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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 18 of 18. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Sef on March 12, 2000, at 21:03:53
Does anyone know how long it takes Neurontin to kick in? I am currently on 30 mg of Prozac and 300 mg of Neurontin. I go back to my pdoc Tuesday, and suspect he will up my dose.
The reason I am asking is because I am feeling more in control, more normal and I am curious if the Neurontin can work that fast. I have been on it for two weeks now. Am I having a placebo effect or possibly a mood swing?
Any input would be appreciated. Thanks.
Posted by Noa on March 13, 2000, at 6:05:23
In reply to Question about Neurontin, posted by Sef on March 12, 2000, at 21:03:53
My friend started feeling "smoother", more even tempered, more in control within a couple of weeks, too.
Posted by MA on March 13, 2000, at 7:54:31
In reply to Question about Neurontin, posted by Sef on March 12, 2000, at 21:03:53
I started on Neurontin a few months ago. I also take Celexa 30 mg and Wellbutrin 150 mg. I started at the dose you did and my doctor wanted me to keep increasing it. He said I could take 200 mg at a time and see what happened. I never got beyond 400 mg/day for several reasons. I believe I felt better and was afraid to increase the dosage. I didn't feel the risk of increasing the Neuronin was indicated. If I really didn't feel any better I would have, but I did feel pretty good and didn't want to mess with the combination of all 3 meds.
I wouldn't increase it again unless you want to experiment just to see what happens. For me, that is just too risky. I try and take the lowest dose of these meds that is working.
Luckily my doctor gives me enough leeway to know when I want to stop.
Good luck and I hope you find the right dose for you.
MA
Posted by ChrisK on March 13, 2000, at 8:11:16
In reply to Question about Neurontin, posted by Sef on March 12, 2000, at 21:03:53
When I tried Nurontin my doctor told me that people respond to different dose levels. He did say that it tended to be one of the two extremes. Some people reacted to 300 mg/day while others responded to 3600 mg/day. That's a rather large gap but he told me that it was his experience that people reacted to one or the other if Nurontin was going to help.
If you feel "better" at the low dose you may want to keep it at that level or maybe just a small jump up. I'm not a doctor but if you are seeing some effects you may be on the right track.
Are you still getting this from your GP or have you been able to find a new pdoc?
Posted by tulip on March 13, 2000, at 10:02:16
In reply to Question about Neurontin, posted by Sef on March 12, 2000, at 21:03:53
i believe i've read that neurontin can kick in in one to two weeks. also that the first two weeks can be the most volatile as your body adjusts to it.
i have been on neurontin for 18 days now. 300 for one weeks, stepping up 300 mg each week. i could feel the extremes of my moods lessening, coming closer together during the two weeks (i ahd a paxil increase at the same time so that could be a contributing factor). i'm adjusting though, at day 14 my pd began and the hormonal aspect apparently threw me into a hypomanic/manic episode, i upped to 1200 immediately and things are better now.
it seems to help, but may be a long road getting the meds balanced. good luck to you.
tulip
Posted by lizzie on March 13, 2000, at 11:05:24
In reply to Re: Question about Neurontin, posted by tulip on March 13, 2000, at 10:02:16
I am at 900 mgs neurontin, 25 mgs zoloft,
25 mgs elavil, and 1 mg klono daily--then
.5 mgs klono as needed.My mood is calming down--but i am still having
these organinzing or cleaning sprees at midnight
or later -- I also make jewelry and feel really
creative at the witching hour. I am getting
so much done I love it!!! Pdoc again tomorrow,
my guess is up the neurontin dose...Question--how long do people stay on mood stabilizer?
I asked her and she said `a while'--anyone have
a clue of what that translates to? Weeks,
months, years????
Posted by cynthia on March 13, 2000, at 15:18:22
In reply to Re: Question about Neurontin, posted by lizzie on March 13, 2000, at 11:05:24
>Sef- I am glad the Neurontin is working well for you. It worked very quickly for me. It is good that your appetite has decreased . I in no way wanted to scare you away from Neurontin with my experience, just to let you know what happened with me. I also had problems, after being on it for a few months , with severe edema. I am sure your doctor can discuss this side effect with you. I am glad it is working. Good luck
Posted by Sef on March 13, 2000, at 22:29:27
In reply to Question about Neurontin, posted by Sef on March 12, 2000, at 21:03:53
Thanks to all.. I feel so much more educated on Neurontin now!
Noa- thanks for telling me about your friend, it made me feel so much better to know my reaction was normal.
MA- it is so funny... I said the same thing to my husband today about not increasing the dosage. I agree, why mess with a good thing..I will tell my pdoc tomorrow.
ChrisK- I was happy to know what your doc said about people responding to different levels...glad I am on the low end of the spectrum!
tulip- Thank you so much for sharing you experience...sounds similar to mine in the mood department.
Lizzie- I understand the cleaning spree & creativeness! I have started stenciling borders in several rooms in my house (which made my husband alittle nervous, but I promised him I will not stencil EVERY room :) But he was happy with the cleaning thing.
Cynthia- Dont worry, I wasn't scared enough to stop taking the Neurontin. I knew that sometimes you have to wait the side effects out, so I gave it a chance and I'm glad I did (although I am so relieved that the appetite thing went away..whew!)
