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Any sleep meds recommendation?

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Posted 7/9/2011 2:35 AM (GMT 0)
I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations for something that could help me fall asleep/ stay asleep without completely knocking me out until morning. I have three young kids and I am concerned that if they needed something in the middle of the night and I was on the wrong medicine I wouldn't be able to help them.

I have tried Tyenol PM and Flexeril but both leave me with that sleepy, unrefreshed feeling in the morning.

thanks in advance for any help!
Posted 7/9/2011 2:42 AM (GMT 0)
Hi mama, I'm from Australia so I'm not sure if you can get what I take where you are... I take a tablet called restavit which is an over the counter sleeper from the chemist, I only take a half a one and I am still able to wake through the night if I need too...and it doesn't have that hangover effect the next morning.....only thing is I don't dream anymore but not sure if that's a fibro thing or just me ....good luck and best wishes shannon
Posted 7/9/2011 5:44 AM (GMT 0)
 

Mamabee,

I highly suggest reading the sleep chapter from Jacob Teitelbaum's book, From Fatigued to Fantastic.  He discuses the pros/cons of different sleep meds in great detail.

 

Posted 7/9/2011 10:55 AM (GMT 0)
Shanny, you may still be dreaming, you just do not remember, and that's a good thing.  When we vividly remember our dreams, that means we are waking before our restorative sleep can kick in, which isn't a good thing.  So, your med is working better than you think. smilewinkgrin

I use melatonin nightly, 3mgs.  Some nights when I feel extra tired, which, to be honest, is every night.  Any ways, occasionally I take Klonopin along with my melatonin (with my neuro's approval) and I find I do sleep better.

Posted 7/9/2011 1:49 PM (GMT 0)
I take Lunesta, aka eszopiclone. It says it is not for long term use but my doctor is happy to leave me on it as it's working really well for me. I try not to take it every night. She put me on it because I had trouble staying asleep, not so much falling asleep, but now I have trouble with both. I am still able to wake up reasonably well when I'm on it, if the cats are really banging around or if hubby left the TV on. Only once so far have I woken up and felt particularly drugged up.
Posted 7/9/2011 2:18 PM (GMT 0)
I take ambien cr. It helps you to fall asleep and stay asleep. I still wake up if needed but sleep soundly if not. If I am having more pain than usual I will take the flexiril with it.

I don't wake feeling drowsy unless I take the pill too late.

Just be careful with sleep meds. some people have sleep walking issues with those type meds. Check interactions with other meds. My daughter cannot take sleep meds because she was a sleep walker as a child, And she is on medication that interacts with it.
Posted 7/9/2011 5:55 PM (GMT 0)
Look at natural ones. Most are scripts that can be addicting. Your body gets so dependent on them, ambien is one of the worse. I found out if I do the following it helps my sleep. Go to bed near the same time, no naps, no caffeine, book then listening to some calm music. We have it very dark in room with a fan. It took some time to get me there, but it's working.
Posted 7/9/2011 7:41 PM (GMT 0)
Hi-

You might want to consider a sleep study...different sleep problems have different solutions. Fibro sleep sucks!!

Maggie
Posted 7/9/2011 9:17 PM (GMT 0)
Klonopin works well for me...I was on one for a couple of years, when I was really stressed caring for my parents, and now a half for a couple more. Would like to eventually eliminate it (and all prescrips!) eventually, but we'll see.

Debbie
Posted 7/10/2011 1:48 AM (GMT 0)
I take 2 amitryptaline (sp?) and it helps somewhat, not great, but I don't feel drugged on the morning. If I don't allow myself enough time to sleep then I can feel more tired than usual when I first get up (not spacey or drugged), but it goes away. I try to allow myself at least 7 hours of sleep (well, 7 hours in bed trying to sleep, anyway).
Posted 7/10/2011 2:12 AM (GMT 0)
Thank you to everyone's replies. Good to know that even prescription sleep meds don't completely knock you out. I was always worried about that. I think I will try some of the suggestions though before going the prescription route.

And you can't take sleep meds if you slept walk as a child? I had no idea, I was a sleepwalker as a child! Yikes!
Posted 7/10/2011 2:33 AM (GMT 0)
Fibromyalgia Network News printed an article about a study done recently on FM patients using a "cocktail" of melatonin 5 mg, zinc, and magnesium. I use to take Ambien, and then Ambien, Ativan and Flexeril. I eventually weaned off all of them. I didn't sleep walk, I sleep ate. Well, I knew I was doing it, just couldn't stop myself. Anyway, I am off all of them and only use the cocktail and I sleep really well. Only thing: My rheumy told me to get off the melatonin...he recommended one month on the cocktail and then one month off of it, possibly taking something else. He claims that if you take Melatonin continuously, your body/brain will stop producing the hormone (melatonin is a hormone that is produced in the pineal gland) and eventually you will have even more trouble getting to sleep. So, I have listened to him and so far, pretty good.
Posted 7/10/2011 3:20 AM (GMT 0)
Hi deb, maybe your right I might be sleeping well because before I started the sleepers I used to have vivid horrible dreams and be awake half the night, so maybe it is a good thing not to dream thanks for that info, by the way can you buy melatonin OTC or is it a prescription drug thanks Shan
Posted 7/10/2011 12:33 PM (GMT 0)
I used to take ambien and it was addictive but it did the job. Puts you to sleep almost immediately. I am now taking neurontin, and it controls my pain and helps me sleep too. It's a better choice than a sleeping pill.
Posted 7/10/2011 11:31 PM (GMT 0)
NOW brand herbals has a great one that works like ambien. It's called Nite Time Herbs.
Works great!!
Posted 7/10/2011 11:52 PM (GMT 0)
I use ambium as a last resort and it works great. I also am on magnesium, zinc, and melatonin every day.
Posted 7/11/2011 2:37 AM (GMT 0)
Hey there Mama, I was taking something calleld Sleep Assurance, got it from the Vitamin shoppe..it is a time released melatonin and worked pretty good. I have recently been taken off the Cymbalta ( too expensive) and they put me on an old school anti depressant called trazodone. Another benefit of the trazodone is sleep. that stuff allows me to sleep solid. I don't wake up hungover and when my grandkids were here I was able to wake up to check on them..turn the tv off...all that stuff parents and grandparents do. and was able to go right back asleep. ask your doc..

