Ambien CR or Trazodone?

[mark43brewer]

When I left detox last week for fentanyl abuse the doc gave me a script for Trazodone(50mg/tab).  It is to help you sleep and not supposed to be addictive.  I have been feeling **** no energy, and really hung-over each morning.  I have prior script for Ambien CR(12y. mg).  Any idea which one would be best for me to use without triggering anything and to feel better in the mornings?

[outotown]

With the trazadone I feel worthless the next day no energy and so on, but im on 3x more than you. Ambien when i take it i feel as if i came to rather than waking up. But were all diff. and what one does to me might make you feel diff. If it was me i would get the ambien and try it see what you like best. good luck

[jollyman069]

I am 55 days clean from morphine and percoset addiction. I was given the ambien and it didnt do athing, wide awake all night, so my dr. gave the same scrip of trazodone that you have. It works well and it has gotten better with the next morning. I to had no energy and groggy, but I guess my body has gotten use to it. I get about 6 to 7 hours of sleep a night. I hope this has helped you, or answered any questions you had...brian

[Courtney85]

I also have a script for trazadone and when I first started I took a whole tab and OMG the next day was like an awful hangover for sure! But then I started breaking it into 3 pieces and taking 1 little peice a night and now when I do take it (which is not very often) I take half a pill. So try that instead of a whole pill and allow yourself MANY hours of sleep before you have to get up for the day just incase of those hangover effects until you get use to the medicine. Good luck, hope this helps!

[Courtney85]

Also forgot to say it IS a good sleep aid when you cant sleep, it helped me so much through the night when I tried to go c/t off useing (just couldnt handle through the daytime aches and pains and crawling skin without starting a treatment program!) But this medication is great if you have the time to devote to sleep to recover in the morning to get out of bed and take a low enough dose to not let it give you a bad hangover. Good Luck :)

[TysonRed]

I have tried trazodone in the past and it did help with sleep but for some reason it gave me terrible headaches the next day or sometimes that night. As for ambien it never really worked that good for me and it has the potential to be much more habit forming than trazodone. I would give the trazodone some more time to see if your body starts to deal with the hangover effects a little better before you go back to ambien cr. In the past one thing that did work for me was remeron(mirtazapine 15-30mgs), along with melatonin. The remeron is an anti-depressant that alot of doctors prescribe to help with sleep, it doesnt really do much as far as alleviating any depression issues. I have to say that the mix of remeron and melatonin really worked the best without any negative side effects. Now were all different so who knows what will work best for you, but if you dont like trazodone you may want to look into the remeron before you go with a traditional Rx sleep aid. I wish you all the best with your recovery, I hope you find something that works for you. Take care.

[ollie126]

Hey man i just signed on to this thig but i was on both at one time in the past. The ambein made me all groggy in the mrn but it worked well. The trazodone i thought worked fn great. I was taken 100mg at night and it was getting me about 6 hrs solid sleep. I was going thru some depression stuff at the time too. I just got divorced, lost my house that i built ..im a carpenter, My two girls i hada fight for joint custody, lost my trucks and basically my life. So they put me on Cymbalta and the trazadone. The traz also helps with some pain aid as well. So it depends on why u gotta sleep...u know. Are u in pain or just wanna knock the hell out? Hey read my question bro and ul understand where im coming from. Everyone is different too...U know that. I just got off the fentall patch too...im all messed up. Its ur call kid. Get backto me OLLIE

[minim]

I too have both trazodone and ambien cr- When I was going through the WDs i would switch off every other night- the ambien is def the best (would def keep me asleep for 7 hours) but out of fear of addiction to it I would take the trazodones every other night- they wouldn;t work as well- but they wouldn't make me feel any worse then I already did.
My advice- use the ambien on a night you know you are going to need sleep....

[worried878]

ambien has a very short half life//so less likely by far to give u medicing head in the am..it is possible to abuse ambien...i never have but have heard of it being done///and less likely with trazodone..of the 2 i would choose ambien

[chanandalerbong1]

hey there. i was prescribed trazadone and its actually an antidepressant as well as a sleep aid. it definitely will knock most people out, but i have to agree the groggy feeling in the morning is overwhelming most of the time. i hated it.  if you dont like it, dont take it. thats my rule of thumb especially with sleep aids. the ambien CR can also cause the groggy feeling in the most because of its two part release... if you dont like this i would ask the doctor for regular ambien either 5mg or 10mg. its the only sleep aid that works well for me. helps me sleep and aside from the fact that im always fatigued because of other problems, i never have that hang over feeling from it. im not a doctor,but it is just a suggestion  because i have had experience with both the traz and the CR.  some people also say that ambien, whether its regular or cr makes them do weird things like sleep walk or sleep eat or sleep sex. lol wouldnt my husband love that one. J/K!!  or am i? haha. ok now im getting silly, but i hope that helped you! good luck.

