Extreme long-term diphenhydramine abuse.. problems stopping

[diphaddict]

Hi, well a quick background.. back in high school (this was like 12 years ago) I started getting addicted to various drugs including OTC drugs like DXM, dramamine/benadryl.. after a few years I stopped it all EXCEPT diphenhydramine. I have no explanation for why this one stuck with me, I suppose because it's so easy to get?

Now when I say "extreme" long-term abuse I mean extreme. I've been through periods of 80-100 pills nightly (25 mg each) and now I limit it to 40-50-ish. I personally don't understand how I'm alive after doing it for so long which is a bit of a scary thought, and the only thing stopping me from completely quitting is these terrible withdrawals I get. I don't even enjoy taking the stuff anymore it hardly even does anything at all at this point. It's withdrawals that I never have seen mentioned by anybody else.

The main thing is days after I take them I feel pretty normal, but when I don't I just can't stay awake the next day, and that's even if I go for multiple days of not taking them. It doesn't even seem to get any easier after multiple clean days.

Like if I even just lean back in a chair *snaps finger* i am asleep like instantly, and during these sleeps I get mostly very vivid nightmares. I don't really have much in the way of depression, it's just this and it's preventing me from staying off - i can't even lead a normal life when I'm falling asleep all the time.

I've tried caffeine and it makes no difference whatsoever. And I mean quite a bit of caffeine, like a few nodoz pills, or a couple of the "extra caffeine" Rockstar drinks with 250 mg caffeine each.

This is a withdrawal symptom I've never heard of from anybody anywhere online regarding diphenhydramine. It's always the opposite - they can't sleep without it. I am thinking after taking it for so long, it's just completely messed up my cholinergic brain chemistry. Not sure what else it could be. it's not like normal sleep either, for much of it i am aware i'm asleep and can even open my eyes but i can't control my body or speak. it can be incredibly freakin scary.

Any ideas from any doctors out there? I doubt many of them have dealt with such long-term abuse cases, and in such high counts though that is the thing. If i could not have this problem i would gladly not go back to the diphenhydramine! after a week of constant sleeping - i have to do something, so i go get some diphenhydramine so i can resume life. it's a nasty cycle.

[kc102181]

Hi you aren't alone.I've abused benadryl for years. I started taking normal dosages b/c I was dieting but i couldn't sleep at night b/c all I'd think about was food.2 pills grew to 4 & 10yrs later I'd take 30-50 pills daily depending on how well it worked at that moment. I was already a cigarette smoker so when I took the pills it was so relaxing & knumbing. I began associating both of them & I couldn't have one without the other. Over time I noticed excessive sweating, memory loss, & urinary retention, which is what i learned after googling every time I thought about stopping. I let it control everything in my life. I stopped once & I felt awful. Eventually I started taking it again until recently. After 7months of searching for a job, I'd finally found one but on my 1st day I couldn't do my job thoroughly b/c I was pouring sweat within an hr of arriving to work. I was so embarrassed I had an anxiety attack. The manager let me go b/c they didn't think I could handle the job. THAT WAS MY WAKE UP CALL. I haven't taken benadryl in 4 days & I feel awful. I'm dizzy, nauseous, trembling, extremely sleepy all the time, & I too am having vivid dreams. Last night my eyes were so heavy but I couldn't sleep b/c the room was spinning & when I closed my eyes I could see colorful lines that looked like they were being fast forwarded through a movie. Really weird stuff. I wanna look for jobs  (I know the sweating will get better from experience) but I can't get out of bed & I don't know what to do. I know that taking just 2 pills will help with the symptoms but I finally realize its not worth it. I've lost a lot including my dignity.

