Rash After Quitting Lyrica (Page 3) (Top voted first)

I took Lyrica (150mg daily) for 2 years. The medicine helped reduce my leg and hip gain greatly. In January I started working out daily and dieting and lost 30 pounds. I gradually have quit taking Lyrica and am having only a small amount of discomfort at times. The problem is that upon quitting the Lyrica the back of my knees started itching and welps appeared after I scratched them. It has been 3 weeks since I stopped taking Lyrica and I am still itchy. Has this happened to anyone else? Could this be a result of nerve damage?

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I took 2 Benadryl soft gels and it stopped..also sprayed my skin with aloe vera spray worked perfectly but now am concerned because I am on it only 50mg.afraid to stop and afraid to take another one! yuk to the horrible itchiness and little white spots, started on my feet and worked up to my hair and eyes.

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Ben on lyrica for3mths with grt results for neck pain. Take 150mg at nite. However have developed very itchy skin particularly itchy back in last 2 wks. Getting worse. Has anyone had this please and if so how long after ceasing drug did itchiness disappear. Have ceased med 2 days ago due to severe itch.

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Louise, I experienced exactly the same itching from Lyrica, only I got it all over my body, but worst on my torso. It started after I was on it for about 4 weeks. None of my doctors thought Lyrica could be causing the itching and I ended up staying on it for over a year, putting up with the horrendous itching. I finally went off it in Janurary to see if the itching would go away. While weaning off it the itching got much worse. It took me 3 1/2 weeks to wean off from 300 mg. a day. Then it took 2 months after going off for the itching to begin to subside. At 3 months off it the itching was significantly better. Now 7 months later I'm 99% recovered. Almost everyone I found online said the same thing. It took months for the itching to go away. My Dr. reported it to the FDA. I did get some relief with Atarax when the itching was its worse. Hang in there, you will get better, but it takes time.

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I only took 75mg of Lyrica for 4 days. I got Hives within 3 days so stopped taking it. I am still suffering from itching even after stopping almost 2 weeks later and it is driving me CRAZY!
I take an anti histamine tablet daily which helps a little. But i find it's worse at night and wakes me up in the early hours of the morning. The thing that annoys me is that there is no rash. It's like i have a phantom rash! If i'd have known about this side affect i would not have gone near the drug. As it was, i took the damn thing for 4 days and it's still having this effect on me after almost 2 weeks of stopping. I really hope it goes soon, i may go mad! The itching is more on my torso, (chest, stomach and back) and at the base of my skull. Sometimes my face itches too.

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I quit Lyrica 2 1/2 weeks ago and am still very itchy to. Usually at night when I am trying to go to sleep it gets worse. Benadryl helps. I myself believe the itchiness is caused by small nerves or sensors that were suppressed of feeling because lyrica blocks the signals from the brain to nerves. These smaller nerves are re-awakening now that they are getting signals back from the brain. The little needle points randomly all over is very annoying and itchy. Thats what it feels like in my body and I hope once the signals are restored and all the body sensor regain the proper function again this itchiness should stop. "I am hoping I am right and keep the hope that I am and that this will eventually stop. Try benadryl allergy, It should help a bit. Carolyn from MA.

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I have been on 25 mg Lyrica for abouth 4 months and I am still itchy and it seemed to start when I started it but it works so well on my pain and helps me sleep at night so I am going to keep taking it, small price to pay I guess the itching does wake me up at night and it kind of "biting" or nipping itch.

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What medicatin are you on now? I want to go off Lyrica but do not want the pain and sleeplessness to come back.

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Yes. Oncd when i didn't refil zoon enougb ,j broke out in a gerrjbly itcbg rasb all over. I took Benadryl and oatmeal baths but it did not ztop ubtil i got the Lytica back in my sgsten.

