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(Message started by: Gator on Oct 16^th, 2004, 12:13am)

Title: Any suggestions here
Post by Gator on Oct 16^th, 2004, 12:13am

Okay, on the last trip to the neuro, he gave me Trileptal (anti-seizure) and Nortriptyline (depression) to try to fight the ch and to help me get some sleep. Wasn't working, so my shrink gave me Halcion to knock my ass out. Recommended starting dose is .125mg - he started me out at .25mg and repeat in an hour if necessary. He didn't see where it should be necessary, but just in case... So I have been awake since Wednesday morning about 4 am. Despite the meds the neuro said should help me sleep and the meds the shrink said should knock me out I am still here talking to you. This on top of being slammed four times today already and knowing I have my friendly 1:30am wake up call coming.

What does a guy gotta do to get some sleep with this damned disease? I'm so drugged up I should be in such deep sleep, Rip Van Winkle would look like an insomniac. AHHHHHHHH!!!! Somebody just shoot me. Shoot me now and put me out of my misery.

Sleepless in Stillwater

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by alleyoop on Oct 16^th, 2004, 12:19am

Sorry Mike, I really haven't got any suggestions. Hope you get some sleep soon though.........

...............alley :-/

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by thebbz on Oct 16^th, 2004, 12:21am

Gator,
Been there done that. I get so wired on the pred I get a nap every three days if I'm lucky.Just relax or lay down and BAM. After 2 weeks of that ...I'm feelin ya man.$^*%$ard demon [smiley=bash.gif]Hang in there
BB

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by forgetfulnot on Oct 16^th, 2004, 12:29am

Ambien, Imitrex...............................

Lee

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by thebbz on Oct 16^th, 2004, 12:42am

150 of demerol please 8) 8)
BB

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by Gator on Oct 16^th, 2004, 12:55am

on 10/16/04 at 00:42:34, thebbz wrote:

150 of demerol please 8) 8)
BB

I've done 50mg of phenergan and 200mg of demerol and gotten nothing out of it.

Tried the Ambien, too.

My psychiatrist says my liver metabolises the shit out of my body before it can do much good. That's why doctors always end up having to up my doses higher than the acceptable norm.

When I get into one of these insomnia states, nothing helps excpet pure fucking exhaustion. That can take up to 4 or 5 days.

Somebody slip into the shop and get that big rubber mallet and pop me on the noggin. Wait, don't do that. I'll need the mallet in one piece next week. I'm building my grand daughter a toychest. LOL

Gator

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by Mac on Oct 16^th, 2004, 2:30am

I've heard that Gravol (travel sickness tablets) can help you get some sleep. It doesn't let you fall into REM sleep so it might prevent you from getting hit. Your not supposed to do it for more than 3 or 4 days because you don't get a restful, deep sleep but you get some. I don't know if you've tried it before but it might work.

pfdan glen

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by Giovanni on Oct 16^th, 2004, 5:19am

Quote:

Any suggestions here

www.clusterbusters.com

John

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by Renee on Oct 16^th, 2004, 7:31am

Gator,

don't know if this will help but have you tried:

10 mg ambien every 4 hours?
benadryl in large doses?

if all else fails, sometimes when I can't sleep at night I can sleep for short periods during the day instead of at night.

I don't have much else to offer but sure hope you get some zzzzzzz real soon.

hugs and sending my counting sheep your way, ;)
renee

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by E-Double on Oct 16^th, 2004, 7:37am

Not a doctor dude ;) Ok Just kidding ...

Have you tried melatonin @ night?

Honestly, it was the only thing that ever knocked me out and that includes several of the drugs that were already mentioned in above posts.

The only thing is if it works it will only @ night and I don't know what do do for the day my friend.

HAng in there!

E.

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by kissmyglass on Oct 16^th, 2004, 7:50am

Klonopin works for me when nothing else would...

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by taraann on Oct 16^th, 2004, 7:54am

I've been in the hospital and the doc said he gave me enough meds to "knock a horse out" and I was still very very awake! Alot have found sleep with melatonin or benadryl. Hope you get some rest soon.

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by yikes_another_one on Oct 16^th, 2004, 7:58am

Do you have someone who can buckle you into the backseat of the car??? and drive around the town for an hour???

Long car rides with no control over the radio
always put me out.....snap.

It works for most kids....and besides, It gets you
safely out of the house....and you could go sightseeing
if it doens't put you out....

( Some might think I am teasing, but I am not....
my hubby will fall asleep in less than 20 min.s,
but he's such a control freak
that he won't let me drive ... lol )

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by kimh on Oct 16^th, 2004, 7:59am

Gator,

Thinkin of ya over here in NY. I am no doc, but.............all those meds are just kinda buggin me out here. If you are on all those meds and still getting hit, then why be on all those meds? That's just My opinion i'm not trying to tell ya what to do. Halcion???? If it was me i'd get off the meds and try something else. At the worst stage of my last cycle sleep was impossible. Here is what i did: I would take advantage of the time when i was not having an attack and (this mite sound weird) brew a pot of cawfee (i even use it as a "preventative) and then take a hot bath. Then i would lay on the couch sitting up with pillows piled behind me and put on the tv with sound low. I would get cat naps, sort of and it allowed me to wind down and achieve "rest"..... I had the ice paks on deck in the freezer and they helped both with attacks and shadows.

