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Re: NEURONTIN - sometimes » Barbaracat

Posted by Snowie on October 22, 2004, at 10:52:14

In reply to Re: NEURONTIN - sometimes » Snowie, posted by Barbaracat on October 21, 2004, at 20:36:49

Hi Barbara,

I went to the health food store last night on my way home, and saw L-Taurine, and thought I have that at home, so rather than purchase it again, I drove home (which is only a few blocks from the health food store), and I did have it (1,000 mg. pills). Most mornings I take a multi dose pill, Vitamin B, Vitamin C, and occasionally iron, so today, I added Taurine to the list of every day things to take. The other alternative stuff I take about once a week.

As for whether or not I'm BP, it's possible and something that I've thought about (and probably many pdocs have thought about), but I don't have many of the symptoms that my sister and others have. I rarely get really depressed, I'm frugal with my money and have a great credit rating, and although I've kissed my share of men, I've never been sexually promiscuous, although neither was my sister. She was having panic attacks, severe depression, and went through all of her inheritance money from our grandmother (upwards of $30K), and put $10K on her credit cards. Luckily, I have never had that problem. She also has periods of highs where she doesn't need any sleep (that's definitely not me), and then periods of lows. I don't know. I do have periods of mania-like rapid talk, but only when I don't take the calming meds like I should. Neurontin does work on the GABA receptors, just like the benzos do, right? I asked my sister what Neurontin does for her, and she said it helps her mood swings, and helps a little with anxiety, but apparently not as much as it does for me.

It's not that I don't mind calling a spade a spade, and although my father hasn't been formally diagnosed (he was a family doctor and said he would have lost his license had he gone to a pdoc), he has had classic symptoms of BP disorder all of his life. Is it possible to have a touch of BP, without having many of the symptoms?

Snowie

> Snowie,
> I and many others must respectfully disagree with your pdoc. The drug monographs may not mention it for anxiety but there's plenty of literature and anecdotal evidence that it relieves anxiety in some people where nothing else works. Even it's generic name 'gabapentin' implies a connection with GABA receptors. If you do a Google search on neurontin or gabapentin + anxiety you'll get a load of hits.
>
> Have you ever considered you might be bipolar II? I didn't think I was until I'd gone through every SSRI out there and had bad poop out or worsened symptoms. Bipolars do badly on SSRIs. Gabapentin is sometimes used in bipolar disorder because, like other mood stabilizers, it's an anticonvulsant. Lithium has a calming effect also. I was jumping out of my skin with anxiety and depression until I got on lithium. I'm taking a very low dose of a tricyclic AD, nortriptyline, along with it.
>
> When lithium did the trick for me, I did more research on bipolar disorder and found that it really does not resemble the common conception most people have about it and can look like so many things. I'd always thought bipoar meant you were either stupidly elated or you were depressed.
>
> I'd always mainly had depressions, but definitely had a few true manic episodes and alot of hypomanias. What confused me was that my bleak dark depressions would at times be accompanied by intense anxiety, panic, a revving motor feeling which I now know to be 'mixed states bipolar depression'. I didn't realize you can have both poles going at once and I didn't realize that the 'manic' pole can be pure anxiety, irritability, disorganization, and not necessarily gradiose madcap glee.
>
> Maybe you're responding to Neurontin because it's helping an undiagnosed BP condition. It's interesting your sister responds to it as well, and she's bipolar. Bipolar disorder seems to have a strong genetic component.
>
> If you are BP then Lexapro is the last thing you need. Trust me on this one. If there's one common denominator bipolars share, it's that on their own SSRIs will make us much worse and they need some kind of mood stabilizer to take with. I wonder if your pdoc who doesn't think neurontin relieves anxiety is aware of the BP-SSRI connection?
>
> BTW, the election is not causing any problems at all. I'm just very busy but loving every minute of it. - Barbara
> >
> > I saw my pdoc today and he doesn't think Neurontin is doing anything for anxiety. In fact, he said I'm his only patient who takes it for anxiety, which I find hard to believe because my sister takes it for anxiety but he disagreed as to its effect on her because she's bipolar. Heck, she was the one who got me to try Neurontin in the first place, and I'm not bipolar! I have only been taking Neurontin sparingly lately, and because I was super tense after my appointment, I broke open a capsule and poured about a third into a cup of Coke. It worked so well and quickly. My pdoc gave me a script for 100 mg. of Neurontin 4 x a day today which I will fill when my 400 mg. pills run out, and then I may just save them for when nothing else works. Strange how Neurontin seems to work better when you don't take it that often as opposed to when you take it on a regular basis, especially in mega doses.
> >
> > I checked my stash of health food type pills at home and I didn't see Taurine there, so I'll get it today at my health food store on my way home from work and see what happens.
> >
> > As for withdrawal from Neurontin, I've been taking 22.5 mgs. of Tranxene every morning but that still doesn't take the edge off, so the only thing I can think of is that my body is craving Neurontin. Around lunchtime, if I pour a portion of a 400 mg. pill of Neurontin into a liquid of some kind, the anxiety goes away immediately. So I don't know what to think, but my pdoc thinks it's all in my head and the effect is negligible.
> >
> > As for scripts at my appointment with my pdoc, he wanted to give me an A/D (Lexapro) but I argued with him about that and won the fight but maybe not the war. I have never done well on A/D's and don't like the side effects for the most part. He also gave me a script for Klonopin (pretty much as much as I want) and a script for 2 mg. pills of Xanax XR for 30 days plus a refill. If my insurance will take the Xanax XR I'll fill that. If not, I'll get the Klonopin.
> >
> > Sorry the election is causing you so much grief and, of course, this will soon pass. At least you have something that is working to take the edge off until then. Hope it continues to work for you whenever you need it. I wish Neurontin was consistently dependable so I could do without the benzos *sigh*.
> >
> > Snowie
> >
> > > That's interesting you took Neurontin today because so did I. I've been really pushing it hard lately, more than I have in 3 years. I'm very involved with the election and it's been asking way more of me than I think I can give. So I took 2 Neurontins and a valium and planned to take the day off to seek the solace of loose floppy limbs for a while. No such luck. Here I am working working and feeling loopy from the meds. The Neurontin once again kicked in so sweetly (I've been off it for about a month).
> > >
> > > Yes, I wish I could depend on it too. I've never had a withdrawal from it, at least I don't think so. What are you going through around withdrawal from it?
> > >
> > > To answer your question, sometimes I take either valium or oxazepam (similar to ativan) and they will take the edge off. When I'm really feeling tight like I just can't take the uncomfortable feeling I'll reach for wine. It immediately lifts my spirits, I feel great, but then I pay for it the next day. So that isn't the answer. I wish someone would develop a drug that is as effective as alcohol but without the pain.
> > >
> > > The answer for me just may be in my breathing. I definitely have a disordered breathing pattern, holding my breath, tightness in my rib muscles. I've done yoga for years and I still have this pattern, which I think comes from a armouring reflex from an abusive childhood. I'm working with some CDs and literature to deal with it.
> > >
> > > Thanks for the links. I haven't gotten to them but I definitely will. I did mean L-Taurine. Tyrosine is a precursor for norepinephrine and dopamine. Taurine works on the electric potential of cell membranes - a different approach. So it's similar in action to the mood stabilizers. It starts working like this at higher doses, like 2G a day. Fish oil also is really important. I notice a difference when I slack off.
> > >
> > > Oh, I think I'm going to chuck this day and go lie down and enjoy the comfort of neurontin as long as it's deciding to behave. - Barbara
>
>


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poster:Snowie thread:365024
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20041018/msgs/405851.html