In my sixth week treatment INSOMNIA is terrible

My insomnia is really bad went to bed at 11:00pm I usually wake up between 3:00am and 5:00am.I'm taking pegessy and 1200 riba. I'm taking over the counter sleep aids but I have a hard time with being groggy next day. Its really starting to take its toll I'm afraid I will make my self sick with lack of sleep. Is anyone having same trouble.

[susan400]

I've had my share of insomnia issues over the past 10 years or so.  It's hard isn't it?  You feel so tired and want to sleep, but it escapes you.  Then, you take something to make you sleep and it makes you sleepy, but you can't get that good quality or quantity of sleep, in order to feel rested and refreshed.  You start to envy those people who can fall asleep while sitting there (practically talking to you and in mid-sentence they will be snoring away!)   Urgggghh     I'm like feeling, if you are coming over to my house in the middle of the day and you go to sleep in front of me,  "LEAVE!"    I don't want to watch you sleep!   See, it makes me crabby because I'm not sleeping and I don't want to watch others sleep because it makes me want to smack 'em.   Aren't I just a witch or something?   I wish I had an answer for you on that one, maybe someone else does.  Have you tried a sleep aid that's prescription?  I like Ambien-CR, but some people are adamately opposed to it.  I can assure you that I've never had a problem with waking up and driving, or doing anything else remotely like that.  I tried Lunesta, but it leaves a horrible aftertaste in your mouth.  Benedryl helps, but it does not keep me asleep for very long.  BTW, I do exercise, so that's not the problem either.  I don't drink caffeine after noon, so that's not it.    Susan

[LSRL]

Fatigue from treatment is bad enough without dealing with the fatigue from insomnia.  I swear I didn't sleep more than 2 hours at a time for almost the whole time I treated, despite Ambien.
I tried taking the second dose of ribavirin earlier, around 4 or 5 pm, as suggested on the forum by others, and that seemed to help, although that was late into the 48 weeks.  Listening to music helped too.
I recently had a relapse, then another minor crisis (it's never just one thing to deal with, is it?) and was quite distraught, so my doctor prescribed Xanax, which helps a great deal with relaxing enough to fall asleep and stay asleep and not feel groggy in the morning.  Others here have taken antidepressants on treatment and I wonder if they have any benefit for insomnia.
Good luck with your treatment, and I truly hope your insomnia improves.

[LSRL]

P.S.  Found this quote I cut out of the newspaper, probably one sleepless night!
"In a real dark night of the soul it is always three o'clock in the morning."

[GrandmaA]

That's also my biggest challenge waking up too early. I always go to bed by 9. Then sometimes the riba wakes me up at 1:30, 2:30 or 4:30. I don't mind the latter. That's enough sleep but the former are not good. I'm groggy all day.

I find the Tylenol PM helps I alot, but I don't usually have any pain. I take Night Rest by Source Naturals (get it at the health food store), 5HTP and ativan my Dr. prescribed for me. It's helps me get those first 5 hours sleep. I also take night amino acids. We cannot take valerian root. It's not good for the liver. I retire next Wed. and then I can nap during the day when I wake up too early. Only 16 more weeks to go. Best wishes to you.  

[wonder65]

Just woke up from moring nap and read all postings thank you will talk to doctor next week when I see him with some of the suggestions

[nygirl7]

Even taking the Ambien my doctor prescribed it was hard. BUT you do fall asleep and sleep until like 2am and then wake up but I found as many times as I woke up I could fall back asleep.

It helped me alot.  You start to get seriously brain dead after a while on treatment and at least with this med you can have some sleep.

It didn't affect me at all the next work day one bit.

I'd ask the doc to help you - they all know this is a huge problem for people on treatment (I was on it for almost all 72 weeks of treatment and still am now)

[tomco]

When I was doing TX I used to take a half of a 10mg Ambien when I went to bed about 8:00 pm, it would only help me for about four hours so when I woke up around 12:00am I

[FlGuy]

there are a few things that I really believe in: 1)golf is a maddening game 2) watching a child's baseball game is good for your health 3) ambien on shot night and the night after.

[EspritLibre1]

Kind of go into a trance for nine or ten hours but don't take anything.  Wake up next morning for work and don't feel like I've slept at all.

[TashaZZ]

I take AMbien a couple hours before bed and then take a herbal pill call Mid NIght. I get it at Walgreen's adn CVS.  I was taking the Mid - Night before all of this happened and it worked good - no sleepiness the next day.  Take care

[rosebud57]

i skipped through w/o reading all posts,  saw a lot on ambien, we all have trouble sleeping on this stuff.  i had to have my room entirely dark, mostly quiet (listened to headset radio a lot), took (still take) oxepam antianxiety 1 at pm, sometimes day or two after inject. would take restoril,  when those didn't work i would get very agitated, especially if woke by neighbor at 1:30am, would try to just relax and know the body will get SOME rest if you are still.  

lastly i want to share that some of those times i would get up and do some yoga, i am no expert, basically stretches that pull back of calves, and release tension in the back and give arms a good stretch, usually 10 mins of that would help my body "feel tired" and my mind relax, i would climb back into bed  and sleep the remaining 5 -6 hrs.  but i don't know your circumstances if you are working or not. the lack of sleep would be real troublesome if you were having a job to go to. i had to stop working at 4 wks into tx.

[revenire_1]

HCV itself produces fatigue so lack of sleep can really hit us.  I don't have the answer to that but just thought I'd toss it out.

[wonder65]

Taking riba earlier in the evening is helping again thanks for everyones comments tx sucks but plugging along going to university hospital tommorw and will get viral load count for first time to see if peggasy is working or not week 7 THANKS AGAIN

[illo]

Try taking the liver, loving amino acid Ornithine.  It puts me right out, although I don't know if it will work for you.  It's safe and effective & OK to use on tx.
Safer than the drugs as it isn't toxic to the liver.  You can safely take up to 8 - 500mg capsules right before you go to bed.  It also reduces brain fog.

Ornithine decarboxylase activity in the non-cancerous hepatic tissue of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

    * Kubo S,
    * Tamori A,
    * Omura T,
    * Ikebe T,
    * Wakasa K,
    * Hirohashi K,
    * Kinoshita H,
    * Otani S.

Second Department of Surgery, Osaka City University Medical School, Japan.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Hepatocellular carcinoma may develop in patients with chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis. Active hepatitis is an important etiologic factor in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma. We measured ornithine decarboxylase activity, an important enzyme during cell proliferation, in non-cancerous hepatic tissue in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. METHODOLOGY: Thirty-four patients who underwent liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma were the subjects of this study. Hepatitis B surface antigen was detected in 7 patients (HBV group) and hepatitis C virus antibody was detected in 27 patients (HCV group). Tissue ornithine decarboxylase activity was measured. Histologic severity in active hepatitis (activity score) and degree of fibrosis (staging score) were determined. RESULTS: Ornithine decarboxylase activity was significantly higher in the HCV group than in the HBV and control groups. In all patients, ornithine decarboxylase activity correlated directly with the histologic activity score and the histologic staging score. In the HCV group, ornithine decarboxylase activity correlated with the histologic activity score. CONCLUSIONS: Ornithine decarboxylase activity in non-cancerous hepatic tissue correlated with the severity of active hepatitis and degree of fibrosis. In patients with hepatitis C virus, active hepatitis with increased ornithine decarboxylase activity is an important factor in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma.