Gabapentin for Bipolar Disorder User Reviews (Page 5)

• Kvo...
• June 9, 2022

"I went on gabapentin for my bipolar 1 disorder to help my body with anxiety. I was so anxious, people told me I looked like I wanted to jump out of my skin, and this lasted for a year and a half. Gabapentin helped me sleep too, and continues to do so. I took 300 mg tablets 3x daily, and now I take it 2x daily. This medication works because I am able to feel calmer while still being able to go about my day while using it. It made me a bit cloudy, and when I went off the midday dose, I noticed I felt more perceptive and less dumbed down, so we’ll see how I feel off my morning dose. I like gabapentin much better than a benzodiazepine because it is easier to come off of (with a psychiatrist), and the benzos are addicting. I feel healthier knowing I’m not on a benzo and less dependent too, although to be honest, when I go down on gabapentin too quickly, I get severe depression and crying spells. So I know to go slow now for withdrawal."

• dri...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• July 21, 2014

"Psychiatric nurse decided to change antidepressant (trazodone). Caused psychotic episode. Hospitalized and psychiatrist decided not to put me back on antidepressant (Lexapro) that I was taking before trazodone. Bad move. They put me on gabapentin for several months. Angry most of the time. Irritable. Unhappy. Finally getting off gabapentin. Didn't help mood (made it worse), didn't help anxiety (I had to take more Ativan). The use of gabapentin was off label and a very bad idea."

• Fri...
• July 29, 2024

"I wrote recently: 85 years old and 300 mg x 3 a day helps mania, but I was still quite agitated, so I took 600 mg x 3/day. In a few days, my comb was full of hair, fine, but then my daughter combed my hair once: she noted it too! Then a granddaughter cleaned my room: she said my hair was everywhere, but none of the three of us had told another! That happened in about four days; but I DO feel calmer. Online, there's a report of a woman who took it for pain, but she lost lots of hair, having bald spots in days, so just keep your eyes open. This is NOT a common side effect, and it's not yet in official records, but it's very depressing! P.S. I'm very grateful for these reviews, especially as I live in a country with few doctors, but no prescriptions needed."

• Fri...
• July 25, 2024

"I really appreciate these reviews and wish you'd all help me. The reviews would be infinitely more helpful if we could edit our review instead of having to leave many when we get more experienced. Please say so in your review if you like the idea. After a year, I conclude that gabapentin is great for mania and for depressing thinking. It does not stop me from feeling very agitated, though. I can hardly sit still and I'm muscularly weak, it seems from nervousness."

• Mix...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 20, 2017

"I was drowsy for the first two days, but that went away. I don't experience any (noticeable) side effects, but the amount of help that it has provided me isn't too noticeable either. It has helped the highs and lows become a little less intense, but it's still not doing a great job. This is better than nothing, though."

• Dar...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 12, 2021

"I started gabapentin and baclofen two weeks ago. Having bipolar III and anxiety, I was very apprehensive about starting any meds. Reading down the list of possible side effects made the endeavor seem not worth the risks. After mulling it a couple of days, I convinced myself to try. So far, things are good. The pain I had in my chest for nearly a year literally vanished overnight. That pain kept me from working for a long time; I was polishing my resume the next day. The pills brought facial numbness down around 80% as well. Some back and neck pain still lingers, but it's improved. Really bad flare-ups are rare so far, and only with a good deal of physical exertion. On the bipolar side, I'd be a little concerned about hypomania or, for some, mania. The mood lift coupled with your body feeling like it's twenty again could be a bit of a launching pad. I'm finding myself noticing some hypomanic behavior, but not much anxiety. Started on 300 mg daily gaba, and 10 mg baclofen 3 times daily."

• Ano...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 9, 2023

"I'm old, have bipolar I but not horrendously, and started to have drug intolerances, including to Sertraline 50mg., Hydroxyzine and old antihistamines, all of which are calming, and maybe to 250mg divalproex sodium. Lithium didn't suit me, but I used to be all right with just 50 of sertraline and 250 mg of Dapakan. No more! I'm trying Lamotrigine 50 with Gabapentin 300×3/day...as of three weeks. I sleep too well, but don't mind, have no more nightmares until gabapentin wears off, but I'm still agitated, no mania. Nothing so far has gotten rid of a half-my-life, persistent, low level depression. I do not want to do a thing, can nage, but have stayed lying down half of the time for 30 years. Nothing helps so far. I never have side effects from anything; and I think most people would have very few if they started with half or less of the initial dose. These disorders we have cause violent bad effects, or miraculous help...soon! I stopped Seroquel after a few hours of being angry."

