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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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Posted by sophia04 on September 25, 2008, at 20:45:21
I'm at a loss, feeling quite desperate, and was wondering if I could get some feedback as to how to proceed.
I've been having chronic pain since 1/06 that started in my jaw and has gradually spread throughout my upper body - headaches, neck/back/arm pain etc.
I started taking parnate (30 mg) 4/07 for depression/anxiety, and though it is a difficult drug to take, it has been very effective for these symptoms -though it hasn't seemed to impact the pain.
Spring 08 I began getting predictable, debilitating crashes in the afternoon (fatigue, nausea, loss of appetite).
July 08 I was diagnosed w/ fibromyalgia -though I don't fit the classic profile - and started taking Lyrica. The lyrica has done little to relieve the pain, but seems to be impacting the anxiety caused by living w/ a chronic pain/fatigue syndrome.
Last week I began to titrate off the Lyrica because it has caused some cognitive impairment -memory loss, inability to finish sentences, focus, etc. and I didn't think it was doing much good. In the last few days I've decreased my dose from 350/day to 200/day and, surprisingly, I am feeling terribly depressed.
Here are my questions...
Is it possible that the said side effects -dumbness - might disappear and that the advantage of Lyrica's antianxiety/depression effects may be worth holding out longer?
Is it possible that the new wave of depression is just temporary until the Lyrica withdrawal is finished?
Might the debilitating afternoon crashes of flu-like symptoms be a delayed side effect of Parnate, or evidence that I need a higher dose?
Truth is, I have far less tolerance for the fatigue/sickness than I do for the chronic pain, so overcoming this is my biggest priority.
Any thoughts?
This is the end of the thread.
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