Glad to find this board

[oldcarguy]

I've thought about this for awhile and am pretty much convinced my issues are the result of my sedentary IT job with years of sitting and not enough getting up and moving around during the day. Anyone else out there prove that's the cause of their issues and were you able to get any workmen's comp or other compensation? I expect it would be kind of tough to prove.

[Violet M]

Carguy,

Unless you could find several peer-reviewed articles you're right, I think it would be very hard to prove and unfortunately, I doubt those articles exist.

Since you are already set up with Dr. Renney, it sounds like you will just continue with him then -- did he give you any specifics on the MRI protocol that is required before you go there?

Violet

[oldcarguy]

Violet, when I mentioned the 3T mri to him, he just said it wouldn't help. He said I needed a CT scan so not sure why the 3T wouldn't be a better choice than the CT unless he was just thinking of the extra cost? It would be a long trip to NY to get that.

[Violet M]

Well, I know the docs all have their own protocols that they like you to follow but I can understand your concern about the CT scan when there are other diagnostic tools out there.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/200 ... 5_st_N.htm

http://tinyurl.com/ye6vesk

[oldcarguy]

I started taking neurontin about 2 wks ago but a low dose of 3x100mg per day and now increasing to 3x300 per day. I haven't noticed a lot of relief with it yet but it's definitely making my head cloudy and fatigued. Does that wear off after awhile and at what point would you expect relief?

[Violet M]

Carguy, some people say the foggy feeling subsides after awhile. For pain relief you will most likely have to get up to at least 1800 mg a day or more but that is a challenge if you are trying to continue working with that brain fog feeling.

[helenlegs 11]

It's all a bit of an experiment as everyone reacts differently to different medication. I think it took around 2 months of titrating up with neurontin to get to a point where I thought there was some pain relief. The brain fog lessened but it was always there.
Lyrica is a more metabolised form of this drug, so It often has less side effects but it is costly so more difficult to have prescribed.
I managed best with neurontin, for slightly different reasons; many say the opposite.
Take care,
Helen

[calluna]

It took a lot longer than that for me - 18 weeks to get it up to 1800mg a day. Although the brain fog did improve a bit from how it was at the beginning, it still felt like I was thinking through treacle, I found this difficult to cope with. Personally I found pregabalin/Lyrica to be much more helpful with the pain and much less problems with side effects.

But we do all react differently - lots of people take gabapentin long term with no problems and get good pain relief. I hope this turns out to be the case for you!

With regard to when to expect relief - these meds don't seem to work gradually, at least that's my experience - pain relief not increasing in proportion to the dose. To me it seemed more like, once you got to the right dose, it started to make a difference - before that, not a lot of effect at all. So, more like a step function. My doctor wanted me to take it to 1800mg, so I did.

[oldcarguy]

Sorry to ask this but does gabapentin tend to cause constipation? I really wasn't having issues with that until I started the gabapentin. I also had the ganglion impar block about that time so don't know what really started the constipation issue. Maybe it's just the PN. I've been trying to drink plenty of liquids and get fiber in my diet plus veggies, etc. So just wondering if anyone else had that kind of side effect with neurontin/gabapentin.

Thanks,
Jim

[calluna]

Not TMI at all, OCG, don't worry.

To answer your question, gabapentin does have constipation listed as a common side effect. Also of course PN can cause constipation. I don't know about the block.

You're doing the right thing with keeping up the fluid intake, that's very important. Don't overdo the fibre, it can actually contribute to blockage. If adding more fibre for a while doesn't sort things out completely, then go back to your normal level, ie just what is in your food. It isn't really a good idea to supplement fibre for any length of time.

If you need it, something like Movicol (Miralax on your side of the Atlantic I believe) is safe for long term use, they use it on stroke wards.