Temazapam (restoril)

[Ironpony]

Is anyone familiar with this drug? Been on it? ...experiences or knowledge would be appreciated. My doctor had just prescribed this to me. Also, zofran was no longer covered so I am now on promethezine. I Am also taking Inc,peg and 609 riba daily. He has me take alprazolam AS NEEDED for tx induced agoraphobia/anxiety. any input or info.would be greatly alpreciated.

thanks,
Laura

[BoceprevirGal]

  I cant believe that you had friends that are no longer calling, after learning of your HCV, and yes, shame on them indeed : (
     I have also had a few reactions like that, which I find ironic, because these people hung out with my for years and years, never knowing, and now that I'm actually getting rid of the virus, they treat me as if I am contagious. A perfect example of "out of sight, out of mind" I guess, so I regret having told them.
    You are doing a great job, dealing with this, Laura. I found out I had Hep C, around your age, and just completely went into denial about it, for the next 20 yrs, which I now regret.
   I am finding the Interferon shots are getting easier for me, I am about to do shot # lucky 13, on tuesday!  I try not to exercise, a day before the shot, and a day after, to avoid the muscle aches. I am just walking (slowly, lol) now, for exercise.
    And yeah, my house is a wreck, and I need to clean my carpet, etc, but our health is more important than superficial things such as house-pride!

[Ironpony]

Taking a deep breath in over here;) yes Idyllic crying is a good thing for me when I need it.

Emotionally today, so far is better. the shot is definitely making my body super sore but I'm used to that by now. I can deal with aches and pains but Will is right these meds can play havoc with our bodies.
I can't wait to feel like me again.
I just pulled out the last of my incivek and counted it for something to do...11 days left. I remember the first week of Inc felt like it would never end! And now I am so close...
:) Laura

[willbb]

This treatment can often play havoc with emotions and it sounds like you are having no different feelings than most while in the midst of it . Everyone here can relate entirely with what you are going through.

It is perfectly normal to feel anxiety,apprehension and stress,especially when coming up to any next VL test,however just try to keep in the forefront of your thoughts that excellent predictive test you have had and that is the 4 week UND.  You are going to do just fine..

Again ..you are already halfway there..and the second half is without one of the drugs and before you know it treatment will be over and you will have eradicated HCV from your life for good ...

Hang in there.....
Will

[Idyllic]

You are way too hard on yourself. I can tell by your personality you are everything to everybody in addition to being Super Mom as well as a loving spouse. I relate to the overwhelming feelings you have as you look around and see virtually every aspect of your life is completely different than you might have thought it would be at this point.

You  are truly overcoming serious obstacles right now. I read your post about your concern about crying at your son's graduation and I my heart just sunk. When I think about how just weeks ago how your Hgb plummeted (and you were in hospital at one point, no less) yet you maintained the semblance of normalcy as best you could . Now both you and your son have made it to this milestone together. I think you deserve to cry tears of rejoice. Plus I read recently that crying releases toxins :)

Anyway, Insomnia is a side effect of one of the meds we are taking (at least I think it is). I think worry compounds it. Believe me, it is 4:30 in the AM and here I am on line by myself.

I am not sure about your friends. Often it is situations such as this that weeds the true ones out. In fairness, most people don't how to respond to illness of this magnitude. They usually aren't well informed and they feel helpless and awkward. They seem to feel like the need to say or do something to turn your life around when all they need to do is be there.

Your posts reflect many of thoughts a lot of us feel and I am glad you are able to be so open.

[Ironpony]

Once again I am amazed by all my little friends here:)
Thank you.

My husband sits and listens patiently as I have these whiny days...but he will (hopefully) never be able to relate to what I am going through.

Without all of you this tx and disease may have been too much to bare.
I thought I could quietly get through tx and sneak this by everyone....but now I find myself unemployed, lacking in cleaning and motherly/wifely duties and even worse some family and friends treat me like a crazy person because they have witnessed some of my major brain fog first hand. about half the people I had in my life prior to tx or learning of my hcv are now gone from my life. they don't even call any more. Shame on them.

I am so glad I have ppl that are worth my time here...I pray wonderful health to us all!!!

[Idyllic]

1. Poor girl. I sounds like you are really worrying about your 12 week labs. I know that's how I was. There are so many posts on here by people who are UND for weeks and weeks then all of a sudden they are detectable. I can't picture me not ever worrying about that. Still, you can't let it control you to the point where your sleep is disrupted.

2, Retoril is one of those drugs people like or they don't because it does nothing for them. I would give it another chance.

3. I have been wondering how people's spouse or significant other is deals with HCV and whether everyone's spouse has been tested.

