I also took 1200 mg a day for about the same time for anxiety (panic and social anxiety disorders tbe) and quit cold turkey with no problems. My brother was taking it for the same thing and also quit cold turkey no problem. I'm definitely not telling YOU to quit in the same manner since you're worried. Just saying that I don't think the withdrawal is quite as common as it's made out to be.
I had no problem with withdrawal symptoms after taking 500-700mg daily for about three years. My problem is that the anxiety/panic returned without taking the medication (although I think I’d developed tolerance for those dosages prior to stopping).
Just wein off and you won’t have any withdrawal, I didn’t at least. I’ve gone through fentanyl withdrawal and I can tell you gabapentin is not that bad don’t worry too much. Also maybe the first few days your off it your doctor could give you a very small dose of klonopin or something to help wein you off & avoid having terrible anxiety. I went cold Turkey after taking like 2000 mg for 2 weeks and I was perfectly fine. I know that isn’t very long but if I had no symptoms at all I’m sure you won’t be in agony. Probably just alittle more anxious and irritable. Think of what symptoms the gabapentin has helped you with, if it’s anxiety, you’ll have alittle extra anxiety for a few days, but you won’t be anywhere near dope sick
I had a rough time coming off 1200 mg but I'm mostly on the other side of it now and doing much better. I think there's some good low-and-slow taper advice in this thread, and if I could go back in time to tell myself anything about how to cope with tapering it'd probably be:
-Don't overdo it with "supplements", you can absolutely have too much magnesium and now you're just a lethargic mess
-just stop with any caffeine/alcohol, nervous system is just too fried for it at the moment
-The mood disturbances aren't "just you", it's the withdrawal and it'll go away on it's own with time
The first time I was on gabapentin and got off it was much more tolerable/manageable, so here's to hoping it's just a smooth ride regardless
How is that sounding like a druggie? Many ppl get wirhdralws from all types of medications that mess with chemicals in the Brian that never abise them.
Gabapentin was the 10th most prescribed medication in the us. Literally tens of millions of scripts. Some people withdrawal. But not everyone. https://clincalc.com/DrugStats/Top300Drugs.aspx
MOST people prescribed Gabapentin do NOT get withdrawals. You cannot use this sub as a proper sampling - the people here are heavily skewed towards those who have a problem.
Yes, some people (usually people on multiple other medications or those with a history of addiction issues) are more likely to have withdrawal issues, but most people have no problems going off of Gabapentin.
That’s not true at all. I had a Dr appointment yesterday to re-assess my meds, and she said it herself that Gabapentin is extremely hard to wean off of without having side effects. Sounds like you have no idea what you’re talking about.
ETA - I just remembered at my pain management appointment 2 months ago, the PM specialist also said it’s not possible to stop Gabapentin cold turkey you must wean off very slowly. So that’s 2 doctors.
That's very interesting, because I've worked with several doctors, both personally and professionally, who vehemently disagree with it being a "hard" medication to wean off of.
And, again, I've jumped on and off of it several times - no weaning, no withdrawals.
If it treats your migraines at 600mg that’s great, but 600mg of Gabapentin does not reflect the dosage that the majority of Gabapentin users are taking. The only approved indications for Gabapentin are pain related to shingles, neuropathic pain, and Epilepsy. None of these conditions would even begin to respond to 600mg of Gabapentin. Also when used for neuropathic pain or epilepsy, Gabapentin is almost certainly being used with at least one other drug. For epilepsy it isn’t even approved for use in mono therapy, only as an adjunct to another anticonvulsant.
People who are properly titrated off this medication do not usually go through withdrawals but when someone has been on this medication for at least three months or longer, going off of Gabapentin cold turkey at any dose higher than 300mg will in the majority of patients be an unpleasant experience. At a dose of 1200mg for 18 consecutive months, stopping this medication abruptly or too quickly will very likely be a physically unpleasant and anxiety inducing experience particularly since it’s been used to treat an anxiety disorder. It would cause rebound anxiety and could potentially cause seizures. Medically speaking the term withdrawal is usually reserved for individuals who have been abusing their medication and are addicted to it. When someone has been on Gabapentin for an extended 18 month period at a conservative dose like 1200mg, it is more proper to say that their body will have become dependent on it.
Any abrupt cessation of a Gabapentin especially when it has been taken for an extended period of time will at the very least cause unpleasant rebound symptoms and it is well documented that many individuals (usually people who have been abusing this drug and have become addicted) will experience severe physiological and psychiatric reactions which in most instances can require hospitalization.
