Feedback on Soma Side Effects and Usage, page 10
About Soma
If you’ve used Soma, please help others by adding your feedback. What would you tell your best friend about this product? Please remember that we do not give medical advice. That is for your local health care provider, who is familiar with your medical history.
Subj: Falling at work
Date: 1/7/2007
I have been taking soma (350) once a day at night. About 7 days after I started taking it I started falling at work. I would be walking and my legs would give out—and I would fall. After 4 falls, I was told that I could not return to work until I found out why I was falling, I am sure it has something to do with taking soma!
Connie
AskDocWeb: Dizziness and vertigo have been reported with Soma usage and are considered adverse reactions. Please consult with your doctor.
Subj: Long term Soma usage
Date: 1/10/2007
I have been taking soma for about 8 months due to a back injury on a jet ski. The Soma seems to really help but a friend of mine said that long term use could cause central nervous system damage. Is that true?
Jennifer
AskDocWeb: This drug can cause several problems with your central nervous system, even short-term. Dizziness, vertigo, ataxia (coordination and balance problems), tremor, agitation, irritability, headache, depressive reactions, syncope (fainting), and insomnia have been observed. Since this is the cold season, you should ask your physician before taking any over the counter cold remedies.
Subj: Soma question
Date: 1/16/2007
Does soma thin your blood?
Rachelle
AskDocWeb: No, there are no serious blood dyscrasias attributed to Soma.
Subj: Detox at home from soma?
Date: 1/22/2007
PLEASE let me know if it is safe to detox (at home) from 20+ soma per day. Are there any meds I can take to lessen the withdrawal symptoms? I did try to detox 2 weeks ago and felt like I was dying. Is this dangerous to do at home? Desperate!
Jasmine
AskDocWeb: It would be much safer to be under the care of a physician. They can help alleviate your symptoms.
Subj: Soma is a safe medication
Date: 1/23/2007
I am soon to be 30 next week and I have Rhuematoid Arthritis, Fibromaylgia, and tentanitis (I am sure I have more health issues but this is the main problems apparent). I have been seeing the doctors for the past 5 years relating these issues. I started out taking Soma and due to my personal concern of addiction I have tried other pills as well. I have found that the other pills they prescribe tend to be more addicting because they wear off too easily and I always seem to have to ingest more. With Soma I never have to take too much and I don’t even have to take them every night. I think there are 3 nights a week where I actually take 2 pills and on the worst night I could have I have taken three. I rarely take any during the daytime. I have found it helps me relax my muscles enough and relieves the pain enough to sleep somewhat comfortably. I go through tougher times but find that during my healthier moments I don’t feel a need to take the medication. My Dr says that at my age and with my health problems I need to mentally learn how to cope with the pain. I suggest to those of you that abuse this med or others to try relaxation techniques and even just lay down and breathe slowly. It is the only thing that keeps me sane on painful nights. And in my opinion Soma is a very safe medication for muscle tension.
Lindsay
Subj: Weight Gain Or Depression?
Date: 1/24/2007
It has been posted here that Soma causes weight gain. That is incorrect. The poster is also taking Xanax and it is well documented that antidepressants such as Xanax, Elavil, prozac and the like have the nasty side effect of weight gain and there are several boards online for how to deal with weight gained from those meds. Note: it is extremely difficult to drop weight gained from antidepressants. I have had to take Soma off and on for close to two years now and in the beginning it was a nice little high after weeks/months of pain which can get to you emotionally. But after awhile the ‘high’ wears off and it still works on my symptoms but I, as well as anyone else, need to make the mature decision to take the dosage prescribed to me by my doctor. As a back patient, my weight loss or gain is something very critical to my overall well being and keeping my weight down keeps less work on my back and less pain. Logical, yes, but the only affect Soma has on this plan is if I start taking it early in the day I feel ‘relaxed’ and pretty much want to lay around and be a slob all day, every day for weeks on end and then, yes, I’ll gain weight. So I take it ‘as needed’ which is usually by days end and before bedtime. One effective alternative to Soma is Flexeril but it has a heavy sedative so I took it only at night and sometimes only 1/2 a pill. I don’t like it because it is very difficult to ‘wake up’ and snap out of it after a night on flexeril so I do prefer Soma.
Additionally, Soma does fall in the crack between the rock and hard place for depression. Long term use depletes seratonin levels which effect mood level and can cause depression so some doctors will prescribe low doses of antidepressants to combat this side effect thus we swing back around again to the weight gain from the antidepressants. I have had to battle that cycle so I keep my doses of soma to a minimum and it still works for me. I believe that the misconception that the medication ‘Soma’ causes weight gain may have come from the biological explanation of “The Soma”, or the cell body, the largest part of the neuron. It regulates and controls the metabolism. It is important of patients wishing to maintain a healthy lifestyle and unfortunately attempt to do so as a patient taking soma to understand the difference between a pill and the parts of a cell that composes the nervous system yet lives under the same name. The two are unrelated.
Mrsconti
Subj: Soma for 5 years
Date: 2/1/2007
I have used generic Soma for 5 years following a serious car accident. I find they work great for the muscle spasms, as I have to sit at a desk all day for work–I find the only way I can do this is to take a Soma. I take maybe 2 more a day before I go to the gym. I have found however, that they do cause weight gain, and that the effectiveness of them has decreased the longer I have taken them. I don’t feel they are addictive, I know others who have been prescribed them, and they have not had any effect on them at all-then on the other hand, someone who took 2 and acted as drunk as if they’d had 3 martinis. Hated the feeling. Be careful, use them as prescribed, and truly, ONLY when needed.
