Nuvigil Side Effects (Page 8)

I'm having severe side effects from nuvigil. Muscle and joint pain with numbness and tingling down my arms.

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I do and I just took my first dose of Nuvigil this morning. I'm ready to say its my new best friend, but after reading the various posts..I think I'll wait a few weeks and then decide. ;-)

I have some shortness of breath, but it is the same as what I feel when I use to get iv steroid treatments. I called my brother (he is a pharmacist) and he said the shortness of breath could go away in a few days. And I don't have any actualy chest pain.

I'll take a little shortness of breath in order to chase my 2 kids around and have fun any day! :-)

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I take it for MS fatigue too. Just started on Nuvigil today. My doctor wanted me to take Provigil, but insurance wouldn't pay for it until I've tried Nuvigil first.

Today, it worked great! I was able to run around with my kids at the beach and still feel able to walk upstairs tonight. I read the other posts about the negative side effects, so I'll keep all of that in the back of my mind.

I have some shortness of breath, but it is the same as when I would get iv steroid treatments. My brother (he is a pharmacist) says the shortness of breath may go away in a few days.

Why did you start on Provigil and change to Nuvigil? What do you think the differences are?

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I experienced the exact symptoms you did! My thigh muscles were is so much pain, I was having to shuffle my feet like an elderly person to walk! I have swelling in my tongue and brome out with a rash on arms face and chest. The worst is my hands won't stop shaking so I end up having to take Xanax to calm me down! So I Will NOT. Take this med again going to go to doc tommorow to discuss other options for extreme fatigue and sleepiness!

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Wow. It sounds like you have some sort of sensitivity to the drug, like an allergic reaction. I had that happen with a drug named Compazine many, many years ago. They had to give me valium to stop the muscle spasms in my tongue and face. I can't take that drug or any like it again.

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I experienced similar reactions, terrible muscle & joint pains. They have continued even after stopping the medication. I'm now working with a specialist who has me on chemo to try and calm the inflammation. I only now wish that I had never taken Nuvigil, it hs destroyed my life!

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I know this is an old thread, but I just wanted to clarify. Lopressor (metoprolol) is a beta blocker that is used to treat hypertension. However, many physicians use this medication to help treat anxiety (off label usage) as it lowers heart rate which can help with that anxious feeling. The doseage is smaller when used for this reason.

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I too started nuvigil x 3 days and started having my "sulfa" drug reaction. Clearing throat, swelling of tongue and difficulty swallowing. Besides now being tired on top of tired bc of having to take Benadryl and running into dead end after dead end ( side effects too from adderall and Dexedrine) I'm feeling like there is no hope or help! This med allowed me to be awake, productive and functional and now I'm screwed.

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it does that at first, but your body will build up a tolerance. but, for people that don't need the medication, its effects are probably amplified. or you might be on too high of a dosage.

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I am 59, I have very slight sleep apnea, some inflammation in my body, cluster headaches (I take Inderal for that), suspected fibromyalgia and hypothyroid. I have had tiredness maybe once every couple of week starting about 5 years ago and was diagnosed with low thyroid and I take Armour for that but it never helped the tiredness. About a year ago I started falling asleep at work maybe once a week and 6 months ago it started happening several times a week until I realized every morning and after I ate lunch I could not control being able to stay awake. I have done the sleep study and I do not use a C-pap, I’ve been tested for Lupus and that came back okay. So last week my doctor ask me to try Nuvigil (250 mgs)for a month, this is my 4th day. I had a throbbing headache on the left side of my head for 2 day better yesterday and today. I’ve noticed I am clenching my teeth so I have been really watching that today and the throbbing has gone away for the most part but comes back quickly when I stand or walk. I have also notice some seldom twitching of my lower legs. Yesterday for almost 2 hours I couldn’t keep my eyes open it was horrible. Anyway, I feel like I can complete my work but do feel like I am still tied, you know the feeling, your eyes feel weird and that slight fogginess and having some trouble coming up with words or even saying them. So far I have been taking my Lunesta and I have been sleeping pretty much like I always have, with no more or less quality sleep. I keeping a journal for this whole month and I want to give this some more time to see if it’s really worth some of the side effects I have now, hopefully they will lessen with time.

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Okay this is an update. I have been on Nuvigil now 2 weeks and it mostly stopped working on day 5. Before I started Nuvigil I was taking a 5 hour everyday and that would work for me and it lasted until the end of my work day. Now, I take the Nuvigil and I wait 1 then 2 hours and nothing so I take a 5 hour and I am good to go. I will continue to take until my doctors appt in 2 more weeks but I don't think that it will start working again. I do have more joint pains so the meds I am on for Fibro aren't working either. I read somewhere that someone else had this issue and it turned out to be Adrenal Insufficiency. I have suspected for years now that I have Adrenal issue and I have said something to the doctor who treats my thyroid but he keeps putting me off. I have had the saliva test done twice and it always comes back low in the morning/afternoon and too high at night; that's why I take Lunesta. Anyone else have this issue?

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Incredible muscle and joint pain, its great to feel wake, but the pain is incredible - I can hardly walk it hurts so bad.