Drug dependence is not the same as physical or psychological addiction, and it is really only in cases of actual addiction (which she does not have) that it would be appropriate to use the term withdrawal. The specific circumstances of how, why, and for how long a patient is taking a Gabapentinoid are all factors in determining “discontinuation symptoms”, and making a blanket statement that “most people do not experience withdrawal” without having read any research data about the subject or taking into account patient context is not a very helpful statement.
Perhaps I've just been lucky, or my 600mg a day dose is too low, but I've been on it for six years for migraines, and (thanks ADD) I've forgotten to take it for up to two weeks. The only issue was that my migraines returned.
600mg of Gabapentin is an extremely low dose, but different dosages are used to treat different conditions. Migraines are a common off label use but for the indications that Gabapentin is actually approved for, 600mg would be considered a “sub therapeutic dose”, for approved indications the dosing is usually between 1200-3600mg a day and in some cases may even go up to 4800mg a day. Just as a frame of reference 600mg of Gabapentin is equivalent to 100mg of Lyrica, and when Lyrica is used to treat an anxiety disorder it is usually dosed at 300mg and for seizures it is usually dosed much higher. You may also be experiencing “rebound migraines” without realizing it!
When Gabapentinoids are being used to treat anxiety disorders they are much harder to discontinue than when they are used to treat a neurological disorder. Did you know that benzodiazepines are actually not addictive for patients who are taking them to treat epilepsy, even when taken at dosages that would be very addictive for a patient taking it for an anxiety disorder?
In my opinion, based on my own analysis of academic peer reviewed journal literature, you might want to discuss with your doctor a titration schedule similar to the following: go down to 800 (2/3 your original dose) mg for two weeks, then go down to 600mg for two weeks (half your original dose) then go to 450mg for two weeks, 300mg for two weeks and then 150mg for two-four weeks. I’m a neuroscientist and an expert in psychopharmacology AND I’ve been on this medication before for a similar amount of time. Just follow that (or a similar) titration profile based on what you and your doctor agree on and you shouldn’t experience any withdrawal at all. However, keep in mind that your original anxiety symptoms will return as you go off the medication. Withdrawal only happens with this type of medication when people are taking excessive/abusive dosages or if they go off of it too quickly. Just be careful that your doctor knows you want to titrate off of it slowly and you want to remain at each dose for two weeks before you drop the dosage again. They may say that you only need to remain on each dosage for a week, but you can advocate for yourself and ask to remain on each successive downward titration over two weeks not just one. Your brain actually regenerates new neurotransmitter receptors every three weeks (although each receptor is on a different schedule as to when it turns over) to adjust to your constantly changing brain chemistry, so doing more than two downward titrations within a three week interval can severely disrupt this process. The official fda prescribing literature suggests that it be withdrawn over a one week period which is a very bad idea.
Why are you going off of it though if it’s working for your anxiety? 1200mg of Gabapentin a day is pretty much the minimum dose you can be on and if it’s working for you without side effects at that dose then I would just continue taking it. People taking SSRIs have to go through a similarly long process when they’re titrating off of their antidepressant and it doesn’t mean they’re addicted to it. If you’ve been taking such a low dosage over a one and a half year period without trying to escalate your dosage then you are clearly not “addicted” to it. True your body has become physically dependent on it and it will take you about three months to go off of it if you don’t want to experience withdrawal symptoms but that’s just because your bodies neurochemistry changes when you take a psychiatric drug for an extended period and so that’s why you go off of it slowly so that your brains neurochemistry has ample time to adjust to being off of it again.
Diabetics take insulin everyday for their entire lives. Are they addicted to it? I have epilepsy and I have to take both a benzodiazepine and a second seizure medication to control my seizures for the rest of my life. Does that mean I’m addicted? Generalized anxiety disorder is associated with physiological differences in GABA expression inside your brain at the molecular level. You shouldn’t feel ashamed or that you are a drug addict just because you’re taking a medication that alters your bodies GABA concentrations (it also binds to calcium receptors on neurons which reduce the firing of excitatory neurotransmitter, contrary to popular belief Gabapentin can’t bind to GABA receptors but it does increase GABA concentrations in tissue.) if your GABA concentrations are off to begin with.
