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It’s complicated

What happens when you stop taking Pregabalin

Disclaimer : This is post is about what happened to ME when I withdrew from Pregabalin. Personal experiences. Please do not use this as some sort of a medical reference as I am not a doctor.


I started Pregabalin in 2017, after my rheumatologist diagnosed me with hypermobility and Fibromyalgia. I was given the option to either take Gabapentin or Pregabalin, along with amitriptyline. After a lot of research and after talking to my GP and other doctors, we settled on Pregabalin. It went great as it really helped with my pain levels.


I started in a low dose and slowly increased the dosage to around. I don’t really remember what dose I ended up on (brain fog🤷🏽‍♀️) but it was spread over 4 times a day.

Last year, June 2019, I had to come off Pregabalin because my tremors were getting a lot worse. The decision was made to slowly come down from it and then discuss what other alternatives are available.


It wasn’t fun at all. I was really struggling when my dose was at its lowest and I was down to taking it twice a day. I was sweating and really cold at the same time, I had a cold, I was in so much pain I would just lay in my bed and cry because it hurt to move. Slowly, I was beginning to feel every bit of pain in my body which wasn’t pleasant at all.


Luckily it didn’t last too long. If I remember correctly, again brain fog issues, it lasted for roughly a week to a week and a half. It was mainly extra hard because I was at university, in my flat, far away from my family, which meant I had to do everything myself.


This was also roughly when I started Midodrine for my autonomic dysfunction and PoTS, which is also the reason my break from Pregabalin didn’t last long at all. The Midodrine was causing severe migraines. I couldn’t stand without feeling intense pressure and pain in my head. Therefore, I was put back onto Pregabalin but due to my tremors I’m not allowed to go onto a high dose. So currently I just take 75mg a day.


I am due to come off both Pregabalin and Amitriptyline to Duloxetine as my new rheumatologist/ EDS specialist says it will do a much better job in helping my pain. Should be fun withdrawing from Pregabalin again 🙃

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