hi all -
im new on this particular board. I have DDD (im 30)..as well as possible a piece of disk that is resting on the nerves for the left leg, giving me a tingling/numb/icy sensation when Im in certain positions. I also have a few bulging disks... and a bunch of other things I cant even remember in my page and a half MRI report!
anyhow - two things have really worked for me to keep the pain at bay that I wanted to share.
One was accupuncture. It works so well. Whenever I have a flare up, I go and i really feel amazing after a few sessions.
The second is neurontin. It's a great pain med. It stopped the pain and the tingling. Im not on it any more, but i took it for @ 8 months. I had no issues stopping the drug (it's not like taking percocet every day) and I go back to taking it from time to time when my back gets bad.
Anyhow, I feel like neurontin saved my life in a lot of ways, and i wasnt sure how many people actually knew about this drug. It has many purposes.... treatment for pain, migraines, seizures, even some manic disorders.
Anyhow - I just wanted to share what worked for me.
good luck to all! :)

Hi Wendy88, I've taken Neurontin a couple years. It has made a difference in my life, but it don't help with my leg pain. How much do you take a day? I take 2400 mg. I couldn't even make put my legs up without them jerking before the medicine. I have suffered from about everything you have through the yrs. I never did try accupuncture, but have done everything else. I've had 4 back surgeries and now am waiting to have a stimulator implant. If things don't go right I may try accupuncture.
Thanks for the idea.
Billie

hi!
I use to take 600mg three times a day.... nowadays, if it acts up, i can usually get away with less...but that's cause i havent herniated another disk...yet! :)
accupunture really is great. the first time it feels very odd and I was really nervous. but now, i actually fall asleep in the sessions...and when i leave, my body feels like I had a massage. The results dont occur overnight (i usually need 5 sessions before Im better) and I know it doesnt work for everyone. but I got desperate. I knew that I had to do something...i didnt want to keep taking pills (i have GERD - acid reflux) and need meds daily for that.... and i wasnt ready to have surgery. so, i just decided to give accupuncure a whirl.
accupunture isnt cheap and insurance doesnt usually cover it.... but if you shop around you may be able to find something reasonable. a lot of people are afraid of accupuncture...but as a BIG wimp, I have to say it's really pretty fantastic.
good luck! :)

I was prescribed it following my fusion procedure. (I was having A LOT of burning pain in my legs). It helped A LOT. I am currently taking 1200 mgs a day. :angel:


-Jo :wave:

(The second is neurontin. It's a great pain med)no it is not a pain med at all but if ur in enough pain to justify the risk i guess its ok narcotics r much safer.read all the possible side effects.just a really risky getby for scared doctors and ppl that are sterotypeing ppl with chronic pain.ppl talk so much about abuse of drugs this is one of the worst misuse i have ever seen ppl being precribed meds for pain that are intended for pychcotic ppl.guess the next phase will be some guy on cnn claiming how chronic pain is all in ppls heads and to prove it just look how much these mind altering and siezure drugs helped them.my mom took darvaciet for years with no problem,doc put her on neurontin and she was total sludge.staggered and talked like a drunk and couldnt think past the next hour.ppl and the fear that the sterotypeing of precripion pain meds for ppl in pain is killing ppl everyday.just like vioxx some drug rushed in to stop this so called horrible addiction problem with narcotics.

tracer, just wanted to say I take Neurontin for Peripheral Neuropathy. This is nerve pain. My legs & feet shook so bad that I could hardy stand it, when I went to bed. I've lost so much sleep, just because their was so much shaking. I do not have symptoms your mom had. This is not a narcotic, and I have missed a dose and nothing happen. I do know you have to go off it gradually tho. I do have much back pain that I do at times take a narcotics for, which is Hydrocodone. I do want to be careful with it. I have never abused it either! Have had to have 4 back surgeries. I'm
waiting now for a stimulater, so that I don't have to have any pain medicine.
Billie

Yes, I have two friends who take it for their mental health, and it helps them greatly. But I did not have any of the effects your mom had. I only felt a little tired at the start..and then nothing. For me (and everyone is different) that medication gave me my life back . I took narcotics as well, percocet...which was great, but I couldnt take that daily without having some serious reprocussions...and I needed a daily medication for the pain.
Once my back settled down I went off the neurontin but I didnt have any cravings or addictive feelings about that medication.
However, Im sure it's not for everyone. And it sounds like your mom had a bad time of it, which is awful.
I hope she is doing better.

There have been investigations, and one public story on Dateline NBC noting that Neurontin is NOT an effective med for Bipolar Disorder.

Wendy, there were a lot of us that had side effects from the Neurontin, weight gain being the most prevalent. Another thing not on many websites is that the drug really dries out your system, so make sure that you spend extra time brushing your teeth. There have been anecdotal reports of people with crumbling teeth that have taken Neurontin long term.

I was switched from Neurontin to Topamax, and didn't have any problem while I took the T.

wb

I have been having severe pain for a year now from 2 herniated discs impinging on my spinal cord. I was on oxycontin 60mg a day with 50-60mg of percocet day and I was still in severe pain. I told my doctor that the percocet seemed to help more for the pain then the oxycontin which is timed realeased. So she tried neurontin and it started helping. So now I take the percocet and I'm up to 1200mg of neurontin and my nerve pain has gone from a stabbing that was on a pain scale of at least 8 at all times to just the numbing and pins and needles. sometimes it does start to stab again but I will learn to live with it because I still remember how it was before the neurontin.
I do have the drunken fog feelings during the day but at that time I just go to bed.
Terri

I'm on 1800 a day for sciatica in both legs. It has made life livable. A previous post didn't think it was too good of a drug. Many drugs have many side affects that affect us all differently. Gabapentin (The generic) makes me groggy some, but it makes it to where I can function most days.

Unfortunately my back is getting worse it seems. The doctor didn't think it was worth going any higher because of the risk of seizures.

whackedback - thanks for the warning... I didnt know about the drying out of the system or the teeth thing! ugh. I'll make sure to be careful if I go back on neurontin.
Ya, I knew about the weight gain thing, but somehow it didnt happen to me (i think my birth control pill took care of that! sigh.. )
anyhow - this is a great board with so much insight. None of my friends have my problem, and it's nice to read the board and know that Im not alone...although of course it would be better if none of us had to suffer from this stuff at all!
It's very frustrating to do well for a while and then bend down to pick up a pencil and then be in pain for a month. for me, that's when the accupuncture helps.
I need to strengthen my core.... but it always seems that right when I get into a good habit of excercising, I pull my back.