Questions about Baclofen & Gabapentin
 

I'm supposed to be taking 10mg/4 x's/day of Baclofen & 100mg/4 x's/day of Gabapentin.

I only take 10mg once a day of the Baclofen because I felt that it was interfering with my work. I work nights.
Recently I've been suffering from insomnia & I've read that Baclofen can cause this.

Can anyone tell me what their experiences have been with the meds, insomnia & juggling all this with work.

Any input would be much appreciated. I'm so sick & tired of being sick & tired.

Thanking you in advance
Leslie

They both made me feel dizzy and weak. I stopped taking them long ago.

I hope you can find a good balance wth them.:hug:

I take baclofen, 3 of them before bed, because it makes me sleepy. I have insomnia problems, at least the baclofen seems to help that.

I quit taking the gabapentin last fall. It was making my feet and ankles swell with edema. Replaced that with Lyrica, quit the Lyrica after about 10 days partially because it made me so stoned, I couldnt do anything. All I wanted to do was sleep. I didnt realize that it was what was causing me to fall asleep standing up.

Other reason that I quit Lyrica, it's apparently the same class as gabapentin and it was not only causing my feet and ankles to swell, but it was making my hands swell and other parts of my body. I had such bad edema that I went to my regular doctor and asked to have my heart checked because the edema was so bad that I was coughing all the time and feeling really weak. (my dad, a nurse, was worried that I was having symptoms of congestive heart failure) I did have some problem with my heart...cant remember what it was called....regurgitation something or another.

The edema in my hands was making my hands more numb. Once I got rid of all that extra fluid some of the numbness that I'd been blaming on the MS got a lot better.

So, I guess I cant take medications like gabapentin and lyrica.

Love the baclofen tho. I really dont like being woken up by my legs trying to kick me in the butt with my heels. Spasticity sucks. Sometimes I take a little valium (another muscle relaxer similar to baclofen) if the spasticity is really annoying.

Funny, cause I think that the Baclofen is causing my insomnia. I did read that that was one of the side effects. I'm going to experiment a little with it. I've missed the last 2 shifts cause I'm unable to sleep. I didn't have insomnia before I started taking it.

I will let u know how that goes.

Thanks for ur input.

gabepentin made me feel awful! I felt like I was walking in a swimming pool under water. I felt thick and blunted and out of control of myself. I would lay down and not rest. I would sleep and not rest. I would nap and not rest. I felt like a puppet and someone else was controlling the strings. I told the MD I was coming off the stuff, and stopped cold turkey. Afterwards I was told how dangerous it is to simply stop taking the stuff. I should have tapered off, but it was making me crazy!

I take baclofen as needed. When I need one during the day, I take it. It makes me sleepy and very dry eyed. I try to not take one unless I am really suffering. Sometimes I will snap it in half.

Tizanadine (zanaflex) was awesome! it really stopped the muscle spams and was one of the best meds ever! but...I had wild dreams, bad rest, and simply couldnt get used to the side effects. Baclofen seemed to be the lesser of two evils.

Hello jiggered,

Insomnia from Baclofen? Really? :eek: That's the first time I have heard of someone having insomnia from that drug.

Usually feeling sleepy, drowsy, ect is what most normally complain of. I have used Baclofen several different times and it makes me tired each time but it helps for what I need it for.

I could not find insomnia as a listed side effect but, we each react differently to meds.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/d...s/a682530.html

Are you on any other meds, besides Baclofen and Neurontin, that could possibly be causing insomnia?

I used Neurontin(Gabapentin) and stopped. I used it for nerve pain and decided I would rather deal with the pain since it did not really feel much different.

I use Baclofen but I am reducing it as well. Snoopy and I have the same thoughts when it comes to side effects. It is supposed to make you sleepy not create insomnia. Baclofen is good to reduce spasms (sort of) but a side effect is a weakening of muscles (I think).

re: your sleeping. That may be one of the sx's of MS and not due to any medication. I use Ambien and holistically, watch what I eat later in the day or evening. You would have to figure it out based on your work schedule.

I feel sick and tired all the time too. That is part of my MS.:(

i tried baclofen a long time ago but it didn't work.
and the first med i used for neuropathic pain was neurontin but that wasn't working either.

then, i tried lyrica and i've been on that for awhile. it's much better.

work with your dr and keep a symptom (sx) journal. sometimes you need to try different things.

ps...welcome to NT

Gabapentin was the first drug given to me (other than IV solu-medral) and it was a very terrifying experience. I was starting off with three pills a day and it almost killed me, lost my memory didn't know how to talk, my eyesight was so messed up and my boyfriend said my eyes were rapidly spazzing back and fourth. So they offered other neuropathic pain killers but I just deal with what I have to deal with

I was also prescribed the baclofen and I have chose not to pop any of those yet, I'm scared it's going to turn me into a zombie :\

Sorry for what you are going through..insomnia is the pits!!

These are some tricky meds to take for sure. I started with Gabapentin years ago, 300mg ONLY at night..it always helped me sleep. Then it was added 3 times a day (for seizures) and I was soo agitated on it.. I would eat eat eat..and could not sit still. Hmm..

Then Baclofen 10mg was added 2x a day and can take another dose midafternoon if I need to. I did get used to 2x a day of Gabapentin now.

Its too much to start you with, IMO, but maybe you can start out with less, or less often THEN gradually go up to whatever dose works for you.

Perhaps your system is just really agitated with so many drugs. Do you take any other meds? Shots? Steroids?

Good luck.. you need your sleep. Let us know how you're doing ok?

Jan