Dalton Posted July 7, 2017 Share Posted July 7, 2017 (edited) I apologize if its hard to follow, but about a month ago, I took Gabapentin for about a week, the first 3 days I took about 2 or 3 a day. They were 800 mg. As each day passed I took 1 more. So the last day I took 6. I am not prescribed these I took them from my mother. Im about to be 19. From everything I've read about the subject on here, in going through withdrawal of the Gabapentin. I'm currently trying to find a new primary care doctor so I can't contact one immediately. So I'm pretty sure tapering is not an option but I'm not sure. I'm having all the symptoms. And they are getting very bad at this point. Its so hard to think straight so I apologize if its hard to read. Just please help. Or refer me to someone that can please Edited July 8, 2017 by scallywag insert paragraph breaks for readability Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus scallywag Posted July 8, 2017 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted July 8, 2017 Dalton -- Welcome to Surviving Antidepressants (SA) I'm sorry to read that you're suffering so terribly from the error in judgement one month ago. Can you get to an urgent care clinic to explain the situation and ask for a short-term supply (<10 days) of gabapentin? Even lower strengths than your mother's dose, 300 mg or 100 mg, could ease your symptoms. You'd be wise to prepare yourself for that discussion by reading these two topics: How do you talk to your doctor about tapering and withdrawal. What to expect from your doctor about withdrawal symptoms. Some information about gabapentin: Tips for tapering off Neurontin (gabapentin) Gabapentin Patient information on Drugs.com Would you create a posting signature that will show your medication history below every one of your posts? Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature. You could put one line "2017 June # - #: 1600 mg to 4800 mg gabapentin, stopped taking on June #." All you need to do is figure out the dates or give us approximate dates. We have topics on many individual symptoms. You can browse the list at this link to the Symptoms Forum. The search function is at the top of every page. Some people prefer to use a web search tool like google or bing; they use the symptom, e.g. "brain zaps", and "site:survivingantidepressants.org" as search terms or keywords. I hope you'll find the information in the SA forums helpful for your situation. I'm sorry that you are in the position that you need the information, but am glad that you found us. This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.1997-1999 Effexor; 2002-2005 Effexor XR 37.5 mg linear taper, dropping same #beads/week with bad results Cymbalta 60 mg 2012 - 2015; 2016: 20 mg to 7 mg exact doses and dates in this post; 2017: 6.3 mg to 0.0 mg Aug. 12; details here scallywag's IntroductionOnline spreadsheet for dose taper calculations and nz11's THE WORKS spreadsheet Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted July 8, 2017 Administrator Share Posted July 8, 2017 Welcome, Dalton. That was an ill-advised drug experiment. Have you taken any drugs of any kind since stopping gabapentin? Have your symptoms gotten better or worse over time? What are your symptoms now? This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein All postings © copyrighted. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus scallywag Posted July 21, 2017 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted July 21, 2017 Dalton, it's about 2 weeks since you first posted. How are you doing? This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.1997-1999 Effexor; 2002-2005 Effexor XR 37.5 mg linear taper, dropping same #beads/week with bad results Cymbalta 60 mg 2012 - 2015; 2016: 20 mg to 7 mg exact doses and dates in this post; 2017: 6.3 mg to 0.0 mg Aug. 12; details here scallywag's IntroductionOnline spreadsheet for dose taper calculations and nz11's THE WORKS spreadsheet Link to comment
Dalton Posted July 21, 2017 Author Share Posted July 21, 2017 I apologize I've just been very busy as of lately. I'm doing better now. I finally broke down and went to the ER. They prescribed me Xanax for my anxiety and its helping a great deal. Although my mind still gets very hazy fairly often, but I'm much more functional. I still deal with some of the physical effects but they've grown mild compared to before. My mental status is the scariest part. Sometimes its like my mind drifts off into such negative thoughts and I feel like I'll never feel like myself again. But I always remind myself of what you said about the possibility of it taking 6 months to a year for my brain to be back to normal. I noticed I didnt mention that the gabapentin was never prescribed to me, I had stolen them from a family member. So the doctor at the ER said he wouldn't use gabapentin to taper me because I was never prescribed it. But I went through a lot of strange things these past two weeks. For what seemed like 4-5 days I experienced horrible nightmares and insomnia, as well as a huge loss of appetite. It feels like I still don't sleep much when in reality I sleep more than 8 hours some nights, with occasional interruptions. I usually only wake up once or twice. It was brought to my attention that with being around my pregnant girlfriend the entire time, it could also be making my recovery much more difficult, considering I could be experiencing her symptoms as well as my own. Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted July 21, 2017 Administrator Share Posted July 21, 2017 Dalton, how often are you taking Xanax now, and how much? You got yourself addicted to gabapentin and you had withdrawal symptoms when you went off it. Please don't fool around with prescription drugs or pills like this. These drugs are very strong, they're not for playing with. This site is full of people who have difficulty going off prescription psychiatric drugs of all types. Same goes with Xanax. Please be careful with it. This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein All postings © copyrighted. Link to comment
