Is anyone else on any type of sleep medication? If so what kind and how much? I am having so much trouble sleeping as of late. I don't know if it is stress I don't know if my body is just being funky but I am completely exhausted and I have been missing my workouts just cause I am so incredibly tired. It's 4:11am California time and I haven't gone to sleep in over 24 hours. Plus I have a job interview in 4 hours that I'm not sure I'm going to make cause I'm so tired. Any information anyone can provide would be appreciated. Thanks!!!
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CF and Sleep Meds
- Thread starter baco623
- Start date
My son has cf and autism. Because of the autism this child does not sleep. We did try melintonin, which is an over he counter herbal remedy. Totally safe, his doc. suggested it. Unfortunately he fell asleep but woke at 3 am ready to start his day. He now takes a very low dose of clonidine (0.2 mg). That helps him fall asleep, stay asleep, and not feel groggy or foggy the next day. I would suggest trying the melintonin first. You can get it any pharmacy. Probably should check with our doctor first though. Good luck!
LittleLab4CF
Super Moderator
This is a guess, but it sounds like you are one the edge of a flare. With the potential of your body being in fight mode, you may be pumping everything from testosterone to adrenaline to fight pain/infection and such. If I had a job interview tomorrow, my anxiety level would be up a notch and I don’t have anxiety, ever. My first suggestion would to go through one of the many relaxation routines to help calm your mind and body.Or, two things that work for me are zolpidem Extended Release 12.5mg came out as Ambien brand of a sleeping pill. It is better and safer to use the E.R. or Controlled Release (C.R.) than the cheaper single phase dosing. The other drug I have found helps my sleep and helps if I am wired from pain and such from a CF flare and that is Trileptal or oxycarbazepine 150mg. Both of these will have to come from your doctor. Either can be used short term or for the long term. Hope you break the cycle soon.LL
running4life
New member
I've have sleeping issues for a few years and it's actually gotten better recently. I go for months of good sleep, then bad sleep, etc. I am actually up now because I couldn't stop coughing from this irritating little cold I have and woke myself up twice since going to bed early.
I've tried several things...
Remeron - don't remember dose (BEST sleep EVER, but side effect was food cravings constantly and I have to watch my weight)
Trazadone 50-150 mg (Worked for a time and then stopped)
Seroqel 25 mg (Worked for a time and then stopped - also left me feeling a little hazey during the day)
Ambien 10mg (Have taken ONCE last night and was the weirdest and worst night of sleep ever)
Tonight, I took Melatonin, had better routine before bed, and took half a dose of Zzzquil (My favorite, but dries up my lungs so I rarely take).
I struggled with anxiety and depression and suggest a variety of techniques to help with sleep. I sleep around the same time every night (8-9PM) and wake up the same time every day (4-6AM). Here are some good websites to help that I was reading about today actually:
http://www.helpguide.org/life/insomnia_treatment.htm
http://www.wikihow.com/Prevent-Insomnia
Also, I use something my counselor suggested on iTunes called Relaxation Body Scan & Guided Imagery for Well Being by Carolyn McManus. I listen to it when I get in bed to help me relax. I also go to bed clean and try not to go to bed with a full stomach. Don't worry so much about it and know you can get some good sleep, it may just be you changing your ways a bit.
I've tried several things...
Remeron - don't remember dose (BEST sleep EVER, but side effect was food cravings constantly and I have to watch my weight)
Trazadone 50-150 mg (Worked for a time and then stopped)
Seroqel 25 mg (Worked for a time and then stopped - also left me feeling a little hazey during the day)
Ambien 10mg (Have taken ONCE last night and was the weirdest and worst night of sleep ever)
Tonight, I took Melatonin, had better routine before bed, and took half a dose of Zzzquil (My favorite, but dries up my lungs so I rarely take).
I struggled with anxiety and depression and suggest a variety of techniques to help with sleep. I sleep around the same time every night (8-9PM) and wake up the same time every day (4-6AM). Here are some good websites to help that I was reading about today actually:
http://www.helpguide.org/life/insomnia_treatment.htm
http://www.wikihow.com/Prevent-Insomnia
Also, I use something my counselor suggested on iTunes called Relaxation Body Scan & Guided Imagery for Well Being by Carolyn McManus. I listen to it when I get in bed to help me relax. I also go to bed clean and try not to go to bed with a full stomach. Don't worry so much about it and know you can get some good sleep, it may just be you changing your ways a bit.
CyrilCrodius
New member
Sleep pills that are available over the counter are the exact same thing as allergy pills. AFAIK we have no counter-indication for allergy pills.
Everyone's given the same suggestions that I would have with the one exception, asking for the sublingual version of Ambien (Edluar). It gets into the bloodstream quicker and as of 2011 was not available in a generic form. Zzzquil is Diphenhydramine (aka Benadryl), which someone else mentioned about OTC allergy meds and most OTC sleep aids. My daughter's tx doc at Cleveland Clinic suggested the sublingual version, her theory... CF'ers have malabsorption issues as it is, it is possible that other pills may benefit from taking an enzyme or two for better absorption. Which she was required to do with one of her anti-rejections drugs and if she didn't, it showed in her levels.
CyrilCrodius
New member
Which she was required to do with one of her anti-rejections drugs and if she didn't, it showed in her levels.
This is very very interesting! I wonder in Bendryl suffers the same fate? In my case, a dose of Benadryl given orally isn't nearly as effective as the same dose given intravenously. I would say it goes as far as being 75% less effective.
azdesertrat
New member
I have suffered with insomnia my entire life. It didn't matter when I was trucking, because I could set my own hours. Now, with all the anti-rejection drugs & the rest, the insomnia is worse. My GP prescribed Ambien & thank God I've been sleeping pretty good. Sometimes I still have trouble sleeping but for the most part I sleep pretty good now. I'm still pretty weak & healing after a bout with C-Diff so I think that's helping me sleep better now too. Hope this helps a little...
running4life
New member
Also, I will add to this that be careful with sleep drugs. Your body becomes addicted and the withdrawals are not for the faint hearted.
baseballfrank
New member
I use hydrocodone cough syrup to sleep. I hate using such a powerful narcotic, but I have no choice. I tried ambien and tylenol with codeine and both make my chest tight and breathing hard. The hydrocodone helps calm my cough and also relieves my chest tightness allowing me to sleep.