Update on Lyrica W/D
 

One of my symptoms of Lyrica withdrawal has been a lot of digestion issues (or I should say indigestion). I've lost a lot of weight and haven't been able to gain it back despite the increase in calories. After meeting with a couple drs, the most recent a GI specialist, they think the Lyrica may have caused a malabsorption problem. I will have to have a small and large intestine biopsy.
Will anyone else share their similar experience with indigestion issues from Lyrica withdrawal? And what you did to help the symptoms?
Thanks!!

I love the sun again
 

Just feeling it come through the window as it begins to set over the pacific.

I read all your posts. As a matter of fact, I decided to quit Lyrica right after I read your first couple of posts here. You helped me BIG TIME.. BIG TIME.. BIG TIME.

I am 1 month off Lyrica now, I can say that I've passed the most difficult stage, which is the first 10 days of REAL suffering.

Now after 30 days without Lyrica, I and everyone around me have noticed how I changed 360 degrees. I became more focused, more concentrated, my eyes look healthier and I became physically better. I also became more tolerant on people, i really can't believe it.

Even anxiety is gone, IT IS GONE. I now take it easy on my self and people. I sleep normally, no issues with sleeping at all. (At the beginning, I took some Panadol night but not anymore).

I can see tangible improvements and I do believe that I will become even better in the next 30 days.

Stay away from Redbull and tea, eat lots of almonds, drink lots of Sprite and water. Have lots of hot soups. Hot bathes didn't help me actually, I think while you're withdrawing Lyrica, you shouldn't do anything for "relaxation" as your body is fighting for "hyper energy".

One last thing to say: Despite the fact that Lyrica withdrawal is really bad, you will actually enjoy quitting it.

Hi. I've read the pages in this thread but I didn't find the answer I was looking for. So I registered to ask the question.

I been tapping down Lyrica for the past 4 months. I was taking a quite large dose, 750mg a day for 5 months.
A few weeks ago I was down at 100mg a day then started taking off 25mg each week instead of 50mg each week. I'm now at 25mg a day and will stop taking them completely on thursday.

Question, how long should it take to feel recovered once I'm down at 0mg?

My doctor says 12 hours but I highly disagree, as he even claimed that Lyrica was a peace a cake to come off if not noticeable at all..

Thanks!

In my case, I tapered down for 2 months, and have been off completely for a little over 3 months. I do not feel recovered yet. Some days are better than others, and I can only hope to feel better soon.

I would count on about 4-7 months. I am at about 7 now and doing pretty good, totally clean of everything, no sleep aid, etc... I messed around with lyrica tapering for about one month, first 450 to 300mg, then 150 daily for a week then 50 daily for a few days, then I just quit and dove face first into the withdrawal. sounds like you are doing pretty good though, so maybe it will be different for you. nice job tapering! what a nightmare, as I read through the posts I've made, in retrospect, it's hard to remember the degree of suffering i experienced, nice to be reminded of how far i've come--Dear lyrica diary, lol...

If it helps anybody...

I'm off Lyrica. As mentioned somewhere in this thread, I tapered down to 300mg/day, then did 300mg EOD and 150 EOD (slowly cutting the dose on an EOD scheme). Hung out at 150ED for a couple weeks, then just stopped, about 10 days ago.

Biggest problems every time I cut the dose: nerve pain increased, and I picked up what can be described as severe charlie horses in various muscle groups. Charlie horses to the point where visible bruising resulted. The nerve pain was/is annoying: not only the sciatic nerve, but I have a minor nerve impingement somewhere in my pec, causing pain in the base of my right thumb. Basically, any nerve pain at all was greatly exaggerated.

Mentally: not quite sure how to describe the brain stuff. Pretty tired? That's part of it. Another part is maybe detached? Just not too interested in anything, not motivated, not engaged. For example: no sex drive. Everything pretty much works physiologically (erection, orgasm, ejaculation), but I just don't care. Even when I'd try to have sex, or masturbate, my attention might wander, and I'd be done. This sense of detachment applied to everything: those things that normally really interest me, just didn't anymore.

