A 60-year-old male came to us 2 years ago for Gabapentin withdrawal. Gabapentin is a drug that is prescribed for nerve damage and or seizures. The patient had a spinal cord injury 4 years ago and had to undergo spinal surgery. He was prescribed Gabapentin post-surgery for the pain. He had excruciating pain despite being on 1500-1800 mgs of Gabapentin every day. He also developed pain and swelling in his chest and neck. He had tried going off the drug on his own and had severe withdrawal effects.
He was a producer for a few popular stars on the television and it was affecting his work and quality of life. He had also had a stroke with 100% blockage, 2 years prior to the spinal injury and had a stent put in.
He was on Lipitor, Plavix and baby aspirin as well, when he was seen in the office.
He said the pain and swelling in the chest were on the left side. The pain and swelling were worse from eating sugary foods, gluten and stress. He had been going to an oriental medical doctor and getting acupuncture for a year.
He changed his diet and that helped his pain along with acupuncture, but nothing made the pain go away. He wanted to get off Gabapentin because he had started developing tremors and fatigue which are some of the side effects of the drug.
He said his work was very stressful as he was a perfectionist. He was handling high profile clients where one mistake could cost their work. He also said he was a very happy person in general and loved going scuba diving and swimming at the beach. He said he lived his life to the fullest and had no fear of anything. He said he was happy to die after the stroke as well as the injury with no regrets, but it was hard to live with pain every day.
He also had a history of alcoholism and other addictions. He stayed away from anything that is habit forming because of his addictive personality.
His diet consisted of beef, pork, salads, soups, chicken, rice, fish and fruits. He drank 2 cups of black coffee a day. He had stopped eating dairy and gluten as they both affected him. His appetite, urine, stool, sexual functions were all normal. He had a hard time sleeping because of pain. His energy was very poor since he had been on Gabapentin and it affected him the most.
He had no history of palpitations, anxiety, seizures or restless leg syndrome. He loves being at home and spending time with his family. He said, he doesn’t like to burn bridges and has good relationships with everyone in his life. He said, it was important for him to keep everyone around him happy.
He was asked to stay off gluten, sugar, dairy, oils and reduce animal product consumption to 2-3x a week.
Hypericum 200c was prescribed twice a day for 15 days and Medorrhinum 50M one dose administered in the office. He was followed up after 15 days.
Hypericum is a great nerve remedy and has come to be used in many cases of nerve injury. Medorrhinum was prescribed because of his addictive personality along with disturbance and irritability in the nerves.
1st follow-up
He had no pain/swelling on his chest and neck within 2 days of starting the remedies. He has been feeling generally well and was ecstatic that he was getting well after a long time. We told him to reduce the Gabapentin if he desired to 750 mgs as he didn’t have any pain and there was no use for Gabapentin.
Stress was still high in his life. He said he would be going home in a few weeks and would be able to unwind and relax once there. He had been following the diet that was prescribed. His energy was better, but he still struggled to get through the day. He was advised to do a conscious relaxation technique (which involves checking in to your body, breathing deeply and being grateful for the things that were supporting your life in that given moment) at least 3-4x a day.
Hypericum 200c was prescribed once a day for 30 days and follow up scheduled for 2 months out.
2nd Follow-up
Patient had stopped taking Gabapentin altogether on his own as he didn’t want to be on it anymore and was feeling good. He continued to feel well with no pain or swelling except for an episode where he ate caramel popcorn and that brought on an episode. He also noticed that shrimp caused phlegm formation.
His energy was much better and he was happy that he could live his life again. He went scuba diving and experienced no pain or discomfort. All his generals were good. He felt calmer with the conscious relaxation technique and felt more attuned to his body and its needs. He went off all meat and animal products and had his cholesterol levels checked. He found that all the numbers were within range. He asked his doctor to take him off Lipitor and told him he wanted to try helping his body naturally.
His lipid panel was checked again in a month – numbers continued to be in the normal range and his physician gave him the green light to stay off Lipitor as long he stayed on the diet.
3rd Follow-up
Patient was followed by after 2 months. He had been off Gabapentin and Lipitor for over 2 months now and he had no pain or swelling in his chest or neck. He was excited to be off medications that he never thought was possible and to be pain free. Patient was discharged from our care at this time.
He sent us a note and an orchid plant as he was exuberant on his quick recovery through Homeopathy.
Homeopathic medicine is the gentlest system of medicine that not only heals, but also gives people their health and wellbeing back. Medicine is supposed to heal and not cause more diseases. Dr. Samuel Hahnemann, a conventional medical doctor to begin with, knew this and hence founded Homeopathy based on one of the principles postulated by Hippocrates to heal rather than mask diseases.
This case is an example of a gentle cure without creating more diseases. Diet and homeopathy can heal! Western medicine has its role in emergencies, but in most other cases Homeopathy trumps Western medicine any day.
Beautiful case, thank you for sharing!