Anybody take sleep aids?

[fyrffytr1]

My doctor put me on some meds for depression and high blood pressure. The depression med was prescribed because I had a very hard time getting over my brothers death 8 months ago. Anyway that med caused insomnia and I only sleep about two-three hours a night. So on my last visit he prescribed a sleeping pill for me. I take it about a half hour before I go to bed and it knocks me out. The one problem I noted is if I don't get into bed before it starts taking affect I have trouble even walking, And, it is hitting mr as I sit here tryiing to type this post. I thiink iitis timr for mr to go brddy by. nitenite yyallll.

 

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[Milspec6]

My previous career (one of them anyway) was working security at a Nuclear power plant and we worked 13 hour shifts that rotated. A horrible schedule and when I left after 12 years I calculated that I averaged 55 hours per week the whole time. As a result, i never saw more than about 5 hours of sleep per night and many of my friends were taking sleep meds in order to try and survive the rotating shifts. The results were very bad for all of them. I am sure it depends on what brand it is, but our guys were on Ambian and several of them ended with major problems. One even drove all the way to work without having any memory of it at all!!! When she showed up to the armory, she was still pretty much asleep and hallucinating.

I still only get about 6 hours of sleep these days, but when my head hits the pillow I am out instantly. For me, taking a night walk after dinner helps a lot towards accomplishing that task. My old doctor once told me to avoid such sleeping pills and just take some benedryl if I really had trouble getting to sleep. It gets the job done without the bizarre and dangerous results I saw with the Ambian users.

Sorry to hear about your brother, I've been there. I can't really say anything except that it will always hurt, but that you will get to the point of enjoying life again....just takes time.

 

[CalReg]

Sorry about your brother. I lost my younger brother 5 years ago and it still hurts. For the first couple of years after his passing I didn't sleep much. Was prescribed Ambien and for a while that seemed to work for me, but as time went on I found it harder and harder to stay focused during the day, so I quit taking the sleeping pills. I have managed to get back on track with increased exercise and a better diet. Meditation may also help. Best of luck to you. I hope you are able to find the solution to your sleeping problems...

 

[1637]

i hate it when they just keep giving you more drug to fix what the last drug messed up,it never ends,this is just what i think,iam not a doctor,but i would find something that is fun to keep you busy.dogs are great.detecting,panning for gold.iam 69 and at my age i have lost allot of great people. good luck be safe.
brad

 

[RustyGold]

I’m very sorry to hear about your brother’s passing.
I would avoid all pills when it’s ok to do so. The side affects are not worth it. I don’t feel right when I’m on meds. The blood pressure stuff seems ok but heaven help me if I have to take a Vicodin.
Best of luck for a speedy recovery!

 

[relicmeister]

Give melatonin a try. No side effects but works.
Best of luck

 

[creskol]

I take 1/2 of a tablet of Unisom

 

[ticndig]

Watch out if you were given ambien . I did a lot of sleep walking and a little sleep driving on that stuff.

I take a tablet of magnesium 1/2 hr before bed. it's also good for bone and joint pain.
you won't feel at all groggy in the morning .

 

[fyrffytr1]

Thanks for all the replies. I can't take benedryl or zyrtec with my anti depressant. Claritin or Allegra are OK. I have tried the melatonin and it didn't help. I may be able to come off the blood pressure medication soon. I was taking an OTC supplement for prostate health and found out it could cause high blood pressure so I quit taking it. When I go back to my doctor in 6 months he will re-evaluate everything. I did get some good news from him. My bad cholesterol was down 30 points from my check up a year ago and over 40 points lower since I first had it checked. Two things contributed to that, first I quit drinking sweet tea about two months ago and have cut soft drinks down to one small Pepsi a week, and secondly I have been taking apple cider vinegar pills for almost 6 months now.

 

[Deep1]

10-4 on the melatonin.
Works for me and doesn't give me a hangover.

I use it in combo with meditation.
For most people a simple form of breathing meditation will work.
It takes some discipline and patience.
It becomes easier with time.

When you lay down to sleep, concentrate on your breathing and breathing only. Think of nothing else, that's the hard part.
Tell yourself to breath in and inhale, tell yourself to breath out and exhale.
Sometimes I put a happy word in between saying BI and BO.
Sometimes I put a happy picture in my mind, that takes practice, you want it to be secondary to your concentrating on breathing.

Start with just concentrating on breathing no other distractions.

When you first try this, you probably going to get thru about 3 BI\BO's before your mind starts to wander, this is where discipline comes in, you must bring your mind back to your breathing.
Your mind is going to wander, you must not allow it.
Being yourself to BI/BO.

This will work.
It most likely won't, the first time you try it, it does take time and patience to achieve the level of calm.
It will come if you believe and stay with it.

I have found melatonin really helps calm my mind and makes it easier to get to a good place for meditation.

I believe prescription pills increase depression, read the side effects. Most of them mention suicide, but not happiness as a side effect.
They do more harm than good.

