[Martin Reed]

I thought it would be interesting and useful for us to describe what (if any) medications we have been on for our insomnia and to evaluate those medications. It could give others new avenues to explore.

So, please share the medications you've tried, and what has worked (or not worked for you). I think this could turn into a very valuable resource.

—

If you are ready to stop struggling with insomnia you can enroll in the online insomnia coaching course right now! If you would prefer ongoing phone or video coaching calls as part of a powerful three month program that will help you reclaim your life from insomnia, consider applying for the Insomnia Clarity program.

The content of this post is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or any other licensed healthcare provider. Insomnia Coach LLC offers coaching services only and does not provide therapy, counseling, medical advice, or medical treatment. All content is provided “as is” and without warranties, either express or implied.

[Mike_Rane]

I have been prescribed to Seroquel and Trazodone. The seroquel was for bi-polar disorder and sleeping.

I started out with 100mg Seroquel, but that knocked me out like a rock and I could sleep for days. Not good when you have school and stuff to take care of.

After that I got prescribed to 50mg Trazodone. It did nothing for me. I would still be up all night. They then upped it to 100mg. It had its effects once it kicked in. It actually worked for quite some time, but after a while itjust stopped working. If I would take it and not sleep, I would hallucinate pretty bad. It was horrible.

I also have major depression, to which I am prescribed Celexa. That actually worked.

Before I was on anything, if I would sleep, it could be the brightest day out and Id hate it. It would seem dark to me, but once it started taking effect, I would wake up loving the sun ready to takeon the world. But they have both lost their effect.

I think the only thing that actually works, keeps me mellow and makes me sleep is pot….

anyone else agree?

Maybe Ill try for some medicinal marijuana.

😀

[emmaree]

I haven't taken anything other that herbal or natural medications for insomnia. Such as Barch flower Sleep Remedy. lavender under my pillow and I did go through a season of taking serotonin. But that didn't last to long. All this remedies worked for a period of time but not long lasting.

Right now going through a period when I'm up at about 3am and cannot seem to get back to sleep, so here I go again looking for something new!!

[tjkinkead]

Oh I have been on this merry go round.

First I used herbal remedies and for a short time they helped.

My doctor started off giving me Trazodone. And for a long time it worked. But then it stopped. It just stopped.

I took Lunesta for a while and it was OK but my insurance company must not have been getting a kick back on it because I got a letter telling me that they would not pay for it anymore.

I was ten forced into changing to Ambien, which did nothing. So we changed to Ambien CR. I thought that it was working OK, but my nighttime headaches got worse and I had trouble waking up in the mornings. Then one morning I found the whip cream sitting out on the counter, open and I figured out that the Ambien CR was making me sleep walk and sleep EAT.

Well it was off to the trash can with that one and my doc and I went back to basics.

Dealing with the chronic pain & my diabetes we went with combining Trazodone and Tizanidine. One without the other does not work, but for the time being the combination is helping.

Mind you, I have not slept through the night in years but I am getting more than before.

[seenafterscene]

For years, I've been playing musical chairs with sleep medications, and dabbled in herbal/natural remedies.

The problem with so many of the sleeping meds commonly prescribed (and that I've tried) from Trazadone to Seroquel, or I guess that should be from Seroquel to Trazadone–well, actually that's really dumb, because “T” follows “S” so I'm leaving out a lot of medications. Also, honestly, I have been on so many I kinda lose track. I should also add “Rozerem,” a newer, rather unique sleep medicine. So now that's R, S, T. Congratulations to me for leaving out the other 23 letters of the alphabet.

Neurontin was one recent (or rather recent…again) prescribed several months back when I was having a particularly bad bout. Despite my doctor's reassurance that I would not have that “next day grogginess/crappy” feeling, and despite the medical fact that it clears out of your system in, I think, 4 hours, I still got the same next day suckage.

Just about everything I tried falls into one of two categories: next day being almost worse off than having not slept, or….having not slept because the medicine or herbal remedy didn't really do anything.

There are two, and only two, medicines I have found that work and that don't leave me feeling groggy most of the entire next day: Ambien and Valium.

Of course, even as commonly prescribed as they may be, most doctors are reluctant to prescribe either one because of the fact people abuse them. I have done my fair share of abusing drugs and alcohol over the years, but I have always had a very strict rule of NOT abusing any medicine I am prescribed, the simple logic being that if I abuse it (and abuse can mean both “getting high” and “upping your dose when your tolerance kicks in”) then it won't work need it.

