Baclofen side effects
 

If you're on Baclofen, how do you deal with the tiredness? And does it go away? I increased my dose today so I'm at three 1/2 pills a day now and I'm SO tired all the time. I can't stop it because I really need spasticity help and I'm hoping the sleepiness will go away as I adjust to it. I can't drink caffeinated beverages because I have very bad bladder issues and caffeine+liquid=not good! I do have these green tea pills which I've been taking that help but I don't want to become dependent on them.

Does this go away? Any tricks to help fight it?

Hi MSbelle,

It is possible to see a decrease in fatigue related to Baclofen when you reach the therapeutic level for you and your body adjusts. Unfortunately, each time you increase your dosage you will notice more fatigue :(

Everyone reacts differently to medications. Some do fine on Baclofen and some end up changing to something different.

Unfortunately, most symptom management medications list fatigue as a side effect :(

I only take it at night. The rest of the time, I just put up with the spasticity.

ef
 

I never gave it a true test. As soon as I felt relief from the spasticity, I teetered down
off of it, because of the fatigue. I found that I could manage the milder spasticity
without the Leorisell/baclofin (sp) and fatigue.:rolleyes::) It did work though. I just
didn't take it long term.

I'm beginning to realize that with MS medications, often the medicine is worse than the cure. Hopefully the side effect wears off over time because I can't live with the spasticity.

Baclofen makes my bladder issues 20x worse. Because I still work I cannot take it and function in the work place. I can't be in the restroom every hour. :eek:

Oh no I wonder if that's why my bladder has been so bad :( Besides walking, my bladder is my biggest problem. I am in adult diapers 100% of the time but now I can't even hold my urine for a second! I get an urge and have no time at all before I go, I rarely ever make it to the toilet now. Frig. I am feeling awful about everything. First Fampyra made my walking 10x worse and I'm still recovering from that (I had a relapse a 10 days in to taking it... could have been coincidental but I don't think so). Then I stopped and started Baclofen, and my bladder is totally shot now. And if anything my spasticity is WORSE! How is that even possible? My hips hurt from my muscles being so tight!! I'm at 1/2 a pill in the a.m., 1/2 in the afternoon and a full pill before bed.

:circlelove: (((((MSbelle))))) http://ntf2.psychcentral.com/images/smilies/love.gif

That can be very true depending on how a person reacts to medications :(

Sooo update..

I talked to my nurse today about a few things, one being my worsening spasticity since starting Baclofen. I told her I cut out my afternoon dose, so now I'm down to 1/2 a pill in the a.m. and 1 full pill before bed. She told me to see benefits I'd have to keep working up to 1 full pill three times a day, despite my worsening spasticity... that the pill wont work at such a low dose. Sigh. Caffeine will need to be my friend for a while, then I'll work at weaning off that.

She also said I should let her know if I want to start back up on Fampyra again and give it another go... seeing as 10 days into it I had my first and only very noticeable and profound relapse, I'm not in any way eager to start that again. Especially since it works on only 1/3 of people, and it's really expensive (though if it worked, we'd find a way to pay).

Hi MSbelle,

That is true.

However, my usage has varied. The first time I used Baclofen was during an exacerbation. I was not showing signs (neuro exam) of muscle spasms but my Neurologist did suspect my leg pain was related to spasticity. I don't remember my dosage at that time except it was 3 times a day.

At my follow up appointment and with my exacerbation on the down side of resolving my Neurologist said I could take Baclofen on an as needed basis. Awesome! That is what I did. When my legs hurt I took one and my leg pain would improve.

We were in the process of moving, with two very young children, my legs hurt and I decided to take a Baclofen. My legs felt and worked great, I don't think I could have done an all day move if not for Baclofen.

I have also used Baclofen 10mg at bed time (none during the day) and when I get up in the morning my legs move and feel better.

Usually when I use Baclofen it is on an as needed basis. That works best for me, but maybe I am just odd :p. That is not the way the majority use or are prescribed Baclofen. Baclofen is short acting and taking it 3 or 4 times a day is most beneficial.

Snoopy, thank you so much for explaining that to me!

I am listening to my dr and I took a full pill this morning (and a caffeine pill!). I did well doing that. I took 1/2 at lunch and if all goes well this evening, I will make that a full pill w/ lunch tomorrow. I also take the full pill before bed. So tm I will be to the therapeutic dose and hopefully I start seeing improvement.

For whatever reason, probably no reason at all, my legs are less spastic today for the first time in a while, and this morning wasn't as bad as the previous few days. So I'm happy about that! I went to Walmart with my three year old and didn't have to leave after 10 mins bc of my legs being done. We were there a good half hour and I was ok! Thank god for accessible parking (and my permit!) and shopping carts (and an agreeable three year old :wink:)

Hi. I've been taking Baclofen for 25yrs now.
I take 40mg soon as I wake up with 200mg caffeine & 1000-2000mcg's B12. All pills, easy. Another B12 or B100 (when I have them) after lunch.
I take a total of 7 20mg Baclofen = 140mg, almost never tired unless I don't get much exercise for a few days, then my bod adjusts to being lazy so I stay active. Yes I still get terrible spasms, mostly when i'm still for long periods & then move. I swear blood circulation or lack of plays a small part. If I had a pacemaker i'd ask Dr to rev it up a day as test.

Hi Eddie. Nice to see you.:Wave-Hello:

Hi Eddie, thanks for your reply! Holy cow, I didn't realize you could take that much! Today is my very first day at the full dose (for me) of 3x10mg Baclofen. SO tired, but was ok in the am since I took caffeine. I hate taking caffeine pills, they make me jittery. But I hope to wean off that once I'm used to the Baclofen. Good to know my dose can go up if necessary.

Thanks for the added information on Baclofen, EddieF :)

I did forget to mention the dosage of oral Baclofen can be quite a bit higher than the starting dose and a "therapeutic level" is different for each person. Then there is the Baclofen Pump which allows a person to go even higher in dosage.