depressed over the issue and am crying just typing this discussion now. Any suggestions out there???
Any help for memory loss due to Gabapentin?
Question posted by 270Ronda on 22 Feb 2016
Last updated on 30 June 2023
7 Answers
I feel your pain. I'm 50, and have been on Gabapentin 50 for about 3 weeks. I'm already having short term memory loss, affected cognitive function and blurry vision. I thought I was getting Alzheimer's until I read about the med. I can't really go off it because I would be in constant pain. A 9 on a 1 to 10 scale! Nothing else has worked including Lyrica. I wish you well. Hopefully the medical community comes up with something better!
Hi Ronda. I know exactly how you feel. It makes me angry every time I hear about one more person person going through this because of these horrific medications. I am close to the end of my 10 year nightmare. I have completely tapered slowly off Lyrica and I have tapered slowly down on Cymbalta from 60 mg to 7 mg now and almost every horrible side effect is gone. It has taken me years of dedicated time to do this but I refuse to take them one more day than I have to. It has been worth it because I am feeling so much better and feeling more like myself every day. I was actually taking these medications for chronic nerve pain but they caused me to have anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts. Along with memory loss, blurry vision and hearing loss. I was confused and I had a hard time remembering words when I was talking to someone. I was so dizzy I kept falling down. Once I fell and broke my leg.
Another time I fell down a flight of stairs backwards. I had many more side effects; too many to list. They didn't even help with my pain; they actually made it worse! All the pain is gone now so I know it was from the medications. I have done a lot of research on how these medications damage our bodies and our brain. One huge thing as you know is causing memory loss. I want to share some of what I have found that can help you with this. These are a few things; (1) Eat a brain-healthy diet. (2) Get the sleep and physical exercise your brain needs. (3) Manage your stress. (4) Take the right brain vitamins and supplements. You need to omit sugar and trans fats as much as possible. I have more information to explain this list and I would be happy to give it to you. Just ask me what you need to know and I will help you as much as I can. Cindy
I was 52 (now 67)when I was forced to go on disability. All of my meds,including narcotics, caused memory loss. Now my doctor has placed me on Gabapentin (to CYA) instead of OxyContin, my memory has gotten slightly worse.
I’m afraid, my friend, that u r in a bad situation. You must apply for disability! It will take three years by the time you have been rejected and have appealed. Once you have been rejected the first time, contact your congressman, you will be surprised how fast a phone call from a congressman’s office will light a fire under somebody’s ass. You must start acting today or u will be on the way out the door. Your coworkers are nice people, but they can only help you so much. U paid into a system that u hoped u would never have to use. Face the facts now my friend and less financial problems u will have in the future.
I’m truly sorry that u are joining the “club”.
I have been taking gabapentin for over 4 years. I too, take 3200 mg daily. I've have tried to lower my daily dose by only 500 mg and the withdrawal was severe. I'm hoping to get off of it in the future. It was prescribed for my bipolar. But, works for extreme back pain and a migraine.
I loss track of what I'm talking about mid sentence, forget where I am when I'm driving, my balance is horrible, I didn't realize it was the gabapentin until today.
Hi sandiminar. If you go down slower on the Gabapentin the withdrawals won't be so hard. I have tapered completely off Lyrica and I am slowly tapering off Cymbalta now. I started at 60 mg and I'm down to 12 mg. I tapered at 10% of my last dosage taken every 10-14 days. You should find this easier to handle. Take care and I wish you the best. Cindy
I had been on gabapentin since 2010, I noticed the terrible side effects immediately. Mood swings, hostility, depression to the point of suicidal thoughts, anxiety, memory issues,(I was taking classes and could not remember a single thing I was reading), terrible coordination, I even had blackouts (while driving), I literally felt drunk. I repeatlly told my Drs. about all of this. They did not believe me at first. tried lowering my dosage told me to take it at night ect. No matter how I took it I was constantly in a fog. Though it helped my pain I could not stand the horrible side effects. 9 years later I stopped talking it on my own. It ruined 9 years of my life! Took about 5 weeks before I felt "normal". I've been off completely for 10 monthes my mood swings aren't as bad. (No hostility) However I still have terrible short term memory issues and am concerned they may not return (any takes?). I want to know why Drs feel they can continue to prescribe a medication to anyone who is repeatlly tells them about these side effects.
I haven't gotten off of it yet, but I want to. But I think 500 mg. is too much to lower at a time. From what I've read maybe 100 mg. I only take 1200 mg. a day but I take it for anxiety. I still suffer from anxiety but I don't like taking Gabapentin.
Ive been on gabapentin for just 6 weeks and my short term memory is appalling it's so bad that my CPN (community mental health nurse) has picked up on this she's sending me for blood tests she's very concerned I've now got to come to a decision carry on gabapentin for my pain or come off it for mental health reasons and suffer the pain
I have been on Gabapentin for 8 years peripheral neuropathy in my legs and feet now experiencing extreme memory loss I think it's now due to Gabapentin is anyone feeling this problem please let me know thanks
I have been on gabapentin for about 3 years and my memory is terrible. My husband says that I’m getting stupider everyday. I forget to pay bills, things that my husband asks me to do within minutes of him telling me, and let’s not get started of grocery trips. I guess I’m going to have to start writing everything down, but I’ll probably forget where I put it.
I have been on that med now for 5 months. I hate to hear your problems but relieved at the same time because everything you wrote Is happening to me. And the crying over any thing that make me alittle sad , happy, igitated. The short memory lose is soo bad. I will be watching to see if anyone has answers.
Get off of the Gabapentin - short term memory will only get worse. I went off Gabapentin about a month ago - my
memory is back and I don't have the balance and falling that were happening to me.
God bless you,
Trish Schiesser
I wish I could Trish, but the pain without it is too great for me to be able to live a normal life. Even walking becomes unbearable. Is there another medication that will control the pain of the nerve damage without the side effects that gabapentin has?
I went to see my GP today. He's not my regular GP, he's a fill in until mine comes back. But he does see an issue with my mood swings, my depression and my memory loss. He has prescribed me Wellbutrin to help increase the dopamine in my brain. He has also referred me back to my neurosurgeon for alternatives to the gabapentin. I'll post further updates when I have them. Right now my insurance company is fighting the Wellbutrin so I don't know if I can even get the medication.
I was on Wellbutrin several years ago, and it drove me nuts - I was scared all the time and was shaky and it just didn't
do anything but harm. So I got off that and now take a "cocktail" (4 different kinds of pills) that keeps me just fine.
But that doesn't affect the autoimmune system disease I have. I went off the Gabapentin, but the sores that broke out on my body were itching madly. So I am taking one 300 mg Gabapentin at night and it's helping pretty well. I am not
noticing any memory loss yet. So maybe 300 mg at night is the way to helping some of the maddening itching and
helping to clear up some of the sores.
We are all caught up in our medical problems and need to have a good doctor to prescribe for us. If one doctor doesn't do well by you, then find another doctor.. Good luck Rhonda. God bless. Trish
Try CBD. No side effects for me and seems to work for the pain.
If you live in a state where it is legal, get a 90% CBD 10% THC
mix. THC is an activator and the high CBD content counteracts
the THC. (you dont get high). It is pricey!
Related topics
neuralgia, gabapentin, nerve, memory, balance
Further information
- Gabapentin uses and safety info
- Gabapentin prescribing info & package insert (for Health Professionals)
- Side effects of Gabapentin (detailed)
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