That's starting to change, however. I'm starting to feel some sparks of motivation again.

I might have tapered too fast for some, but I made a decision based on what I know about my mind and body. It was psychologically important for me to successfully put this drug behind me on this timetable.

I wish anybody going through getting off this drug - or any other drug - nothing but the best. Stay strong, stay focused, and stay determined.

I cut my lyrica from 300/day down to 150/day in 2 months, then switched to neurontin 300/day then down to 100/day in a month of taking neurontin. Then worked my way down to nothing a month after that. I was also cutting my opiates down, so I don't know what feelings were coming from what taper, but neither were terrible.

I've been on Lyrica off-and-on for years now. I had a herniated disc, for which I had a couple surgeries, eventually ending with a fusion. All that was successful, but the end result is that the sciatic nerve will probably continue to be irritated at times for the rest of my life.

I started in 2007, and its effect on my sciatica was nothing short of magical. I definitely had some of the foggy thinking side effects, and maybe a tiny bit of balance issues at the very beginning. But when I take only 200-300 mg/day, it's pretty reasonable. What I do notice (although it took me a while to figure it out) is the effect on my sleep. I sleep deeper than I used to, and if I ever forget my evening dose, I'll spend the entire night tossing and turning with the first withdrawal symptoms.

Anyway, I successfully weaned off it twice, in 2007 and 2008, and was symptom free for a while, and side-effect free as well - but eventually my symptoms returned, so I went back on the lyrica. I've been taking it ever since, but I kind of want to stop taking it again. I think lyrica is worth it, 100%, but I don't want to be on it forever. I'm hoping to try and manage my symptoms with occasional vicodin (since I've always had good weeks and bad weeks), but I have no idea if that will work.

So here are my thoughts, as someone who successfully weaned off it in the past. Go slow. Really slow. Change the dose by a small amount every couple days. But here's the real kicker - eventually you'll get down to only taking one small dose once a day. And if you're anything like me, you'll be stuck there a long time.

I had nasty anxiety when I first tried tapering the dose down, so I had to go slower than I had expected. But the real problem was that last dose - I could get down to 25 mg or 50 mg, just once a day, but I couldn't stop taking that last pill. I had insomnia, restless legs, and generally felt like crap. I think I continued taking that last pill once a day for several weeks at least, and then I think I tried taking it every other day, and eventually I was okay.

Here's a suggestion, that I wish I had tried at the time: talk to your doctor about a sleeping pill, or whatever you think you need to manage the side effects. I think maybe once you get down to that last tiny dose, you just need a little help to get through the last 10 days or so of withdrawal?

But here's another suggestion, which worked for me once, although I never really talked about it with a doctor. The first time I weaned off, I still had an old prescription for gabapentin. They have somewhat similar function in the body, and I knew from experience that it was possible to switch directly from gabapentin onto lyrica. So when I got down to a small pill of lyrica, I switched to a small dose of gabapentin instead. It helped combat the restless legs and sleep problems, and I seemed to be okay when I stopped taking it a week or two later.

Anyway, it can be done. I think it will take at least a few weeks for the side effects to clear up - someone else posted here they thought it was more like several months! I don't know about that, but I guess I'll find out - I've now been on it more than 4 years, so I expect it might be tougher this time...

Hi,
Just wanted to update everyone on my progress. It's been 6 months since I've been off lyrica completely. The month of December was horrible with withdrawal, but I had a few really good weeks in January with feeling almost back to normal. Unfortunately once February came I had a relapse of withdrawal. The worst of it is the nausea and upset stomach, and hot flashes. But I think I'm still getting better BC the anxiety has diminished and my hair is growing back. (I suffered hair loss as a result of going off lyrica). And my sleep is getting better, and my energy level is improving.
I'm glad I decided to get off lyrica. It's a horrible drug and I can't believe how impactful and devastating it has been on me the past 8 months (which is when I first started to taper down). You could not pay to ever take this drug again.
Word of advice: taper slowly and for a long time. I thought two months of tapering was long enough but it wasn't and I think it's been more difficult on my body to adjust to being without it.

cold turkey on Lyrica not a good idea
 

I have been on Lyrica for about 4 years to help with peripheral neuropathy side effects. I have been taking a 225 mg twice per day.
Last week I finished a bottle and went to get the next bottle but could not find it. Instead of rushing a prescription I decided to just go cold turkey and see what would happen. Within a day or so after taking the last pill I had 3-4 days of flu-like symptoms, restless legs at night and a poor appetite. I also was either really cold or sweating. I am now on day 5 and back to normal. I would not recommend going cold turkey.

