Hey,
Started the Lyrica yesterday 75 mg two times day. First pill was OK...felt fine. Got up this morning and Yea...no buttock, leg, foot and arch pain!!!!!! Took another pill before work and by 9:30 I was a walking zombie, thought process was zilch!
Called the doc (really his Physicians assistant) and she is calling in the 25 mg and I can use 2-3 at night and 1 in the AM. But the question is will I continue to have no nerve pain?
How is everyone else doing with the Lyrica and what are the dosages? Do you get used to it? And most importantly I am worried after reading all the "addiction" info for the drug. Anyone had trouble getting off of it?

Hey Mammy, thanks for your nice note. Hope you had a relatively pain free day.

Gotta go...still in La La land.

I'm taking 75mg 3 times a day and get the sme reaction you get. I have to take it by 5am if my pt is at 10am or i'm to dizzy to go. It has just been increased for just a week so i do hope by giving it another week or 2 it will help. Have you tried taking your evening pill at dinner and your morning pill at 4 or 5 am. Good luck Trying a smaller dose in the am might work if it holds back the pain

Hi, I am only taking 50mg, and boy did I feel spacey and out of it, too. But by now it seems to have worn off. I'm not really sure why it was prescribed to me, my rheumy said it's for my muscles, but my muscles dont ache ..and i read it's for nerve pains, not muscles. I did have nerve pain that was almost gone before I started it, but that wasnt my reason for seeing my rheumy.
I also keep getting what seems to everyone is nerve pain in my top left foot. So the Lyrica is not doing anything for that, but maybe the dose is too small for it.

Thanks Baybreeze. How long did it take your body to adjust so you don't feel so spacey?

Hi all !! I have posted about Lyrica earlier. I take 150 mg twice a day and 75 mg. at bedtime. I have wonderful relief from it. I can actually move around in the mornings now with much less pain and stiffness. It has been the only med that has even touched my pain issues. My pain is not totally gone by any means, but I do see a remarkable difference. I have taken Lyrica for about 2 months now. The first week I did experience some dizziness esp when moving my head too fast, and minor confusion of words (which my kids quickly made an issue of). I still do get the 'tired' feeling from it. I appreciate this because now I am able to actually relax and sometimes get an hour nap in the afternoon. Since I also take vicodin the vicodin never lets me relax, makes me always 'geared up'. I for one feel the side effects from the lyrica are small as compared to the results. I have spinal and pelvic inoperable conditions which leave me in constant pain. Now if I could only get my insurance to cover the lyrica...........thank goodness for a good doc who very kindly shares his samples..........take - care, :angel:

Queenneeee,

I am so glad you have had such a good result with Lyrica. I had some relief with 25 mg but I had to be in my bed within 30 minutes of taking it because I would be asleep. I took it for 2 months and could never take more than the 25 mg once per day. I thought it would have done me some good if it didn't knock me out. The first day I took it, I fell asleep in the resaurant sitting up in the booth. My DH thought I had lost it. LOL

Boy I must be immune to this stuff by now. I took 150 mg of Lyrica in the morning and 225 mg at night. Weight gain and a raging appetite were my greatest side effects with some fatigue.

I found that from time to time I had difficulty finding words. I now take gabapentin and topamax. Gabapentin gives me a desired sedation side effect when taken at bedtime.

I had been taking 1600 mg of gabapentin for a year before I was put on Lyrica and that is probably why the side effects were very miminal for me.

Hi all-
I too have had problems with Lyrica and am trying to decide if it's worth it. I have burning in my legs and was prescribed 75mg twice a day. Couldn't handle the tiredness and fog. Was like a zombie at work. So I stopped taking it after a week. It did help me greatly while on it. Actually thought well I feel better maybe the pain has gone away and I don't need it anyway. Right!! So a month or so later I'm right back to where I started. Called the dr and they said I didn't give it a chance and to at least give it 3 weeks and decide. Told me also to take both doses of 75mg at night. So I started out slow with one dose at night to wean into it and thought two doses at night I would never wake up for work! So I tried again with the one at night and one in the morning. Same side affects but with major constipation. At the end of three weeks I wasn't as dizzy but still tired and constipated. It really helped my burning though. So pulled back to one a day for a month now and it worked until just recently and the burn is slowing breaking through. I will probably try the two doses at night now to see how that works. WAKE ME UP IN THE MORNING will you!
Martha