Hope this helps.
You are welcome to PM me.
Mike

 

[Milspec6]

I was thinking about your situation some more at work and thought i would suggest a proven method to get quality rest without sleep (trust me it will make sense if you read on).

The Russian military had a program to allow troops to function for very long periods without sleep and it involved just simple ping pong balls. With it, you can make 15 minutes be just as restfull as several hours of sleep. It does work, i used it many times myself.

What you do is take 2 white ping-pong balls and cut them in half. Discard the halves with writting on them. Now lie down on the floor beneath an over-head light and place the ping-pong halves over your eyes. Now, just relax and look at into the light. It will be strange at first, but that white light will allow your brain to shut down and enter into a state much like REM sleep. You will still be awake and there might be some sense of colors floating past your eyes for a little while, but you thoughts will quiet down to a deep relaxation. I had to set an alarm clock for 15 minutes in case I did fall asleep, but each time I did it I would swear that time stopped and that 15 minutes felt like hours.

it got me through a lot of double shifts and allowed me to work on 1 hour of sleep once while still being very alert.

It doesn't work for everyone probably, but i would give it a try over medication support. Good Luck.

 

[releventchair]

I lose sleep to pain. Miss a nights sleep here and there but did so in the past for work anyways , and survived just fine. Though naps sound good now a days....

Decompression routine before going to bed helps. As does a consistent sleeping environment.
Wind down time is wind down time.
After perimeter check , it's lights out in the house time.
Reading is my "shift gears" at the pre sleep routine. No dwelling on the day ,or tomorrow or ect. Things get extra blurry/tired enough to close eyes ,the last light goes out.
If I lay on my left side the subconscious scrolls what it will. (Odd , I know.) Switching to the right stops it and conscious thought is possible. Focus on recalling prior reading if a distraction occurs and tries to work my mind..
On my back , it's balanced sleep time.

 

[MKW]

Bourbon helps me sleep.

 

[gunsil]

Sorry to hear about your brother. I think the anti-depressants mess people up and I have several friends who have become addicted to them. The sooner you get off that stuff the better off you will be. Perhaps grief counseling or talking with a minister might be a better option. As to the insomnia, GA does have medical marijuana and although many doctors don't like the idea the stuff works well in many situations. One of my best friends takes it in the evening and swears by it, she's 72 and now gets a good seven hour sleep because of it when she used to have a hard time getting four. It definitely helps relaxation and sleep and has no "hangover" effect. You don't smoke it, it comes in an edible oil or pills depending on where you are.

 

[joesmarbles]

Fyrffytr give this a try instead of meds, a hot bath, a good piece of chocolate and a cup of tea. The great endorphins they release will make you sleep like a baby.
.....Joe McDonough

 

[fyrffytr1]

I really appreciate all the replies. I will be 70 in October and until About 5 months ago I never took any prescription medications on a regular basis. I tried talking with my preacher and I prayed for an end to my feelings about my brother's death to no avail. I quit watching the news because of all the gloom and doom and I keep as busy as I can during the day. I can come in and take a shower, then sit down and fall asleep for a couple hours but that ruins my sleeping at night. So, I try not to nap during the day. I will say that since I started the antidepressant I feel a lot better about life in general. I think that if I weren't on it I would have had a stroke when our federal tax return was hacked and the thieves then got our stimulus check. But, I took it in stride and it really hasn't bothered me. Contrast that to the fact that when gas prices skyrocketed about ten years ago I just knew I would die if it hit $4.00 a gallon!
I am taking Ambien but not every night. If I am not asleep by midnight I take one and lay down. In 15-20 minutes I am gone and I wake up 7-8 hours later not feeling groggy or anything. So far I have taken 3 Ambien in about two weeks. I worked in yards all day today so I think I will sleep OK tonight.
Sorry for the long rant. I'll shut up and go to bed now.

 

[CalReg]

May you find peace...sleep well brother...

 

[Truth]

My doctor put me on some meds for depression and high blood pressure. The depression med was prescribed because I had a very hard time getting over my brothers death 8 months ago. Anyway that med caused insomnia and I only sleep about two-three hours a night. So on my last visit he prescribed a sleeping pill for me. I take it about a half hour before I go to bed and it knocks me out. The one problem I noted is if I don't get into bed before it starts taking affect I have trouble even walking, And, it is hitting mr as I sit here tryiing to type this post. I thiink iitis timr for mr to go brddy by. nitenite yyallll.

I saw for from depression anxiety and insomnia what pills that you’re taking that knocks you out that’s what I’m looking for. Lol

 

[tamrock]

My 86 year old uncle asked me after pot became legal in Colorado if I wouldn't mind bringing back some to Iowa because he said it helped him relax and sleep better. I couldn't believe it, my uncle gets high and he ask i don't say anything about it to his kids my cousin and one of them is older than me.

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

I have a couple beers starting at 9:00PM and sleep well. ;-)

Less potential side effects than arthritis strength Ibuprofen or Tylenol.