[crystalduck_2000]

Until very recently (like until 4 weeks ago) your story was my story.For the last 15 year I had been abusing benadryl. The first or 8 yrs or so I took about 25 night. The last 7 years or so easily 70 to 80 pills a night. I also wanted to quit and when I had major surgery I thought perfect chance. Figured any bad side effects of stopping would be masked by after surgery drugs. I have never been sicker. It was the opposite the benadryl withdrawal made the surgery seem like a tooth cleaning. A few weeks ago I tried to stop cold turkey again. I had the same symptoms as you, shaking, sleeping all the time but not really sleep it was like a feverish semi conscious coma in which I experienced some really f'd up night terrors. I was starving and then nausea would kick in and it sounds crazy but my bones felt like glass. I stuck it out for 5 days in a row and was too sick to continue without it. BUT my salvation was that first 5 days off b/c when I decided to try taking just a few to take the edge off the w'drawl it had a small effect on me. I took 9 pills and I didn't get high like when i started but it made it bearable. And the next night 8 , and so on. I made it down to zero.DON'T expect that to be the end. Expect that every 3 or 4 days you might need to take 4 pills if you start feeling the w/drawl again. We were doing this for years, hard core. It isn't leaving out bodies in a week. So take just a few on the days you can tell you need it (few means like max 7 or 8). Then the next time you feel you need it try 3 or 4 and like me you may find that does it. I haven't had any in last 6 days and I feel great. Don't let the second or 3rd round of wdrawls fool you into thinking it will never end. Don't run out and buy the bottle and throw back a handful. You may not be totally clean at first but that isnt a failure. When you are taking 80 pills a day like us and are down to 6 or every few days for a couple of weeks it is an absolute victory. Every one's body is different so your waves of wdrawl may last longer or need a few more pills to stave off the bad **** ( but start small, if you take 4 and it does nothing you can take 3 more in half a hour so don't take more than you have to start. I was a hard core alcoholic too for most of my life and managed to quit it 11 years before benadryl. BUT I HAVE DONE IT. MEANING YOU CAN TOOI hope this helps you and I will be reading about how well you are feeling in a few weeks.  

[makememine]

Hey. I live in Boston and am looking for help with my severe addiction to liquid Benadryl. Can you tell me the name of this doctor you went to???

[Loulouhunt]

I think you need to go to doc who specializes in detoxing.  I just went to a Neurologist at MGH Boston who told me that after almost 25 years of over the counter Benadryl, I am psychologically addicted.  I only took 50 mg a night (worked like a charm for sleep) but I have been taking it for WAY too long.  I have such bad cognitive impairment that I was beginning to think I had early dementia at age 55.  Also, I have extreme fatigue everyday.  It is so bad that I am given 90 mg of Adderrall to lift my head off my pillow.  He told me getting off this stuff is extremely tough AND you must wean off.  I am to go from 50 mg down to 35mg for one month, then down to 25 mg for one month, and finally down to 12.5 mg for one month.  He said my cognitive impairment should improve by 3rd month, but that my cholinergic brain system could take up to a year to balance out.  Meaning the severe fatigue may last for a year.  If I were you, I would go to a specialist who knows how to safely detox you off of this.  It could be dangerous to cold turkey off.  You could have a seizure and cause permanent brain damage.  Please be careful and know that any recreational drug, even OTC can cause permanent damage to your systems, especially your brain (cholinergic) system.

[TXhippie85]

I've heard of a few people that were also addicted to this stuff and had withdrawl symptoms. I'm addicted to it as well. I first started using benadryl and drammamine about 10 years ago, their chemical structures are almost identical. At first I liked it, but I've been using diphenhydramine nearly every day for about 5-6 years now, up to 36 pills at once several times a day. Like you said, the high is no longer enjoyable and I can barely feel it. When I try to stop using it I feel ok for a couple of days, but after that I get these terrible withdrawl symptoms. My whole body shakes, I move very slowly and I have trouble moving my arms and hands, they just won't respond. My heartbeat is irregular all the time now and I sweat very easily. Sometimes I can't talk normally, what comes out is gibberish and slurred speech. and it's very difficult to sleep because of the shakes, even if I've been awake for 3 or 4 days. The worst part is that I can't hardly draw and write anymore, my hands shake badly and I can't concentrate on it. Every now and then I can manage to write or draw something, but it's few and far between. The longer I try to stay off of it the worse it gets, until finally I give up and start using the drug again. I googled these symptoms, and some of them are signs of brain tumors. I'm really scared and worried that my brain is permanently damaged, not only from this drug but from other ones too like inhalants and DXM. I really want to quit but don't know if I can do it on my own.