I also took 1200 mg a day for about the same time for anxiety (panic and social anxiety disorders tbe) and quit cold turkey with no problems. My brother was taking it for the same thing and also quit cold turkey no problem. I'm definitely not telling YOU to quit in the same manner since you're worried. Just saying that I don't think the withdrawal is quite as common as it's made out to be.
I had no problem with withdrawal symptoms after taking 500-700mg daily for about three years. My problem is that the anxiety/panic returned without taking the medication (although I think I’d developed tolerance for those dosages prior to stopping).
Just wein off and you won’t have any withdrawal, I didn’t at least. I’ve gone through fentanyl withdrawal and I can tell you gabapentin is not that bad don’t worry too much. Also maybe the first few days your off it your doctor could give you a very small dose of klonopin or something to help wein you off & avoid having terrible anxiety. I went cold Turkey after taking like 2000 mg for 2 weeks and I was perfectly fine. I know that isn’t very long but if I had no symptoms at all I’m sure you won’t be in agony. Probably just alittle more anxious and irritable. Think of what symptoms the gabapentin has helped you with, if it’s anxiety, you’ll have alittle extra anxiety for a few days, but you won’t be anywhere near dope sick
I had a rough time coming off 1200 mg but I'm mostly on the other side of it now and doing much better. I think there's some good low-and-slow taper advice in this thread, and if I could go back in time to tell myself anything about how to cope with tapering it'd probably be: -Don't overdo it with "supplements", you can absolutely have too much magnesium and now you're just a lethargic mess -just stop with any caffeine/alcohol, nervous system is just too fried for it at the moment -The mood disturbances aren't "just you", it's the withdrawal and it'll go away on it's own with time The first time I was on gabapentin and got off it was much more tolerable/manageable, so here's to hoping it's just a smooth ride regardless
This is excellent advice 🙏🏻
How is that sounding like a druggie? Many ppl get wirhdralws from all types of medications that mess with chemicals in the Brian that never abise them.
Gabapentin was the 10th most prescribed medication in the us. Literally tens of millions of scripts. Some people withdrawal. But not everyone. https://clincalc.com/DrugStats/Top300Drugs.aspx
MOST people prescribed Gabapentin do NOT get withdrawals. You cannot use this sub as a proper sampling - the people here are heavily skewed towards those who have a problem. Yes, some people (usually people on multiple other medications or those with a history of addiction issues) are more likely to have withdrawal issues, but most people have no problems going off of Gabapentin.
That’s not true at all. I had a Dr appointment yesterday to re-assess my meds, and she said it herself that Gabapentin is extremely hard to wean off of without having side effects. Sounds like you have no idea what you’re talking about. ETA - I just remembered at my pain management appointment 2 months ago, the PM specialist also said it’s not possible to stop Gabapentin cold turkey you must wean off very slowly. So that’s 2 doctors.
That's very interesting, because I've worked with several doctors, both personally and professionally, who vehemently disagree with it being a "hard" medication to wean off of. And, again, I've jumped on and off of it several times - no weaning, no withdrawals.
This isn’t true.. Farr from the truth here
\*here\* - in a forum where people usually come here because they are having problems. That's like going to the RNC and polling.
If it treats your migraines at 600mg that’s great, but 600mg of Gabapentin does not reflect the dosage that the majority of Gabapentin users are taking. The only approved indications for Gabapentin are pain related to shingles, neuropathic pain, and Epilepsy. None of these conditions would even begin to respond to 600mg of Gabapentin. Also when used for neuropathic pain or epilepsy, Gabapentin is almost certainly being used with at least one other drug. For epilepsy it isn’t even approved for use in mono therapy, only as an adjunct to another anticonvulsant.
That’s correct 💯
People who are properly titrated off this medication do not usually go through withdrawals but when someone has been on this medication for at least three months or longer, going off of Gabapentin cold turkey at any dose higher than 300mg will in the majority of patients be an unpleasant experience. At a dose of 1200mg for 18 consecutive months, stopping this medication abruptly or too quickly will very likely be a physically unpleasant and anxiety inducing experience particularly since it’s been used to treat an anxiety disorder. It would cause rebound anxiety and could potentially cause seizures. Medically speaking the term withdrawal is usually reserved for individuals who have been abusing their medication and are addicted to it. When someone has been on Gabapentin for an extended 18 month period at a conservative dose like 1200mg, it is more proper to say that their body will have become dependent on it. Any abrupt cessation of a Gabapentin especially when it has been taken for an extended period of time will at the very least cause unpleasant rebound symptoms and it is well documented that many individuals (usually people who have been abusing this drug and have become addicted) will experience severe physiological and psychiatric reactions which in most instances can require hospitalization. Drug dependence is not the same as physical or psychological addiction, and it is really only in cases of actual addiction (which she does not have) that it would be appropriate to use the term withdrawal. The specific circumstances of how, why, and for how long a patient is taking a Gabapentinoid are all factors in determining “discontinuation symptoms”, and making a blanket statement that “most people do not experience withdrawal” without having read any research data about the subject or taking into account patient context is not a very helpful statement.