Posted by JohnL on March 14, 2000, at 2:43:40
In reply to Question about Neurontin, posted by Sef on March 12, 2000, at 21:03:53
Though your dose is quite low, your case adds credibility to one theory some phsycians are practicing these days.
The theory is that the closer a drug targets the person's unique chemical imbalance, the quicker the results, fewer side effects, and only lower doses are needed. The usual 6 week thing is based on a drug not targeting the problem directly, but rather working through a trickle down effect indirectly. A good early response at a low dose indicates a superior match worth continuing for a longer trial. If the good early response later deteriorates, that indicates unstable chemistry, indicating the need for a chemical/electrical smoother (lithium or anticonulvsant). In your case, you've already got that covered. Cool.
So your good early response at such a low dose is encouraging. My pdoc is in his 60's and near retirement. Through his career he has seen the above theory work, as well as more conventional long trial theories. He usually goes to the quick early response theory to identify superior matches before continuing, in cases that have had previous disappointing results. He uses more traditional styles for new patients.
It seems like you are on the right course, and I am cheering for it to stay that way. The reason the Neurontin might be working so fast at such a low dose could be that you hit a bullseye. Best wishes to you. JohnL
Posted by darling on March 14, 2000, at 17:06:06
In reply to Re: Question about Neurontin, posted by JohnL on March 14, 2000, at 2:43:40
hi,
i noticed the effects (mostly good) of neurontin right away; the very first evening i took one 300mg pill, i felt more energetic & even had literally brighter dreams; over the next week i increased my dose as planned to three pills in the morning & three in the evening.
--however, though a relatively low dosage had a nice effect immediately, it also left my system just as quickly and i became rather more than a bit over-sensitive (crying with or without the slightest reason) in the middle of the day.
now, i am taking one pill every four hours and this seems to be working--certainly when i foreget a dose, i begin to notice that something is not working. i hope this is informative.darling
Posted by Sef on March 15, 2000, at 21:06:05
In reply to Question about Neurontin, posted by Sef on March 12, 2000, at 21:03:53
Thanks JohnL, that information was very interesting and I thnk you are right about my pdoc hitting the target on this one.
Darling, I shall keep what you said in mind about the neurontin leaving your system quick and increasing doses to keep it in your system incase something like that should happen to me!
Thanks again to everyone!
Posted by Kathy on March 16, 2000, at 8:37:17
In reply to Question about Neurontin, posted by Sef on March 12, 2000, at 21:03:53
I found neurontin to work almost immediately and I think it is a great mood stabilizer. I felt some relief almost overnight, and I have been on it now for over a year.
Posted by John on March 16, 2000, at 17:45:33
In reply to Re: Question about Neurontin, posted by Kathy on March 16, 2000, at 8:37:17
I noticed Lamictal worked nearly overnight for me-- but it has only been a couple of weeks.
Posted by Annie on March 17, 2000, at 0:14:53
In reply to Re: Question about Neurontin, posted by lizzie on March 13, 2000, at 11:05:24
I've heard of it before but never have been prescribed it. What do you use it for? What symptoms does it address? I have a ton of them (symptoms) and any information would be appreciated.
Posted by jd on March 18, 2000, at 20:40:15
In reply to What is Neurontin for?, posted by Annie on March 17, 2000, at 0:15:05
Annie,
Neurontin was originally developed as an anti-epilepsy medication, but it is increasingly being used for a wide range of conditions: bipolar disorder (especially mixed or rapid cycling), certain anxiety disorders, and chronic pain are some of the major ones. No one is quite sure how it works but it does seem to help a lot of people--A drawback is that is usually has to be taken several times a day.
best,
jd
> I've heard of it before but never have been prescribed it. What do you use it for? What symptoms does it address? I have a ton of them (symptoms) and any information would be appreciated.
Posted by jd on March 18, 2000, at 21:01:10
In reply to What is Neurontin for?, posted by Annie on March 17, 2000, at 0:15:05
I started trying Neurontin for mood & anxiety problems a few weeks ago and noticed an almost overnight effect, too. I'm highly sensitive to meds and found doses of even 25mg to be very powerful--the most interesting effect was that my I felt amazingly calmer and more comfortable in social situations. I haven't loved everything about how it makes me feel (a tad drugged, some weird dreams, etc.)--and I hate the 3-4x/day dosing schedule--but I'm quite impressed by anti-anxiety and mood-stabilizing properties: seems like a pretty strong anti-depressant in its own right, too. Given my experiences with it and a few other things I've read, I tend to wonder whether the standard dosages used for epilepsy and bipolar disorder might be too high for some people with different symptom profiles (such as panic, social phobia, irritable dysthymia and so forth).
--jd
Posted by Cam W. on March 19, 2000, at 0:35:00
In reply to My experiences with Neurontin, posted by jd on March 18, 2000, at 21:01:10
jd - I agree with you that some people need lower dosages of Neurontin. I have seen one person who had mild FAS, but acting out problems, respond to 100mg at bedtime. The change was like night and day within 2 weeks. I thought it might be placebo effect and was waiting for the other shoe to drop, but that was over 2 years ago now and he has remained stable (despite some non-related medical problems). - Cam W.
Posted by whaddusay on March 26, 2004, at 10:22:27
In reply to My experiences with Neurontin, posted by jd on March 18, 2000, at 21:01:10
I was just prescribed neurontin for pain, i have not started taking it yet and was wondering if anyone could tell me how it works for chronic back pain.Thank You.
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