My family doctor has decided to give me Lyrica to try to see if it helps with my pain issues, particularly my severe chronic headaches. I was asking to have my pain meds increased and she thought it would be safer to go a different route and she chose Lyrica instead. She gave me enough samples to last for one week and then she wrote out a prescription for me to have filled.
She said that you have to start at 75 mg. twice a day of Lyrica for the first week. Then increase to 150 mg. twice a day. I have only been on it a few days but I do notice a difference in my pain. I didn’t have to take any pain pills today until almost lunch time and normally I have to take it as soon as I get up in the morning. The down side of the medication I’m experiencing is extreme drowsiness and I wake up feeling like I have a hangover. It’s the same feeling I get when I take sleeping medication.
I try not to get too excited when starting something new and when I see results quickly because that is normal for me. But as soon as my body gets used to the medication, it no longer has the same effect and doesn’t work anymore. I am hoping that the drowsiness and hangover feeling goes away by the time the samples are done because I would like to fill the prescription if it’s going to help with the pain, even if it is short-term relief until I build up a tolerance to it.
I know the television commercials and publicity for Lyrica has given Fibromyalgia awareness a huge boost but I’m wondering how many people the drug is really helping.
I’m on Lyrica for off-label uses, to manage my Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, but it also helps with my anxiety because it works on the Gaba receptors. Anyway, I usually find that, barring unforseen circumstances, it works for a good while at its dose. I hope this relieves your pain on a continual basis!
Im on the 75mg twice daily for fibro.Ihis has taken the sharp shooting pain away that i was getting in the lower back area when walking.It hasn’t taken the aching and joint pain that we know so well.
Twice i forgot to take my dose at night and experienced hot\cold problems and intense itching.
I take Lyrica for cervical neck pain and fibromyalgia. I had the intense drowsiness too… it would just knock me out! I also experienced some weight gain because I had a huge increase in appetite at first. But I found that after a while both of these side effects went away and it has helped me so much. I am no longer drowsy and starving (although I haven’t managed to lose weight… that isn’t the Lyricas fault! haha!) I’m not totally off of pain meds (I take one Ultram a day) but I have so many better days now than I did before the Lyrica. I also find that if I forget a dose I get a pins and needles, itchy type feeling in my extremeties. It took months for the drowsiness to subside so give it a fair trial.
Lyrica is a relatively simple drug; one of my friends is a biochemist, and he says it’s so simple that he could whip up a batch (not that he would, mind you). If i recall correctly (and i’ve got some serious brain fog at the moment, so don’t quote me on this), it works by blocking pain receptors. Because of the nature of the drug, it is not chemically addictive – but given how incapacitating pain of all sorts can be, it certainly has potential for emotional/psychological addictiveness.
I’ve not yet tried it, but honestly the only reason for that is i’ve already found a prescription that works for me, and i feel no reason to take anything else. Should my beloved amitriptyline stop working, Lyrica is definitely next on my list.