nz11 Posted July 21, 2017 Share Posted July 21, 2017 Hi Dalton Right now ive got a line from the 'Pirates of Penzance ' running through my mind. ....'a terrible disclosure has just been made' Im so sorry you are in this predicament. Just when i thought i had heard it all .... Have you told your family member that you took their drugs. You are now putting them at risk of running short of a fix in their own drug addiction. Sadly we have reached a point in society were it is wrong to assume that if it comes from a doctor it must be safe. Please please check in with sa before swallowing any stuff from a doctor. Did you know that within 1-2 weeks you may be addicted to xanax and have to taper it. These are very dangerous chemicals you are swallowing they are not candies or aspirins. So the doctor at the ER said he wouldn't use gabapentin to taper me because I was never prescribed it. Sounds like this doctor doesnt know his arse from his elbow!! What a stupid person. Can you get a book 'anatomy of an epidemic' by R Whitaker have a read of it esp page 296-297 then pass it on to a certain family member. Anyways...Glad you found sa welcome nz11 Thought for the day: Lets stand up, and let’s speak out , together. G Olsen We have until the 14th. Feb 2018. URGENT REQUEST Please consider submitting for the petition on Prescribed Drug Dependence and Withdrawal currently awaiting its third consideration at the Scottish Parliament. You don't even have to be from Scotland. By clicking on the link below you can read some of the previous submissions but be warned many of them are quite harrowing. http://www.parliament.scot/GettingInvolved/Petitions/PE01651 Please tell them about your problems taking and withdrawing from antidepressants and/or benzos. Send by email to petitions@parliament.scot and quote PE01651 in the subject heading. Keep to a maximum of 3 sides of A4 and you can't name for legal reasons any doctor you have consulted. Tell them if you wish to remain anonymous. We need the numbers to help convince the committee members we are not isolated cases. You have until mid February. Thank you Recovering paxil addict None of the published articles shed light on what ssri's ... actually do or what their hazards might be. Healy 2013. This is so true, with anything you get on these drugs, dependance, tapering, withdrawal symptoms, side effects, just silent. And if there is something mentioned then their is a serious disconnect between what is said and reality! "Every time I read of a multi-person shooting, I always presume that person had just started a SSRI or had just stopped." Dr Mosher. Me too! Over two decades later, the number of antidepressant prescriptions a year is slightly more than the number of people in the Western world. Most (nine out of 10) prescriptions are for patients who faced difficulties on stopping, equating to about a tenth of the population. These patients are often advised to continue treatment because their difficulties indicate they need ongoing treatment, just as a person with diabetes needs insulin. Healy 2015 I believe the ssri era will soon stand as one of the most shameful in the history of medicine. Healy 2015 Let people help people ... in a natural, kind, non-addictive (and non-big pharma) way. J Broadley 2017 Link to comment
Dalton Posted July 21, 2017 Author Share Posted July 21, 2017 I'm only taking 0.25 mg every 8 hours so that I don't get addicted and if I do, its not such a horrible taper to deal with. I dont think you guys are understanding, my family member doesn't take them any more, right now I am the subject of this discussion, correct me if I'm wrong. When I take the Xanax, I feel more normal than I ever have since I've taken the gabapentin. I DO NOT NEED GABAPENTIN. I was never prescribed gabapentin. I've never had any problem that indicates that I need gabapentin. Yes, I made a bad decision in taking them, but that doesn't mean you should reticule me about it either. Up until now I found this forum to be very helpful. Now you guys are just causing alot of negative thoughts. I know they're not candies, and would appreciate if you wouldn't be so condescending about my situation. Thank you Scallywag and alto for not doing this. Link to comment
nz11 Posted July 22, 2017 Share Posted July 22, 2017 I am sorry if i have upset you. I feel for the unfortunate situation you are now in. I am glad you are now feeling better. Thought for the day: Lets stand up, and let’s speak out , together. G Olsen We have until the 14th. Feb 2018. URGENT REQUEST Please consider submitting for the petition on Prescribed Drug Dependence and Withdrawal currently awaiting its third consideration at the Scottish Parliament. You don't even have to be from Scotland. By clicking on the link below you can read some of the previous submissions but be warned many of them are quite harrowing. http://www.parliament.scot/GettingInvolved/Petitions/PE01651 Please tell them about your problems taking and withdrawing from antidepressants and/or benzos. Send by email to petitions@parliament.scot and quote PE01651 in the subject heading. Keep to a maximum of 3 sides of A4 and you can't name for legal reasons any doctor you have consulted. Tell