Gabapentin question
 

As I have yet to get any decent sleep still coming up on the 3 month mark of my fall I tried a half of a 600 mg gabpentin pill and did not notice any effect at all

How long do you have to be taking it for it show any effect? couple days? perhaps a week? is it possible I don't respond to medication like I should because of the injury?

I ask this because I have tried numerous different meds that seem to have no effect whatsoever on me and some of them Ive tried pre injury that did work

Gabapentin does not require a build up in your system. It acts based on dose. 300 mgs is a very small dose. I have taken as much as 1200 mgs before bed. My usual dose is 900 mgs, 1 and 1/2 600 mg pills. I am 180 pounds. Ask your doctor about trying 600 or even 900 mgs. There are no noticeable side effects. It has a short half life, 8 hrs, so there is little in your system the next day.

My best to you.

Hi Abel,

Long story short my Mom did not sleep for a few months this past year due to stress because of an illness. I think it was months of her not sleeping. The doctor did not want her to take sleeping pills because of her condition and I didn't really want her to either. He said to take melatonin.

Eventually after taking melatonin every night an hour before bed after two weeks it started to work. Did you try it for about two weeks or longer? Occasionally in the beginning she might take two; one 1 hour before bed and another in the middle of the night. She took it for about a month and then she started to sleep normally again.

Of course she doesn't have a head injury and I understand your case is different but I would recommend trying the melatonin and sticking with it for a while.

Take care!

Hi,

I tried gabapentin for cranial nerve pain for about two months and it made me extremely lethargic. I was on a low dose! 100 mg or 200 mg day? Can't recall. Different bodies react differently to medicine. I finally stopped it because I hate the foggy brain feeling which it gave me....I want to have a clear brain after my injury, so was willing to live with the nerve pain in exchange for being a bit less lethargic. I guess we all have to try to find the right dose for ourself! Good luck,

Gabapentin was a wonder drug for me. It helped me sleep, improved my mood and took away my anxiety. I don't think it has to build up in your system (maybe for seizures). It worked for me right from the gate.

However, I stopped taking it for awhile and started back up a couple months later. The second time around, I was waking up in the middle of the night feeling disoriented.

Meds have different effects on people.

As Mark said, ask your doctor to bump up your dose.

There was a sleep thread a while back that had lots of detailed suggestions for things you could do to help with sleep. I will see if I can find it and resurrect it for you.

Here you go: http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/sh...d.php?t=169324