What nerve pain meds do you all recommend?

I am having trouble telling the difference between nerve pain and muscle pain. I know when I have nerve pain in my arm and pinkie,but I am thinking the horrible burning pain that goes from my neck down to my scalpula might be nerve pain. It was so bad last night and nothing was helping. i ended up taking a sleeping pill and slept on ice. I cannot sleep painkillers like vicodin.

I am thinking of trying some nerve medicine to add to Flexeril(muscle relaxant) and Relafan(Anti-Inflammatory) to see if it helps before I decide whether to do the nerve block injections.

I have a prescription for Lyrica but I've heard it has alot of side effects. Has anyone tried Neurontin?

I am scheduled Friday to try a Trial of Neural Prlolotherapy to see if it can help. I will let everyone know how it goes.

Thanks for the input

In the past some would have a nerve med or pain med paired with an anti anxiety or anti depression med , together they worked better.

It's been awhile , but names I can recall offhand are -

Neurontin
Opana - ER (extended release)
Lyrica - quite a few post/threads on the whole site here - weight gain , possible blood sugar issues..

Cymbalta

Some even have a sleeping med rx'd if pain is so bad that they cannot sleep.

Various muscle relaxers /anti spasmodics

Also there are the patches that might be worth trying, saves some wear & tear on the GI tract.

Make sure to cross check for interactions , we have interaction checking links in the stickys on our Medications forum.

You might visit our spinal forum to see what meds they take for nerve pain also.

Or a whole site search for "nerve meds" or something like that should bring up quite a few results.

I take neurotin. 200mg 3x day. It takes the edge off for me, but does not do it all. I will also take aleve or advil and take flexeril. Nothing stops it all the way

are there any side effects from it that you know of?

Sometimes it is trial and error with pain meds, some may not tolerate certain ones , they may even metabolize them faster or slower.

side effects & cautions- this is a good site to look up meds and check for interactions-
http://www.drugs.com/neurontin.html

Definitely!

I had to stop taking Lyrica due to some side effects, I have been taking Neurontin (Gabapentin) with no side effects. I've tried Cymbalta to supplement the Neurontin and got better pain control, but had some side effects. I am now taking Pamelor (Nortriptyline) alongside the Neurontin with no side effects. These drugs are also much less harmful for your body than NSAIDs and Narcotics.

Two drugs better than one for chronic pain: study, gabapentin with nortriptyline

Nortriptyline and gabapentin, alone and in combination for neuropathic pain: a double-blind, randomised controlled crossover trial

I have had no side effects from it. I know my wife takes lyrica for back pain and it makes her sleepy, made her gain a few pounds, and at first made her spaced out, but after being on it a few months she is fine with it. I just know the neurotin takes the edge off for me, but does not make pain go away.

I take Neurontin /Gabapentin (600mg) 3 times a day, it has lesser side effects than Lyrica.
Lyrica is stronger, works better but makes you more foggy, very hard to concentrate etc, makes you gain weight. I just switched from Lyrica back to Neurontin.

My biggest side effect for (getting off) lyrica is unbearable itching and a fine rash which I still have some after 3 weeks of getting off lyrica. Some depression too in the beginning from getting off Lyrica.
They are both made by Pfizer. So they are kind of parallel.

Biggest advice is don't stop doing any therapy or stretches or whatever you do when you start taking these meds. It's like a honeymoon initially then you start needing bigger doses of the same med. And if you stop doing any of your therapy or abdominal breathing you get into a lot of pain. Hope that helps!
I have to take Neurontin bec it helps me do my therapy, keeps me more flexible and also helps me sleep well.

Have you been taught any longus coli strengthening for the neck pain? Chin tucks? It really helps with the neck pain and burning. Do you consciously keep your head on your shoulder like a block on a block and not with the head forward throughout the day? These simple tips do help if you are not already doing so..

Thanks everyone this is all helpful. Stos2, I do the chin tucks although my pt is not a fan of them. Is burning sensation a result of nerve pain? I will definately talk to the dr's about these drugs. Interestingly my son(14) was prescribed low dose of Nortriptilin for migraines. I think we still have it but he never tried it. His headaches have gotten better on their own.

Marc,What does Nortriptilyn/Gapentin do? Is it also a nerve med? Sorry I havent read the articles yet.

I see Dr. Ahn today for my first surgical consult. Will let you know how it goes!