Posted by bleauberry on March 27, 2009, at 20:10:12
In reply to Changing insomnia meds, posted by myco on March 27, 2009, at 12:43:01
While none of the sleep meds were perfect for me, I had by far the best results with either Zyprexa (8 years at 5mg) or Lunesta (1/2 dose as needed) or Remeron (3.75mg-7.5mg).
With the exception of those meds, everything else...Seroquel, Trazodone, benzos...left me significantly more depressed the next day. And very lethargic.
That brings me to Remeron. Excellent sleep med at the right dose. I think if people would take a 15mg tab and cut it into quarters, try one quarter, and then try two quarters, they would find that 3.75mg or 7.5mg is a good sleep. It comes with a slight morning grogginess hangover thing that disappears in a couple weeks, but no depression. For me anyway. And I am easily depressed by meds. Higher doses to me were more activating and not as good for sleep. I swear, little chunks of Remeron are powerful good sleep meds.
Though I've never tried Amitriptyline myself, I know a couple people that have used it nightly for years in doses of 10mg-25mg.
I suspect if you have a damaged sympathetic system (fight or flight), you would do best with Amitriptyline.
Contrary to what your docs said, I have to put a good word in for Zyprexa. It is a good med to try and should not be haphazardly lumped into a category with other APs.
No matter what you take, be sure it is brand and not generic. If you are on generic, switch to brand before switching meds. I'm not kidding.
At the right doses...Remeron, Amitriptyline, Lunesta, Zyprexa...there you have four excellent alternatives to put on your menu. No shortage of options. With the exception of Amitriptyline, be sure they are not generic.
As a side note, another excellent sleep/anxiety med was Hydrocortisone tablets at just 1.25mg (1/4 of the smallest pill). If you have ever googled adrenal fatigue and it looked like something that fit you, then HC would do wonders. Amitriptyline is sort of in that same circuitry.
poster:bleauberry
thread:887265
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090322/msgs/887318.html