Currently, I'm on Ambien PRN. It is the generic one, which the talk of the interweb is that it, unlike a lot of generic medications, supposedly, people have been saying generic Ambien does not work as well. (Not due to the Ambien-CR extended release, just in general.)

I find it quite helpful, it actually works, and there is no feeling awful the next day.

However, that said, taking it as prescribed my psychiatrist, I very quickly (like, VERY quickly) built up a tolerance to the point where taking it was simply a waste of Brita water. So, basically, I use it as infrequently as possible, but during particularly bad bouts, my doctor has told me to take it more often, short-term. But again, even doing that, the tolerance kicked in rather fast.

That said, when I started I fell asleep fast, but now, even in my limited use, it takes more like 30-1 hr before I fall asleep.

As for Valium, that was pretty much the same story. No next-day “hangover,” get a full night's sleep, worked great until…it didn't.

Also, since I am now taking Valium's sibling, Klonopin for both anxiety and mood-stabilizing properties, I obviously can't take Valium any more for sleep as they are both benzodiazapenes, and that's just not that smart.

Question of the Day: Why is it so hard for people like us with serious insomnia to get something like Ambien or Valium, but all the pill poppers somehow manage to get it in bulk???

[WolfBitTink]

I have tried several different things, both otc & Rx. I have multiple diagnosis & have found that if I slack off in managing one they kinda start to feed on each other…especially the insomnia & fibromyalgia. Just to give ya'll a bit of background before mentioning my pharmacy worth of meds I have I'll give you just a short list of some of my disease collection in addition to 3 different types of chronic insomnia (I never realized that insomnia wasn't just insomnia til they told me that diagnosis!). I have had debilitating migraines for over 20 years, chronic cervicular radiculopathy (my root nerve that comes through between the c-6 & c-7 vertebratae has no cushioning around it, just 2 pieces of bone laying stacked on one another), I have fibromyalgia, multiple severe allergies, some more severe than others (i.e. latex, spiders, bees, & many laundry products cause severe reactions), also sciatica, arthritis (I'm 36 & have probably had this since my teens at least), and lupus.

Obviously to most of us I think, chronic insomnia deosn't mix well with chronic pain so some of the medicines serve more than one purpose as do many of my non-medicine adjustments I have med. The first & one of the most beneficial things for me both sleep & pain-wise was investing in making my bed perfect for me. A high quality bed & matress first, then my featherbedwhich helps to cushion my pressure points & molds itself to how I am laying that night. After the featherbed came the pillows- lots of them of varying firmness & fluffyness so that I can kinda customize the cushion to how I feel that day. Add high quality, super smooth 100% cotton sheets & my light but fluffy & warm comforter & I have a sanctuary for bad days & nights.

Being spring, I take 50-100mg Benadryl (Helps w/ sleep 60% of time) so that I don't wake up congested & sneezing durring the night. I take 50mg Elavil at bed time as a migraine preventative, 50mg Imuran for lupus related issues, 60mg Cymbalta for the fibromyalgia. For nueropathy I have 600mg Nuerontin which works great for nerve pain & can help w/ sleep but if you don't sleep til you wake up w/out an alarm it will cause the grogginess. I take ambien & restoril alternately & as long as I pay attention to what I take & in what doses.

More so. SwI have much more to share but my bed is calling my name.

[seenafterscene]

I know it's not a med, but I agree with you 110% percent WolfBitTink. (extra 10% was extra credit, because I did a project.) Lol.

And I'm sorry to hear you suffer from so many intermingling conditions. 🙁

Not to stray too far off topic, since this is the meds thread, but I cannot say ENOUGH about what a GOOD matress and pillow will do. You don't need expensive Memory Foam or top-of-the-line, but the best thing I did for my sleeping (and back and neck pain) was invest in an expensive (but reasonable) mattress. In fact, I used to travel a lot, and while some hotels I stayed at (the expensive ones) had awesome mattresses and pillows, others…not so much…and the results…not so good.

The best time to buy a “good” entry level quality mattress (I worded that poorly, but basically a lower-end premium mattress, instead of “whatever you inherited”) is when mattress and dept. stores have their end-of-year model sales. You can snag some awesome deals with mattress end-of-year clearance sales or mismatched box springs and mattress sets (which are really irrelevant since your sheets and comfortor/blanket should mask that anyways.)

