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Ambien or Melatonin
I've been having trouble sleeping the last few months and at my recent physical, my doctor prescribed Trazadone. I took it a couple nights and couldn't get out of bed and then felt groggy and unmotivated the rest of the day. Doing some research I found out, after the fact, that this was initially an anti-depressant. Quite frankly, I don't like the idea of taking something that was formulated for a psychological condition which I don't have. Long story short, I trashed the pills. Doc is now recommending Ambien. I've heard tons of horror stories about this drug and I am very wary about trying it.
Bottomline, I don't want a drug that is going to keep me drowsy for 10 or 12 hrs at a time. All I need is a good 7-8 hours, nothing more..nothing less. I have been off and on on Melatonin and the Nyquil sleep drug (can't remember what's it's called).
Just looking for some suggestions, or personal experiences using Melatonin or Nyquil drug (DCL?) long term. I have also thought about Valerian. If Ambien has worked well for you, tell me about it. If you've had bad side effects, I'd like to know that too. Any advice, personal experience is welcomed. Cheers!
Bottomline, I don't want a drug that is going to keep me drowsy for 10 or 12 hrs at a time. All I need is a good 7-8 hours, nothing more..nothing less. I have been off and on on Melatonin and the Nyquil sleep drug (can't remember what's it's called).
Just looking for some suggestions, or personal experiences using Melatonin or Nyquil drug (DCL?) long term. I have also thought about Valerian. If Ambien has worked well for you, tell me about it. If you've had bad side effects, I'd like to know that too. Any advice, personal experience is welcomed. Cheers!
Me personally I hate anything addictive and ambien is addicting. Melatonin is what you need in order to fall asleep do not become completely reliant upon it but use it to give yourself a good sleeping pattern then stick to it. Go to bed at that exact time every night it won't be difficult either trust me.
An excellent answer. Thank you.
Let me add my 2 cents about trazodone and other tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs).
TCAs were derived from the discovery of the first antihistamines in the 1950s. They are similar chemically and therefore have similar pharmacodynamics, which is why both trazodone and diphenhydramine, a first generation antihistamine, make a person drowsy (cause somnolence.)
Frankly I don't like either the TCA or antihistamine hangover.
While Ambien and other z-drugs cause less hangover, they have other negative side effects.
I would suggest that the OP try melatonin.
TCAs, like other antidepressants, spare serotonin, the neurotransmitter that is a metabolic precursor to melatonin.
If Midnight_Sun responds so well to trazodone, they may benefit from melatonin tablets, available from the local health food store.
Melatonin causes has no hangover, and so far, it seems to be a benign sleep aid when used sparingly.
By the way, the other ingredient in Nyquil that makes one sleepy is ethyl alcohol. I would think it preferable to enjoy a nice glass of wine before bed than a slug of Nyquil.
Let me add my 2 cents about trazodone and other tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs).
TCAs were derived from the discovery of the first antihistamines in the 1950s. They are similar chemically and therefore have similar pharmacodynamics, which is why both trazodone and diphenhydramine, a first generation antihistamine, make a person drowsy (cause somnolence.)
Frankly I don't like either the TCA or antihistamine hangover.
While Ambien and other z-drugs cause less hangover, they have other negative side effects.
I would suggest that the OP try melatonin.
TCAs, like other antidepressants, spare serotonin, the neurotransmitter that is a metabolic precursor to melatonin.
If Midnight_Sun responds so well to trazodone, they may benefit from melatonin tablets, available from the local health food store.
Melatonin causes has no hangover, and so far, it seems to be a benign sleep aid when used sparingly.
By the way, the other ingredient in Nyquil that makes one sleepy is ethyl alcohol. I would think it preferable to enjoy a nice glass of wine before bed than a slug of Nyquil.
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Trazodone is under a large umbrella of medications called Psychotropic. One thing that is interesting about Psychotropics is that, because they manipulate the chemical function within the nervous system—including the brain, spinal cord, and nerves—they tend to have numerous effects rather than just pinpointing one particular symptom. If you think about it, in a broad sense, this is true for almost every known drug whether it's prescription, over the counter, or illegal; sometimes we call the effect we're looking for at the time the "active" or "desired" effect, whereas we call all the other effects the "side effects." This distinction is pretty arbitrary from a chemical standpoint, though, and as a matter of fact, many drugs can have two or more active effects. This is why I said psychotropics are interesting: they often have several powerful active effects.