my doc just started me on kadian..will definitely need to add more though since its not helping my pain. i'm on neurontin 300 am and pm, but he says he wants to switch me to lyrica. bad thing is that i was on lyrica before but stopped it because i couldn't focus, i'm an rn ..so mental lapses would not be good,
i've had to just muscle through the pain while at work for over a year now...everything that they give me for pain, makes it impossible to work, unfortunately its getting harder and harder to make myself suffer
anyway, he says i need to be on the lyrica longer so it won't bother me as much i am worried though...i just need them to allow me enough time off work or just doing non patient care activities to allow my doc to adjust my medis
it really was freaky thiough, i would completely forget what i wanted to do..like going to chart something and had to sit and think first...
that really seems to be the big problem...people tell me i can return to work and prescribe meds to help with the pain...(luckily the meds do help make the pain tolerable)..but then the meds make me too drowsy or vague to work..and somehow they don't "get" that idea

Like queen I have posted on the lryica before also, reading the posts it is funny everyone reacts to doses differently. Been on Lryica for Aug,7, same as some others here went off because of side effects & back on again. I am only on 50mg@ night,25mg during day. I hope to not have to increase.
The side effects did get better after sometime, can't remember how long, aprox: 2-3 wks. Not as tired anymore on it, but the memory thing is still there )not as bad), & some blurred vision. Very interesting to see how every reacts to this drug. I do forget to take my afternoon dose at times. I would not increase more then 25mg @ a time because of sid effects, but doc did say the first time I took it I did not give it enough time to let the side effects subside. It does not so much help with the pain as it does with the burning/tingling type of symptoms. Good luck, Sammy

Quenneee, no luck with insurance paying yet? sorry to hear that, I am glad you have such a understanding doctor.

I forgot to mention that I suffer terribly from leg cramps for the past few years and since taking Lyrica I see a huge improvement with this. Does anyone else have this problem? Did you see any improvement also?
Martha

I take 300mg a day. Half in the morning and half at night. Only problem I notice is being swollen. My meds are hard though. I take 50mg of amphetamines to stay awake because of Narcolepsy. Then I take Lyrica, Skelaxin and Oxycodone which make you tired. I think my meds all fight each other. The result is I walk around in a fog all day. I have not noticed a decrease in pain so that is why the dr. increased it.

Just wanted to update...not so spaced out now!! Doc changed me to 75 mg at night and 25 mg in the AM. I'm sleeping great at night with the 75 mg. I get a brief period of drowsiness and fog with the 25 during the day but it is very tolerable. The buttock, leg, arch and foot pain is gone!! I still have pain in my lower back that I can manage with Motrin 800 mg. I am scheduled for an ESI this Wednesday and I am really debating on getting it. I probably will in case it helps enough that I can get off the Lyrica. The literature shows that this drug can be addictive. Has anyone been on it for a long time and had problems getting off of it? Everyone have a good Monday!

To the best of my knowledge Lyrica is not an addictive substance. It is not an opiate and there is no withdrawal syndrome associated with it.

What literature are you referring to? Any literature that I have read states that there is no evidence to indicate that Lyrica is addictive. It is an anticonvulsive not an narcotic. People will abuse all sorts of non addictive drugs, from benydryl to aspirin but that does not in of itself make the drugs addictive. I was on Lyrica for 10 mos and was switched back to Neurontin with no problems whatsoever.

I have noticed the minute I lay down @ night I feel like I can't keep my eyes open, no matter what time it is, it is kind of weird, its like if I am not moving around I feel this instant feeling off just wanting to nod off. I am used to relaxing @ night with a good book, my down time, but lately I just nod right off. Since I am on pain meds also I don't know if it is the increase of afternoon dose of Lryica or what, anyone else get that feeling? I hate that If I try to relax @ 8:00 pm that is it boom my eyes are closing. Sounds alittle weird but I swear the minute I am off my feet my eyes want to close, if I am moving around I am fine.

