Methadone detox cant sleep

[hooked31]

I need to find some way to sleep at night I have been methadone free for 24 days today And the only thing that works is ambien . And the last thing I need is a sleeping pill addiction. Melatonin makes me twich uncontrolably And gives me severe anxiety as have all over the counter sleep aids. Benedryl was suggested as well and it is hit or miss with maybe 2 hours of sleep every other time. the ambien is a sure thing still only sleep for about 3 hours .
And again I dont want another addiction. any suggestions helpful thnx

[dragonfire77]

I have read a lot of these forums and can only say everyone is different,people keep saying all this stuff about methadone staying in your system for months but hear are FACTS, in 72 hours u should have no methadone left in your system even with the half life now after 72 hours the demons start and I have no clue how long withdrawl will last because I was able to go cold turkey from methadone after being on 90 mg for a year and the only withdrawl I had was a little fatigue and lack of sleep witch is why I began reading a lot of these and to be honest reading these forums scared the **** out of me because i thought I was going to get hit months down the road with withdrawl but I didn't so if reading these things help then by all means but just remember no two people are alike what works for one may not work for you. The only thing any who reads these needs to remember is God is with u if u let him and YOU can over come this the only thing I know to be true is day by day a strong mind can over come so much.

[riverlife]

I was glad to read some encouraging words. My boyfriend was on Methadone for 4 months. He stopped  taking it two weeks ago. But he can not sleep!!!

[atthebeach]

hello  kristine and welcome. this is an old thread hun. it would be best if you started your own thread. hit the orange box, post a question.
congrats on getting off the methadone, you did awesome.
sleep will return, please be patient. try natural over the counter tabs,alteril or sleep by nature made,melatonin,valerian root. it will take some time for your body,mind,soul,spirit and emotions to completely heal. it will come.
it is best to get yourself moving. it will help you feel better,execise will help get your brain chemistry moving again. start small,little walks,errands in the house,getting out to the store, take virtamins,proteins shakes, lots of fruits and vegetables.
sending hope,prayers,
keep the faith
debbie

[kristineg401]

Oh man I was really hoping to read somebody's post saying that the sleep will get better.......soon lol I've been on mthadone for almost 3 years 95mgs but 8 days ago I jumped off and detoxed myself at home.....so I'm not feeling sick anymore but I can't sleep! And I hate that I feel so alive mentally but soooooo worn and sluggish all day. Now I know its only day 9 but I'm just asking for any input on this when will I feel up to going to the beach or doing anything? I mean I forced myself to go for a ride to the store and then regret it when I got there....any advice?

[hooked31]

32 days today still clean happy most the time . Thanx for all the advice . I tried every one of them. And thnx mellie4 though cooking the turkey was more theraputic than eating it....lol . I am still taking ambien to sleep . 20mg a night booooo... I am going to see my doctor and ask for a perscription for flexerel . Anyone have experience taking flex during withdrawl/recovery from mehadone ?  

[iamaloser5320]

a duece meaning a 24 ounce beer in a bottle.

[mellie4]

What's a duece?  

With all the other advice, try eating and/or drinking things that produce L-tryptophan; it's a natural sleep inducer.  It's why everyone wants to nap after Thanksgiving dinner ... the turkey produces L-tryptophan.  Also (as yucky as most people think it is) warm milk.  I'm not saying they'll work for you but if you put a whole bunch of things together, (like a turkey sandwich and a glass of warm milk before bed) maybe it will help a tiny bit.  (Maybe you could google other foods that produce L-tryptophan.

Tramahater, how on earth did you take 30, 10 mg. Ambien a day????  I can't imagine how you weren't in a coma!

[iamaloser5320]

tram bro, i feel for you.. the 9 or 10 days straight i went thru without any sleep was HELL for me. 8 or 9 months ... jesus.

[iamaloser5320]

this is bad advice but im going to give it anyways.  im on about 25 days myself after c/t 110mg of methedone. the main thing that has helped me sleep the last few days is a duece right befor i go to bed.  i have no problem with alcohol. i actually hate it  but for some reason i resorted to it to try to get some sleep and it has helped. im probably going to get flamed for tellin you to try it but if you never had a problem with it it could be something for you to try too.

i am sorry in advance for this post but i know exactly what this guy is going thru, the trazadone and sleep md nether one worked for me.

[LeaAnn807]

I think 24 days is still fairly early in Methadone WD terms because of it's long half life.  I have always had a sleep problem, and after stopping Ambien in 2007, I didn't go to sleep AT ALL for several weeks.  (I was taking about 30, 10mg Ambien a day!)  I did not know a person could actually go that long without sleep until I went thru that!!!!  After a while, I started sleeping in 15 minute intervals, then an hour, then by about 8 or 9 months later, I could sleep like 2 or 3 hours without waking up.  I had also detoxed off of phenobarbital at the same time as the ambien, so it was a double whammy for me!

You are right to be afraid of sleeping pills!  They will ruin your life!!

Good luck!  

[gnarly_1]

HI and welcome to the forum....well I wish I had better news for you but sleep is the last thing to return back to normal ...it can take a wile for me it was a good 90 days till I finely got 6 to 7 hrs of sleep again...when your early on methadone withdrawals will drive you nuts the anxiety and restlessness is just part of it...I found methadone to be very cyclic in that you would just start to feel better bet then bam your down with it again the best thing I found for sleeping was a bath as hot as I could stand it right b/4 bed this helped more then anything...as for a time line its different for everyone but what your experiencing is fairly common 2 to 3 hrs sleep is the norm when coming off methadone it does get better slowly as time progresses ..go to the health pages on the right hand side of the screen and look up the amino acid protacall it will give you some supplements that will help speed up your recovery time...if you budget is tight
try what I use....whey protein shakes ...there full of vitamins and amino acids as well as protein all of witch the brain needs to heal...its 15 bucks for a 2lb can up at walmart the chocolate flavor is good and all you got to do is mix it with milk I still drink 2 a day ...the main thing here is try not to get discouraged by the time line ...I wish there was a faster way to recover but I have helped out quit a few people doing this and sleep is always an issue hang in there your 24 days closer to being better good luck and God bless.....Gnarly