Here are some examples: Lamictal is used to treat epileptic seizures, bipolar mood disorder, migraines, and neuropathic pain. (I'm including both labeled and common "off-label" uses in the US.) One medicine that I personally take is in the class of drugs called "Tricyclic antidepressants" but I don't take it to treat Major Depressive Disorder! (Exactly the situation you found yourself in, basically.) This is because the tricyclic antidepressant imipramine is one of the very, very few drugs that is known to improve symptoms of cataplexy and status cataplecticus (an extremely rare type of paralysis that only a fraction of people with narcolepsy suffer from). In addition to treating Major Depressive Disorder and Narcolepsy with Cataplexy, tricyclic antidepressants such as imipramine and amitriptyline are also effective treatments for conditions as diverse as Migraines, Interstitial Cystitis, Anxiety Disorders such as OCD, ADHD, Parkinson's Disease, BedWetting, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Chronic Hiccups, Fibromyalgia, and Insomnia.
It's no coincidence that the tricyclic antidepressants can treat insomnia. In fact, many psychotropic drugs (including many antidepressants) are excellent treatments for insomnia, because they reliably cause drowsiness IN THE PROPER DOSAGE. This is important to understand because it goes back to the prescription your doctor gave you. The dose of Trazodone that is Rxed for insomnia is much lower than the therapeutic dose levels for treating Major Depressive Disorder. These things have been carefully scientifically study, and doctors know that if they give people a higher dose, spaced throughout the day, their bodies get used to the drug and it stops causing drowsiness! But at a much lower dose and only taken once a day at bedtime, the body doesn't get a chance to get used to it, and it consistently causes drowsiness! Making that an excellent treatment for insomnia.
Your experience of feeling groggy the next day is not uncommon with insomnia medication; that can happen with many different insomnia medications. What you need to do when this happens is call your doctor (or your pharmacist) and ask if it is safe to cut the pills in half. If they are tablets, they are not extended release/time release/delayed release/etc., and they do not have "enteric coating" to protect your stomach lining, it is USUALLY safe to cut, chew, or crush pills but it's always better to be cautious and ask first.
You may find that half the dose of trazodone gives you exactly enough help getting to sleep without the unwanted grogginess the next morning. As for Ambien, yes, like every drug in existence, it does have possible side effects. I believe it has more possible side effects than trazodone, but I've taken both without problems. A good way to reduce the likelihood of side effects with Ambien is to take it and go directly to bed. (Or better yet, put a glass of water by your bedside, and take it after you're already in the bed.) Many people report strange behavior after staying awake too long and "fighting off" the drowsiness that the Ambien causes. This can be alluring in some ways, because it gives some people a buzz, but it ultimately can lead to strange, dangerous behavior and feeling sick, so I highly recommend avoiding that. Oh, and Ambien is only active for 8 hours, not 10-12. Unless you have a disease that would affect drug metabolism, like a metabolic genetic disorder or advanced organ failure, that should hold true.
The Nyquil sleep medicine only has one ingredient. People are usually shocked to find out, it's just allergy medicine. The only ingredient in ZZZquil is diphenhydramine, more commonly known as benadryl. If you want to take that, save yourself some money and buy a bottle of generic diphenhydramine tablets at the pharmacy.
Melatonin can be quite helpful, but recent research has shown that most people are taking too high a dose by a factor of 10, and this can also lead to a groggy, "hung over" feeling the next day. See this article for discussion of the outcome from that research:
http://newsoffice.mit.edu/2001/melatonin-1017
My recommendation is that you read over the information I've given you here carefully. (I know it's a lot; let me know if I can clarify anything for you.) Once you've had some time to think things over, go back and see your doctor. You really need to have a heart to heart with your doctor and be honest with them about what your concerns are, what things are an absolute deal-breaker for you, what you're willing to compromise on, and what level of improvement you're hoping to see from medication. By giving your doctor the complete picture, they will have the tools needed to better choose the right medicine for you, whether that's prescription or over the counter.
Best wishes, H.