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I have been taking Nuvigil 150mg for 6 days now for chronic fatigue syndrome and ADD. The side effects i am feeling are an even more pronounced inability to focus and racing thoughts. I want to start projects and then quickly lose my focus on them. (I am having trouble staying focused on writing this) The first few days i did not have these issues. I did have the headache and jaw clenching but those went away after the first few days to be replaced by this. It seems like i am also starting to forget to do small things like turning the burner off after i make tea. I do feel more awake at times but what good is that if you cant focus on anything. I do tend to get really sleepy (but cant fall asleep) after i eat a meal. I also seem to hear my heart beat a lot more its not going faster i am just more cognizant of it. I was on adderall and it worked i just didnt like some of the side effects and it lost its efficacy after a time and my pcp did not want to up the dose or put me on any other amphetamine. (He actually wants me to go see another psychiatrist but due to no health insurance its not an option). I also took ritalin for a time way back in high school and it seemed to have a similar effect with making my thinking. I am going to try and half my dose today to see if that helps at all but if it does not i may just give up on this medicine. I was wondering if anyone else experienced anything like this and also if they did and also used provigil if that was any better for them when they switched?

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Hello Conor,
Nuvigil caused me to be awake, but unable to do anything except stare into space. Provigil is actually very expensive now (it's an older drug) because the drug company wants people to use the new one. I went on Adderall and that seems to be working. I intensely dislike the effects Nuvigil had on me.

I have been wondering if the use or previous use of antidepressants causes fatigue.

My neurologist has advised me to not eat any carbohydrates during the day. Only protein (i.e., almond milk) and fat. For example, milk has lactose (a sugar) and fruit has fructose (a sugar) so I cannot have either of these during the day and it helps. Actually, not eating at all during the day helps me the most with the fatigue, but it's not good for my body. Also, the neurologist has suggested a brain reset; a 15 min. nap. This too helps.

I hope this gives you some help.

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First 2 days on Nuvigil, I wasn't overly anxious or super alert. I had a terrible headache that went completely down the back of my head and into my neck. Not sure the effects are worth it. I am 44 and very active, I don't want to lose that for joint pain.

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I have been on Nuvigil for 3 YEARS. I take it for excessive daytime sleepiness. I take a 150mg and 250mg tablet both in the morning and afternoon. I started at a much lower dose but eventually had to settle on this dose as it stopped working. I am a gastric bypass patient and my absorption of medications is different from those who have not had the surgery. I often have to take much more medication in order to get the same result.

When I first started taking it, I developed a blistering skin rash on my hands (which also spread to my feet). I went to the hospital but there was no known cause of the rash. The doctors did not put the use of the medication together with the rash. The rash went away in about a month and that was all.

Now, about three weeks ago, I developed another blistering skin rash on my hands. I have had additional symptoms, I am incredibly dizzy (I feel like my head is floating), I have had a sore throat and fever off and on and I just started getting shooting electric jolts down my left arm, and very intense muscle weakness. I feel like I have no energy and am unable to do the smallest tasks.

My doctor thought I had contracted shingles, but the lab tests came back negative. And so, being very perplexed I started doing some research.

I am concerned that I may be having an allergic reaction to the medication. I have been on it for so long I am afraid to stop taking it especially because of the sleepiness. I am dependent on the medication in order to function daily.

The doctors literally know nothing about the medication and its uses and effects. I have to manage my own healthcare and figure out what is the issue like I'm Sherlock Holmes. However I am reluctant to just stop the medication without the surety that this is the problem.

Someone please help. I don't know where to turn. I don't know who to go to. I don't know who to ask for the answer. The doctors, the hospital, every medical professional I have sought advice from is incapable of helping me to determine my health diagnosis.

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been taking nuvigiul for 2 years , it was great but now i am very nauseated, i take 450mg.

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31 female, taking Nuvigil for about 5 months now @ 250mg one morning dose. prescribed for fm fatigue. at first headache was only side effect that was bothersome. then severe episodes of numbness and tingling of the right arm and severe right side back pain, didnt consider it related to the nuvigil. now i have severe chest pains worsing with any movement and a constant diastolic bp over 100 and pulse rate just under the diastolic number even at rest! starting to worry about heart attack and stroke.

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My pulmonary dr put me on Nuvagil 250mg last Friday. I am disoriented and anxious. I have sores all over my mouth going down my throat now, my tongue is swollen and gums are bleeding. Horrible headache. Chest pains, Heart racing and blood pressure high. Had a very bad nosebleed. I live an hour from my dr. I called. My doc is out of town, and the dr on call said stop taking the med (duh) take Benadryl for the mouth, which he doesn't think is related. How long will it take this to wear off?

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20 female, college student. diagnosed 6months ago w/narcolepsy, no cataplexy (so far). only symptom i notice is EDS, but it was affecting my life to the point where i did overnight sleep study & mslt. Have had eds & difficulty staying awake for at LEAST 2 years. just started nuvigil 150 in the am. today is 2nd day on it. yesterday (1st day on nuvigil) AWFUL headache, nausea that resulted in dry heaving, and was very emotional crying until the early am. today (2nd day) woke up with horrible dry mouth which has lasted all day. woke up w/headache as well. called nurse who said to try taking tylenol. reduced headache severity. not sure if i should continue... did anyone with dry mouth have that side effect improve over time? headaches improve?

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I'm taking it now for ms been 7 days but have joint pain and its getting worse I might stop taking it

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