4. I bought my husband all of his own nail stuff a long time ago. I do his nails anyway so it's not like I would use my nail stuff on him anyway :)

[can-do-man]

Pony gal just try and relax, I had this more then likely through 30 years of being married and 2 kids and none of them have it. Its just not that easy to get........Hang in there

[BoceprevirGal]

Yeah, from reading older posts on here, I  think many of us experience this, after getting UND.
   For instance, I threw my old tooth-brush away, and old razor, after I went Und, and then bought myself my own tooth-paste. Nonetheless, I keep thinking my husband is using it (and he is getting hurt by my remarks)
  Then, the other day, I actually used my husbands nail-clippers (and he does have Hep C geno 1a) because I was to tired to get up and get mine.  Then , my ten yr old used my nail clippers, and I thought about that (cuz kids accidently cut them-selves more than adults) and I havent gotten my sons tested (just my 20 yr old daughter) so I went out and bought rubbing alcohol, and soaked the clippers...sigh

[Ironpony]

I have noticed my anxiety is getting worse...no depression but I feel like I am worrying more now that I am Und. Out of complete brainfog I accidents used. my husbands toothbrush the other day. (Even though it is kept completely seperate from mine!) Of course I threw it away immediately ....but am now freaking out because he has yet to be tested for hcv . The thought of this virus returning is terrifying me.
I was really hoping for some peace with the restoril...
my 12 week pcr test is coming up quickly, I'm scared to death.

[BoceprevirGal]

I went to the Doctor yesterday, and got something for an itchy rash I developed last week, it's an antihistimine called "Hydroxyzine"...but I noticed they also use it for "generalized anxiety disorder", and for people who are having alcohol withdrawals.
   It makes me about the same amount drowsy, as the Benadryl does, but Benadryl is dehydrating (some big word like anti-cholegenic effect) and the Hydroxyzine isn't.  Then again, neither of them made me sleep that well, because I drink alot of water in the middle of the night~
  I am much more mellow on these pills though...I feel like I've lost my mojo

[LookingForward12]

It took about a week or maybe a little longer for the Restoril to really begin to work for me. I only take the 7.5 mg capsule, but I also take a Benadryl for the rash.....so, together they help me fall asleep eventually. The key for me was being able to have a stretch of sleep longer than four hours and the Restoril has helped with that. Only once did I double up on my dose and that was because I had taken my ribavirin later than usual.
Hope you feel better as the day wears on.

[Ironpony]

Sorry so many misspelled
scrappy is crappy lol

[Ironpony]

Thank you for your input everyone, I really do appreciate it. I know the reaction with xanax and incivek is it can sometimes intensify the xanax, so in 2 weeks (!) When I'm off incivek it could throw me into withdrawals. sooooo, I tapered down over time to .25 a day. I Don't think I could even break the pill smaller than that if I tried. He had originally prescribed .5 four times a day as needed. Tomorrow I will not be having any nor will I for the next two weeks before getting or Inc. I refuse to give myself withdrawal s on top of getting of incivek and dealing with a Inc hangover!
AfteI took my first restoril last night and was not impressed. I laid down immediately as it said and waited..and waited. I was sleepy but cranky sleepy and did not feel any sort of "calming lull to sleep" (like something valium would do.) Now to be fair to the restoril, it was shot night. so perhaps this interfered. I had nightmares all night of being pregnant with evil babies (lol) and strange men breaking into my home. Once again....shot? Restoril?
This am I felt scrappy. He said I would get a restoril hangover in the am and just get up.and get moving and I would be okay. well I laid there til 1very restless. I think it was unwise for me to try this medicine on shot night.
Tonight I will be taking half the dose. If I dont like it after this weekend I am going back to benedryl. benedryl was no magic pill but it got me through the first 10 weeks, if all is good it should get me the rest of the way!
<3 thanks for the help
Laura

[scherpie]

Hi,
My doctor prescribed me Temazepam during the tretment because I had problems with sleeping. I took it abouth 4-5 times a week, somethimes half a tablet. I was very afraid to develop tolerance. Now I take it somethimes, and than just a 1/2 tablet. I think it's important not to take Temazepam every day. For me it works good like this. I kan sleep also without it.
Take care

[BigDaddy_59]

IME, anything narcotic and Xanax can be a bad combination.

I was prescribed Vicodin and Xanax (the Xanax to help TERRIBLE withdrawals from SSRI's) at the same time and went walkabout for 3 days, so be careful when mixing...

Restoril has been known to cause hepatic encephalopathy in people with mild to severe hepatic impairment.
http://www.aspenpharma.com.au/product_info/pi/PI_Temtabs.pdf
I have had one bout of HE and it was brought on by Restoril, so I will not take it anymore.

