Those taking pills to get "high" are making it harder for ill people living in pain.

Those living with nerve pain from Charcot Marie Tooth (CMT) disease and other conditions don’t have many effective medications available for them on the market. The few medications that are available, however, are now becoming harder to get from doctors thanks to individuals who abuse pain pills.

It’s not opioids that pill abusers are taking this time, it happens to be the prescription medication gabapentin, which is one of a few non-opioid medications available for nerve pain. Recent media reports out of Kentucky are indicating that people there are taking gabapentin to get a “high” and/or a “euphoric feeling,” at a time when the government is making it harder for doctors to prescribe opioid medications. 

Now government officials, doctors and pharmacies recently announced that they will examine the gabapentin problem. The issue is already impacting people like myself with nerve problems.

At a recent visit to my family practitioner, she suggested reducing my gabapentin intake to help clear my head. No way, I thought, and then I had to remind her that my neurologist makes those decisions. I walked out of the office shaking my head and wondering what the “pill takers” will do next to make life harder for those of us living in extreme pain.

I currently take 1,800 milligrams of gabapentin per day. Four years ago, I was taking 3,200 milligrams per day after doctors found out that my CMT had severely damaged the nerve roots at the bottom of my spine.

This medication, which is also used by many with epilepsy, has never given me a “high” or “euphoric” feeling, but has helped in some ways to reduce my pain. I also have to take prescription opioids medications to this day, otherwise I will be screaming in pain at times.

Media reports in one Kentucky town indicated that gabapentin sells for only 75 cents on the street there. Users told reporters that they often take many pills at once to feel high. In my opinion, taking almost any pill in high quantities will probably get you high, but I wonder if those who abuse pain medications decided on taking gabapentin because it’s relatively a safe drug? I don’t know but I should add that many pill abusers in the article also admitted to taking gabapentin along with other types of pills to get high.

While I do have compassion for those who abuse prescription medications, I am beginning to worry that certain medications like gabapentin will one day become more restricted and harder to prescribe, inadvertently affecting those who really need them. And the only thing lately that Congress and government officials seem to agree on is passing laws that limit certain pills that are highly abused.

It just seems to me like government officials are often quick to make certain decisions about our lives and the medications we take rather than examining all the facts and asking questions. I hope they will begin considering ways to improve the lives of sick people instead of always making decisions to protect those who abuse substances.

-- Joseph Ruzich

Joseph Ruzich has Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and has been working in the journalism field for almost 20 years. He is 40 years old and lives with his wife, Emily, in the western suburbs of Chicago, IL. You can comment at the bottom of the story or email him at josephruzich@gmail.com