Gabapentin for Peripheral Neuropathy User Reviews (Page 3)

• big...
• July 9, 2016

"Ronlngbch#1, thank you for your article; I have had minor l5 budge for 20 years with minor numbness in my right thigh. Three weeks ago, I started getting the worst shooting pain in the middle of the night and standing up. If I sit in the same spot for 15 minutes, the intense pain would last 15 seconds to a minute, but the only way I can describe it is my muscle being ripped off the bone. (WORST PAIN OF MY LIFE) Dr. started me at 300 mg, 3 times a day. On day two, I already feel better; I didn't even wake up last night. I was hoping it worked fast on someone else too, so I know it's not just a placebo effect. Insurance was making me do a whole song and dance to get Lyrica. I called the Dr. office, and he faxed in the gabapentin."

• Agi...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• September 10, 2016

"First and foremost, I have been taking gabapentin 100 mg daily, and it knocked about 75% of my symptoms out. The bad started after 5 months. Massive instant mood changes, feelings of wanting to hurt others for no reason were the worst. I had people tell me I was 2 different people minutes apart. Needles and pins, burning slowly returning. Going back to the doctor to change it or somehow just deal with the pain. I'm a passive person, and I was becoming a monster. I will live in pain instead of being a saint one minute, then a monster minutes later. Love the relief, but not the side effects."

• Ste...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 27, 2013

"I have suffered from CFS/ME for about 25 years. IBS-D started a short time after my viral infection. I am also on antidepressants, muscle relaxants, and pain killers. I have been on loperamide, Buscopan, and codeine phosphate with only temporary relief, and my IBS-D could always override the drugs. My gut has become incredibly calm since taking 100 mg of gabapentin in the morning and 100 mg at night. I am eating, in limited amounts, food that I couldn't eat previously without severe diarrhea. I was initially prescribed this drug for neuropathic pain, and I am delighted to find it works for my gut too. I have read of other people with IBS improving since being on this medication."

• dor...
• June 21, 2016

"My doctor has me taking 1800 mg a day, and it's still not helping me with my pain. I can't go out because my legs hurt as soon as I stand up. My arms hurt. I have trouble doing housework, basically, all I do is stay home. I hate gabapentin."

• 7Su...
• November 2, 2015

"I love gabapentin. I take 2, 300 mg capsules 3 times a day. I have neuropathy, lupus, Raynaud's, and rheumatoid arthritis. It has helped me so much. I've been able to move around easier, and it helps so much with my neutrality and RA pain."

• Anonymous
• February 29, 2012

Gabapentin "At first I slept for about a week and every time I would increase the dosage, same effect. I've been taking it for over four years and the side effects are less severe than some other medicines. It does not rid the pain but makes it manageable."

• MJa...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• January 12, 2020

"I'm taking 900 mg 5 to 6 times a day. If I forget to take it, the pain is so bad. It takes about an hour to recover. I have been taking it for 12 years. I have recently been losing my balance and my memory. Speech has been a challenge too."

• Gra...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• February 21, 2016

"I have been on Neurontin for over ten years. I suffered nerve damage following a knee replacement. I have pain in the knee and pain that radiates down the leg into my foot. I take 600 mg 5 times a day. I have bad days and not so bad days, but the pain is NEVER gone. I could not live without this medicine as it at least curbs the pain. The only side effect I can speak of is sleepiness. But it is not bad, and on a busy day, I can rise above it."

• Off...
• May 29, 2016

"Gabapentin, for neuropathy, not diabetic, a smoker, treated with interferon for 13 months. I am female, 65 years of age. Dosage, 800 mg, 4 tablets a day. It did help with the neuropathy, I noticed no side effects. Then I read that gabapentin could contribute to weight gain if taken with prescription pain medication. So, I quit taking it cold turkey. I was not informed by my neurologist to not just stop taking this medication. Within a few months, I became ill. I was fatigued, couldn't think or remember properly, but didn't know what was wrong with me. I was fired after 6 years of service. One day, I decided gabapentin would help. Within 30 minutes, I was Marlyn again and overjoyed. I have since read withdrawal can take up to a year."

• Jul...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• August 20, 2018

"I've taken gabapentin for about 15 years now. My doctor swears it will help my idiopathic neuropathy. I've been taking 800 mg, and if it is helping, it's only minimally. I've got so many other issues now, I have no idea if it's from the gabapentin or new conditions. I'd rather have a drug that treated the cause instead of symptoms."

• Old...
• September 22, 2017

"I am an 82-year-old, non-diabetic. I have been taking gabapentin (and other drugs) for peripheral neuropathy since September 1997 - 30 years. I am now addicted to it, thanks in most part to the VA's healthcare system. I've been taking 900 mgs three times a day, which frequently does little to no good. Several times a week, I am awake for more than 36 hours straight because of the severe shooting pain; and now have uncontrollable seizures in my right leg and numbness in both feet and ankles. The VA doctor wants my permission to increase the dosage to the maximum of 1200 mgs three times a day. No thanks!"

• Bob...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 4, 2018

"I was having increased neuropathy due to diabetes, also lower back pain and arthritis. I started gabapentin a month ago, 100 mg twice daily, and have since built up to 200 mg three times a day. I am 63 and was diagnosed with diabetes at 50. All I can say is, wow, what a difference. Pain reduced by 80%, no side effects."