• Joe...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 29, 2016

"Gabapentin (Neurontin) made me sleepy, helped only a tad bit with my anxiety, and did nothing to help with my mood swings. I might as well have taken a sugar pill as a mood stabilizer. When I stopped gabapentin, I threw up/was nauseous, dizzy, had chills, could not sleep, and my whole body was in pain for weeks - and I even tapered off it, not cold turkey. Stay away from this evil stuff."

• Bre...
• June 29, 2015

"I take gabapentin along with prazosin, and the gabapentin does not work. I take 600 mg of gabapentin and 2 mg of prazosin. Now my doctor is going to have to take me off of gabapentin and put me on something else."

• Sue...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 24, 2021

"I had high hopes for this medication after trying a lot of different meds with terrible side effects. The first five days were good, then I don't know what happened. I started getting really irritated, and at night, absolutely could not get a good night's sleep. Did not want to take any sleeping meds at night. So I decided to stop this medication. It's nice it works for some people, but not me."

• AH3...
• November 2, 2015

"An absolutely horrific drug for treating bipolar 2. I was prescribed 100 mg/day to start, and upon waking, after the first night that I took it, I knew immediately something was wrong. I felt utterly drugged. I was off-balance and in an agitated haze. My thoughts were muddled, and I had the most intensely 'down' day I had had in months. It was a really bad day trying to just make it through. I called my doctor, and she said to stop taking it immediately. No good. I would stay far, far away from this off-label drug."

• Eve...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• June 7, 2019

"I have been on gabapentin for coming up on 5 years now for bipolar 2, PTSD, and panic disorder. I take 900 mg 3 times a day. I honestly can say that I don't know if it does anything at all. I am on lots of other medications, so it's hard to say. But talking to other people that use it for reasons such as pain and alcohol withdrawals sounds like they don't really notice it does much either. I find that it has more of a placebo effect."

• Jar...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 3, 2020

"My pdoc added gabapentin to my med cocktail, claiming it would help with anxiety, keeping me asleep, and give me no taste for beer. My highest dose was 400 mg three times a day. As for anxiety, I felt it did absolutely nothing. It may have helped keep me asleep for a night or two only after having to drink a couple of beers to even get to sleep. As for alcohol, I was already tired of drinking beer most nights to get sleepy, so I don’t think it really added much to that. Without it, I drink even less now because that doesn’t even help with sleep. Overall, this drug was useless."

• Add...
• January 9, 2018

"My ex-wife and sister use this medication for bipolar. My sister apparently uses it in such high doses that others I know who use it are flabbergasted at how much she uses. Then my daughter got into her mother's and overdosed. Doesn't seem to regulate either of the prescribed people while posing a huge risk for family. Also, I read that some addicts love this stuff for the buzz it creates while not being on the urinalysis panel screens unless specifically asked. That would be my sister in a nutshell. She claims to be a few years 'sober.'"

• E i...
• March 14, 2012

Gabapentin "Provides for a very calming effect without feeling drowsy. It takes the edge off just enough so that I can focus better on the day-to-day."

• Tre...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 7, 2019

"I've been on gabapentin for three weeks, and I'm a new girl! Anxiety? Gone. Depression? See ya! Insomnia? Bye-bye! One warning-don't take this drug with Ambien, it causes total confusion."

• Don...
• October 19, 2014

"I have been on Neurontin for several years. I take it along with Zoloft for bipolar disorder. All I can say is that it works for me!"

• Mia...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• September 22, 2013

"I've been taking this for 17 years and it has been magic for me. I immediately started feeling better and within 6 weeks, went back to work."

• Im ...
• October 19, 2015

"Gabapentin is my happy pill. Best anxiety medication I've ever had."

• Joh...
• November 28, 2015

"I also have been resistant to many of the drugs that doctors prescribed. I have also paid dearly for some of the side effects. I only speak for myself, this drug has been a miracle for me."

• Fac...
• May 30, 2014

"Gabapentin makes me feel better. I take it every day, two times a day. I have bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and severe anxiety. Gabapentin, along with Risperidone, helps me feel normal."

• sst...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• December 14, 2019

"This gabapentin has one of the best mood stabilizers I have ever tried - I have bipolar."

• dan...
• October 5, 2011

"Finally, after every medicine known for use in treating bipolar, gabapentin was the key when it was coupled with Lamictal."

• Anonymous
• May 22, 2011

Gabapentin "Is definitely a mood stabilizer!"

• Ble...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• February 10, 2021

"Gabapentin helps with my bipolar depression better than any other antidepressant or antipsychotic I've ever tried. It has improved my mood in ways nothing else has come close to."