posted
I'm having major pain in my back and feet. Will have another MRI tomorrow. Last one was in October. Showed a bulging disc in lower back and neck. Been in pain ever since May '11 when I tried to lift something TOO HEAVY!
SOOO... Began Lyrica last week and about 4-5 days into it, I began having numbness in my legs. It was freaking me out! I stopped the Lyrica for two days and today my Dr and I decided it was NOT the Lyrica causing the numbness.
My question is.. has anyone had that side effect?
PS.. I could use some prayers!
-------------------- --Lymetutu-- Opinions, not medical advice! Posts: 96222 | From Texas | Registered: Feb 2001
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posted
lyrica actually worked to relieve my nerve pain that no other medication could touch. It caused major hair loss for me which began 2 months after I started it and continued for over a year after stopping.
Dr's told me at the time the hair loss was not due to the lyrica, now almost 4 years later the pharmacist said it is listed as the first side effect. Dr's need to listen to their patients!
Posts: 199 | From Niagara Falls | Registered: Dec 2009
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posted
i reread and i do not sound encouraging at all do I? I 'm sorry to be blunt but the hair loss that I experienced on top of my illness sent me spiralling into a deep depression. It was a horrible time in my life so I am passionate about letting people know my experience.
All these meds seem to carry side effects and it seems you have to decide which is worse the the symptom or the side effect.
I am sorry you are going through this it is always something, my pain has been manageable lately but horrible dizziness has stepped up in its place.
Posts: 199 | From Niagara Falls | Registered: Dec 2009
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quote:Originally posted by hopeforhealth: I 'm sorry to be blunt but the hair loss that I experienced on top of my illness sent me spiralling into a deep depression.
- No worries about being blunt. I do appreciate it!
Losing my hair would be the last straw for me. I would also be IN THE PIT.
-------------------- --Lymetutu-- Opinions, not medical advice! Posts: 96222 | From Texas | Registered: Feb 2001
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Kudzuslipper
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 31915
posted
tutu, I don't have experience with lyrica, but I did just recently switch to cymbalta. the pain relief was almost instant --- 2nd day. But I had some vivid dreams, and teariness the first two weeks. I suspect it was the cymbalta, but also, the old AD (celexa) getting out of my system. I would not stay on it if I had numbness.
could it be a dose thing?
Posts: 1728 | From USA | Registered: May 2011
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lyme in Putnam
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11561
posted
Prayers and good thoughts. Feel better.
-------------------- He took u to it, He'll you through Posts: 2837 | From NE. | Registered: Apr 2007
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posted
I tried Lyrica for 'FM' pain a few years ago. It seemed to help my pain some, but it made my feet and legs swell.
I was still working then, so I quit taking the Lyrica because by the end of the work day my legs and feet were horribly swollen.
Though I have heard some do quite well on it. I'm praying for you too.
Posts: 331 | From West Coast | Registered: Jan 2012
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Rumigirl
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 15091
posted
I'm sorry to hear about your back and feet pain---pain is the worst!
Hmmm, so did you go back on the Lyrica? Since it's listed as a side-effect, I would be cautious. Did the package insert say anything more about the numbness, ie, I presume that it's reversible when you stop the med.
YOu could ask your pharmacist about it (might not know, but it's worth a try). askapatient.com is good for checking out patients' experiences of a particular med.
Where in your legs is the numbness? Is it your whole leg, or what part of it? I ask, because it would tell what nerves are involved.
Let us know what the MRI says when you get the results. Be sure to get the results ASAP when they are ready. There are a lot of things that could help, but you would want to know more objectively before you began a course of PT, osteopathy, etc.
Often numbness is caused by impingement of nerves by vertabrae out of alignment and/or tight muscles. But again, it depends on how localized or global the pain is. (I'm in the medical field).
Prayers are going up for you. Keep us informed. I definitely would think twice about the Lyrica, even though you don't know if that is what it is or not. If it goes away after stopping it, that would tell you something!
Posts: 3771 | From around | Registered: Mar 2008
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AuntyLynn
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 35938
posted
C H I R O P R A C T O R!
I lived in pain for YEARS from an old back injury (2 crushed Lumbar discs)... sometimes couldn't stand up straight as my back would "lock" if I simply picked up a bag of groceries the wrong way!
I was really reticent to let someone manipulate my back and neck, but you know what? It's a miracle to walk into a doc's office in pain and come out 30 minutes later completely pain free!
Have you tried this?
Even though my doc is now retired, since I am not running around working, or hunched over a desk all day, I don't fall into those "twisted spine" events that I used to get.
I don't like the "numbness" you are experiencing, but hard to know if that's a side effect of the drug, or a tendency to "lean on" injured tissue too much when you don't feel pain.
I would want to try something else.
I'm guessing two things about the hair loss side effect (now mind you, only an educated guess, as I'm no Doc):
it may cause you to go hypothyroid,
or, like most chemo drugs, it may be causing apoptosis of the fast-growing body cells. (Which might give you digestive tract or lung problems, later.) I'd be very wary.
Prayers already en route!
Posts: 1432 | From New Jersey | Registered: Jan 2012
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posted
My brother in-law was using Lyrica for severe pain caused by cancer. He had pain relief but developed high blood pressure and bloating. He didn't mention anything about numbness.
I will pray for you...feel better and keep us posted.
Posts: 131 | From Maryland/USA | Registered: May 2011
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posted
Thanks everyone. I made it thru the MRI this morning. We were planning a long road trip tomorrow but will wait until Friday so we can get the test results back.
Pain is better today. Yes, I'm back on the Lyrica.. I'll keep a watch out for the numbness to see if it gets worse. I was having numbness yesterday even tho I had stopped the Lyr on Sunday.
Chiropractic actually made me worse last summer. Wish I had not let him adjust me.
He's been doing spinal decompression on my neck and back for about 8 months now. I've had probably 50+ treatments on my back. It now seems to aggravate it.
I've also done some cold laser therapy. May need to try that again.
THANKS FOR THE PRAYERS!!
-------------------- --Lymetutu-- Opinions, not medical advice! Posts: 96222 | From Texas | Registered: Feb 2001
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