Hi,
I'm new to this site and not sure how to use it so please forgive me if I make any unintended errors. I think that the withdrawal from Lyrica is individual without a definitive answer that fits everyone's situation. I wonder if the answer for you is not the withdrawal but whether or not remaining on Lyrica along with your new medication is possible. If there are no serious drug interactions between the two then perhaps a small dose of daily Lyrica may bethe answer.

By the way, I forgot to add that you should make this decision in conjunction with your treating health care professional.

How is the withdrawal from Lyrica coming along?
 

Hi guys,
Just wondering how the Lyrica withdrawal is coming along? You know cluster headaches is one of the top ten most painful conditions? Are you being treated with narcotic pain medication? If you don't mind me asking. It seems like Lyrica is not sufficient and if the withdrawal is that bad it seems like you could use narcotic medication. Sorry if you answered these questions already as I did not read the entire thread. Hope you are feeling better.
:hug:

Lyrica WD - day 45
 

hey everybody!

I took 150 mg per day of lyrica for about 6 weeks, for anxiety. It wasn't really like an anxiety disorder, more like a rough part of my life. I had psychosomatic pain, and that's why I got prescribed Lyrica, by a psychiatrist.

I had side effects of taking lyrica, and couldn't continue with it, (didn't want to either, because i went to psychotherapy, and broke up with my gf, - it was the relationship that caused my problems)

the first 1 and a half week off lyrica was pretty good, i had like 4-5 days of some insomnia, but nothing severe, and then I started to feel clean, with energy and really happy. And then, after 1,5 weeks, out of nowhere it started.. the lyrica withdrawal.

I feel constant chest pain, and burning sensation in my body. I have low energy, and i am not able to work, or do normal everyday activities. I drink lots of water, about 4 liter per day. (a bit more than a gallon). I do daily walks, but that's about it. I'm not really able to run or anything like that. When I have more daily programs to do, I get exhausted really quick, to the point where i have to lay down, and rest for the rest of the day. I try to force myself to do some daily stuff, but I can't really.

I don't feel anxios, i'm not depressed, I don't feel panic, don't have panic attacks, etc.
I just feel so week, and worn out, that at some points I feel like I'm dying. And I'm not.
Fortunately I can sleep. that's a good thing.

How long will this last?
I heart that in some cases it can lead up to more than 7 months!!! come on I only took it for 6 weeks.. please let me know, that it's not possible right???
Is there any way to speed up the withdrawal? I would try anything literally.

there are days when it seems like it's getting better, but all in all, it's not. for example the last 3 days were horrifying.
I'm 25 years old, I have to go to university classes, I have to work, it's not possible for me to be SICK for 3 months or so.

what should I expect? Any advice would be really really helpful!
thank you so much!

feel like dying
 

i know it's a silly question, but can anything serious happen during withdrawal? can you faint or die or whatever? because I feel like that currently.. ahh i would love to just read this when I'm feeling great, and have a big laugh on how stupid I was... but currently this is how I feel.

Yes withdrawal can be deadly
 

I don't know anything about Lyrica but I do know withdrawal can be deadly from certain medications such as Valium or any of the benzos. Can you call your doctor and ask them about this? I had a really bad experience with soma after just taking it for a few weeks but I stopped taking it abruptly because it was knocking out my speech and I ended up in the psych ward. I was delusional for awhile. I feel like I have some permenent damage from that episode. So yes I would not take it lightly. Go to the e.r if you have to. This Lyrica sounds like a bad drug.
Brain