[Makk0383]

I boarder on the very low end of an extreme addiction to benedryl spectrum. I started taking Excedrin PM every night at 12 years old and switched over to benedryl later in life. I've been completely dependent on it these past 20 years. Some nights I keep popping them because nothing seems to work. My most is probably around 30 or so.

That being said I am having similar but slightly nuanced symptoms. I signed up with the nat guard and will be leaving soon. Very soon.  So I thought it would be a good time to kick my dependency.
My withdrawal symptoms do include insomnia, nausea, and hot and cold flashes. But interestingly, I also will shut down at work for no reason. I feel waves of energy draining out of me suddenly and with out warning.

I'm wondering if ur situation is so extreme and u have these same symptoms but amplified and all the time. I will let u know how things turn out after quitting cold turkey at basic.  Best wishes.

[Nytolaid]

How long does this feeling last? I've been feeling the same , this is the fourth day now, can't stay awake or focused, constantly feeling nauseas. Does your body start producing the chemicals again over time? I didn't realise it was a problem, genuinely took nytol after Xmas to get back in to a normal sleeping pattern. Gradually took more and more until between 10-12 (50mg) per night. Then had a similar experience to the person who posted about delirium. Felt I had figured out the meaning of life and was reprogramming my brain, lost sense of self and felt close to death. I know this was probs all in my head but was just as scary all the same. So never took them again after that and now feel awful and ironically can't stay awake. I should probs say I have been on SSRI's for a couple of years to and my prescription ran out the same night I stopped taking nytol. Could this be adding to the symptoms?

[shanshaann]

Okay. I don't know if this is still relevant or if you've had any relief. But I constantly took diphenhydramine recreationally for several months, & such high doses are reached because of how fast tolerance builds. After being at such doses for so long, it makes sense that the effects are almost nonexistant. Unfortunately, it seems your body has become dependent on it. As with any drug, the chemical alters your state of mind by altering the chemical flow in your brain. Essentially, the pills are providing chemicals your body is used to having, but no longer produces, because the pill is providing it instead. That's why stopping the pills has such undesirable effects. Tapering off would probably be your best bet, doctors probably won't be able to do anything for you. I hope you see this& i hope by now you don't need this information

[foundinsanity]

Two possible thoughts, as it is both an Anticholinergic and it has been shown to effect serotonin re-uptake, it may have something to do with Acute Anticholinergic Syndrome and/or Serotonin Syndrome depending what other drugs you take. I put an extensive list of serotonin inhibiting drugs under my short experience with either or both. i focused mostly on Serotonin syndrome as that was what they believed I had but the symptoms could combine easily.Note that neither of these should be cconfused with discontinuation syndromes. The after effects could maybe be causing the sleep difficulties a couple of different ways. Hope this might help. If not maybe someone else!

link to what I didn't do as much research based on my symptoms: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anticholinergic_syndrome#Effects

This may or may not be causing the constant tiredness, but it relates to your story and if you have some of the other symptoms or take other drugs that inhibit the re-uptake of serotonin you may look into asking a doctor about serotonin syndrome. This was a very scary experience i had after 15 years of diphenhydramine abuse that I wanted to relate in hopes it helps someone else avoid or identify their problem. The worst was when it was going on and i didn't know what it was, I thought I had finally lost touch with reality and lost my mind, until i found information online about someone else who experienced the real dreams and i found out it was controllable.

