Gabapentin and Autism

[Au Naturel]

I have been dealing with as-yet undiagnosed pain and discomfort and have been given gabapentin as an ‘in the meantime‘ measure. I’m not here to discuss my condition or gabapentin in general; I have researched all of that and hope to focus this thread on a particular question.

When I read about this drug and how it works, I have to wonder if it doesn’t accidentally collide with the basic chemistry of autism. Not necessarily in a bad way, either. I don’t want to sway the conversation by saying too much. I would like to know if other autists here have experience with the drug, and what consequences they experienced.

Help, anyone?

Puts me to sleep and not much more. Not much good for arthritis pain.

 

[AspieChris]

Different people have differing reactions to drugs. Autistics especially have atypical responses to many medications. For example, anti-histamines, commonly used to combat allergy symptoms and so safe they are available over the counter, make me suicidal.

Interesting…. I have always had an unbelievable tolerance to prescribed opioid pain medication.

And you’re right. The drug is not the problem. It’s always the user. Even aspirin is a drug, so is caffeine. ‘Drugs’ are often vilified because of those who abuse them, and even made illegal for everyone because of the abusers.

 

[AspieChris]

I found some Lyrica(Pregablin) that I had from years ago, prescribed for neuropathy. 100mg and a couple of hours later… somehow it switched off the constant chatter in my head. No song playing on repeat, no thoughts about crap I have no control over, no cravings for anything. It didn’t do crap when it was originally prescribed 5 years ago but that’s probably because I was also taking a few other medications.

I’m not saying I found the holy grail or anything like that. However I’m guessing that if I had tried Gabapentin in the right dosage, it might have had a similar effect. My speech is slightly slowed down but that’s probably a good thing since I’m usually talking too fast anyway. And I actually slept without any disturbing dreams. It’s really nice to feel ‘normal’-ish for a change.

 

[tree]

Update:

I went back to the 100mg (one capsule) of
gabapentin per day. 200mg had too much
of an effect on me mentally.

 

[AspieChris]

When I first hurt my back, I was given 2x300mg Gabapentin per day. It didn’t do anything. Dr said it’s a craps shoot. Some folks don’t respond to Gabapentin, but they respond well to Lyrica. I guess I’m in the latter group.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Stopped taking this months ago, have been improving steadily, for instance walked 2.6 km today. probably lost 2 years of recovery due to this prescription.

 

[Rodafina]

for instance walked 2.6 km today

Well done! I hope you continue to see improvements.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Took this drug for two years after my stroke doctor mistakenly took my after effects of transverse myelitis for restless leg syndrome. Almost put me in wheelchair wish I knew this prior to taking it. Not impressed with medical profession.

 

[tkcartoonist]

I was on it a few years ago. The pain was unbearable: it would occur in random places all over my body, and my leg hurt so bad one day that I had to walk with a cane. It sucked.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

I changed family doctors asked new doctor, why am I on this. Once he realized I was right are right why cancelled it. within days my ability to walk improved. I guess the doctor at the hospital was an resident, I had told him about my transverse myelitis bout years ago I guess he did not do his homework, or at least forgot some of his lessons in medical school.

 

[the_tortoise]

I would like to know if other autists here have experience with the drug, and what consequences they experienced.

I tend to have strange paradoxical reactions to medications...and my paradoxical reactions and also how I metabolize meds (not all but many) tends to strangely follow what is typical for children when there are age related differences in response and metabolism/clearance (and I'm almost 40 - so it is super weird, but in keeping with other minor, random, isolated physical developmental delay things)

^^ Just said to be clear, that my experience likely should not be taken as common-to-autism...except in the most general sense of being unusual/atypical...

I was not prescribed gabapentin but pregabalin for neuropathic pain (extreme post-herpetic neuralgia; was initially localized but spread -- like the chicken pox when I was 5, and then the second bout of shingles in my 30's - to literally my entire body). They are very similar (pregabalin and gabapentin are both "GABAlogs") and i think have overlapping if not identical mechanisms of action, but pregabalin is thought to have faster onset of effect due to higher bioavailability, and is considered more potent.

Pregablin was AWFUL for me. It did almost nothing for my pain, but it did completely undo the therapeutic effects of my ADHD medication, and as a hideous bonus made me constantly angry, incredibly agitated and overwhelmingly distressed in the absence of any possible reason for such feelings. I felt like I was going to explode, I hated everything, I was on the edge of or actually in early meltdown constantly.

Valproic acid was tried after that, and I took it for over a year to really positive effect of eventually no pain (it also got rid of my migraines completely -- and they are otherwise really bad, and really frequent) but I needed ridiculously high and frequent doses to maintain therapeutic blood level - and it made me gain about 50 lbs despite no change to calorie intake, diet or activity. When I was switched to topirimate (couldn't tolerate that - the stomach sickness) and then levetiracetam, I lost all the weight I had gained without doing anything to lose it...so I am convinced it was a metabolic side effect of valproic acid.

Incidentally, it turns out when I stop the anti-epileptics, for even a day or two, the migraines come back but the neuropathic pain never has -- not even when I stopped taking them for week. This seems most likely just the natural course of post-herpetic neuralgia imo (it sometimes resolves after a year or two), but my doctor (not a neurologist) thought the post-herperic neuralgia had morphed into a kind of centralized pain syndrome so ultimately I don't really know.

 

[WhitewaterWoman]

Just for the record, gabapentin has almost completely eliminated my chronic pain with no observed side effects. I’ve been taking it for several years.

 

[Richelle-H]

A quick addendum to my earlirer post. I stopped taking Gabapentin earlier this year as its effectiveness had diminished to the point that it was not providing any relief. I figure I am better off eliminating any drug that does nothing for me.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Just for the record, gabapentin has almost completely eliminated my chronic pain with no observed side effects. I’ve been taking it for several years.

My neurologist who removed the clot from my brain asked me why was I taking gabapentin, his question are you in pain, I retorted no why do you ask. He then said an off label use is as a painkiller. That's when I knew there was something fishy going on. My urologist asked the same question. My then family doctor doubled the dose, so I told my wife time for a new family doctor.

 

[UFO]

I have been taking Pramipexole (dopamine agonist) for my Restless Legs Syndrome for several years... I don't know how long exactly, over two decades? Of course, I develop resistance to it over the time. So now it was again a time to increase a dosage, but some enthusiastic new doctor began to complain missing medical records (at public medical services - I have been diagnosed at private sector) and wanted to re-examine my RLS before she can subscribe me a new dose of Pramipexole. I have been re-subscribing medication for years at public sector, and this was the first time when someone someone complained that I haven't been treated at public sector before...

Anyway... I didn't remember what kind of examinations and drug tests was made when I was diagnosed, so she said that Pramipexole is not the first medicine to try and offered testing how Gabapentin would work. I agreed and now I have been testing different dosages for a month, and I can say that Gabapentin don't do anything useful. I just have been unusually sleepy (but not exactly tired), but there has been nights when RLS has been really killing me and I have had to take Pramipexole from my old reserves.

I am really considering to tell her, that I want to stop this experiment with Gabapentin and just want to be subscribed with bigger dosage of Pramipexole.