sleeping aids

okay, I am on restoril and have been on 60 mg per night since I was on prednisone but I am no longer on pred and now I can't sleep without it. I am getting to the point where I can't sleep that great with it either. I am trying to see if I can sleep without it but I just lay there for hours and can't go to sleep. HELP! Now, remember I have a 5 year old very unstable diabetic that needs me all through the night. His blood sugar is never stable at night. He goes high or low every night and needs to be checked frequently. My hubby was getting up with him when I was at my worst but now that I am starting to feel somewhat better, I have been picking up the slack but I am so tired and not sleeping well at all. So I feel like I'm addicted to this sleeping pill which I am not happy about. So anyone know how to get 'unadicted'? I am going to the doc on Monday so I plan on asking this question to him then but in the meantime I thought I'd ask some of you if you have ever experienced this. I am just not used to taking drugs and I am just not used to this. Maybe it is still my lupus flare too? I don't know. All I know is I still can't sleep at all and I just could take 2 days to sleep but with my little guy that is pretty much impossible. He is a 24/7 job. Any thoughts?

Monica

Hi Monica,

Wow it doesn't rain it pours Your story sounds identical to mine! I was using sleeping tablets earlier this year for about 4 months until they stopped working so I stopped using them, until I went to the Dr last Monday and he gave them to me again but they don't work I sleep for about 1 - 1 1/2 hrs and then I wake up and then I dose off again and so the pattern goes all night, every night! How to fix it? I'm still working on that one As for being addicted to the sleeping tablets you are taking, probably the best thing to do is cut them back slowly. Up until about 2 months before I was dx'd I had always been a good sleeper and had never needed anything to help me sleep but now it's like I have won the lottery if I sleep all night!!

I hope this has helped a little, please let me know what your Dr says.

Take Care
Love and Hugs
xxxMaz

Just an update..

I went to the doc and after trying benedryl, which didn't work, then trying a nerve pain killer, which didn't work, the doc put me on an anti-depressant, Doxipin, and actually for a dual purpose, since I was losing weight due to the methotrexate, this doxipin increases the appetite so he wanted to boost mine. Anyway, after a couple of nights, I was off the sleeping pill. YAH!! I am back to my regular sleeping habits and can get up a couple of times a night and check on my son again. I can stop taking the doxipin but the doc asked me to continue to take it to keep my appetite in check so I didn't keep losing weight, although lately I have been eating a little too much. I am watching the scale to make sure I don't start gaining. If I do, I will be stopping it very quickly. Anyway, thought I would post an update. When I went to the pharmacist with the nerve med, he didn't like it and said he would have gone to an anti-depressant then, even just for a couple of weeks. I didn't realize that anti-depressants were used for other reasons and for short term, but it worked for me and worked great and fast so there you have it. Take care!! Monica

Monica

Glad to hear things are getting better for you. Hope the rest of the family are doing well also.

As for the weight thing ( hide the scales for a few days)
just kidding


Take care
Ray

Hi Monica,

I'm so glad you have found something that is helping you to get a good nights sleep. Things can only get better from here as the better sleep you get the better chance our bodies have to heal.

Like Ray said, hide the scale for a few days or weeks for that matter, live it up over the holidays!

Melissa

Hi Monica,

Happy snooozzzing!! I am glad to hear that you are back to regular sleeping habits - it must feel great. I had no idea anti-depressants can be used for other reasons but I guess it is just like plaquenil for malaria and now it is being widely used for lupus.

Since the holidays are here, I agree with Ray and Melissa - hide that scale!