Has anyone had experience with this med? Doc prescribed me 300MG a day but I am scared to take it b/c of bad side effects I read about -- weight gain, tiredness, back & joint stiffness.

I am still taking the Adderall XR + Prozac & now Xanax to try to sleep at night.

Nick,
Yes I take it.
I am on Lamictal 150mg , Adderall XR 20mg & 100mg Neurontin.

Lamictal worked and still works awesome for me in the area of depression.
I had some issues early on in my dx with the mania and aggitation, my pdoc put me on Risperdal .05mg but I just had too many side effects on it. Mostly the groggy thing in the morning. I am not a day shift person or morning person to begin with, but have kids so work it, I couldn't stand being more tired and grumpy than I already was.

I was off for awhile and was fine but about 6 months ago started having more issues with the hypomania , aggitation and not sleeping for days, or getting very little. I am very sensitive to meds, so I don't often need very high doses, and I am really an intense kind of person anyway...always serious and well grumpy...LOL ,,so he told me that we would try the Neurontin, it has the lowest reported side effects for a drug in it's group. It also helps turn of the ***** switch as he called it. I can tell you while I have never been more than about 20lbs or so over weight, I am a big girl anyway. Amazon, with a few extra pounds I could live with.

So I certainly didn't want something that was going to trigger an eating frenzy. I have had no issues at this point. I am on a very low doseage though. I havn't had to take more than the 100mg he gave me. Although I am allowed to go up to 300.

The groggies are not an issue, if I take it early enough. Once I hit 2am ...I just lay it down and suffer. But if I take it like I am Supposed to...about an hour or so before bed, it's really like a warm blanket that drifts me off. I eat just like I always have.

Just like with every med and person here. There are side effects for everything we take, everything out there. There are folks here who have taken it and don't like it, and those of us who it's been great for.
That can be said for most things.

Trial and error, that's just part of the thing with treating BP.
It's good to know what you are getting into before taking things, so you can watch for the extreme side effects that might happen but rarely do, but you can't worry about it so much you miss out on taking the one med that might do it for you.


Take care and let us know how it's working out?

Hope

I've heard of using Neurontin for bipolar disorder. I myself don't take it though. It was never prescribed to/for me.

I was on a v. high dose for neuralgia. (1800 mg/day)

It gave me double vision and made me unsteady on my feet.

Nick,
Yes I take it.
I am on Lamictal 150mg , Adderall XR 20mg & 100mg Neurontin.

Lamictal worked and still works awesome for me in the area of depression.
I had some issues early on in my dx with the mania and aggitation, my pdoc put me on Risperdal .05mg but I just had too many side effects on it. Mostly the groggy thing in the morning. I am not a day shift person or morning person to begin with, but have kids so work it, I couldn't stand being more tired and grumpy than I already was.

I was off for awhile and was fine but about 6 months ago started having more issues with the hypomania , aggitation and not sleeping for days, or getting very little. I am very sensitive to meds, so I don't often need very high doses, and I am really an intense kind of person anyway...always serious and well grumpy...LOL ,,so he told me that we would try the Neurontin, it has the lowest reported side effects for a drug in it's group. It also helps turn of the ***** switch as he called it. I can tell you while I have never been more than about 20lbs or so over weight, I am a big girl anyway. Amazon, with a few extra pounds I could live with.

So I certainly didn't want something that was going to trigger an eating frenzy. I have had no issues at this point. I am on a very low doseage though. I havn't had to take more than the 100mg he gave me. Although I am allowed to go up to 300.

The groggies are not an issue, if I take it early enough. Once I hit 2am ...I just lay it down and suffer. But if I take it like I am Supposed to...about an hour or so before bed, it's really like a warm blanket that drifts me off. I eat just like I always have.

Just like with every med and person here. There are side effects for everything we take, everything out there. There are folks here who have taken it and don't like it, and those of us who it's been great for.
That can be said for most things.

Trial and error, that's just part of the thing with treating BP.
It's good to know what you are getting into before taking things, so you can watch for the extreme side effects that might happen but rarely do, but you can't worry about it so much you miss out on taking the one med that might do it for you.


Take care and let us know how it's working out?

Hope


Hope, you really are a paragon. You delegate inspiration for the suffering, your personal struggles with overcoming this devastating illness and your personal knowledge of the clinical aspect of it. You offer such hope for the newbies and you are one of the most valuable members of the Cycling Team.

I speak for myself and as far as I know, everyone else that reads your posts when I say I am so glad to know such a kind and generous soul.

You are a true friend to me and your support has helped me through some rough times.

Thank You for Being there.:)

Back on topic, Nick when I was prescribed Neurontin back in my "take the meds for a week" phase of life. I was prescribed 1,000 mg of Neurontin per day and it was a decent med as far as how it made me feel, I can only describe it as a warm blanket feeling. It seemed to help for the week that I took it but the drowsiness does go away eventually.

Keep us all informed.

I was prescribed Neurontin some years back when I was on Depakote for the first time. I complained of chronic (and lifelong) sleep problems and my doc refused to give me an aid and instead put me on Nerontin saying it'd help me sleep... eventually.
Didn't do diddly squat for me at all. Certainly didn't help anything (mood, sleep problems, etc). Kicked up the Depakote weight gain another notch, I think. And if anything it just made me groggier during the day without helping me sleep at night. Bleh.
So I dropped it.

Now I take Lamictal for my BP plus Dexedrine for ADD and Restoril for sleep. Good combo for me.

Hope, you really are a paragon. You delegate inspiration for the suffering, your personal struggles with overcoming this devastating illness and your personal knowledge of the clinical aspect of it. You offer such hope for the newbies and you are one of the most valuable members of the Cycling Team.

I speak for myself and as far as I know, everyone else that reads your posts when I say I am so glad to know such a kind and generous soul.

You are a true friend to me and your support has helped me through some rough times.

Thank You for Being there.:)

Back on topic, Nick when I was prescribed Neurontin back in my "take the meds for a week" phase of life. I was prescribed 1,000 mg of Neurontin per day and it was a decent med as far as how it made me feel, I can only describe it as a warm blanket feeling. It seemed to help for the week that I took it but the drowsiness does go away eventually.

Keep us all informed.


Wow? Thanks for that Matt.
Just sharing my experiences. That was very nice of you. Happy to help anyone, because I get as way more help here than I give IMHO.

So any updates on the Neurontin, Nick?

Wow? Thanks for that Matt.
Just sharing my experiences. That was very nice of you. Happy to help anyone, because I get as way more help here than I give IMHO.

So any updates on the Neurontin, Nick?

Yes, the Neurontin seems to be working. I ran out of the Focalin XR since I like the Adderall, I doubled the prescribed dose then took the extra Adderall that I saved since the prescription switch. I am going to see this doctor again next week (the one who prescribed the list of meds I described in earlier post). I am hoping he will increase the Focalin & Neurontin.