Hi, I'm so sorry to hear you're experiencing the nasty side effects of lyrica withdrawal. I encourage you to please read all of my posts, which include detailed information of my painful withdrawal. I've been experiencing withdrawal for almost 9 months since stopping lyrica. I'm also in my 20's and am in school and working. The withdrawal has been devastating, and it ruined my first real job as an engineer. Ironically I stopped taking lyrica BC I thought it would impede my work performance if I continued to stay on it. Who knew stopping it would be worse. I've had many many tests done by doctors which has put me thousands of dollars in debt to try to see if anything else is wrong and the doctors say I'm "perfectly healthy"...the only problem is my body is still adjusting to the lack of lyrica. I understand your lack of energy. It puts me in bed for days at a time and I feel like a zombie. Some days are better than others, but the bad days are exceptionally bad. I tried acupuncture for a few months and it helped to manage the symptoms but it wasn't a cure. I have diazepam to help manage my chronic back pain, but I found it also helps with the lyrica withdrawal. If I have the energy I work out, which sometimes helps and sometimes makes it worse.
I don't know if all this helps, but hopefully you'll know you're not alone. Again, please read my other posts as it will give you a timeline of my withdrawal progression. I'm happy to answer any questions you might have. And I hope your experience isn't nearly as awful as mine has been.

On lyrica's official web page it actually lists some withdrawal side effects in small print on the bottom of a page. One of effects is : seizure. Scary stuff people.

thank you! so do you have any knowledge about how long this will last?
and I'm really scared now, that somebody wrote, it can even be fatal.. it has been going on for you, for 9 months??? that's true? and can you do your daily activities now? is it getting better? or it's the same? I can't believe how slowly it's improving, if it's improving at all. sometimes it seems like it's getting worse.

Yes, 9 months. It has gotten better than it was in the first few months. Daily activities are getting easier to do, but it took me a good 6-7 months before I felt I got to that point. There doesn't seem to be a specific amount of time it lasts, I think it differs from person to person. But it doesn't seem uncommon for it to last ~6+ months. Aah! That just seems like a crazy amount of time to adjust but apparently lyrica was really destructive to my body and it is taking a long time for me to adjust.
.

everybody around me, all my friends, family say, that I need to get up, and do stuff. even though I feel really rough and beaten up, i feel I'm aching from the inside, and I'm exhausted... should I really go out and meet friends and stuff? will this make it better? should I try and drink alcohol? should I force myself to do things, or is it better to stay at home. will it make it worse? I always feel that mentally it helps to try and live my life normally, but physically I don't have the energy, and everything in my body hurts real bad. I don't want to stay at home all the time, because that will lead to depression, and I'm very impatient. Everybody around me is saying that I should do stuff, but I feel really harsh pain. I know with my mind what I want to do, I just feel really really sick physically for it.
It feels ****** hopeless that nobody really know what kind of condition this is.
Because I never know where it leads. If I go out for like 2 hours, and do stuff in the city, I get really worn out, and feel exhausted to the point where I have to rest. But what if I didn't rest? what if I forced it from that point? would I eventually die? or end up in hospital? what can this condition REALLY do to me? can it do real harm, or its just symptoms? Because I never force myself over THAT point, where I feel, it's better for me to lay down and rest. Should I do that? I mean i don't have any kind of difference in my blood tests, no real illness, what if I just forced myself to do everything normally? would I end up in hospital?

These are the things that are bothering me, and I don't really know the answers to them. If I stay home, and don't do anything I will get ****ing depressed, and angry at myself, but If I go out I get exhausted and my symptoms get worse.

I try to fight my way out of this, but it seems like everything I try fails.
Please help if you experienced anything like this!

