insomnia on most AD's

05-04-2005, 03:06 PM

I have had depression for many years, but several years ago I went on Paxil and Serzone as a combination and felt wonderful! I remember feeling more at peace and happy than ever in my life. I was sleeping well, which has been a big issue for me. I went off the Serzone last fall since it had been pulled by the FDA for liver problems. I also went off Paxil shortly afterward. (The withdrawal from Paxil was tough, to say the least!) I was hoping I could go without meds, but I bottomed out. Since Christmas I've been trying lots of different meds, including Buspar, Effexor, Celexa, Prozac, and now Cymbalta. Insomnia is a huge problem for me on all these meds. Has anyone had issues with insomnia as a side effect of ad's and found something that didn't cause the insomnia? I think there was something about the Serzone that really worked for me, but I can't risk the possible liver problem. Thanks for any help!

05-04-2005, 03:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BarbJH

I have had depression for many years, but several years ago I went on Paxil and Serzone as a combination and felt wonderful! I remember feeling more at peace and happy than ever in my life. I was sleeping well, which has been a big issue for me. I went off the Serzone last fall since it had been pulled by the FDA for liver problems. I also went off Paxil shortly afterward. (The withdrawal from Paxil was tough, to say the least!) I was hoping I could go without meds, but I bottomed out. Since Christmas I've been trying lots of different meds, including Buspar, Effexor, Celexa, Prozac, and now Cymbalta. Insomnia is a huge problem for me on all these meds. Has anyone had issues with insomnia as a side effect of ad's and found something that didn't cause the insomnia? I think there was something about the Serzone that really worked for me, but I can't risk the possible liver problem. Thanks for any help!

I had really bad insomnia on Lexapro. When my doctor prescribed the Lexapro, he also prescribed sleeping pills, which were great, until I ran out

. Perhaps you could discuss your sleeping problems with your doctor and see if s/he could prescribe some kind of sedative. Also, sometimes changing the time of day that one takes the AD's can help with the insomnia. If you haven't taken any of the drugs for long, the insomnia may wear off in a couple of weeks. I suffer from insomnia, and I understand how much losing sleep can affect your life. I feel for you. I hope you're able to find something that works.

Take care,

EoR

05-04-2005, 03:32 PM

Thanks for your reply. I should have stated that I'm currently taking Ambien and Neurontin for sleep. I'm hoping to wean off them, but would sure like to find something that didn't have this side effect!

05-04-2005, 03:45 PM

I wish I could help. I think something that causes insomnia for one person, can make somebody else sleep like a baby. Maybe if you described your specific side effects to your doctor, s/he can help find something more suitable.

Best of luck! -EoR

05-04-2005, 05:51 PM

Try Elavil I am on that and it does also help me sleep just watch your weight cuase it caused me to gain 10 lbs in 2 weeks.

05-05-2005, 01:58 PM

im on prozac and when i first started taking it was exhausted all the time and also couldnt sleep!! argh anyway, i started taking the meds at nite and since then my sleep has improved greatly! i still get slightly tired sometimes and also do have some sleepless nites but no way near as many, maybe if ur not already u should try taking ad's at nite a couple of hours before u got to bed

Brett

05-05-2005, 03:25 PM

I also seem to be helped by Elavil, I've Lexapro and Celexa and both made me totally unable to sleep, which the Depression contributed to all by itself. I'm currently having acupuncture done to help reduce all the bad stuff and it may be working as I notice some gradual improvement. I think Elavil is the only med that has helped although it's still quite early. Another SSRI that is used to assist sleep is Remeron, which for me the horrible side effect of weight gain. It didn't seem to help the depression but just led to weight gain.

05-18-2005, 08:52 PM

If you take your anti-depression med in the am, you shouldn't have insomnia. If you take an anti-anxiety med, like clonazepam before bedtime, you should sleep well and wake up rested as well.

05-19-2005, 10:01 AM

Cowgirl has it on the nose. The more sedating the AD, the more it sets you up for weight gain. I had the same insomnia reaction to Lexapro and Celexa as you had. The sleeping pills help, but you eventually build a tolerance to them and they stop working, so it's typically only a viable strategy to get you through a short term issue. I personally would Love to find an AD that actually works for me, but haven't had any luck with it. I'm now going to go through hell as my tolerance to the sleeping pills is so high that I'm just going to have to tough it out until they get out of my system. This whole process has been hell, I can totally empathize with your situation.

05-19-2005, 01:13 PM

I've had insomnia for the whole 6 weeks that I've been on Zoloft. It's the pits. Nothing has worked to help me sleep more than an hr. and then I wake up every half hr. the rest of the night. Curretnly taking 1mg Klonopin. Have already tried AMbien, Lunesta, halcion, trazodone, xanax. Feel like a guinia pig here trying to find something to make me sleep.
Tell me more about Elavil and Neruotin---those are two things I havne't tried that I saw mentioned on this post.

05-19-2005, 03:38 PM

KayKay: Try clonazepam (anti-anxiety tablet) before bedtime. It makes you drowsy and you get a real good sleep. Also I take my effexor (anti-depression capsule) in the am. Since it helps moods & makes you more upbeat, I believe it would interfere with sleep, if I took it at bedtime. My mom takes 2 clonazepam at bedtime and I take 1/2 tablet and I sleep well. Clonazepam is a really good med and very inexpensive too. It also helps people with restless legs syndrome.

insomnia on most AD's

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