[seenafterscene]

I just wanted to add one quick warning, because it is such a popular supplement and because so many people use it for insomnia, PLEASE folks, be careful and use Melatonin carefully. Much to the retread of tolerance factor, the same thing can happen with herbal/natural remedies. Melatonin is particularly tricky, versus say Valerian, because your body produces melatonin naturally and if you supplement it regularly, medical fact, your body will come to expect it in pill form and produce less which can cause all kinds of problems. I've experience this myself, and talked to several doctors who agreed, so please, just a word of caution, Melatonin is great (particularly for getting over jet lag) but be very careful about using it too often. All too often people assume herbal/natural remedies are completely safe and harmless, and often they are not, or worse.

[Martin Reed]

I couldn't agree more – I've actually written about 'natural' insomnia supplements and their side effects on our blog a few different times. Thanks for the reminder.

—

If you are ready to stop struggling with insomnia you can enroll in the online insomnia coaching course right now! If you would prefer ongoing phone or video coaching calls as part of a powerful three month program that will help you reclaim your life from insomnia, consider applying for the Insomnia Clarity program.

The content of this post is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or any other licensed healthcare provider. Insomnia Coach LLC offers coaching services only and does not provide therapy, counseling, medical advice, or medical treatment. All content is provided “as is” and without warranties, either express or implied.

[greenplant]

i've been on immovane on and off for the past number of years. currently i am taking it to help me sleep. it gives you a bad taste in your mouth and if you take it too late in the night it makes you super groggy the next day. but it works really well. i am disappointed each and every time i take it because i somehow feel like a failure everytime i put it in my mouth at night (after tossing and turning and saying to myself “just give it another 15 minutes”). I am on Trazodone but that does nothing so i am weaning off it. i slept marvelously well for a whole year and then spring time hit (which for me has always been a very difficult time of year) and it all went to shit.

so i am playing the waiting game now. have a doctors appointment next week and will see what she says.

[tschopm]

The combo of trazodone and Ativan works really well for me, although I can only take the trazodone if I have a solid 10-12 hours before I have to be alert. Melatonin works when I need a slight push, or need to fall asleep faster. Tylenol PM and Benadryl work when I get in that “OMG I HAVEN'T SLEPT FOR MORE THAN THREE HOURS A NIGHT IN LIKE TWO WEEKS AND I MIGHT JUST KILL SOMEONE” mood and just want to knock myself out for twelve hours. Also, I wish pot was legal in Pennsylvania…

Unfortunately, Lamictal, the medicine I'm prescribed to manage my Bipolar II, sometimes makes me feel like I've drank a little too much coffee. I try to take it as soon as I can in the morning, but I have a feeling that sometimes the reason I can't sleep is because of the Lamictal.

[seenafterscene]

'tschopm' wrote on '27:

The combo of trazodone and Ativan works really well for me, although I can only take the trazodone if I have a solid 10-12 hours before I have to be alert. Melatonin works when I need a slight push, or need to fall asleep faster. Tylenol PM and Benadryl work when I get in that “OMG I HAVEN'T SLEPT FOR MORE THAN THREE HOURS A NIGHT IN LIKE TWO WEEKS AND I MIGHT JUST KILL SOMEONE” mood and just want to knock myself out for twelve hours. Also, I wish pot was legal in Pennsylvania…

Unfortunately, Lamictal, the medicine I'm prescribed to manage my Bipolar II, sometimes makes me feel like I've drank a little too much coffee. I try to take it as soon as I can in the morning, but I have a feeling that sometimes the reason I can't sleep is because of the Lamictal.

Sounds like we really are similar, or rather have similar issues based on the last post I just & replied to of yours. I am back to using trazadone as my primary sleeping medicine with Klonopin as needed, which I usually don't like to take at bed time, and also Ambien as a back-up. Usually trazadone gives me a horrible next day grogginess, but for whatever fortunate reason, it hasn't been as bad this go around.

[Nicole]

Trazadone 150mg along with another anti-depressant worked great for me after trying Ambien, Ambien CR, and lorazepan with no luck. The problem is it stopped working after a couple years. My friend has been taking 100mg for several years and it still works for her. The hung over feeling does go away after a week or so so give it time. Good luck!

[Nicole]

curious, how did the seroquel work for you? My psychiatrist mentioned it, but I was reluctant because I was on Abilify, another anti-psychotic, before as add on treatment for depression and it made me fat and withdrawn. I've tried a lot of different pills and nothing is working so thinking of trying the seroquel, but scared to.

[Nicole]

Has anyone tried doxepin? I think it is the same thing as the sleeping pill Silenor. I tried 20mg last night and though it didn't work completely I think it may have helped a little? I'm wondering if I keep taking it if the sleep will continue to get better or if last night is the best I am going to get? Anyone have experiences?

[Author]

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