Question explored with the scientific record
Does preganalin withdrawal give you night terrors
The short version: night terrors are a plausible withdrawal symptom, but the studies here never measured them directly.
The closest direct evidence is a 2024 commentary warning that psychiatric symptoms can follow sudden pregabalin withdrawal even at standard doses, and that the drug should be tapered, not stopped abruptly [1]. A case report shows how hard the rebound can hit: a 24-year-old on 4200 mg/day had withdrawal symptoms (insomnia, restlessness, anxiety) starting day one and a seizure on day three after stopping cold [4]. Insomnia and anxiety are the soil night terrors grow in, but neither record names night terrors.
What the retrieval does show is that pregabalin improves sleep when it is on board, which means removing it can unmask bad sleep. In 282 people withdrawing from long-term benzodiazepines, pregabalin improved every sleep measure, with the sleep summary score dropping from 55.8 to 25.1, a 55% change [2][3]. That is a within-group before-and-after, no control arm, so it shows association, not proof [2]. A separate 80-person survey found sleep disturbance in about 70 to 77% of users regardless of how they used the drug [5].
| What the records show | Finding |
|---|---|
| Psychiatric symptoms after abrupt stop | Possible even at standard doses [1] |
| Withdrawal timeline in one heavy user | Symptoms day 1, seizure day 3 [4] |
| Sleep score on pregabalin during withdrawal | 55.8 to 25.1, about 55% better [3] |
| Night terrors specifically | Not measured in any record here |
The honest gap: no retrieved study asked about night terrors by name. The mechanism fits, the timeline fits, and the sleep data point the same direction, but this is inference, not a measured rate.
My call: yes, night terrors are a credible withdrawal effect, especially after a sudden stop or a high dose, and tapering slowly is the sensible move. Confidence: low, because the specific symptom was never directly studied in these records.
Sources used 5
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Psychiatric Symptoms Following Sudden Withdrawal from the Drug Pregabalin
Doctors and pharmacy staff should be aware that psychiatric symptoms may occur after sudden withdrawal from pregabalin, even in standard-dose patients; doses should be tapered rather than stopped suddenly.
DOI: 10.23937/2474-3631/1510044 -
Effects of Pregabalin on Subjective Sleep Disturbance Symptoms during Withdrawal from Long-Term Benzodiazepine Use
Pregabalin treatment during benzodiazepine withdrawal was associated with clinically relevant improvements across all MOS Sleep Scale dimensions and the summary index, and these sleep improvements appeared partly independent of anxiety reduction.
DOI: 10.1159/000324850 -
PW01-241 - The Effect Of Pregabalin On Subjective Sleep Problems During Withdrawal From Long-Term Benzodiazepine Use
This study evaluates whether pregabalin used during tapering aids subjective sleep quality in adults withdrawing from long-term benzodiazepine use, reporting substantial MOS-Sleep improvements and correlations with anxiety and illness severity in a 12-week observational analysis.
DOI: 10.1016/s0924-9338(10)71648-5 -
SEİZURE TRİGGERED BY SUDDEN DİSCONTİNUATİON OF PREGABALİN: A CASE REPORT
A 24-year-old male with pregabalin dependence and no history of epilepsy developed a generalized tonic-clonic seizure three days after abruptly discontinuing chronic high-dose (4200 mg/day) pregabalin, with all investigations (labs, MRI, EEG) normal, and no seizure recurrence af…
DOI: 10.70846/nigdetip.1813909 -
Pregabalin Misuse and Associated Adverse Events: A Cross-Sectional Study in Libya
In a single-center sample of 80 adult pregabalin users, 57.5% reported non-medical use; non-medical use was associated with nausea, while sleep disturbance showed no significant association.
DOI: 10.54361/ljmr.19.2.38