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I googled ambien and liver and found an interesting article regarding liver disease and sleep interference. The article said Lunesta was safe and non-narcotic, people with cirrhosis were able to take it safely. Many here have taken ambien. Here's the website if you want to read the article. It's long, maybe it will put you to sleep!
http://www.liverdisease.com/sleep_hepatitis.html
Sweet dreams!
Bug
I hope you feel better soon.
Try taking your ribavirin earlier in the day and with preferably with a meal with an adequate fat content. I took my second dose around 4PM with dinner. Riba has a long half life so taking it 12 hour apart isn't critical. Like "Lady", I also haven't heard of anyone taking their riba at bedtime.
Also, your doctor should be helping you with your sleeping problem. That is his job to help you get through this.
Is your doc a liver specialist (hepatologist)? If not, and your're not getting the help and attention you need, consider getting an outside consultation.
-- Jim
Autumn
However, we've had posts on sleep problems the past, and a lot of the members here have tried various different drugs with some success.
Hope things get better.
-- Jim
Mouse
Genotype 1a, Stage 3, Grade 3
finished tx 4/2007
relapsed 9/2007
I too was taking 600 riba w/bkfst and 600 at bedtime (so I would remember), and no one said boo to me. Complained to doc about insomnia and he said, "why on earth are you taking the riba at bedtime?! It can interfere with sleep!" Uh, dunno - cause no one told me NOT to??
Anywhoo, he said that the riba is 2x BID meaning it can be taken at any two times during the day spaced apart. I now take the evening dose with early dinner (5-6pm) and am much better.
I don't take the Tyl PM cause I find that it has way too much of the diphenhydramine HCl sleep aid. As Grandma says, it will knock you out! I just take the Tyl and/or 1/4 - 1/2 the usual dose of the diphen (aka Simply Sleep) just when I need it and that does the trick. If you are allowed to take any of that, you can play with dose and go with the minimum. I found that the regular dose would make me feel like **** the next day, but if I reduced it, I could fall back asleep easily if I woke (which was unusual) and felt good the next morning. I was told it it is fine for heppers to take, but I don't know about at stage 3.
I also found (just lately!) that if I take the Tyl prophylactically (how's that for a big word?!) on shot night (even if I feel fine), it also helps through the night and even with sx the next day. Tried to be "good" and not take stuff that I don't need so as to give liver a break, but that was misguided!
My mom was a big proponent of melatonin but she would get terrible nightmares and then not remember that she had woken the whole house up! We finally got her to switch off that but my sister takes it occasionally just fine. Again, the dose may be less than recommended on label and see how you do with it if docs say it's ok.
So sorry you are suffering with this! Hope you can get some relief, and be sure to keep insisting to docs that you need some help. They can tend to blow stuff off a lot unless we are quite adamant! I find that refusing to leave their office until they pay attention is effective. LOL. So perhaps if you bring your blankie and pillow and lay down on the examining table, he might get a clue!
Good luck!
Robin
Even then once you build up a serum level in your blood it's pretty much evenly in you all of the time and sleep is almost impossible. I finally turned to Ambien so I could get a bit of sleep but even with that I could only sleep from like 11 - 2 every night. Then I'd do the wake up every 15 minutes.
It is one of the biggest problems when treating - we are already SO lethargic as it is and the no sleep really doesn't help.
That is why I always advise Saturday to be the Day of Rest if you can. Just stay in bed and zonk in and out with the remote in your hand...don't do a DARN thing if you can help it except eat some Mallomars or ice cream and REST. Your body needs it. It's not very easy to get sleep but...if you can hang on for a while you'll get more used to it as sad as that is to say.
Talk to the doctor - he's WRONG about taking Riba at bed time #1 and #2 he needs to give you some Ambien or something to help you get adjusted.
And GRANDMAA is RIGHT no lights at all - I read that too and it helps.