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Yes I have had the itching and sleepless nights. I now know that I need something for the itching. I'm praying that Benadryl works

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Hi, my MD prescribed me 75mg of Lyrica every bedtime to soothe the tingling and numbness on my fingertips (both hands). Been taking it for 10days when I noticed rash appearing on my arms. I stopped taking it immediately and is now applying OTC hydrocortisone cream on areas affected. How long before the redness subsided? My rash is kind of itchy but tolerable and not the kind that keeps me awake at night. I just want to ask if the rash left marks on your skin? Will be meeting with my MD again to ask what alternatives I have since I stopped taking Lyrica.

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How long until this itching goes away whip trying to go off Lyrica??

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Hello! :) Mine didn't itch but the rash/welts disappeared after a week. Hope you're doing better now.

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Have any of your doctors stated that it is from lyrica? I just saw my doctor and he said this whole nightmare is not due to lyrica must be an allergen to something else. Nothing has changed in my life with exception of taking that horrific drug.

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After 8 years of being on LYRICA I am finally off! It worked well for my CIP neuropathy for many years. I was taking 300mg plus 100mg of Tramadol per day. Through the assistance of Dr. Deborah Meyers at the Meyers Medical Clinic in Long Beach CA I was able to ween off the Lyrica over about 3 weeks. The withdrawals were horrible but managable. Nausea, loss of appetite, anxiety, and insomnia. Eventually I felt human again about the 4 week mark. This is when the itching started. My Dr. warned me that some people can have side effects for months after they stop but for me other than feeling a bit anxious from time to time the only other symptom is the endless itching primarily in my hands and feet but also other parts of my skin. Not sure how long this will last but glad I found these posts so I can try a few things. BTW- the reason I came off the Lyrica was because I wanted to try a new pain treatment that works on the same neuro path as the Lyrica called Calmare therapy so you can't be on the drug when using the therapy. If you suffer from nerve pain or neuropathy you might want to look into this treatment. It's kind of like a TENS unit but they use a different algorithm that retrains your brain without the use of drugs. For some people they become completely pain free. Although it worked to a degree for me, I am not pain free but it's managable and I'm not on Lyrica any more which was my goal. I am now slowly weening myself off the Tramadol and have just started. So I guess I'll see what kind of side effects that brings but this itching is driving me crazy. Thanks for the tips everyone.

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I was put on Lyrica and after 2 doses broke out in hives The doctor changed me to Keppra BUT 7 weeks and im still broke out on my upper arms,face and chest Doctor says he dont think it was Lyrica But thats the only thing he changed

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I was on lyrica for a few years then my general practitioner wanted me to quit thinking it was contributing to my weight gain. I was told to stop cold turkey. I had a rash and severe itching, I couldn't sleep. It was horrible! When I talked to my rheumatologist ( who prescribed my lyrica) I was told it was dangerous to stop cold turkey that it must be tapered. She gave me instructions for tapering which I followed & have been off for about a year. My pain continues & is worse sense stopping. It did not seem to have any effect on my weight. After all I went through loosing some weight would have been some consolation.

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Hi did you have any luck finding a solution to this. As the past 2 days, what you have described i am going through from the pregablin.

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Re: marconua (# 20)

I have been on Lyrica about 4 years and had to stop because of the horrible side effects suicidal impulses, couldn’t speak/ couldn’t find the words I wanted to say, memory problems...the list is long. But I’m off it and have been for months and then developed a rash first on the lower back of my head then the back of my knees and insides of my elbows now it has spread from my thighs to my stomach and it is beyond any itchy bite I’ve ever experienced 8 weeks now and the steroid Meds and cream only give a little relief and it feels like stabbing shards of glass all over ...of course the doctors say it can’t be a side effect from lyrica even though I am still suffering from the other side effects but at a lesser degree. I was on 600 mg of lyrica a day and slowly reduce.

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Re: helpful (# 43)


I hope you are reporting your side effects to the FDA Med Watch reporting on their website. If we don't we will keep getting pounded by drug companies.

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Worst drug invented!!! Was on it only 50mg twice a day.Itching became severe allergy med helped itching. Stopped the lirica had to go back on it because of itching and I thought it would help.Only to break out in hives plus itching.The med is a joke!!! Eating dirt would of been better.

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