*Kristen*

[lady67]

I have been clean from ambien for 487 days and it has been the best thing I have ever done in my life.  I began taking the Ambien because I was sitting up with at night with my father while he was in the hospital.  After sitting up all night, I found if virtually impossible to sleep during the day without it. Needless to say, before I knew it, I was completely hooked to the point of taking it, going to bed, waking before it was out of my systm and doing everyday things without realizing I was still asleep.  This is where the problems arose.  Within 2 months, I wrecked 3 times, gained about 25 pounds from sleep-eating, and carrying on more conversations than I care to think about.  

My suggestion is to be very careful with any kind of sleeping meds.  I know everyone is different, and only you know how your body will react to these meds.  Be careful and good luck.
~Susan

[jillian6]

I tried Trazadone twice and I always felt almost drunk on it though it did help with sleep.  I'm also bipolar and that's another reason I tried it.  Gained weight and hated the drunk feeling so I switched to Ambien CR.  I've been taking it for awhile now - I personally don't feel addicted to it nor do I abuse it.  I'd choose the Ambien CR any day.  Hope this helps.

[Katnj]

Congrats on getting off the fentanyl,how much and how long were you  on it?I've been on 150 every 48 hrs for 3 yrs but have been on it for 8 yrs altogether,I  don't think I'll ever get off of this **** and it's doing e more harm now then good I think.As for the trazadone,without it ,I would never get a good night sleep,although anything less than eight hours of sleep while taking will make you feel groggy and like a hangover.The key is making sure you allow yourself enough time to get up  and get moving in the morning.I definitely can't just get up  and go since taking it but I feel as thi it really does help me sleep..Good Luck with your recovery

[chanandalerbong1]

on another note, yes sleep aids can become habit forming, but it is EXTREMELY rare. again like i said before, just trust what your body is telling you. usually people with another addiction such as opiate addiction are not likely to get hooked on sleep aids because it does not ive the desired high feeling. just puts you to sleep. again im not saying it cant happen, but it is extremely rare. i was afraid to take sleep medicines because of this reason, but once my doctor told me how unlikely it was for me to become addicted and the brain chemistry behind it, i felt much better about it and got a good night sleep! so, if the habit forming chance is an issue in your mind i would talk to your doctor. ask them everything. as corny as it sounds "knowledge is power" the more you know the better off you are. there are a lot of other options though. they didnt work for me but lunesta is an option and there are the natural thing like valerian root. stinks but it does have a really nice calming effect. get your info, you will make the right decision.

*Kristen*

[day5]

If you have been addicted and are honest about it, you will not be allowed to prescribe medicine.  I was dating a neurologist until she proved to me she did not know a thing about drugs other than what she was told and studied.  In short, if you never boxed, your not gonna give the best boxing advice.  I agree with listen to your body, but you are dead wrong in your belief that sleep aids, namely ambien, are non-habit forming.  My suboxone dr. told me I would have little or no w/drawals.  Your dr. can talk brain chemistry all he wants.  Why would the reps. or mfgrs. say anything negative about their drug.  Sleep aid addiction is very real.  I would inject 60 of them in a matter of days.  Of course if you are not pre-dispositioned to abuse, you would not be reading this, but people with no experience give lowsy advice.  Look at all the posts of the shear terror, blackouts and horror Ambien and Ambien CR facilitate.  I would bet that your EXTREMELY rare comment gave many struggling addicts an excuse to take more drugs.  Look what happens to your sleep pattern after you take those for a couple weeks.  Please, re-consider your advice, you may have directed someone down a road other than abstinece.  Recovery is not about managing drugs, it is about managing your life without drugs.

[day5]

Correction;  My break-up with the Dr. was not because of her lack of understanding addiction, she got pissed I wouldn't sleep with her and racked up about 400 dollars on my check card.  Point being, Dr.'s are as human as they come.  Just because they have those extra letters before and after their birth name, just because they test well and make alot of money, does not mean they give good advice all the time.

[chanandalerbong1]