I had a problem with dxm alcohol and always diphenhydramine. About 15 pills 3 times a day with sporadic use of the dxm and alcohol. The terrifying realistic dreams is called hypnogogia and it is caused by serotonin syndrome which is an overload of serotonin so it is argued to be called serotonin intoxication, the thing is sine I stopped my 15 year addiction the last two days I've suffered from :
from wiki:
The symptoms are often described as a clinical triad of abnormalities:[1][5]
Cognitive effects: headache, agitation, hypo-mania, mental confusion, hallucinations, coma
Autonomic effects: shivering, sweating, hyperthermia, hypertension, tachycardia, nausea, diarrhea.
Somatic effects: myoclonus (muscle twitching), hyperreflexia (manifested by clonus), tremor.

People confuse the term hallucination (think giggling on mushrooms at your friends face looking all silly and knowing it is a hallucination)
with the term delirium (you don't know it's not real because Diphenhydramine is a seratonin inhibitor and the OD list includes delerium  confusion and you don't know what is real and what is not, you don't know who you are in serotonin syndrome I quote from another poster here it brings "your worst fears to life if they come to mind during delirium" Death can result. They can't be mixed with any drugs that inhibit serotonin re-uptake. Antidepressants SSRI's SNRI's Or even DXM containing cough medicine!

I just learned this when I freaked thought I was dying two days ago, blood pressure went up and down, sweating profusely dilated pupils, delirium, lost sense of who I was, wrote down the answers to everything because I figured out how we could reprogram our brains with serotonin after I did some internet searches on what might be happening to me which scared the **** out of my mom, lost consciousness for 2 days passing in and out of mumbling zombie states. Told everyone I was god, you know the usual before they used benzos to put me unconscious, put a ventilator down my throat into my lungs, gave me serotonin suppressants, blood pressure medicine to get my pulse under control.

Here is a pretty good list of things besides diphenhydramine that cause this from wiki.

Class Drugs
Antidepressants Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs),[1] TCAs,[1] SSRIs,[1] SNRIs,[1] bupropion,[6] nefazodone,[7] trazodone[7] mirtazapine,[1] tapentadol
Opioids tramadol,[1] pethidine (meperidine),[1] fentanyl,[1] pentazocine,[1] buprenorphine[8] oxycodone,[9] hydrocodone[9]
CNS stimulants MDMA,[1] MDA,[1] phentermine,[10] diethylpropion,[10] amphetamine,[3][10] sibutramine,[1] methylphenidate,[10] methamphetamine,[11] cocaine[10]
5-HT1 agonists triptans[1][10]
Psychedelics 5-Methoxy-diisopropyltryptamine,[1] LSD[12][13]
Herbs St John's Wort,[1] Syrian rue,[1] Panax ginseng,[1] Nutmeg,[14] Yohimbe[15]
Others tryptophan,[1] L-Dopa,[16] valproate,[1] buspirone,[1] lithium,[1] linezolid,[1][17] dextromethorphan,[1] 5-hydroxytryptophan,[7] chlorpheniramine,[10] risperidone,[18] olanzapine,[19] ondansetron,[1] granisetron,[1] metoclopramide,[1] ritonavir[1]

[sleepaidaddict22]

Did you ever find a way to stop taking this medicine?  

I have the same problem with this drug (my amount is significantly lower 12-15) and I REALLY WANT to stop taking it.  When I have tried to stop by either taking less and less or cold turkey I have had weird dream incidents as well.  The easiest way for me to explain my dreams is inception.  I literally fall asleep again and again and again within 1 dream cycle and I can not physically wake up until I wake up in each and every dream in the same order that I fell asleep in.  It is VERY SCARY so much to the point that I feel like I will never be able to wake up and it feels almost like I am being sucked in by the bed (work with me, like I am falling in a black hole like on toy story and I am trying to stop).  That feeling lasts even after I wake up.  When I started to take less I wasnt able to fall asleep which resulted in me taking more.  

