I Need A Specialist Who Is Seasoned With The Drug
My dad is 73 years old. Has Diabetes type 2, slight renal failure, hyper tension, gout and neuropathy.
He was given the drug Lyrica for his neuropathy. He takes 600 mg, one time a day, once a week or every 4-5 days. He has been taking it for over a year now and feels physically and psychologically dependent on the drug. When the drug wears off which is 24 hours after taking it, he feels muscle pain, leg pain, shoulder pain, back pain, low energy, fatigue, depression and aches all over his body. Terrible itching. Blurred vision as well. He wants to get off the drug entirely because he feels addicted to it but the side effects are so severe that he rebounds. He has tried to wean off the drug but unsuccessfully. He needs medical professional advice. He wasn't prescribed the dose 600 mg a day but has administered this dose by his own accord. That must be stated.
He has been on a tapering schedule of taking Lyrica 300 mg twice a week for one month and then
300 mg once a week for one month and then
150 mg once a month twice a week for one month and then
150 mg once a week for one month and so on
but he has had a severe panic attack and feels irritable, agitated, dips in moods. He feels dependent on the drug but wants off it as it has changed his life for the worse.
Lyrica tapper of advice explained below in details.
Detailed Answer:
Hello dear and welcome to ‘Ask A Doctor’ service. I reviewed your query and here is my advice.
The symptoms of your dad seem to be related to withdrawal symptoms from Lyrica.
Withdrawal symptoms of lyrics should subside from a few weeks to a few months, usually 6 months.
Some advice that I can give to you are:
-Give 100 mg twice a week for about one month. This would be a sufficient dose to control the withdrawal symptoms such as muscle pain, low energy, fatigue, depression and aches.
The dose should be lowered very slowly depending
-I also would suggest cognitive behavioral therapy. It is very important.
Its a slow process, but it works.
-Meditation could also help
-Group therapy also can help. People in this group are suffering the same issues and can discuss them openly.
-You can also use Lorazepam in case of severe panic attacks.
During the process glycemic level should be maintained under control through regular checkups.
Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.