Lyrica, Topamax, Neurontin

[paindoc]

This is in response to equivalent doses of several of the anti-convusants used for "nerve" pain asked earlier on this thread. In my mind this is a mute point. I often try to equate these drugs to antidepressants in that some work for certain patients, others work for a differnt group of patients, and sometimes, none of them work at all. I ALWAYS taper off the former medication and start at a low dose of what ever new anticonvusant I am trying. They are all associated with numerous side effects and just because you may not experience side effects with one drug does not mean you won't experience them with the new drug...thus the reason I always start over and don't just try to find an equivalent dose. The side effects you describe with neurontin are very common in patients usually subside over time. There is no hard and fast time frame for this, but they do usually go away. The max dose on neurontin for me is about 3600mg/day. Generally speaking, I rarely have to go that high. There are alot of these drugs on the market and it may take "tinkering" with dosage and different options to achieve maximal effect. Be patient and good luck.