Pain pills | Arthritis Information

 

I went to my regular doctor for my annual check up.  She gave me a prescription for pain pills.  I am only on aspirin, Tylenol and Naperson at the present time.  I have pain, but nothing I can't live with.  I exerted my arms last night and they sort of hurt all day and now they seem to be better.  My hips and knees always ache, more so when I first get up for a chair.  Or, if I am standing or walking for a while, my knees don't want to bend to sit down or get back into the car.

Has anyone taken Neurontin, or the generic form: gabapentin?

I take one capsule a day for a week and then increase it to two for a week and then three a day for a week to see how that works.

I read the side affects and decided that I don't think I will go above the three pill mark.  They seem to make you dizzy, tired, forgetful, etc.  But don't list anything to hurt your liver or kidneys.

So, I am on day 4 and haven't felt anything, which I guess is typical.  You ave to go into them slowly or they make you sick.   

Mary

Mary,

I took neurontin for a while (before being diagnosed with PMR). Was up to 1200 mg a day. It made me so weird that sometimes I couldn't walk straight; I'd bump into walls, and get very disoriented, almost like my balance was way off. Also made me so groggy, I'd go to bed at around 9:00 and sleep hard until 10:00 or later the next morning, and still feel like I could have slept more. If I remember correctly, it helped a little with the pain, but I told the dr. I would rather have pain than be a zombie on that drug. Isn't it a shame that so many of the drugs that actually do help have such unacceptable side effects. It's almost a toss-up as to which is worse - the diesease or the effects from the meds. Hope it helps you.

Reni

I had read that it had those affects.  I agree with you.  I'm not going to take them if they make me feel like that.  I need to sleep way too much now.  I think I will take them for three weeks and see where that puts me.  I really don't think I will exceed 300 or 400 mg a day.  Won't be worth it.

Thank you for you insights,  Mary

Mary, I took Neurontin a few years ago for shingles.  It is a strange drug.  I thought I was perfectly normal, but it did strange things to my mind.I had a fender bender while on it and I realized I was not in control.  I pretty much had the same reaction as Reni. A friend took it for another reason and had the same reaction.  Be careful.    

Shirley

Shirley....good to hear your story.  I was thinking after reading Reni's story whether or not I should continue with the drug.

I don't know how long it takes to start working.  I just started with 200 a day.  So far, I don't think it has done anything.

After this week, I may quit for awhile to see if it was working on the pain.   I was doing ok with just the aspirin and Tylnol, so maybe should just continue with that and have it over with.  I've had it 13 months now, and somedays I think it is burning itself out a bit.

If I still had the pain I had when I first went to the rheumatologist, I'd think more about continuing with it; but, with the pain now, it is liveable.

My regular doctor didn't tell me of the side affects other than the medicine made my brain change the way it thought about pain...or some such thing.  I read the hazards on the internet and don't like the sound of it at all.

Again, thank you....Mary

 

 

Mary,

I have a friend with Fibromyalgia who is just starting on Neurontin again for pain management.  She used it a couple of years ago but stopped because she thought it was affecting her memory.  We worked together and she would forget the simplest things, it was really strange. Turns out that the memory loss may be due to some problem she is having with her brain signals which is outside the realm of the medication, so she's trying it again.  I'll let you know if she has any more problems.

I take Vicodin every other night to sleep.  The pred takes away most of my pain but I still get enough pain to wake me up midway through the night.  I have stomach problems so I can't take aspirin or Ibuprofen and Tylenol PM helps a little with sleeping so I use it in between the Vicodin. I also take Lorazepam which helps me relax with the vicodin.

Hang in there....I think we all have to develop our own magic potions over time with this disease.

Kathy

 

 

Hi Kathy, how much lorazepam do you take? I've got some 1mg tabs, I carry them around like a sort of security blanket, but never take any! very occasionally, if I feel REALLY wound up and things are going very wrong, I have taken a 1/4 or 1/2.

Kathy,

     I've mentioned this in an earlier post but I've found that splitting the dose of prednisone works best for me.  I take 2/3 or 3/4 in the morning and the rest about 12 hours later.  That keeps me from waking up stiff as a board, since it seems I run out of medication in my bloodstream well before my next dose if I take it all at once.  If you haven't done so, maybe it would help to try splitting your dose and maybe eliminate the need for a pain killer.  Hope it works for you.

Ditto on what Bob said for me
pgrHi to all.
     Went to my rheumy on Tuesday, gave me a vitamin b 12 shot. ( was low according to blood work)
     He suggested trying Imuron, which is a RA drug, very powerful, can cause cancer, he left the decision up to me, and i really do not know what to do, I know something has to be done, I do not feel any better, in fact I feel worse. I did do a short course of the Methotrexate and I did feel better than I do now, so we decided to try that again.  I will go for my first shot of methotrexate on Oct 2,  I really hopes this works, I feel so fatigued all the time, my body just will not move, it feels so heavy. and pain in my legs and hips and shoulders every day, Dr. gave me vicodin for the pain, I am afraid i am becoming a drug addict.  This will never end.  Tried to do some grocery shopping yesterday, putting bags in the car and all that lifting was a nightmare, cried all the way home, I fear I am becoming an invalid.  Keep your fingers crossed that this works for me.
-------------------Love to all Georgiana---------------
Georgiana,
I am so sorry you are feeling so badly. I can realate to the fear of being an
invalid and the frustration of not being able to move our body at all... as
though you weigh 3 tons.

Would you start the Imuron now or wait until afte the Methotrexate? I do't
like to give advice or tell people what to do. I will tell you my thoughts on
what you are saying for consideration in your decision...