Oh I really feel for you. I know exactly what you're going through. I battled the same decisions too. For me, I could not drink alcohol while on lyrica, and even since I've been off the lyrica I have not been able to drink it. It makes me deathly sick, even if it's only a few sips of beer. It will make me feel like I need to go to the hospital. I never had that problem before lyrica. As far as going out and being social.... lyrica withdrawal caused me to have horrible anxiety, which was only amplified by socializing. That on top of the exhaustion, and how sick the withdrawal made me feel, caused me to avoid going out. Sometimes I force myself to go out bc I'm worried depression is going to set in if I only stay in my house. I would only stay out for a short amount of time tho, as long as my body would physically allow. I'm fighting the depression as much as possible but after so long it's trying to set in. The exhaustion is horrible and has been really bad for me this week. I was literally falling asleep at work and felt so sick. At times I just want to cry. No one around me understands, not even my family. They just think I should be over this by now. As far as feeling like you're going to die, or will it kill you... I don't think it will, I think it's just miserable. I found doing things that are really distracting, like for me..swimming in the ocean or bike riding, helped to take my mind off of how badly I was feeling, even if it was for a moment. The first few weeks, and months were the worst and felt never ending. It does get better. Although I'm nowhere near back to normal, I am better than I was in the very beginning. The month of January was great actually, but for some reason February/march has been really rough. It's like I've relapsed. Ohh I'm so ready to feel like myself again!!! I feel like lyrica took part of me that I don't know if I'm going to get back :-(
you could not pay me to ever take that medicine again!!! It is the worst!! In spite of how horrible it has been, I know coming off of it was the right decision. I'm glad I didn't wait any longer.

i have read that the withdrawal in the first phases (as in my situation) is gettin worse and worse, and it gets to the worst point and then there's a plateau. when it's not getting worse but not getting better either, and then slowly it starts getting better.

Was it like that for you?

And also another question:

Yesterday I went out for a 2 and a half hour period of showing around foreign people by car in the city (it's my job), and I felt really harsh throughout, but since then it's been a lot worse. So I got really really exhausted from that activity, and I had bad pain (chest, arms and back, and overall feeling of exhaustion, low energy), and I couldn't sleep well because of the pain, and now today has been pure hell so far. Probably the worst day ever of my withdrawal. The pain is almost unbearable, I drink incredibly lots of water, try to eat a lot, fruits and veggies, but I really feel that I should be going to the hospital.. I don't really know what they could do with it.
Now i took ibuprofen, because I really had no idea, what to do with this unbelievably harsh pain.
Did this ever happened to you, when you over forced yourself, did a lot more, than you felt like you can cope, and then got real exhausted for days because of the extra energy?
Should I be afraid?
I really regret now that I took that job yesterday, because this whole pain wasn't worth the money.
thanks for helping me out with all my questions and agonizing! thanks mate!

No problem, I'm happy to help out. It actually helps me out too by being able to talk about all this with someone who knows what I've been going through.

I think the withdrawal for me got worse for a few months, then hit a plateau, then had some good days and some bad days. But the past month it seems like it's been more bad days than good. Hopefully I'm in the phase of getting better.
I also had horrible chest pain, almost felt like I was having a panic attack or a heart attack. I went to the doctor for it, but they were unable to do anything. That pain in my chest lasted really badly for a few months, then slowly started to get better. Now I only have it once in a while.
Sometimes if I push myself too hard, it made the exhaustion worst. There were times I couldn't get out of bed for a week or two because I physically was unable. I would try to leave bed and would feel weak and dizzy and lighted headed.
There were a few times I felt so weak and light headed that I almost blacked out. That is really scary because I can't imagine if I had been driving when that happened. I try to rest on days when it's that bad.
I think I mentioned this before, but for me, taking diazepam and oxycodone helped with the anxiety and chest pain associated with the withdrawal. Sometimes doctors will prescribe diazepam (which is just the generic form of Valium) for lyrica withdrawal. So I'd suggest talking to your doctor about taking another medication to ease the symptoms.

What amount of lyrica did you take and for how long?
I think that must be also a contributing factor for the withdrawal. Even though they say there is no correlation between the WD and the amount/time, but I only took it for 2 months and only 150mg daily.

oh and actually ibuprofen miracleously helped a lot! I never expected that!
yeah, I definitely feel, that I forced myself over a point yesterday, and that's why it has gotten worse. If I just keel calm, and do chill walks, and smaller activities, it's a lot easier to cope with it.

