Question:
HELP!! I've switched from Celexa & Wellbutrin to Effexor & Wellbutrin. Been
dosing up over past week w/Effexor and haven't had an easy time falling asleep
at all. I had same problem with Zoloft. It just wired me to the nutso point.
I take the Effexor in the a.m. but I CANNOT fall asleep at night. Stayed up
all night tonight. Of course this wreaks havoc with life, but I AM feeling a
tremendous change in depression and energy level since I started the drug.
Though I doubt the trade-off is worth it in the long run.
I started at 37.5 mg. x 4 days, then 75 mg. x 4 days and now am supposed to get
an Rx for 150 mg. I don't think I'll be getting it until I talk to a doc on
call!!
Anyone else have this reaction to these type of anti-D's? Especially Effexor.
Having major depression with the PTSD I see in the pamphlet that anxiety
disorder patients have a higher insomnia rate w/this drug....I'm just not
digging this inability to fall asleep AT ALL.
Will call psych later today but hoped to get some feedback while I search net
for drug info.
Kristine
The unexamined life is not worth living - Socrates
-good point Socrates-
What about my over-examined one that interferes with living?!?
Answer:
I took both but not at the same time. I'm on wellbutrin now but in both
cases I needed a sleep med to help me fall asleep.
I started with Imovane 5 mg which was very effective for over a year.
I'm now at the normal dose of 7.5 mg and have a full nine hours of
restful sleep on average.
I also take 1 mg of ativan at bedtime. I find it has virtually
eliminated the nightmares and has reduced the grinding of my teeth at
night which gave me alot of jaw pain and headaches.
The combination of these three meds were maybe five years in the trial
and error stage (prozac, effexor, clonazapam, serzone, tryptophane,
nozinan, propranolol - to name a few) but I believe I've found the
combination that will see me through to the end of all this.
I take 300 mg effexor daily. Now, when I first started on it, I was 'wound up'
but after being on a drug that had quit working months before the effexor
(desipramine) it was nice to feel half-way normal again. I take xanax for
anxiety, and trazedone to help me sleep, along with depakote to control rage.
My sex drive is gone, I'm numb most of the time, but I have quit raising as
much hell as I used to - especially here on this ng.
http://members.aol.com/luannep/adoption.htm
Following an addiction to barbiturates, and then
to benzos I stop fighting to have a regular sleep
schedule. What I noticed after that ordeal was
that my body was speaking to me in a sense. I had
heard people talk about feeling warm and toasty as
they fell asleep. Not me. I was cold, and I
shivered. I realized at some point the cold and
shivering was actually a very minor panic attack.
Falling asleep left me vulnerable. So, I started
to work with it. When I felt that feeling I would
dawdle off to bed. I usually could get an hour or
two of sleep. It isn't a solution. It's isn't
perfect. But the extra sleep made a difference.
That was the last time I stayed up for 3 days at a
time. Sleep makes coping just a LITTLE easier.