Maybe you need to go back to the drawing board with the neuro?

I wish you luck and PFDAN!!!!! Wish i could help more....

kim

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by Charlie on Oct 16^th, 2004, 6:07pm

Sounds like all these meds are using your body for a battlefield. I've not had that anti-seizure drug but the new ones usually are designed to not make us sleepy.

Wish I had something useful for you. Eating a lot of starch...bread, cereal, and milk helps me get zeees for a little while anyway.

Rant away. Mike

Charlie

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by alleyoop on Oct 16^th, 2004, 6:14pm

on 10/16/04 at 07:50:32, kissmyglass wrote:

Klonopin works for me when nothing else would...

Strong Stuff!!!

............alley

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by john_d on Oct 16^th, 2004, 6:16pm

sorry to respond without a drug recommendation, but I want to wish you peace Gator, peace and peaceful sleep. :)

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by Gator on Oct 17^th, 2004, 12:48am

Thanks for all the suggestions. I did make good use of the insomnia. Thursday night while the world slept, I made a multi-purpose display case for my wife for her work. Looks pretty danmed good if I say so myself. I finally did pass out somewhere around 2:30 this morning. I was back up at 6:00am. Took the grand daughter (Sahara) to the zoo. It was cool, a giraffe stuck his head over the fence and licked Sahara's hand. It stayed around long enough to get, what I hope, are some really good pic of her petting it. Was a very good day in spite of all the hits. After 4 hours chasing/carrying the 14 month old terror in tenis shoes, you would think I'd be worn slap dab out. NOT! I am going through it all over again tonight.

I have tried the melatonin and other various prescription and OTC meds. When I get into one of these phases, I just have to ride it out. Don't know why. Maybe I'm just crazy. Maybe? What am I saying. Of Course I'm crazy. I'm having a conversation with myself and answering back here.

Kim, these meds were just the lastest attempt of many, since I started seeing this neuro in April, to find a preventative combo. I have an appointment on Monday with him. I'll tell him the great experiment (like everything else we have tried) has failed to fix the ch and the sleep. Then I'll be right back to where I started, where I have always been actually - no prevents. Just O2 & trex for aborting.

Well, I see by the clock that it is time for a second dose of Halcion. Maybe it will work better tonight. [snicker] Yeah right.

I took the first dose at 22:45. Time is now 23:46 by my mickey. Let's see how long it takes to knock me out.

I shall return!

Gator

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by Gator on Oct 17^th, 2004, 2:21am

Well, the boss is calling me to bed. 01:25 We'll see it's worth bothering.

Gator

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by snowlynxt on Oct 17^th, 2004, 2:26am

Dont have any idea what u have tried but i found for a while oxygen works, My problem with that was it took more and more and finally going thru 2 bottles a nite. Insurance wouldnt cover and it really was ineffective after awhile anyway. Next thing was demerol. That is the only thing I have found that puts u to sleep. Other than that--sheer exhaustion. My prayers to u.

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by sailpappy on Oct 17^th, 2004, 5:18am

;;D Gator,
After35 years as a severe chronic I found the drug Trazadone will help you get some much needed sleep and without the hangover affect you might get from benadryl or Melatonin.
Also Geodon, which is a strong seratonin uptake inhibitor, will probibly help with the headaches.
Believe me I have been through them all, with ambien you might go to sleep but the way it works you will not remember sleeping and I didn;t get any rest at all, benadryl makes me extremely sick and hungover.
I am currently taking Valium at night to help sleep some, so far so good! Pappy

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by BarbaraD on Oct 17^th, 2004, 3:06pm

Gator,

I'm on Topamax and Trazadone (I take both a night before I go to bed). I sleep several hours. When I had to get off the Topamax I went thru the "awake" mode so I did the melatonin (9mg) before bedtime. I did get several hours sleep (after a couple of weeks - I think that stuff has to get in your system).

I can handle the headaches if I can rest a few hours at night - it's the exhaustion that wears me down. When I really get to the "awake mode" I take the melatonin with about three tylenol P.M.s and then I DO sleep for several hours. But I'm up by 3 or 4 in the morning so I take everything usually before dark. It still takes about 5 or 6 hours to keep this Granny going most of the time.

I wish you lots of luck in getting to sleep. Been there and I know how it can wear you down.

Hugs BD

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by thomas on Oct 18^th, 2004, 3:16pm

Trazodone?

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by Superpain on Oct 18^th, 2004, 4:20pm

2-3 mg of xanax would probably do it.

Title: Re: Any suggestions here
Post by IndianaJohn on Oct 18^th, 2004, 7:42pm

Big vibes and prayers for ya Gator. I've been down that same road and finally collapsed from exhaustion. Sometimes the beast would bite, sometimes not.

Hope things work out for you.

John