I feel really bad for you, that it's actually lasting that long! but hang in there mate! You're definitely over the hardest part that for sure! :-)

Actually I'm pretty confident in filing a lawsuit against Pfizer, and I'm quite confident that I'm gonna win. so that thought helps me a lot. That I can hope for a compensation, when this is over.

I've read Quitlyricalive's posts, and he wrote that after 74 days he felt a lot better. I'm at about 52 days now, and I feel that I just hit the peak of WD. I hope now the plateau is coming, and then it will just get better.

I was on 150 mg daily for almost 3 years. I started to experience really bad side effects from the medicine and that's when I decided to go off it. I weaned down really slowly for two months. I thought weaning down for so long would help the withdrawal to not be so bad. But I guess I was wrong.
I'm glad the ibuprofen helped!!

Hey man! hold on! you'll be fine! (Y)
I had a great sleep and today is very good compared to yesterday. I really want to feel hope, and want to come uphill now! I just hate the up and down aspect of this hole shi t.. the part that you can never be sure in yourself, that "yes, now it's getting better".. cause after a few "good" days it can hit in again really strong. but whatevs, onetime it will be over, and we will never have to surf this thread again :)

The ups and downs are like a roller coaster. It's hard to know if you're getting better when you start to feel bad again. I think it's also really weird that I feel better, but then start to feel worse. You would think once you started feeling better you'd continue to go uphill. I guess the hill is staggered...
Oh well, I had a good day too and actually wasn't too sick to my stomach and had a pretty good appetite. Can't wait for all days to be good!!

New turning point
 

GOT TO A MAJOR POINT IN UNDERSTANDING THE WHOLE LYRICA WITHDRAWAL MECHANISM!

I've seen a very good psychiatrist today, who helped me understand the whole deal, that we are going through during the Lyrica withdrawal.
And the main thing I needed to understand, were of course my symptoms. The symptoms of constant pain, aching, and exhaustion are indeed, the symptoms of DEPRESSION.

So clearly I am diagnosed with depression.
And oddly enough I feel happy about this diagnose.

Because it's not real. It's just the symptoms of it, but not really a deep depression.

Depression involves the feeling of inflammation, and aching, and fatigue, so these withdrawal effects should not be stated separately. Depression doesn't neccesarily mean that you're feeling down, or sad. You can actually have depression without feeling anxious or sad at all. !!!! (it happens to me!!)

So there shouldn't really be anymore said to this whole thread.

ANYTHING THAT HELPS RELIEVE DEPRESSION SYMPTOMS HELP RELIEVE LYRICA WITHDRAWAL.

you got to note though, that it is the brighter side of depression, because it's not caused by any real life events, traumas, or long-term anxiety. instead it's caused by the body's need of the drug "pregabalin". Due to the fact that the body has gotten completely addicted to it, and it can become addicted to it in a very short period of time.

My new doc told me that he would advise some anti-depressants, but I am going to refuse that. I don't want to mess up my brain even more, and Lyrica-withdrawal is a chemical thing, that will end by itself after a while, so I don't need to combat it that much, by risking that I will get addicted to a new substance. (which will cause withdrawal symptoms again and again..)

My best advice now is, to try everything that makes you happier.
Raise the serotonin levels!

The best non-pharmacy substance for this, in my opinion VegEpa. VegEpa is a highly purified omega 3 fish oil, with high levels of EPA, which help raise the serotonin levels of the brain, and help ease withdrawal symptoms. It acts as an SSRI anti-depressant, but it doesn't make you addicted, because it's just basically fish :D

Being outside in the sun helps a lot, walks help a lot, if you don't have the energy to go out and meet with friends, it helps to call them over, watch a movie together, or go for a walk. Just light tasks, that makes life more enjoyable.

Another really-really important factor is getting a good sleep. I noticed when I have a great sleep, I can reduce my symptoms dramatically. VegEpa helps with that too. You got to take a higher dose though. 3-4 capsules per day. It's a bit expensive, but after you're through with this shi t, you don't have to take it anymore, and it doesn't cause any withdrawal symptoms. it's all natural.

