GABAPENTIN.....HAVE YOU TRIED IT?

I have fibromyalgia and lupus. My rhuematologist recently tried an old medication for my lupus, but it had severe side effects. It is also used for malaria, so it has been around for some time. Because it caused the side effects, I had to stop taking it.

When I went back, he put me on gabapentin. This is a big capsule, pink and hard to swallow. It is used for a lot of things, but is not federally approved for fibromyalgia. I am taking it for fibromyalgia because it has been found in studies to help with the pain.

It does help the pain in my back, chest and sides. But it makes me so dizzy, I am unable to function for a long time after taking it. I only take one capsule at bedtime. Some patients take it during the day as well as at bedtime. I an unusually sensitive to medications of all kinds, so I cannot tolerate more than one dose. Hours and hours of dizziness when I awake are hard to deal with. I am so unsteady on my feet, I hesitate to go up or down the stairs in my home.

Is anyone else taking it? Does it make you dizzy? With lupus, I have seizures, and this is an anti-seziure medication, so I am of the opinion that it may help with that problem. If anyone has a solution or even partial solution to the dizziness, if you have dealt with it and had success, please share your experience with me.

Please forgive any and all typos. My eyesight is failing me and I cannot see clearly. Thank you so much.