Insomnia
#80015 - 06/16/04 01:39 PM
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Wookie
Reged: 04/01/04
Posts: 247
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I am 27 years old and have struggled with insomnia since the age of 20. I was diagnosed with major depression by age 23 and my dr. put me on trazadone (for sleep) and zoloft (anti-depressant). Well a few months ago I got really super depressed and finally decided to go off the meds to see how I felt after 4 years of medicating. I am doing great!! My dr did tell me that the depression could lift in 4 years and it may or may not return later in life. So my only issue is sleeping now. I have tried melatonin and it works on me but it isn't good for people that are depression prone so I quit buying it. And valarian root had the opposite affect on me. Does anyone here have any recommendations for what may help them with insomnia? My body has built up such a tolerance to trazadone plus I am IBS-C and that causes constipation. Any advice is greatly appreciated!! Oh and I don't like the taste that 'sleepy time' by Celestial teas. 
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~Wookie 
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Hi Doe,
I think the most wonderful thing would be to fall to sleep immediately and stay in a deep sleep until the alarm went off. Unfortunately, that doesn't happen for me. I take Benadryl (OTC) and it does help me get drowsy and fall to sleep and sleep most of the night. But, a lot of the time I awake about 5AM and can't go back to sleep. Darn.....
I'm not a nap person either.
Did you see my post to you about the patient assistance program?
Barbie
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I second Barb's recommendation of Benadryl. Even my psychiatrist and her husband use it!!
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Laura
Keep it simple!
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Yes I saw your reply and I replied back..it is somewhere around here!  We must be very much alike because I don't fall asleep easily and I have been waking up wide awake between 4:30 am and 5:00 am. Ugh! I have been tired at work and it is really frustrating!! I had been taking benadryl too but got worried that I shouldn't take that every night. How many do you take? 2 don't do it for me anymore. I have thought about just not taking anything and just letting myself get super exhausted and maybe that would help me get on track again. But I just started a new job and I am trying to learn new stuff all day and it gets hard to keep up when tired. It is a real bummer!!! 
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~Wookie
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I did a lot of research on the web last year about sleep disorders and I seem to remember that warm baths just before bed actually worked in a clinical study!!
Just google insomnia or sleep disorder, you'll find tons of helpful ideas.
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Laura
Keep it simple!
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Really?? How much should you take? The thing is that 2 aren't doing it for me anymore. 
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~Wookie
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2 is the recommended dose I think. That's why I thought of the warm bath and other helpful hints I found on line. Just do a quick search, you'll be amazed how much you find.
Good luck, hon and sweet dreams!!
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Laura
Keep it simple!
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I only take 1 Benadryl or maybe 1 1/2. My doc said it is safe to take long term. Would it work if you took 1 to go to sleep and when you wake up take another one?? Only thing wrong, it might make you groggy when you have to wake up to go to work. Thank goodness, I am not working right now.
Try some of the things Laura Sue suggested. She has some pretty good tips. Also, some people on the board use valerian (herb) with good results. I've never tried that (fear of trying anything new).
Barbie
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Just FYI - I have problems sleeping too, and my doc said that Benadryl is pretty much the exact same thing as Tylenol PM. So I haven't tried it yet because I have some Tylenol PM left. 2 doesn't work for me either....actually one night I took 4 and still had problems! SO, I don't know. Honestly the best thing for me was Xanax, but I won't go back to depending on that again. So I'm kinda stuck too.  Not sleeping stinks.
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~Cara~
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Have you tried clacium & magnesium? I have had trouble sleeping in the past -- and started taking two citrical calcium plus magnesium supplements after my evening meal -- then the warm bath and that helped a lot.
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I do take magnesium citrate (2 per day). In addition to that, how much more magnesium are you taking? Are you IBS-C? I am..
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~Wookie
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Re: Insomnia
#80417 - 06/17/04 11:05 AM
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BL
Reged: 06/01/03
Posts: 3522
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You can build up a tolerance to Benadryl after awhile, and at that point, it takes more to make you sleepy.
Benadryl has the opposite effect on me---it makes me so hyper that I'm awake all night. I feel like I want to run a marathon---but I have bipolar disorder and a lot of meds that make others drowsy put me in a manic stage.
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Re: Insomnia
#80419 - 06/17/04 11:07 AM
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BL
Reged: 06/01/03
Posts: 3522
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Also, I forgot to mention that my doctor uses sleep as an indicator of depression. Lack of sleep---as well as too much sleep--- is an indicator of depression.
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WATCH OUT on valerian root. That stuff is a serious narcotic, and you should be really careful with it if you try it.
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