them if you wish to remain anonymous. We need the numbers to help convince the committee members we are not isolated cases. You have until mid February. Thank you Recovering paxil addict None of the published articles shed light on what ssri's ... actually do or what their hazards might be. Healy 2013. This is so true, with anything you get on these drugs, dependance, tapering, withdrawal symptoms, side effects, just silent. And if there is something mentioned then their is a serious disconnect between what is said and reality! "Every time I read of a multi-person shooting, I always presume that person had just started a SSRI or had just stopped." Dr Mosher. Me too! Over two decades later, the number of antidepressant prescriptions a year is slightly more than the number of people in the Western world. Most (nine out of 10) prescriptions are for patients who faced difficulties on stopping, equating to about a tenth of the population. These patients are often advised to continue treatment because their difficulties indicate they need ongoing treatment, just as a person with diabetes needs insulin. Healy 2015 I believe the ssri era will soon stand as one of the most shameful in the history of medicine. Healy 2015 Let people help people ... in a natural, kind, non-addictive (and non-big pharma) way. J Broadley 2017 Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus JanCarol Posted July 22, 2017 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted July 22, 2017 Hey Dalton - "only 0.25 mg every 8 hours" is frequent dosing of xanax. You weren't prescribed gabapentin, but you had withdrawals from it. It is gabapentin that you should have received. Hair of the dog that bit you, and all that. Now, you have been prescribed an evil, awful drug, called a benzodiazapene. It is 10x more addictive than gabapentin, with much more trouble from withdrawals. So - do you have plans to come off it before you get further addicted? You have not been treated with condescension as you suppose. Alto and Scally are extremely experienced in the nuts and bolts and symptoms of withdrawal, and they were trying to get your attention so as to prevent you further grief. As am I. We help people come off the drugs. We know how hard it is. All of us have suffered, or we wouldn't be volunteering here to help out others who are struggling. When you have trouble coming off the xanax, please start a thread at our Members Only Benzo Forum where you will see some of the problems that folks have had with your tiny little xanax pills. I'm glad you are feeling better; it is not recommended to take xanax for more than 10 days, and if you are taking them multiple times in a day, that window of opportunity for "not getting addicted" may be narrower. I really do hope you see the sun today. "Easy, easy - just go easy and you'll finish." - Hawaiian Kapuna Holding is hard work, holding is a blessing. Give your brain time to heal before you try again. My suggestions are not medical advice, you are in charge of your own medical choices. A lifetime of being prescribed antidepressants that caused problems (30 years in total). At age 35 flipped to "bipolar," but was not diagnosed for 5 years. Started my journey in Midwest United States. Crossed the Pacific for love and hope; currently living in Australia. CT Seroquel 25 mg some time in 2013. Tapered Reboxetine 4 mg Oct 2013 to Sept 2014 = GONE (3 years on Reboxetine). Tapered Lithium 900 to 475 MG (alternating with the SNRI) Jan 2014 - Nov 2014, tapered Lithium 475 mg Jan 2015 - Feb 2016 = GONE (10 years on Lithium). Many mistakes in dry cutting dosages were made. The tedious thread (my intro): JanCarol ☼ Reboxetine first, then Lithium The happy thread (my success story): JanCarol - Undiagnosed Off all bipolar drugs My own blog: https://shamanexplorations.com/shamans-blog/ I have been psych drug FREE since 1 Feb 2016! Link to comment
Dalton Posted July 22, 2017 Author Share Posted July 22, 2017 I appreciate it. I just asked for help. So if that is the case, what should I do now? How should I go about tapering the Xanax and how should I deal with the continuous withdrawals of gabapentin without it? Because I've tried for countless days to find a doctor that would taper me with gabapentin, and absolutely NONE of them said they could help. The only time anyone has helped is at the ER. I can handle the physical symptoms as long as the mental symptoms subside if that makes sense. I'm a very strong willed person, when I'm in my normal state of mind. If you could help me with that, I feel that the entire process will be much more easy. I literally felt like I was dying before I started the Xanax. So what's the next step you guys suggest? Because at this point a doctor helping with this is seeming very unlikely. I'm open to any help anyone can provide. Link to comment