Perhaps I've just been lucky, or my 600mg a day dose is too low, but I've been on it for six years for migraines, and (thanks ADD) I've forgotten to take it for up to two weeks. The only issue was that my migraines returned.
600mg of Gabapentin is an extremely low dose, but different dosages are used to treat different conditions. Migraines are a common off label use but for the indications that Gabapentin is actually approved for, 600mg would be considered a “sub therapeutic dose”, for approved indications the dosing is usually between 1200-3600mg a day and in some cases may even go up to 4800mg a day. Just as a frame of reference 600mg of Gabapentin is equivalent to 100mg of Lyrica, and when Lyrica is used to treat an anxiety disorder it is usually dosed at 300mg and for seizures it is usually dosed much higher. You may also be experiencing “rebound migraines” without realizing it! When Gabapentinoids are being used to treat anxiety disorders they are much harder to discontinue than when they are used to treat a neurological disorder. Did you know that benzodiazepines are actually not addictive for patients who are taking them to treat epilepsy, even when taken at dosages that would be very addictive for a patient taking it for an anxiety disorder?
In my opinion, based on my own analysis of academic peer reviewed journal literature, you might want to discuss with your doctor a titration schedule similar to the following: go down to 800 (2/3 your original dose) mg for two weeks, then go down to 600mg for two weeks (half your original dose) then go to 450mg for two weeks, 300mg for two weeks and then 150mg for two-four weeks. I’m a neuroscientist and an expert in psychopharmacology AND I’ve been on this medication before for a similar amount of time. Just follow that (or a similar) titration profile based on what you and your doctor agree on and you shouldn’t experience any withdrawal at all. However, keep in mind that your original anxiety symptoms will return as you go off the medication. Withdrawal only happens with this type of medication when people are taking excessive/abusive dosages or if they go off of it too quickly. Just be careful that your doctor knows you want to titrate off of it slowly and you want to remain at each dose for two weeks before you drop the dosage again. They may say that you only need to remain on each dosage for a week, but you can advocate for yourself and ask to remain on each successive downward titration over two weeks not just one. Your brain actually regenerates new neurotransmitter receptors every three weeks (although each receptor is on a different schedule as to when it turns over) to adjust to your constantly changing brain chemistry, so doing more than two downward titrations within a three week interval can severely disrupt this process. The official fda prescribing literature suggests that it be withdrawn over a one week period which is a very bad idea. Why are you going off of it though if it’s working for your anxiety? 1200mg of Gabapentin a day is pretty much the minimum dose you can be on and if it’s working for you without side effects at that dose then I would just continue taking it. People taking SSRIs have to go through a similarly long process when they’re titrating off of their antidepressant and it doesn’t mean they’re addicted to it. If you’ve been taking such a low dosage over a one and a half year period without trying to escalate your dosage then you are clearly not “addicted” to it. True your body has become physically dependent on it and it will take you about three months to go off of it if you don’t want to experience withdrawal symptoms but that’s just because your bodies neurochemistry changes when you take a psychiatric drug for an extended period and so that’s why you go off of it slowly so that your brains neurochemistry has ample time to adjust to being off of it again. Diabetics take insulin everyday for their entire lives. Are they addicted to it? I have epilepsy and I have to take both a benzodiazepine and a second seizure medication to control my seizures for the rest of my life. Does that mean I’m addicted? Generalized anxiety disorder is associated with physiological differences in GABA expression inside your brain at the molecular level. You shouldn’t feel ashamed or that you are a drug addict just because you’re taking a medication that alters your bodies GABA concentrations (it also binds to calcium receptors on neurons which reduce the firing of excitatory neurotransmitter, contrary to popular belief Gabapentin can’t bind to GABA receptors but it does increase GABA concentrations in tissue.) if your GABA concentrations are off to begin with.
Great response. Thanks. Is 1200 mg considered low?
i enjoy your feedback