To add to my problems I have Hpylori (number 1 peptic ulcer causing disease) and have had 2 stomach ulcers and an esophagus hernia.  I got my galbladder takin out because I had pain in my sides and my galblader wasnt fuctioning so they took it out to see if that was the cause of my pain.  Obviously it wasnt and I am running out of ideas to get better.  Ive been to the doctors countless times (ended up becoming depressed and developed an extreme case of anxiety and confusion because I was in pain and nobody could tell me why, or the cause and eventually label me as a liar who just wants drugs. being 21 doesnt help)  So this is a huge part of why I take the medicine because other wise I will be awake and have to deal with this pain more than I already do.

HELP! IF YOU FOUND SOMETHING PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE POST.....IM BEGGING YOU :'(

[my_mayberry]

ok, i've looked into this drug before. it's REALLY hard to find info on how it provides a sedative effect....even doctors argue over the actual mechanism by which it produces it. some have suggested that in a round-about-way, the sedative effect is caused by an effect on GABA, which would be similar to benzo's and barbs.

what i would do is ask your doctor...at the doses you're taking, who knows what could happen...and i really mean that. why? well, if you can't get a direct answer as to how this drug produces a sedating effect, then you can't get a direct answer as to what will happen when you discontinue long-term high doses.

i have asked many pharmacists how this drug knocks you out....what it comes down to is they can't ever give me a direct answer. i don't even take the drug, i've just always been curious about how it actually works and because for some people, it IS a drug of abuse.

and at those doses...you don't hallucinate? well, i think ultimately you will just have to tough it out...but who knows if you need a taper or not. you really just need to talk to your doctor about it.

[haley726]

I have also abused this drug, but not to your extent. I have taken at most 12 a night. The only thing that helped me was switching over to another sleep aid like melatonin (OTC) or klonopin or lunesta. But I still have to take 3 or 4 to not feel like poo the next day. Most people don't realize you can get "high" and addicted to this med. For as many as you take, though, I would go to a doctor. Good luck and God bless.

[tgtiffany]

Okay, just as you, I found basically nothing.  Vicki is right though, I would go see a doctor ASAP about this.  It can't hurt to get more insight into this.  You might have to see like 5 doctors, but it will be worth it.  The best site I found was from wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphenhydramine

I clicked on almost every link it had and I think the delirum one gives good info too.  Might have something to do with you falling asleep or at least you think it's sleep.  Still, don't know, but as Vicki said, studies haven't been done on humans with doses that high, and I'm sure any studies they did on animals like that killed them.  I would get to a doctor asap for sure.  If you still can't find anyone to help you I would try to taper off of them and see if that helps.

[vicki595]

At doses THAT high nothing surprises me!  I'm sure this drug was never tested at those doses so it's no wonder that you can't find info on it. You are having some sleep paralysis and that is very scary to experience.

You should get with a doctor and discuss this. Also, do as much research as possibe. There's just not that much out there though. I know people have taken a lot of this to hallucinate and change their cognitive functioning...that doesn't sound appealing but to each their own...  You really can't get any sound sleep at those doses and that may explain why you sleep so much when you take it away.

Get to a doctor for some lab work to check your liver and try to get away from this habit.

[tgtiffany]

Wow.  That's some really heavy abuse there!  Glad that you want to stop!  I've never heard of someone falling asleep like that either though.  It has screwed up your brain, but I wouldn't go to say that it's not going to stop.  I don't have an answer for you, but it's very interesting to me and I'm going to try to find something online for you.  I'll let you know if I do okay :)  Have you been stopping cold turkey?  Maybe you should try to taper down slowly and see if that helps at all with the sleeping thing.  It's almost like perhaps you are not asleep but in a coma of a sort when you can open your eyes and stuff.  I wouldn't stop CT again though....I'll let you know if I find something.