JO
Subj: What does Soma do?
Date: 2/1/2007
What does soma actually do to the muscle? Does it just relax it? I take it for fibromyalgia. Have been taking it for years. Use to take one at a time now I have to take 1 1/2 at a time. Because of fibro I wake up in pain w/ muscle stiffness. Is soma helping me in that area or hurting me? Thank you, Jackie
Jackie
AskDocWeb: Soma is a muscle relaxant and it’s helping you. It relaxes muscles by blocking interneuronal activity in the descending reticular formation and spinal cord.
Subj: Too many Somas
Date: 2/6/2007
My boyfriend took somas and took to many and soon began to shake and became very upset.
nameless
Subj: Soma death
Date: 2/12/2007
I would like to comment on the drug soma…about 11 years ago, my mother gave me a few. They seemed like a perfect drug to east the tension from an old back injury…what I didn’t know is she was taking about 20 to 30 soma’s per day…we found her dead from soma overdose a few years back. The real problem I am having now, is, I too, am addicted to soma’s and having tolerance built up, I also can take at least 20 in a 24 hour period…having never been addicted to anything in my life and knowing full well my mother’s autopsy results. I continue to “need” these pills. Please people, do not end up a statistic as my mom, and possibly myself…having dabbled in drugs early, I must say this is the worst…the terrible part is I forget how many I’ve taken, and many times have walked around for hours for fear of falling asleep and not waking up as said in an earlier comment, the heart is a muscle…too much relaxation of the heart will kill…I know, I witnessed it and also living it…with all my heart, I pray each and everyone of you who reads this comment will take note and get off of it…I seem to be a fine one to talk but this may be the last entry I make, should I not stop this horrendous habit.
GG
Subj: Drug test
Date: 2/14/2007
I feel a friend thought she was helping me and gave me just 3 soma and now I have a drug test, what should I do?
Ananda
AskDocWeb: If it’s to test for illegal drugs then you don’t have anything to be concerned about, Soma isn’t on the list of drugs that cause a false positive.
Subj: Soma experience
Date: 2/15/2007
I have used Soma/Carisoprodol periodically for about 30 years (I’m 67). Until about 3 1/2 years ago I always had some in my home in case I had a “gridlock” back episode, and most of the prescriptions I wound up throwing away, unused and expired. But, when I had an episode, taking no more than 2 to 2 1/2 a day helped me get through it and resume my normal life. I’ve never even taken 3 per day, which is how most of my prescriptions were written. More than 2 just turned me into a zombie, which can be OK for 1 or 2 days, but beyond that length of time, something is seriously wrong with anyone who wants to feel like that.
About 5 years ago I started having more frequent problems with my back and 3 1/2 years ago I broke my ankle and totally freaked, panicked about what would happen if I had an episode while my ankle was on the mend. Since the ankle break I’ve taken Soma every day, hoping to ensure that a back episode wouldn’t occur. Typically, I’ve taken 1 pill per day, and occasionally 1 1/2. I also take around 1600 mg of acetaminophen and 200 mg of Celebrex each day, all of which scares the hell out of me.
On January 1 I had a dreaded back episode (the last one was in early 2001!) and I was terrified. I’ve lived on the upper level of my home since the ankle break, have no family at all, and have used home health aides since then, costing me over $30,000! I increased the Soma dosage (reluctantly) to 2 per day for about 2 weeks. I also took 3 Celebrex instead of 2. I have been cutting the Soma back ever so slightly for weeks and am down to 1 1/3 per day (I cut them with a pill cutter). I am very sensitive to all meds and really dislike taking anything.
I think Soma is potentially very dangerous, especially to individuals who are prone to addiction, as has been frequently and intelligently pointed out here over and again. I won’t even get into the medical establishment and how much carelessness and inconsistency exists across the board regarding the use of drugs. I know how scary and emotionally debilitating pain can be, and I’m sure my pain is nothing compared to what some people have to endure or try to relieve. But, anyone who is taking Soma every day and certainly every day at more than 3 per day is probably addicted and that addiction will manifest itself in a variety of ways and present a variety of problems to those who attempt to stop the drug. I simply cannot imagine how anyone other than an addict could tolerate more than 3 of those little pills per day.
I feel as though the prescriptions and OTC drugs I’m taking now are hurting me, but I’m afraid to stop them because of the way I’ll feel when I do. I very much agree with the person who mentioned all the so-called legal drugs and the problems they are causing for so many people. Hardly a day goes by when some well-known person isn’t mentioned on TV news who’s in rehab for Vicodin or some other pain medication. It’s very scary business. And, on the other hand, many in the medical community have no idea how to treat pain and withhold desperately needed drugs. In closing, I firmly advise everyone to use every part of their brain when taking any kind of drug, OTC and prescription alike. Regardless of what the docs say. It’s your body. And in the end you’re the one who has to deal with it. Use caution at all times. Use your common sense about Soma! Soma is a drug that druggies sell individually on the street. A lot of druggies like it a lot, so I’ve read and heard. That should tell you something.
Julie
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