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Author: Admin | 2025-04-28
Surgery. When I was diagnosed with reflex sympathetic dystrophy four years later, the doctors upped the Lyrica and then added other meds of a similar variety such as Topamax. I went so far into a ‘Lyrica fog’ that I can barely remember anything from those years. Suffice it to say that my profession was ruined.“I still have significant memory issues even though my new doctor weaned me off Topamax and Lyrica in 2016. I felt like I had a helmet on my head the entire time I used that drug. Once it was gone, so was that feeling.”Another reader, Brenda in Houston, offered this reaction to gabapentin:“I can say that gabapentin gave me extreme brain fog and confusion. As a result, I couldn’t cook because I would wander off with food cooking and burn the pan so badly I would have to rush it outside until the smoke cleared. Really, I began to fear I would burn my house down!”Lucy was caught between a rock and a hard place. She has terrible nerve pain. Gabapentin or pregabalin were the only treatments her doctor had to offer:“I am no longer the vibrant, independent, smart, confident person I used to be. Gabapentin has caused confusion, foggy thoughts, dizziness, depression, lethargy, slurred words and difficulty concentrating.”Other Rx Meds & Brain Fog or Memory Loss:There are so many medications that can cause confusion or memory loss that it would be hard to list them all. A systematic review in the journal Drugs & Aging (Aug. 2012) describes medications that affect the GABA neurotransmitter system. They are called GABA agonists, gabapentinoids or GABAergics. You can learn much more about them at this link.New Concerns About Gabapentin and Pregabalin (Lyrica) for Nerve PainBenzos and the Brain:GABAergic drugs also include benzodiazepines or benzos for short. Here is a list: Benzodiazepines:AlprazolamClonazapamDiazepamFlurazepamLorazepamMidazolamOxazepamTemazepamTriazolamBenzos may have a negative impact on cognitive function (Journal of Affective Disorders, Oct. 1, 2022). These are also referred to as anti-anxiety medications.The authors of the 2012 article in Drugs & Aging note that for short-acting and intermediate-acting benzos there was evidence of decrements in cognitive function tests.“Consistent findings predominantly affecting memory storage, but also impacting attention, reaction time and specific psychomotor functions, characterized single- and repeated-dose studies, without development of complete tolerance over 3 weeks administration.”Sleeping pills may also contribute to forgetfulness in some people. Benzos have often been prescribed for insomnia, but they are associated with cognitive impairment in middle-aged and older people (Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, Dec. 9, 2021).Non-Benzo GABAergic Z-type Sleeping PillsZolpidemZopicloneZaleplonThere are inconsistent results regarding the Z-drugs.One review published in the Journal of Medical Toxicology (June, 2013) concluded:“Z-drugs, in particular zopiclone, appear to have similar adverse effects to their predecessors, the benzodiazepines. The residual effects on human performance and driving impairment of Z-drugs are derived from their GABA-ergic action and pharmacokinetic profiles. Z-drugs, especially zolpidem, are associated with complex behaviors, hallucinations, and memory impairment. The increased risk of falls and motor vehicle collisions is notably significant for elderly insomniacs on Z-drugs. The
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