He is a list of things known to cause or exacerbate hepatic encephalopathy:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepatic_encephalopathy

One thing I did find worked for helping me sleep is Sominex (active ingredient doxlymine succinate). I still wake up during the night, but am able to go back to sleep. Plus, it doesn't give me a hangover. Anything with Benedryl (diphenhydramine) doesn't work for me...

Good luck and be careful!

Chris

[Idyllic]

I used the gel caps back in the day. 15 mg a night ought to help you sleep however you probably will have to have "off days" or you will develop a tolerance. That is just with the Temazepam alone.

As others have mentioned I would be concerned about developing a tolerance even if the Xanex is only as needed. Having said that, I know people who can (and do) pull this off taking **low doses of each as need** with no problem.

You might be OK with low doses of each as need however you just need to be aware of the possibility of developing a tolerance. The withdrawal can be uncomfortable to say the least.

Here is a bunch of reviews that shows lots of different opinions:
http://www.askapatient.com/viewrating.asp?drug=18163&name=RESTORIL

[Sentinel13]

Hi Laura: Nice to hear from you again. I've taken Temazapam/Restoril. I took it to help adjust my circadian rhythm after flying half-way around the world. It was very effective for me. If it was not so addicting, I would prefer it to Ambien/Zolpidem. I can't speak intelligently about how it interacts with the other medications you are taking. I don't recall seeing Temazapam/Restoril mentioned in the Incivek medication guide, but you may want to check the guide yourself to be sure. Cheers, GB

http://pi.vrtx.com/files/usmedguide_telaprevir.pdf

[LookingForward12]

I was taking Xanax prior to treatment and My doctor requested that i stop because It was contraindicated with Incivek. However, because of my severe insomnia and subsequent withdrawal from the Xanax he did prescribe a low dose - 7.5mg- of Restoril to be taken prior to bedtime for sleep. As i understood it, the Restoril was okay because of how it is processed in the body as opposed to the way Xanax is processe (in relation to the telaprevir). Restoril is used more as a sleep aid whereas Xanax is specifically targeted for anxiety. All benzos have the potential to be addicting, as can many other drugs. If a drug is taken as prescribed and one uses the drug with caution, there shouldn't be a problem IMO.

*********************
Temazepam is a "classical" benzodiazepine and alprazolam is a triazolobenzodiazepine so they do have significant chemical differences.
Although temazepam and alprazolam are in the same chemical class of drugs they are significantly different- keep in mind that even slight differences in medication produce different effects. Temazepam is also indicated only for insomnia. Alprazolam is indicated for the management of anxiety disorders, acute anxiety states, panic disorder with or without agoraphobia, and anxiety associated with depression.

15 mg of temazepam is equivalent (in some ways) to 0.375 mg of alprazolam. However temazepam produces far more sedation than alprazolam so even though 15 mg of temazepam is equal to 0.375 mg does not mean it is weak. 0.375 mg of alprazolam would rarely cause sleep but 15 mg of temazepam certainly can.

Also alprazolam is a poor hypnotic due to the fact it is more effective at producing anxiolysis (reduced anxiety) than sleep. In addition alprazolam significantly disturbs sleep architecture (when taken for sleep) which can worsen insomnia. Temazepam has no clinically significant effects on sleep architecture and provides a more restful sleep than alprazolam.

Basically different benzodiazepines have somewhat different effects. All drugs of various classes of drugs are very similar but even those tiny differences can greatly change the effect of the drug.
Source(s):
M.D., C.M. psychiatry, internal medicine (Québec)
Hons. BSc pharmacology

[BoceprevirGal]

  Temazapam:  I had a bad experience with that one, concerning my husband. He mixed it with another anxiety or pain med,and the sedative effect was very intensified.
   He ended up having sleep apnea, really loud snoring, and around that same time,he developed Gerd. Be careful with that one, it's very strong, especially when mixed

[willbb]

meant "restoril"

[willbb]

As pooh said both xanax and resoril are benzo's in the same class.. Seems a bit odd your doc would think you need both? Also promethazine(Phenergan)is an antihistamine(that helps with nauseas for some)and it also has sedative effects..
Yikes ..be careful Laura..
Will .

[pooh55811]

Restoril and Alprazalam are both Benzodiazepines. Both of them can be addicting.  

http://www.drugs.com/restoril.html

http://www.drugs.com/alprazolam.html

http://www.drugs.com/drug-class/benzodiazepines.html

I have never used either of them so I have no experience with them other than caring for people who were weaning off of them. If it was me, I would be a little careful since they are both addicting. When you stop taking them, you may have to wean off of them (depending on how long and how regular you have been taking them).

[Ironpony]

*600 riba