I am starting Lyrica for my pain. I know there is anouther thread on this but I wanted to hear positive feedback too.
It is going to take 4 weeks to get up to a full dose as my doc is slowly increasing my dosages.
I was shocked my INS covered it. It still cost $50 or so but way better than $300!
Any input??
Thanks, Melissa
Posted by merrygirl (Member # 12041) on :
Should I start after christmas?? I think I might just in case.
Posted by beckyM (Member # 13944) on :
Hey Melissa,
I actually take lyrica. I cant say that it is FANTASTIC...but I can say that I think it keeps the nerve pain to a dull roar.
I am assuming you are going to be going up to taking it twice a day?
If you are starting once a day...start with your dose at night.
I was tired at first. And still am at times.
Sometimes I have a hard time though determining if it is the lyrica or the lyme.
Other than being a little more tired, I think it increased my brain fog a bit.
Again, hard to tell.
Other than that, I have had a good experience on Lyrica.
Good luck!
Becky
Posted by trails (Member # 1620) on :
I have been on lyrica for nueropathic pain as a result of multiple surgeries. It was a hard med for me to get used to.
I only take 75mgs at nite. If I take more I get really whacko. Sleep and dizzy and foggy and cant think and sooo slow. a lot like lyme.
I do think the lyrica helps my pain--even at this sub therapuetic dose. I have tried to stop it and within 24 hours the pain comes back.
It also increased my suicide ideation at first. I was in so much sever pain for so long by the time I was put on it, it was hard to tell which was doing what, but we now believe the lyrica contributed to my inablitity to think rationally and helped me feel more hopeless. please be careful of this.
It took about 3 weeks before i could tell it was working in any way.
I hope it helps you---take your time ramping up to a dose you feel comfy with.
best, Trails
Posted by merrygirl (Member # 12041) on :
Thanks so much.
My doc has me starting at 75 mg at bedtime for a week and gradually getting up to 150 mg twice a day. That will take a month.
I really hope I dont have suicidal issues as I have had enough of that in the last few years..
Being more sleepy than I am now will be an issue. I really hope it is manageable.
Melissa
Posted by Truthfinder (Member # 8512) on :
Boy, Merrygirl, you have certainly had your share of not-so-great diagnoses this winter. I really hope the Lyrica can help you deal with the pain issues.
While I am not familiar with Lyrica, I am familiar with Neurontin, a close cousin to Lyrica. Neurontin is the only thing that deals with my periodic nerve pain.
One of the problems with gabapentin (Neurontin) is that it tends to deplete GABA in the body (according to my old Internist). GABA is an amino acid which acts as an inhibitory neurotransmitter, and you can buy it OTC.
Essentially, what Pfizer did was add GABA to gabapentin to compensate for this problem (or so it would appear). I'm sure Pfizer had to `tweak' the gabapentin molecule a bit so that they could get a new patent.
quote:....Lyrica.... is a 3-substituted analogue of gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA) and a compound related to ....... gabapentin (Neurontin).
A SUCCESSOR TO GABAPENTIN ....gabapentin (Neurontin) has been one of Pfizer's top performing drugs. Lyrica (pregabalin) is seen as an important successor now that gabapentin is facing the threat of generic competition.
Both drugs share a similar mechanism of action: binding to calcium channels and modulating calcium influx as well as influencing GABergic neurotransmission....
Because it is more potent than gabapentin, Lyrica (pregabalin) achieves efficacy at lower doses. This increases its therapeutic index with respect to gabapentin and should lead to fewer dose-related side effects......
I've often wondered if a person couldn't take Neurontin along with GABA and achieve a similar effect to that of Lyrica. It would sure be a heck of a lot cheaper! Well, I suppose if that were true we would have heard about it by now.
One thing to bear in mind (hopefully, this is on the drug insert): I assume that Lyrica is like Neurontin in that you have to take anything containing magnesium 2 hours apart from the drug.
Well, don't know if this helps one bit, but Lyrica is a rather interesting drug.
A friend of mine with lung cancer was given Lyrica for the intense body-wide itching caused by toxins released by the cancer. It worked! And he found out about it by calling his pharmacist to see what might help, not his doctor. His doctor had no suggestions. (By the way, my friend responded well to chemo and his cancer is GONE at this point. The Lyrica is no longer needed.)
Posted by merrygirl (Member # 12041) on :
I just wanted to update this thread.
I took 75 mg for a week at bedtime. I did notice a difference in the pain in a few days. I increase the dose to 75mg twice a day.
I do feel a bit "slow" and foggy and a little loopy. I also had a minor headache at first but I think they are gone now. My pain is already a lot better.
I feel a little bit more depressed and discouraged.
I will say it is a hard drug to get used to and if anyone starts this med go super slow. I am supposed to end up taking 150 mg twice a day in the end.
I have been reading about the side effects and I am nervous about the poss weight gain. If it Lyrica works for the pain, I dont care too much a bout a few pounds.
Thanks trails for the heads up on the depressive stuff. This is the only time I have heard about this and I do think it has happened to me.
Thanks for everyones advice.
Melissa
Posted by trish4 (Member # 14156) on :
Not to sure about this drug, but I know my MD prescribed it to me some time ago but I never got it filled. It seems everytime I went to the Dr. he was giving me some sort of medication that never worked so I figured this one wouldn't work either. But let me know if it helps and maybe I'll bring it up with him again.
Posted by pab (Member # 904) on :
Four of us take Lyrica. We didn't have any problems getting use to it. My son was on a very high dose for a while without side effects. His dose was lowered because the higher dose worked the same as the lower dose.
I take 50 mg at bedtime, my husband and kids take in morning & night.
I was on a higher dose but didn't like the weight gain. My husband and kids have not had any weight gain.
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