that is your opinion. my doctor, who also happens to be a good friend of the family, knows what they are talking about. just because someone has an addiction doesnt mean they will get addicted to EVERYTHING. and i didnt say that if sleep aids arent your drug of choice you cant become addicted. of course it happens, but after going through recovery there is a difference between being scared of every single prescription and being responsible about what your doing. if your an opiate addict, but you have a sleep disorder and make the decision to take a sleep aid that does not mean that you are no longer sober or headed for disaster and that is a terrible insinuation to make about anyone! aside from that- each person is responsible for their own actions. its called taking responsibilty, a HUGE part of recovery. im not talking about addiction as a disease im talking about using a forum to make excuses for yourself to justify a binge on any drug. many people, specifically those who have chronic pain and/ or a sleep disorder need the prescription help. and getting clean doesnt mean that you should feel guilty for taking what you need to  have some kind of quality of life. and its comments like yours that make people terrified to seek help. there is a huge difference between abuse of prescription drugs to get a high and taking them because you actually need them for a medical reason. to even try to group the two together and make anyone feel guilty for taking their meds is just ignorant. its up to each individual to do the research and make a decision with their doctor as to which route they take. in fact i do believe that is mentioned somewhere in the rules of this forum- you know, the part about not using this forum to make your medical decisions and that we are not doctors. people deserve to have ALL sides of the story. not just one side. not every one person is the same as the next. which is why this is an open forum for everyone to speak!  im sorry if you had a bad experience with doctors or sleep aids, but that doesnt mean everyone else will. its the same thing with suboxone. it saved my husbands life, literally. by only talking about the negative aspects may just scare someone so badly that they just keep using because they feel they have no other choice. to group EVERY  addict into one category and to give advice based on one persons experience is not fair to people who want the full story.  so maybe you are the one who needs to think twice about being nasty and judgmental in a post.  you have perpetuated the idea that its not ok to get any kind of prescription help and also that if god forbid someone has something to say that does not represent your personal views they will be attacked and are wrong because you say so. this is not about calling people names or suggesting that they have commited some kind of sin, its about telling people what you know to be true. i find it amusing to think that anyone feels they have some authority or power over another person because they disagree with you. i dont even know why im indulging your "issue" if you dont have anything nice to say, then keep it to yourself. i will correct a few things i said- although it is rare for someone to become addicted to sleep aids, IT HAPPENS. and i mean to say that if you have an affinity towards opiates your brain actually seeks something to fill those receptors, but you can become addicted to another drug. i think we all know that. so just in case i mis typed- i didnt mean if you shoot heroin you will be fine shooting meth because its not your d.o.c. although i would think thats common sense. i meant most people that want to get high turn to their d.o.c. to do so- they dont get the same effects from every drug. so moral of the story- dont be afraid to post your opinion even if someone lashes out at you, and if you are in recovery, only seek prescription help from your doctor if its you actually need the help, not because youre wanting a new high. just to clear this up as well- i am an opiate addict. i blew a lot of oxys and some heroin for a long time.. i suffer from severe agorephobia and am manicly depressed.  i tried to kill myself because i was SO AFRAID that because i am in recovery from opiates( 2 years now ) that taking medicine to control my severe anxiety problem would get me addicted to something else because of the common idea that once addicted to something, addicted to everything. so i thought it wasnt worth living in that kind of misery because i had "no" options. i only thought that because of judgmental, thoughtless people. i also have recently been diagnosed with lupus. so according to those "common beliefs" i shouldnt treat my symptoms with a prescrption because i MAY become addicted. ok. so how is that for honesty? i have nothing to hide and i have let go of the idea that its the doctors fault, its the dealers fault, its a strangers fault. MY addiction MY OWN. likewise, MY recovery is MY responsibilty and MY battle and no one elses. instead of blaming your doctor or anyone else, focus on your recovery,  you might feel better. and i apologize to everyone else- im not a mean person, not even close to it. but i dont feel its appropriate to attack ANYONE for anything. its just not necessary. if someone makes a mistake in what the type- politely pm them, they may not even realize they have mis-said anything. before this i have had nothing but love coming from this forum and i thank you all for that. and i promise the next time someone posts to me out of anger i just wont respond. im not even sure why i did to this one. so i apologize for any mis-typing i may have done or for not making it clear what i meant.  sorry for that- but i dont apologize for saying it is okay to seek medical or pharmacutical help when its truely needed. its the opposite of that advice that led me to be so scared i wanted to kill myself. im glad that didnt work out and i hope i can help anyone that is even considering suicide as an option... it is absolutely not the answer. love you all.

*Kristen*

[lady67]

I am sorry, I am one of the EXTREMELY rare cases.  I have an addiction to opiates (haven't used in almost a year, but still consider myself an addict), and find myself getting addicted to almost anything.  I have found that my blood pressure meds don't make me "feel good".  However, I have been put on klonipn, ambien, ultram, and others, and find myself taking more than I am supposed to get that certain feeling that we all know.  I have found a wonderful family doctor who I was able to be 100% honest with about my addictions and he not treat me like a leeper.  This is the only doctor I see and I use the one pharmacy that knows my condition and if they think something has been prescribed to me that may cause a problem, they tell me.  

I have found the only way I can stay clean and sober is to be proactive and not hide in the bushes with my addiction.  I know I got off topic here, but my point is this.  If you have any kind of addiction problem, you need to tell your doctor because certain drugs can trigger your addiction.

[chanandalerbong1]

i totally agree with that istatement- i thnk the most important thing you can do and NEED to do is tell your doctor youre an addict. it will save eveyone a lot of issues. including yourself... i know there are people who just have an affinity towards ANYTHING that may offer some altered state, i know someone like that, not joking she would probably take pet medicine if you told her she could get blasted on it... the only point i was trying to make is that some people, including addicts, may need medical and/or pharmacutical intervention to maintain some quality of life. anyonr who has suffered from something like severe insomnia, knows how much sleep deprivation cantruely effect a person. (just using that as an example). i think my first message was not worded correctly. i mean zero disrespect for anyone recovering from anything and i pray for everyones safe battle with the drugs... just want to explain what i meant. sorry for the misunderstanding everyone!

*Kristen*

[minim]

interesting convo..
After what happened to me and opiates I was scared TO DEATH of another addiction arising that I would not ever EVER take the sleeping pills more than 2 nights in a row...
so i agree with chanon- some people are only addicted to their drug of choice- not everything out there- but not everyone is the same... i was responsibile and still have a cabinent full of pills that i do not abuse...