I wish you well and hope you find something, because as we all know sleep is a major part of this illness...

speaking of sleep..good night all...

FibroNana/Jerrie
Posted 7/11/2011 3:06 AM (GMT 0)
Ambien scares me now. I used to take it and I started doing strange things in my sleep but what took the cake was that I was the caregiver to my Gma who had bladder cancer (went thru chemo, radiation) and she also had Alzheimer's. I took an ambien one night and because my Gma was having issues, I had to have my husband take us to the hospital because she couldn't urinate. I honestly have no recollection of being at the hospital AT ALL. I remember going there and then poof! Memory gone. I never took Ambien again. Now I use the OTC sleep aids such as Tylonel's Simply Sleep or Unisom. Melatonin does absolutely nothing for me.
Posted 7/11/2011 4:25 AM (GMT 0)
I started using Ambien 5mg 6 years ago and was able to get to sleep. Then 3 years

ago I started using trazodone 25mg to stay asleep, but would wake up groggy.

Then a month ago a new fibor doctor suggested I try gabapentin, 100mg, instead of

the trazodone. Works wonderfully well, I am able to get into a deeper sleep and am

feeling good for the first time in 3 years.

We are all different and just need to keep trying until we find something that works.

I've never had any side affects from the ambien and so far none from the low dose

gabapentin.

Sharon

Posted 7/11/2011 3:28 PM (GMT 0)
I agree with Sharon, it's all about what works for you. Many of the medications here are habit forming, meaning you could have more insomnia when you discontinue them, but it could be worth it if the med helps you a lot.

I have had a lot of success with melatonin. I take a tiny dose - .3 mg. That is the strength all the clinical trials for sleep were done with. To get a dose that small, I use Natrol Melatonin liquid. One dropper is .25mg, so I use a dropper full plus a tiny bit more. It is a very different effect than most sleep meds - it doesn't knock you out, but I find I begin to get a little sleepy, and when I get into bed it's much easier to get to sleep and stay asleep. Of all the sleep meds I've tried, it is definitely the one that I'd take if I had small children to take care of.

I've also had a lot of luck with Trazodone. It definitely doesn't work for everyone, but it's a good option if you are looking for something non-habit forming.
Posted 7/11/2011 3:52 PM (GMT 0)
I have gotten up and helped myself to some food during the night. Usually about a 1/2 hour after taking the Ambien. But, if I leave a small drink and snack by my bed I will not get up. I don't really know why this happens.

My daughter has a totally different reaction. She gets hyper active and does all kinds of crazy things. The one time she took Ambien she fell down the steps, fought off the red people, made her face up like a street ****** and tore all the keys off her lap top. I sat up with her till her hubby got home because she would not stay in bed and I was afraid she would hurt herself. The doctor said that if she had that reaction she will always have that reaction. So, she has to rely on tylenol pm to help her sleep if needed. Usually she doesn't have a problem sleeping, good thing for her. That was a terrible experience.

If you have any kind of sleep walking issues I would never take a sleep med unless you have someone that can watch out for you if you should have this same type reaction. This will especially happen if you had a habit of sleepwalking as a child.
Posted 7/11/2011 4:18 PM (GMT 0)
I take no medications...natural or otherwise.  I just put myself on a sleep schedule and now, when my head hits the pillow, I'm asleep in minutes.  I do have a TV on and that helps, too.  But I go to bed around the same time every night and get up around the same time every morning.  I don't even need an alarm clock!  This really does help many people.  With three young children, this could really work well because you have to be so tired right before bedtime.  I have three children and, when they were young, I fell into bed by 10 PM.

Sherrine 

Posted 7/11/2011 4:41 PM (GMT 0)
Dear Mama

I used seroquel (for my major depressive disorder) 100mg for 6 years. It works very well BUT, it is a scary drug w/ scary side effects pplus very expensive. If you do have depression or bipolar issues, it might be an option. If you don't, take take the cahnces.

I recently had a sleep study and surprisingly, doc put me on a CPAP machine for apnea and klonopin for my severe RLS....if you have RLS in the evening, you probably have PLMD during sleep. This wakes you up, but you don't know why you woke up.

As I said fibro sleep is a major issue, so a sleep study could help isolate and treat your particular issue.

Good luck and Happy Dreams

Maggie
Posted 7/13/2011 12:53 AM (GMT 0)
Ambien frightens me. My husband once took it and proceeded to walk downstairs, get on Facebook and friend 200 people and send nonsensical messages. When I asked him what he was doing he said he didn't know why all his friends were gone which was right about when I discovered he was actually signed onto MY Facebook account. He then proceeded to delete about 60 of MY ACTUAL friends in an attempt to fix the problem. I spent half the day, trying to explain to my real friends why I didn't mean to delete them while looking like some weirdo wife who just randomly friends her husband's co-workers and old high school friends that she's never met. Awesome.
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