Gabapentin. It is my prescribed pain killer at the moment. It wasn't yesterday, but it is today. Let me explain.

I went to a Pain Clinic group hug the other day. Following on from the nerve killing (more like nerve irritating and getting them jolly mad!) injection, my follow up appointment was a group session in the Centre for Pain Management. A sort of group hug if you like, but we were presented details of how they (the Pain Clinic) could help us manage our pain. We were told in no uncertain terms that they would not get rid of our pain, but help us come to terms with it. Good Grief! I've been in pain since I was 14, 38 years ago, I think that I have learned to come to terms with it by now. But anyway, I will try anything, I have nothing to lose. Back to the hug, there was a psychologist there (!), a nurse and a previous 'graduate' of the programme. I listened, but mostly to the other patients. I had to suppress my smiles at one other inductee when she complained about her co-codamol. Good Lord, I mean, my pain went beyond co-codamol twenty years ago. Bless, she was new to it all.

One snippet did make sense though. A fellow inductee mentioned that she wouldn't take gabapentin because it caused memory loss. PING!!! Yvonne and Hannah have 'complained' to me recently that I haven't done things they asked, such as use up some specific food stuffs when I make tea. I had completely forgotten it, and on several occasions too. The nurse confirmed that memory impairment was a major side effect of Gaba.

Right, so I came straight off it. That was Tuesday. Wednesday was okay, and I thought, hey, I can handle this. Thursday I hurt and ached in places that I had forgotten existed. Yesterday, (Friday) I could hardly move with the pain. It obviously takes a few days to work out of the system, and boy, do I now know how much pain it suppressed.

Sod the memory loss, give me my gaba!

Sorry, what was I saying?