I first tried neurontin many years ago and it completely eradicated the pain. It didn't help with any other symptoms and didn't allow me use of my hand but it got rid of the pain. Indeed, I only took it once a day in the mornings after about six months and was able to quit it altogether after ten months or so. I was so frightened of it that I don't think I could have gotten back on it when my condition worsened except the doctor had me believoing gabapentin was different. It took days to work the second time but it seems to keep getting better after two years. I'm on 900mg + daily now.

I'm not sure what is meant by "wind up" but I do often get some precursors to the pain. The worse is when I've really overdone it badly I'll get pseudoparalysis. This is extremely disconcerting since it doesn't feel "real" but I can hardly even move my hand. It was even more disconcerting before I found out it was a common symptom of RSD. It's remarkable how much no one has told me.

The other precursor is when my whole shoulder and hand feel like "dead meat". This isn't always followed by pain though.

My pain tends to be brought on primarily by overuse but it doesn't kick in until 24 to 56 hours later.