I think this new thing I found out today applies for me in a great deal, but probably would help also for you guys.

off lyrica about ten months now, hang in there everyone, I am so far beyond the suffering i can hardly even remember it. but it was bad and lasted months and months. I do still have sleep troubles. and i forget thoughts sometimes while articulating. and I'm a little more sensitive. I am totally sober, no drugs, alcohol or smoking. just coffee. I quit it pretty cold turkey for 350 mg or something. you all can read my posts as I can here religiously when I was going through it. it is very hard but you will make it, it's a commitment, but it pays off, 7 months you're pretty good. work out everyday. much love and strength to all you out there dealing with pain management issues and addiction. may you be at ease.

lyrica curse
 

I too am withdrawing from lyrica and after reading everybodys posts I am absolutely convinced that this is what has happened to me, I am dreadfully sick, not able to eat for two weeks since stopped lyrica completely.. I quit my job, and cry like a babe..
nausea is horrendous
constipation
sweats (today) and horrible headache caused by light intolerance (sun light) or white lights...
vomited like crazy two nights ago and went to hospital to get iv fluids
my hand is swollen, my back is swollen and the pain clinic shots didn't worked as well this timea round

feel that we should unite forces and sue the lyrica makers they are killing people with their posion
I am depressed, sad and had suicidal ideation however I didn't realized till now.. even if I read my previous posts, everything points at this hell of lyrica

I also have very acidic stomach, and even my tears hurt my eyes..

I do feel I am dying and my nerve pain is out o whack

thank you for sheding a light in the nightmare of withdrawals
the hospital gave me "pink lady" for the nausea which is a Maalox with lidocaine and it worked to stop the nausea and the swallowing problems.. but is very temporary relief/..

What has helped
 

OTC acid reflux meds -tecta works (magnesium)
100% lavender oil prn (rubbed in the skin to ease the horrible nerves)
chamomile tea for the nausea and water retention (just flushes everything out) -black, no sugar or cream-
juices (carrot, beet, celery, etc) to prevent fainting spells or dizziness due to lack of food tolerance.. it also helps with minerals needed not to dehydrate
IV fluids -go to the er, stay put, wait till two bags are in you will feel much better
keep up with fluids- use pedialyte for kids.. drink a little bit several times a day.. it works to restore electrolites and therfore feel much better

antidepressants (stay away from them please!!) it works better if you make your own anti-depressant treat that works wonders

buy some pot, and boil it on water until the water turns green.. remove the water (and of course, drink it with honey) but do this when you are 100% sure you are not going to drive, work or do anything that requires to be sharp.. just allow yourself to relax and be comfortable..

this helps not to feel choking or the horrible side effects of smoking
and the tea is as good.
or just buy some pot butter or candy or brownies or make your own.. just get out of your misery and relax.

stay away of codeine, opiates, and tylenol (any kind) those drugs are evil and have horrible side effects

avoid all spices, meats, and heavy stuff and let your tummy detox naturaly with juices and tea

finally we will survive, we will have this experience and maybe will be able to help others to cope with the horrific withdrawal symptoms
at least ty!!! like my favourite song says (Pink)
Even if it burns doesn't mean your gonna die
WE GOTTA GET UP AND TRY!!

Just a reminder to all members to be careful about using anything that may be illegal in your state/country etc

Hello and thanks to all on this thread,
I was taking Lyrica for around 6 years with the last 3 1/2 at 600 mg a day. Last year I started to taper off very slowly over many months. When I got to about 300 mg I started to notice the withdrawal symptoms. Last fall I was down to only 100 mg a day and it was terrible so I decided in December to stop. Well long story short, December through March were h*ll. I am still dealing with the withdrawal symptoms and the increased nerve issues from my cervical problems. When will the strange physical feelings go away! I am always cold and feel like I have a fever but do not. I still have a strange numbness. The anxiety is almost all gone now after 5 1/2 months.... but I am still not myself at all.

Thanks to all for posting their experience with stopping Lyrica. I will never take it again.