Dalton Posted July 23, 2017 Author Share Posted July 23, 2017 I am not feeling ok today. Please help. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus ChessieCat Posted July 23, 2017 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted July 23, 2017 You could always tell the doctor that you want to go back on gabapentin and not tell him you are going to taper it. How do you talk to a doctor about tapering and withdrawal? What should I expect from my doctor about withdrawal symptoms? * NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA * MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: (6 year taper) 0mg Pristiq on 13th November 2021 ADs since ~1992: 25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq: 50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity) Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021 LAST DOSE 0.0025mg Post 0 updates start here My tapering program My Intro (goes to tapering graph) VIDEO: Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus ChessieCat Posted July 23, 2017 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted July 23, 2017 My apologies. After posting, I read back through your posts and realised the situation you are in and also that you had already been given these 2 links. * NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA * MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: (6 year taper) 0mg Pristiq on 13th November 2021 ADs since ~1992: 25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq: 50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity) Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021 LAST DOSE 0.0025mg Post 0 updates start here My tapering program My Intro (goes to tapering graph) VIDEO: Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management Link to comment
Dalton Posted July 23, 2017 Author Share Posted July 23, 2017 Yeah going back on Gabapentin isn't really an option at this point. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus scallywag Posted July 24, 2017 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted July 24, 2017 (edited) If reinstating gabapentin isn't an option, then hold steady on what you're taking. Please post a signature -- as the number of posts in this topic increases, it's more work to figure out your history. Summarize your history in a signature -- drugs, doses, dates, and discontinuations & reinstatements, in the last 12-24 months particularly. Any drugs prior to 24 months ago can just be listed with start and stop years. Please use actual dates or approximate dates (mid-June, Late October) rather than relative time frames (last week, 3 months ago) Spell out months, e.g. "October" or "Oct."; 9/1/2016 can be interpreted as Jan. 9, 2016 or Sept. 1, 2016. Please leave out symptoms and diagnoses. A list is easier to understand than one or multiple paragraphs. Link to Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature. Edited July 27, 2017 by scallywag This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.1997-1999 Effexor; 2002-2005 Effexor XR 37.5 mg linear taper, dropping same #beads/week with bad results Cymbalta 60 mg 2012 - 2015; 2016: 20 mg to 7 mg exact doses and dates in this post; 2017: 6.3 mg to 0.0 mg Aug. 12; details here scallywag's IntroductionOnline spreadsheet for dose taper calculations and nz11's THE WORKS spreadsheet Link to comment
Dalton Posted July 27, 2017 Author Share Posted July 27, 2017 Ok I will do that A.s.a.p. But while I have a few minutes, I'd like to let you guys know I've tapered myself down to about 0.12 mgs or less every 8 hours! Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus scallywag Posted July 27, 2017 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted July 27, 2017 Please be very careful with rapid decreases. You've cut your dose by 50% in 6 days (you posted you were taking 0.25 every 8 hours on July 21). Xanax is not to be treated lightly. Please read: 3KIS: Keep it slow. Keep it simple. Keep it stable. This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.1997-1999 Effexor; 2002-2005 Effexor XR 37.5 mg linear taper, dropping same #beads/week with bad results Cymbalta 60 mg 2012 - 2015; 2016: 20 mg to 7 mg exact doses and dates in this post; 2017: 6.3 mg to 0.0 mg Aug. 12; details here scallywag's IntroductionOnline spreadsheet for dose taper calculations and nz11's THE WORKS spreadsheet Link to comment
Justin332 Posted February 3, 2018 Share Posted February 3, 2018 So i was using the search function and found this. Dalton seemed to take gabapentin for a very short period of time. It seems he took a lot. I was out on gabapentin in the hospital and only took it about 8 days. Is there a chance I’m withdrawing from it? I thought this was Paxil withdrawal but things feel different. I don’t know what to do paxil CR 12.5mg - December 28 - January 15 paxil 10mg - January 16 20mg - Jan 18 zolpidem 10mg as needed (daily since dec 23) trazodone 50-150mg January 8-present currently taking 150ng daily. Went up from 50mg gabapentin 300mgx3 January 8- January 18 valium as needed (5mg x 3 last 8 days) Link to comment
Dalton Posted February 21, 2018 Author Share Posted February 21, 2018 Hi Justin, Hi everyone else, Sorry its been awhile since I've posted, but I've been VERY busy with the Birth of my Child, and many other things. But anyway, I'm doing much better!!! I still deal with GAD, (General Anxiety Disorder) as a result of taking the gabapentin, but it's mild compared to before. Some days, I feel completely normal again. I don't deal with any of the side effects, withdrawal symptoms, etc. as much as I was at first. I barely deal with them at all now. I can finally smoke Marijuana again! Which was something I loved to do, and very often before i took the Gabapentin. Now, I can smoke recreationally, as well as medicinally, for the Anxiety and the effects that come along with it, especially the lack of appetite. Thank you guys all so much for all the help, I would love to become a moderator or admin so that I can also help people that deal with this. Justin, stay calm, and tell us any details you can remember about taking the pills, ie., How many, for long, how did you ingest them, were you using any other drugs, etc. But overall, stay calm, and just pound it into your head that everything will be alright over time. Because it will. You just have to stay patient, and don't let it get the best of you. Link to comment
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