Sleep Will Return!

[[Buddie]]

Thank you for a truly inspirational post! 
 

[[Buddie]]

@ Boomboxboy:  I can't (not supposed to per forum rules) give medical advice so you'll have to do a trial and error regarding how often you take an antihistamine.  I know if you take them every [...], you could become dependent on them and they will most likely stop working for what you are taking them for--sleep, but I also know you wouldn't do that, so IMO, I don't think they'll do much if you limit them to a few nights during your work week when it seems like sleep will be hard to come by? Congrats on the job change.  A friend of mine went from being a 4th grade classroom teacher to a K-5 librarian.  He really likes it too.  Less stress and only one class to teach per day.  That should help with your stress and anxiety levels?  Really hoping you turn a corner soon or find a way to deal and cope with the poor nights.  I know that I wish I had the coping skills and drug education that I have now...I never would have went on Benzos.

I do like library more than I liked teaching. It's much more relaxed and laid back. You can kind of work at your own pace. I'm still feeling a little funky around my wife and daughter and my dogs with the weird urges. I'm hoping that goes soon too. I wonder if sleep is going to be the lynch pin to get rid of the other mental stuff.

I know you always spoke about being claustrophobic during all this too. I've had some of that in the sense that being outside makes me more comfortable than being inside. It's a very strange sensation.

[[Buddie]]

You are almost 2 years off and that seems to be the "sweet spot" in terms of time for many?  As long as you can work and resist the anger and other weird feelings around your family, you will be fine!  Just keep on keeping on and one day this will all be a bad memory.

[[Buddie]]

Thanks, man. I slept good last [...] but took a half Unisom tablet. I will have to figure out a schedule to take half a tab two to three times a week so I'm not getting dependent and then hopefully not take any come summer when I'm not working so much.

[[Buddie]]

Thanks, man. I slept good last [...] but took a half Unisom tablet. I will have to figure out a schedule to take half a tab two to three times a week so I'm not getting dependent and then hopefully not take any come summer when I'm not working so much.

I wouldn't take diphenhydramine regularly. It causes brain damage and dementia by blocking acetylcholine receptors. Taking it once or twice a week is the most I would take it. Insomnia is also a killer for you and the brain if it is bad enough so you need to find the best way to go about it I guess. Personally, I don't like to take these types of drugs at all. I do think they work well at light dosages and may be safe to take once a week. But once a week may still be too much for this type of drug if you are not taking breaks. It's more of a hunch. I really don't know if it is safe to take regularly at once or twice a week. 3 times a week seems too much to me. Low dose trazodone may be a better option for insomnia.

[[Buddie]]

I respectfully disagree.   Trazodone is an SSRI class drug or AD.  ADs have been know to cause a worse withdrawal than Benzos for some?  Nothing is ever truly "safe."  Everyone is different.  No one really knows what will happen, but I do agree that only taking an antihistamine one or two times per week is probably best. 

[[Buddie]]

How does Trazadone even work to make someone sleepy? I know Remeron is a sleep aid antidepressant and knocks people out similar to antihistamines as it works on the same receptors.

[[Buddie]]

Trazodone is an AD (SSRI) but is also listed as a sedative.  I tried it a few times and it worked paradoxically for me and kept me awake all [...].

While trazodone is approved by the FDA as an antidepressant, it has many off-label uses as well, and one of the most common is for the treatment of insomnia. Trazodone for insomnia tends to be effective for many people, and it has a lower risk profile than a lot of other sleep aids.  But what does a "lower risk profile" truly mean?  Benzos are also considered "safe" when taken for 2-4 weeks max.

https://news.sky.com/story/long-term-use-of-antidepressants-could-cause-permanent-damage-doctors-warn-11688430

[[Buddie]]

My buddy, who accidentally shot himself in the leg, was put on a slew of meds to help after his accident, including gabapentin, cymbalta, trazadone, and a marijuana tincture. He had a hell of a time coming off all these and the only one he is still on is trazadone. I don't think he would be sleeping at all without it so he is dependent but it's not causing him to feel any worse at this point.

I'm wondering what the mechanism of action is with trazadone and how it actually works to not people out for its off-label use.

[[Buddie]]

The reason why I suggested trazodone being a better option was because it doesn't block acetylcholine receptors like diphenhydramine does....I also said "low dose trazodone" too which is 25mg. Also, I never said to take it everyday and get physically dependent on it. And it isn't going to have a worse WD than benzos even if you did take buckets of that crap everyday.

BBB, the reason why it sedates is because of histamine receptors, same thing like diphenhydramine. It's the H2 receptor blockade that creates the heavy sedation.

I would imagine there is some type of cross tolerance with all these types of drugs we are talking about now based on the pharmacology, that you can view on wikipedia. You can look on wikipedia to see the pharmacology of any medication and figure all this stuff out easily if you understand some basics. This sums it up....

"Low doses exploit trazodone's potent actions as a 5-HT2A receptor antagonist, and its properties as an antagonist of H1 and α1-adrenergic receptors, but do not adequately exploit its SERT or 5-HT2C inhibition properties, which are weaker."

I filled a script of trazodone a few months ago. I haven't taken any at all but plan to if I can't sleep possibly.

BBB maybe you should get a script and fill it and just alternate by taking low dose trazodone and diphenhydramine every other week. That's what I would do anyways.