Hi, so sorry to hear you're suffering from the awful Lyrica withdrawal, but sooo glad to hear you made the choice to stop taking it. I have said the same thing, that I will never take it again!! You could not pay me to take it again.
I've posted often on this site; read through my posts to learn about my experience coming off Lyrica, which was absolutely horrific.
I understand the strange physical feelings, and weird temperature sensations (cold but feverish!) and increased nerve issues.
I found that that in the initial stages of withdrawals (if you can call months and months "initial stages") There was an increase in nerve agitation from my original pain problems (that for which I was on Lyrica), but eventually those nerve sensitivities decreased. I felt like my nerves were super inflamed and irritated without Lyrica, but I think it was part of the withdrawal phase...like it's trying to trick your body into taking the medicine again. My original chronic back pain hasn't disappeared either, but I think the extra agitation from Lyrica withdrawal is gone.
I've been off Lyrica completely for 10 months (after weaning for about 3 months). My last really bad withdrawal day was about 2 and half weeks ago and it's really amazing it's been that long!! This past week I felt like my old self again, probably in the first time since over a year when I first started the weaning process. I just hope it continues to get better. I did have a few days or a week or so that I would feel close to my old self, but always relapsed. I'm hoping this time is different. It certainly would be nice to be over this completely.
Hang in there!! Those first six months are the worst, but the next six months get better, at least for me they did.
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. I found it helpful to reach out to those on this site who really understand what we've been going through.

Withdrawing from Lyrica also made me dreadfully sick!! The nausea and upset stomach were unbearable at times. I found ginger to be helpful for the nausea, as well as a prescription anti-nausea medicine from my doctor. Warm peppermint tea, even adding ginger to it also helped, at least to take the edge off. Wasn't a cure, but soothed the nausea a bit.
I got so sick, and got the the point anything I ate would make me vomit/go to the bathroom. I lost 20 pounds, which put me underweight. I am petite and really couldn't afford to lose that weight. I've had a hell of a time trying to gain it back too. Lyrica, which is known to cause allergies, caused me to develop a bunch of food allergies: gluten, dairy, soy, and grains. Seems crazy, but I never had these allergies before Lyrica, and my doctor confirmed they are a result of the drug. AAH!! So frustrating. My nausea and indigestion problems have improved, as long as I eat really really really healthy.
I understand that feeling of "dying and nerve pain out of whack." I had many days of asking my family "Am I am going to make it? because I really feel like I'm not going to make it." It is a horrible feeling. It's been over a year since I started my withdrawal and I've been off Lyrica completely 10 months. As I just mentioned in another post, this past week I actually started to feel like my old self again. I'm actually tearing up writing this because it's been such a painful process and I didn't know if I'd ever feel normal again. I just hope I'm really on the mend, and not just an up phase before another withdrawal period hits me.
Hang in there and try to stay positive!!
Feel free to ask me any questions or chat if you just need to vent!
This has been a great community to help me get through this process.

Thanks for your reply. I will post updates later.:cool: I had a much longer post and lost it... :-(

I was only on Lyrica for 6 weeks, I started off at 150mg per day, then noticed some terrible side effects (sore muscles, swelling, headache pressure) and weaned myself down to 75mg a day. I tried to go cold turkey and felt like I was dying so I ended up reducing my dose by 25mg every 3 days. It all went well and I thought that apart from some nausea I had been successful in withdrawing.

Then, about 13 days after my last dose I started getting a tingling sensation in all my limbs - it has been 6 days of this now and its driving me crazy. I've also got extreme anxiety & panic attacks + the obligatory nausea.

I only started taking this drug for facial pain, which it never really masked and I am so angry at myself for not doing more research before taking it. I don't know how long these symptoms will last, the doctor has no idea about any of it and has now prescribed me Xanax, to help with the anxiety. I'm not too keen about taking that one either.

Since I wasn't on the Lyrica for very long, I am very much hoping my withdrawal wont be as lengthy as others here have suffered.

Lyrica withdrawal
 

I too am trying to get off Lyrica, I have been cutting down over the past 3 weeks. I was only on 125mg a day and I am already having a really hard time. I am definitely upset and aching all over. I am scared as to what happens next. I have no energy and am so upset about the weight gain. I have put on about 40lbs since last September. Hopefully when I get free of this horrible drug I will start to feel like me again.