• Lad...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 29, 2019

"I experience tingling in my toes and pain in my feet and been diagnosed with Parkinson's, and my doctor prescribed this gabapentin. I started taking it, and it really helps the nerve pain go away, and I am able to walk freely from the feeling. Thank you!"

• tec...
• September 7, 2015

"It reduced the nerve pain by 30 percent, but I had to take 1800 mg a day to do it. The side effects seemed to increase the longer I was taking it. The main side effects I had were fatigue, weight gain, sexual dysfunction, excessive hunger. After taking it for a few years, I decided it wasn't worth it and used massage therapy instead, which improved my circulation without the side effects and reduced the pain just as much or more."

• Roc...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• July 19, 2013

"I am a 58-year-old female. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia 14 years ago but have suffered from symptoms much longer. I have also suffered from foot clumsiness since I was 13. Many ankle sprains and one broken ankle. For the last two years, I have been falling about once every two weeks. My feet have both felt numb and in pain at the same time. A neurologist checked the nerve transmission speeds to and from my feet. Thankfully, he very tactfully said, 'Your feet don't FEEL normal but they ARE normal.' So, no true neuropathy. My fibromyalgia doctor then prescribed an increased dose of Neurontin (tripled my previous dose). Although I am sleepy, the results have been a startling improvement in the neuropathy."

• Rel...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 14, 2019

"I have been taking Gabapentin for a few months. 900 mg over the day. It's been a wonder drug for me after suffering nerve damage pain and a bulging disc for years. Recently, I've been feeling nauseous and getting stomach pains. I know these are a side effect. Wondering what to do next."

• Luc...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 29, 2017

"I was prescribed gabapentin for mild peripheral neuropathy. Doc had me build up from 100 mg week 1, 200 mg week 2, then 100 mg 3 times per day thereafter. Severe side effects even with this low dose! Losing balance, dizzy, memory problems, coordination problems, foggy. I hate it, and weaning down, I take it twice a day now and will go down to once a day for a week, then stop."

• Jud...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• December 31, 2017

"This was prescribed for peripheral neuropathic pain from Lovastatin. It seemed to help with the pain but did not realize how it was affecting my memory and that it actually caused more pain that disappeared when I quit it. It was developed for seizures, not approved by FDA for off-label use like pain. Known since 2009, interferes with the brain making new synapses and can shrink the brain. It interferes with memory, recall of words/names was repeating myself and balance impaired. Drained energy. Causes mental fog. It damages mitochondria and is now considered one of the most deadly drugs. I feel so much better. I hope my brain will recover. Relative Lyrica has the same risks."

• 2X...
• November 4, 2010

Gabapentin "Neurontin has been a lifesaver for me. My chemo left me with severe neuropathy in my hands and feet. I couldn't feel anything but needles and pain. I take 1800 mg a day in three doses, and the pain begins to start again just before it's time for my next dose. I don't know what I would do if I had to live with the stabbing needle feeling every minute of every day."

• Boo...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 30, 2019

"I take gabapentin 800 mg 3 times a day. This is not working for me. I still don't get any relief. My feet burn so bad. My feet are so very red. I put my feet on a gel ice pack all the time. It takes the hurt away for a bit. If this med doesn't work, what's next to take for the pain?"

• Mik...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 4, 2019

"I take gabapentin 3 times each day at 300 mg. I feel so much better since taking gabapentin. I take 300 mg in the morning and double dose after dinner and double dose before bed. But I have gained over 1 stone of weight, also, I find in the hot weather we have had, I feel more fuzzy and tired. But it is worth it. Before I started taking gabapentin, the nerve damage after a treble spine decompression was unbearable at night, my feet hurt so much sometimes I did not know what to do with the pain. I still get some pain and stabbing pain, but it's more manageable. Thank you, gabapentin."

• Gru...
• August 14, 2016

"Type 2 diabetic with PN and intense lower back pain from severe disc degeneration. Just started gabapentin 2 weeks ago at 100 mg 3x daily. First week I felt fabulous. The pins and needles subsided considerably, and I was sleeping at night again. Now I noticed it is back again. Will see Dr. about increasing dose but am concerned about possible side effects as I also take Cymbalta, HBP meds, metformin, insulin, and heart meds."

• Pam...
• February 19, 2017

"I took Dilantin for 15 years --- which is why I suffer from P.N. I am on other anti-seizure drugs and anti-depressants. I do not know if those meds have delayed or ameliorated my P.N., but I am now 67, and the P.N. is finally getting bad. No reflexes, no feeling in my feet, restless leg, stabbing pain in my feet, which can make walking very hard. I 'save' Gabapentin for the worst symptoms since it makes me sleepy, and I do not want to get addicted to the relief it gives me. But when I cannot relieve the nerve pain in any other way, Gabapentin is a lifesaver."

• Mik...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• March 10, 2015

"At a lower dosage, this worked well for my husband's diabetic foot pain. A higher dosage switch caused him to lose 4 days of memory, during which he was confused, completely off balance, at times delusional, dizzy, as well as talked and walked and ate in his sleep. We will be discussing this with his GP. He went from a 300 mg to an 800 mg."

• Lyn...
• February 11, 2014

"I use gabapentin to treat pain and burning (feet) caused by a small fiber neuropathy (confirmed by biopsy). I take a relatively small dose (1200 mg) at night when symptoms are worst. I usually get adequate relief, enough to sleep on most nights. I try to take as few medicines as possible and as little as possible, even though a higher dose would probably provide more relief. I also get Qutenza treatments every 3 months."