I have always avoided taking any drugs I can avoid. Now I saw in my
children a major change in their lives as a result of certain drugs. Add
that to the difference in my life with Pred and i have changed my thoughts
somewhat. I believe we have to weight the pro vs cons of every drug and
decision - HOWEVER - You are not "living" right now. You are suffering.
trying anything that MIGHT lessen you pain seems like itis worth a try.
You can stop any drug that doesn't work or has bad side effects. I know
cancer is as serious a side effect as you can have, but at what levels and
for how long before that is a risk? Could you try it and decide by whether
it helps if you will continue? How much reading have you done on the
drug?

Please know you are in my thoughts.
Rest and take care,
pgrSorry for the typos... this puter keyboard is not always responsiveHi pgr

i will wait to try the imuron, and give the methotrexate a  try,  i know what you are saying, i am not a big pill taker,  but i know i need something as i can not go on like this, i have not read too much about imuron, went on a couple of web sites but did not get much info, it is given to RA patients who do not respond to any other drug.

Thank you so much for caring,  Georgiana

Hi All, thanks for your support!

Chico, I take 1 mg a couple of hours before bedtime.  I take the whole pill and when I do I feel better that next morning.  I don't take it every day because it is addictive but I've been using it a few times a week for a couple of years now and I would not want to be without it and have no addiction to it other than I know it will do what I need it to do.  I was originally prescribed it while going through menopausal symptoms, I didn't want to take hormones but I would get really weepy sometimes and it helped me overcome those times.  I found out by accident that it was wonderful for helping me relax to sleep at nite.

Bob, I might try to split my dosage but I guess I'v been a little hesitant to do so because I take just enough to make the pain liveable and am afraid if I take only 5 in the morning I might have some harder days for a while.  But I agree it sounds like a good idea.  When I did my test to see if I had pmr, I took 5 in the morning and 5 at night and it worked wonders.

I've always avoided taking drugs on a regular basis also, but It just got to the point of having a life.  I didn't and was scared that I never would again.  So now my quality of life is back, I can laugh and enjoy to a certain extent with the drugs and that's certainly better than no joy and lots of pain without the drugs.

 

Georgiana,

You've been in my thoughts and prayers all along, and I'm sorry you are still having such a tough time of things. I really hope the methotrexate will work for you, or if not, then the imuron. I agree with pgr, that you need to get some quality of life back. You have suffered for so long, and that is not right. Keep us posted please.

Reni
Thanks Reni, and everyone, I really hope this works, sometimes i wonder if i should investigate the way i feel and go to some big time hospital, i am in connecticut, and we have a huge center here it is a part of Yale University, and UConn Medical Center or even if i had to go to Boston, to Lehey Clinic, I just feel so bad and am not getting the relief from the pred. that I think I should if it was  pmr, so i get scared that i have something worse.  I will give the Methotrexate a chance and see what happens..Thank you all   Georgiana Georgiana,

I am so sorry you are not getting the help you need. Yes, go to Yale
University, the UConn Medical Center, or the Lehey Clinic, one or all of them.
Please, go, and let us all know the results. We are all praying for you, caring
for you, wanting you to have help than can help.

with love and concern, LibethLibeth,

   You are so sweet and so caring, i'll tell you i do not know what i would do without you guys and gals on this forum.
    I will give the methotrexate a chance and if it does not help me, i will go to either  Yale, Uconn or Lehey. I know this is not the life I want to live, I am very upset that I am not getting the relief from the pred that every one else seems to be getting.  It seems like the lowest i can get is 30 mg. and even at that all the pain is not gone, just tolerable, Maybe the meth will help with the pain and i will be able to go down on the pred.
     Thanks for all the support from all of you. Love, Georgiana
Georgiana, Everyone has given such caring support and suggestions. I
am sending you loving thoughts and believe that you will find the
answers you need. I have been through those periods of frustration and
confusion but have never been on such high doses of pred. I do know
that can make it harder to deal with everything. The same for chronic
pain.
So be easy on yourself, firm with your providers and stay strong. I know
some days I hate to hear that. I would rather curl up in a ball of misery
and I do for a while. But then I remember that I'm the one who has to
look after my own interests and I try, try again.
I'll be waiting to find out what steps you take and praying you finally get
the relief you need.

Geralyn

Georgiana:

Ditto everything everyone has said to you.  I feel so bad for you not being able to get a dx and the help you need and the suffering you are going through.  There is so much good, caring suggestions from everyone here, that I will just tell you I will keep you in my prayers.  I will look for your updates and hopefully, good news.

Georgina:   hugs hugs hugs

I wish I could give you something to make you feel better.   I took Methotrexate for awhile but had to quit because it raised my liver count.  It takes awhile to take affect, but I think it helped me because as I reduced my Prednisone, I wasn't really painful.  But when I had to quit Methotrexate, then I had pain come back.  I was thankful though that after six months of Prednisone and Methotrexate, the pain was bearable.  So much so, that I think I will not continue the latest pain pill drug.  Others have taken it, and it doesn't sound good at all.

It might be that you have something besides PMR, since Prednisone does not kick the pain right out of you.  Within 2 hours I could feel it working and within 24 hours my knees, which hurt the worse, quit hurting.  I still had a catch in my back, but that might not have been PMR, since it stayed around for about three days and then left.  Unfortunately, it was right at Christmas, so I noticed it more.

Hang in there, and do seek other advise.  The Methotrexate will take awhile to work, check with your doctor when he gives it to you.  And, if it doesn't work ask for a referral to one of the top notch clinics around you to diagnose what ailment you might have before you take that drug.  It is starting to sound like you don't have PMR, but something else....to me anyway.     Hugs again...and I think I will make this a group hug.... 
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