Hi everyone !!

I am a 45 year old male from Charlotte NC that was just diagnosed with peripheral neuropathy. I have been on Lortab to manage my pain until I was able to see a neurologist. My insurance company did not need a referral but ALL of the neurologists did. Took me 2 1/2 months to get to see one.

Anyway I am not long winded so here goes.

I was recently put on Neurontin and Cymbalta and yikes !!! Made me feel like a zombie and wouldn't trust myself behind the wheel "much less with a power tool in my hand, I am a contractor" so I have missed work and medical bills are mounting. I have been on it for one week and hear the side effects might get better. Its not doing much for the stabbing stinging pain also.

My Doctor told me he didn't want me doped up on lortab so he switched me to these medications but truth be told I am more doped up on these pills than I ever was on 2 lortab.


One more thing, Family history: Father has it, Brother has it, now I have it. Both are on narcotic pain pills to deal with the pain.

Does anyone have any insight on Neurontin and its long term effects?


Thanks for reading,

marcusdolby.

Welcome to Neuro Talk. There are some people, who just cannot tolerate that drug. I was a talking walking zombie and felt awful to boot. Depression got worse, and I really did try for a number of weeks. Both that drug, and gabapenton did that to me. I would try the medication for just a few weeks, and then really have a conversation with your doctor. It may be you have to find a pain specialist, and a physician who knows about PN.
Has the doctor mentioned any kind of compounded medication for you? Has he offered lidoderm patches? There are a host of different things a doctor can do for you if you just find the right one.
Has your B12 levels been checked?.
I know lots of doctors are hesitant to prescribe any narcotic. That patient-doctor relationship can take some time. I see a physiatrist, who treats the "whole" person, not just the symptoms. One year later, I am better.
I am allowed two different narcotics, hydrocodone, and percocet. Over the year and a half I have known her, she already knows how careful I am. I only take them when the PN is really bad. She does not hesitate to help me in any way she can. This is the kind of physician you need to get back on track.
I know you want to do your job, and are sick of the whole mess. I don't get any euphoria from either of my medications. You need a doctor that is going to give you what you need to get your life back. fight for it! I do wish you all the best. I do care. ginnie

Hi Ginnie
gonna steal this thread..what type of pain does your med treat? I have sfn , Im taking 300mgs lyrica. After 8 mos , Im finally acclimated and dont have dizzi-drunk like feelings as much anymore. But my stomache gets soo bloated, i look 4 mos preg and it hurts. But no weight gain. Now in the last 6 weeks or so i noticed Im losing my hair! Lyrica only helps with some of the pain, not enough! This is stressing me out, Hair loss on top of neuropathic pain, so unfair!! I also have hydrocodone(vicodin) and percoset. I only take the vicodin when my pain and burning is bad. I take the lowest dose, and it doesnt help, Im nervous about taking higher dose because of sideffects. I tryed half tablet of Percoset, it made my BP drop too low 76/46, ughh! so now i can only take vicodin which dont help.How much do you take and are you on anything else besides the two meds you mentioned? I need to wean off of lyrica but I dont have a med to fall back on..so depressed & stressed Thanks...

Thank you so much for the reply. Yes my b12 is fine and all my blood work came back good, I did have high cholesterol and there was concern I had vascular issues but the vascular doc said all is well, just minor blockage.

I am on Neurontin.
Niacin
Plavix
Cymbalta
Lortab.

I have PN in my left foot, ankle and calf. Quite severe at times to where I can't walk. Those two narcotics, I switch around. If the pain is less, I take less etc.
I really like this compound I have which has Ketamine in it, along with 4 other ingredients. I also use Lidoderm patches, as there is more wrong with my ankle than just the PN. B12 shots, I know they helped over the course of a year.

Does your BP run low to begin with? I am surprised that the percocet lowers your BP so much. I don't know what other med. besides what we have talked about would help you. If you are not getting any relief from a lower dose. you need to get back to your doctor. There has to be something else that can help that won't lower your BP like that.
I can list the ingredients for the compound I have if you would like.
What kind of doctor do you see for the SFN? Has there been anything at all offered to you besides what you have? Keep in touch Marie, none of this is fun.....ginnie

This med. not everyone gets a good result with. Some do however and get some pain relief. I think for the most part it is for nerve pain in the feet from diabetes.
Is your doctor taking you off this because it doesn't work? Let me know Maria. ginnie

Hi, welcome to NeuroTalk.
I started on Neurontin and came to increase it after 10 years, until I was at 4200mgs/day as well as Tramadol (Ultram) 400mg/day.
Eventually, the Neurontin just wasn't working well enough for me.
I switched to Lyrica & Tramadol and believe the Lyrica to be a life saver.
If not for this med, I would not be able to get out of bed in the am.
I work with power tools and drive in my line of work, as well. I found that the 'fuzzy head' subsided after the med had a chance to be in my system 24/7 for a few weeks. After the first month, I had no problems driving or working with power tools. I haven't had a car accident and still have all my fingers and toes after 7 years on Lyrica. Drugs affect different people differently - that's why there are so many different kinds. You eventually will settle down to one that works best for you, just be patient.

This may not help you, MarcusDolby, but I too hate to be doped up. My neurologist started me on Nortriptyline (aka Pamelor) at 10 mg/day and then ramped up by 10 till I reached 50. At that point I wanted a bit more pain relief, so he added a pretty low dose of Gabapentin (aka Neurontin). Lidocaine patches are also great for local cramps and stabbing pain, and they don't have any narcotic effect.

So far this is working pretty well for me -- but I was diagnosed only six months ago, and I suspect my idiopathic (long fiber) PN has worse things in store for the future....

I've seen findings in medical journals that the combo of Nortriptyline and Gabapentin works better than either drug alone. And so far, this combination does not make me woozy -- and does help me sleep. Anyway, good luck, and welcome to this chat board. I'm pretty new to it myself and have already learned a lot from it.

sorry for what your going threw , trust me I know!
give the new meds another week.....if no change I went on
Lyrica and Cymbalta and since have been much better...
took a few weeks to get use to but I got threw it.
good luck.

To the OP- have the doctors identified this as hereditary neuropathy? It certainly sounds like it unless you are all diabetic. I have CMT type 2, advanced to where my arms and legs are pretty painful. I am on Gabapentin, don't really have any side effects, but I am also on time release morphine and oxycodone. I would be completely unable to function without them, but I have done well with them, although now the weakness is progressing to where I need a wheelchair for a few things.
You may find that narcotics allow you a higher level of functioning with fewer side effects. Good luck finding a doctor who understands pain management! Since there is no treatment permanent palliative care is fundamental to your quality of life.