some advice needed please - again!!!

psyart

Hello from me!!

Had my 6th month app with specialist yesterday and feel slighlty confussed!! But that is easily done these days as some of you may realise!!

He did presure tests on joints - 12 sore out of 17?? but why or why do they hurt like hell for hours after you walk out of the hospital?? some were just nagging but by the time I got home yesterday - came straight home - I had to go to bed as pain and discomfort everywhere!!

Anyway - the point being - he has suggested I go on to gabapentin?? please can anyone tell me something about it?? dont like the look of some of the side effects - manic depression, suicide thoughts!!!!!! As some of you might remember from last posts, I have been suffering from depression and these side effects do worry me!!! He is on about attacking the pain with these, and maybe coming off methx!!! I would love to come off Methx but not sure if this is jumping from the fat into the fire???He feesl that I may have fibromyalgia aswell, think this is cause of the pain and not showing signs of imflamation??? but not really sure?? I will get and see my doctor before starting these new tablets - got to start on 300 and then increase to 1800!!!

any advice or knowledge on this would help me!!!

hugs to anyone who wants one - hope you are all having ok days??

Louise xxx

minky67

Hi Louise, Ive got Fibromyalgia too.
Gabapentin is a drug used for treating the nerve pain, I tried it for a few months & it was ok but i felt the pain return well before my next dose was due so im now on Pregabalins. This is also recommended for treating Fibro.
Ive not suffered any side affects from either of the drugs but i have gained 2 stone in weight & gp say thats the drugs.
Im find the pregabalins have taken away the stiffness in my muscles but not the nerve pain as yet,im also upping the dose on these.
I hope the Gabapentins help you But as i say the Pregabalins are the next option if they dont work & well worth keeping in mind.
Try not to worry about the side effects as you can see what there doing as you up the dose & your GP is there if you do suffer from any.
Take care
debs

speedalong

Hi psyart, DD was talking about this sadistic pleasure of the medics to see how many joints they could squeeze and cause pain. I'm sure she'll be along later to contribute.

Don't know anything about that med as I have OA ... but watch this space .. others will be posting who do.

Hope the squeezed joints settle down soon.

Speedy

dreamdaisy

Oh speedy, how well you know me.

31 out of 78 is my score to date. There are 78 joints in the body and yes, after a DAS test I hurt like a ******* for at least 48 hours afterwards. These joints are tender to start with, full of fluid or not, they are sore, so to have them prodded, poked and squeezed just adds to the discomfort. I symapthise, psyart, 'tis indeed miserable.

Useful tip no. 1. Don't read the side-effects lists, I think there's a law or something that means they have to cover every condition known to man, so you don't sue the manufacturers when your ears grow like a rabbit's or you start doing green poo.

Useful tip no. 2. Do read the side-effects list but with a healthy dose of scepticism. Just because something is listed does not mean that you will have it. I always assume that I will escape side-effects and for the most part I have. Cyclosporin made me hairy in places where a lady should never, ever be, but that was OK, I could deal with that. A possible side-effect of anti TNFs is cancer. So what? They can cure cancer.

It is an uncertain, frightening, confusing and distressing business, this arthritis malarkey. I suppose I am naturally optimistic - which can be a useful gift. Mind you, I've had years to adjust to this, nine years not knowing what was going on, 3 and a bit of knowing. The three and a bit hasn't made a huge amount of difference tho. It all stinks. DD

psyart

Hi DD

Quote - Useful tip no. 2. Do read the side-effects list but with a healthy dose of scepticism. Just because something is listed does not mean that you will have it. I always assume that I will escape side-effects and for the most part I have. Cyclosporin made me hairy in places where a lady should never, ever be, but that was OK, I could deal with that.

I found that methx stopped my hair from growing - other than leg hair that grows really fast if I shave???!!!!! but least my head of hair doesnt need de-greying so often!!!!

Louise xx

jordan7j

Hi psyart,
I have fibromyalgia too, and am on pregabelin at 75mg twice a day. Helping with stiffness but not with pain so far, my next appt is 16 July, so they will re evaluate then. Dont know much about gabapentin, but must be a similar drug. As said, dont take too much notice of the side effects, most of them are extremely rare. Hope you have some help and relief. Take care, Jay

hileena111

Hi
From what I remember gaberpentin was the drug they said I should be on for a few days before myfirst THR........they then discovered I was on anti-convulsant tablets {have epilepsy as well LOL} and they then said no......that it was an anti convulsant and would just dopuble my dose?????? Thats the ponly tiome I've ever heard of it.
I do agree with DD about not reading the side effects LOL......kiddies medkicine.......dont drive or use heavy machinery?????? LOL

Love
Hileena

dreamdaisy

Precisely. They are just blanket warnings. DD

dianaw

Hi Louise

Just thought I would let you know I have been on gabapentin for nearly a year now and take 10 a day along with dosulepin. Am on 15mg steroids a day and also have refliximab infusion as have tried all other drugs.

I have found them ok, no awful side effects like you are worried about. Yes I do get depressed but then I think this goes with arthur as we have to put up with a lot so dont think it is the meds.

Hope this helps to put your mind at ease. By the way they are also used for epilepsy and are quite a common drug so I would think if they were that bad then they would not be prescribed. If you look at quite a lot of the instructions that come with tablets quite often side effects are depression etc. My son was on a tablet to help him stop smoking and they said it could make you suicidal so I should not take too much notice.

Hope you get on ok.
Take care
Di xx

lavenderlady

I ahve been on Gabapentine for my nerve pain it was originally given to me as i suffer with SMA so nto only do my joints suffer badly from OA but my muscles also give me bad pain along with a bad back spondelothesis that is really painful, I was told to take 3 gabapentine but find 2 is fine for my nerve pain, I do take ammatriptaline x3 every night for my OA, I dont read past the most common side effect, as said they have to by law tell you everything to cover themselves 2 of my sons started a drug called straterra Josh ended up in hospital with liver problems and liams blood test also showed the start of liver problems, so I do tend to check out the new drugs on line rather then the attatched list, I started a new diabetic injection last week and after looking at the list checked it out on line and the most common was feeling sick the first few weeks so now I know and am happy with that, I would say do a check yourself rather then read their side effects which is just to cover themselves. good luck

psyart

Hi

thanks for the replies - you have been honest and made me feel better about the meds! I think that my fears are because I have had such bad side effects from the methx, I felt unsure!

I am going to see the doctor this week and talk to him about the best option for me and review my other meds aswell!! Am on so many at the moment that cant remember what does what!!!

Just one question - with the gabapentin do you need to take other pain killers aswell?? I take co-codomols during the day and amitriptaline for night times - is it trial and error as per other mixtures?? I reckon that my hubby must hear me come down the stairs in the mornings by the rattling of all the tablets!!!

hope all are having a reasonable day??!! have lovely blue sky in cornwall - so will hopefully sit in sun later!!

Louise xx