I am exactly the same way. If I am moving around at work and interacting with people, I am fine. But let me sit down at the computer at work and I am nodding off. The bad news for me right now is that the 25 mg during the day is not holding off the nerve pain until I take the 75 mg at night. Just started today. I can't increase the daytime dose because like I said I am already nodding off with just the 25 mg. I get the ESI on Wed..hope it works and I can get off the Lyrica. Thanks to everyone for all their input regarding Lyrica. :)

I have noticed the minute I lay down @ night I feel like I can't keep my eyes open, no matter what time it is, it is kind of weird, its like if I am not moving around I feel this instant feeling off just wanting to nod off. I am used to relaxing @ night with a good book, my down time, but lately I just nod right off. Since I am on pain meds also I don't know if it is the increase of afternoon dose of Lryica or what, anyone else get that feeling? I hate that If I try to relax @ 8:00 pm that is it boom my eyes are closing. Sounds alittle weird but I swear the minute I am off my feet my eyes want to close, if I am moving around I am fine.
OMG.........THIS IS TOOO FUNNY !! I have never mentioned this to anyone before because I didn't know how to describe it. You did a wonderful job of it. It is exactly what has been happening to me. I can't ever ever watch tv even in my bed because BOOM I am asleep !! My husband has many a mornings picked my book up off my chest because I so easily fall asleep with it(I just never told him I only had read maybe 2 pages ). I am exactly the same I dont' remember the last time I read more than one chapter at night , and that is not me I used to read half a book if it was really good !! I know blame it on the Lyrica which I did suspect it before but now that you also have this 'symptom' I now know for sure ... thanks so much for posting and explaining it so well...........I too am now an ex book reader !! lol take -care , :angel:

Well I was on Lyrica for 9 months and I never experienced the side effect you have mentioned. In fact I have switched back to Neurontin because of the sedative effect it has. My most severe pain is when I lie down so that I need sedation the most when I am trying to rest or sleep. Lyrica did not help me to sleep and I was on a much higher dosage than most of the posters on here. At bedtime I took 225 mg. I only wish it had enabled me to sleep as others had mentioned as I would have considered that a real plus. We all are so unique in our responses to medications.

ok guys, I guess we just dicovered something alittle new, on the other board there is a gentleman asking if anyone has their pulse rate drop on lryica?
I know I had the weridest experiance last night, I actually was able to stay awake some after laying down, yep got to actually read alittle bit of my book. But after falling asleep my husband left the tv on so I knew I had to get up & check the doors & shut off the tv. Strange I could not force my eyes open for nothing, I kept telling myself open your eyes, I swear I remember having them half open & trying to move my legs. It was so strange. I have NEVER had such a strange thing happen, Its like I felt alittle paralized.
Well queen I am glad its not just me, that is strange when you lay down wide awake & all of a sudden can't keep your eyes open, I often lay down but still am doing laundry or something like that, so I have to force myself to get back up right away & walk around. That was hard to explain & I hoped someone understood what I was saying. Are you & deb on other meds to?
Deb, I hope you can get off the Lryica to. It is a very strange drug. I feel alittle nervous because it is fairly new & all of a sudden all these people are on it, I know we are the being experimented on somewhat. I do not want to increase it at all. To many people having different side effects. Good luck
Lucky for all you who do great on it with no side effects, with pain if you can take something that works & have no side effects that is great. Sammy

That is why I love this board! I never feel alone in my back problems and pain. I can come here and post and know that someone will understand. I was at work today and had a few minutes to rest and I was actually in my unit, an ICU, not working just visiting. All the beeps and bells and I swear I had to get up because I could feel myself starting to feel a little drowsy. Weird! I know what you mean about being a little nervous on the drug. Seizure medication for back nerve pain. Memory loss! I'm already having a hard time remembering things! :) ESI tomorrow, I'm trying to be positive and hope this is the answer for me. Everyone have a restful night!

Howdy, howdy!

I started Lyrica about a week ago and, while it is helping my pain, mainly by changing it from dull, radiating, and achy to radiating, dull, and burning :), I am having a real hard time DIGESTING the pill!

My main problem is likely a weak spleen from an accident, and it has ********* up my life sincerely. All I really have left is my devotion to Life, to keep Loving, family, and some good friends. Sorry: Ranting.

I am considering the Liquid Form of Neurontin. Any body have any experience with this form of Neurontin?

Thanks.