I don't postmuch but I do read and have learned a lot. A few months back I posted some details about my condition (in a nutshell, L4/5 herniation with possible fragmentation ,etc--my pain was sciatic in nature, i.e., in hip and calf) and posted some questions about Neurontin.

Well, I was all set to have surgery after the second cortisone epidural had no effect, when as an afterthought my pain management dr. gave me a perscription for 300 mg of Neurontin.

I started taking it in mid November and by December 1st was no longer in pain--first time in lamost 8 mos. I took the last of the Neurontin on 12/24/03 and still am pain-free. I do feel a bit of a tweak from time to time, but no actual pain.

I went back to my pain management doc and he said that he was not convinced that it was the Neurontin that did the trick as the pain has not returned since I stopped taking them. But nonetheless, the fact remains that after 8 months of excruciating, debilitating pain I am now back in the gym, walking upright and am relatively active once again.

For what it's worth....

That is great news - I have similar pain in my butt and thigh without back pain and only take anti-inflamms which don't do much for the sciatic pain. 6 mos of it w/2 do-nothing epidurals and I am tired!

My doc also prescribed Neurontin, but when I heard what it was developed for (seizures) that really scared me. The only time I took it it gave me a headache, but that may have been my fear about the drug.

What kind of side effects did you or anyone have from the Neurontin???

What kind of side effects did you or anyone have from the Neurontin???

None for me or at least none that I can identify.

I too was a bit put off by the fact that it is for seizures, but it is also perscribed for radial pain due to Shingles, which is a form of the Herpes virus that causes acute pain in the form of inflamed nerve endings in the lower back and legs--and isn't that what we are really dealing with, nerve inflammation? I could be wrong, but I do see how it is related. Plus, it DID stop the pain--what wouldn't you take to be able to say that?