Lavender kept me awake?

Hello all. I am 12 days off of Valium. My sleep was doing okay (5-6 hours straight). Last night I rubbed some Lavender essential oil onto my wrist and my sleep was out of whack... kept waking up every 2 hours.. has anyone else ever experienced that? Or maybe is insomnia creeping up on me even if I never had an issue with it during withdrawal?

More than likely the almost inevitable insomnia caught up with you. I hope that you will only get a milder bout of it.

Yeah I doubt it was the Lavender.

 

I wouldn't use it as a lotion though. Instead I'd use it in capsules, so you get a steady dose and know if it helps or not.

Yeah I doubt it was the Lavender.

 

I wouldn't use it as a lotion though. Instead I'd use it in capsules, so you get a steady dose and know if it helps or not.

 

I tried going for a nap and the smell was still on my pillow (from my arm being on it I suppose) and as soon as I got a whiff my heart started racing and I now have anxiety. Either way, I'm not risking it and washing it all tonight lol

If you have come to associate the smell of lavender with not being able to sleep it could probably keep you awake as withdrawal insomnia begins to set in. Don't use it again until that association is broken in the future would be my advice.

If you have come to associate the smell of lavender with not being able to sleep it could probably keep you awake as withdrawal insomnia begins to set in. Don't use it again until that association is broken in the future would be my advice.

 

Yes that's exactly what I'm doing.

If you have come to associate the smell of lavender with not being able to sleep it could probably keep you awake as withdrawal insomnia begins to set in. Don't use it again until that association is broken in the future would be my advice.

 

Yes that's exactly what I'm doing.

 

Don't use it as amoratherapy. Buy it in capsules and try it like that. You can barely smell it like that.

If you have come to associate the smell of lavender with not being able to sleep it could probably keep you awake as withdrawal insomnia begins to set in. Don't use it again until that association is broken in the future would be my advice.

 

Yes that's exactly what I'm doing.

 

Don't use it as amoratherapy. Buy it in capsules and try it like that. You can barely smell it like that.

 

I'm only at 13 days post c/t .. I don't want to risk taking anything that could potentially make it worst. I think I hit the 2 week "peak".. Woke up with cortisol surge at 3 am for the past 2 days and anxiety hits at any given time.

Sounds like you are just experiencing what everyone else does at 13 days off of a CT...Benzo induced insomnia!

 

I used lavender internally on and off this past month as Andros01 is suggesting and it works well for me. 

 

Some things work paradoxically, especially early on in your WD.  However, lavender is clinically studied and seems to work well for most for sleep either internally or in a diffuser or both.

 

4.4. Sleep and Lavender

Lavender has been suggested as an excellent natural remedy to treat insomnia and improve the sleep quality. Single-blind randomized studies investigated the effectiveness of lavender odor on quality of sleep showed that lavender improved the mean scores of sleep quality in fifteen healthy students [74], in sixty-four ischemic heart disease patients [75], and in thirty-four midlife women with insomnia [76]. Ten individuals with insomnia, verified by a score of 5 or more on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), were treated with lavender odor. Six to eight drops of lavender oil added each night to the cartridge improved the PSQI score by −2.5 points. More notable improvements were seen in females and younger participants. Milder insomnia also improved more than severe ones [77]. Oral lavender oil preparation (80 mg/day) showed a significant beneficial influence on quality and duration of sleep and improved general mental and physical health without causing any unwanted sedative or other drug specific effects in 221 patients suffering from subsyndromal (mixed) anxiety disorder [52]. A mixture of essential oils including lavender, basil, juniper, and sweet marjoram is shown to reduce sleep disturbance and improve overall well-being in older patients [78]. In a clinical study on four benzodiazepine dependent geriatric patients, there was a significant decrease in sleep duration by stopping benzodiazepine treatment, which was restored to previous levels by substitution of aromatherapy with lavender oil. This study suggested that ambient lavender oil might be used as a temporary relief from continued medication for insomnia and reduces the side-effects of these drugs [79]. In a study on thirty-one hospitalized patients, administration of lavender odor showed a trend towards an improved quality of daytime wakefulness and more sustained sleep at night [80]. In contrary to these data, it should be noted that the use of aromatherapy massage with lavender oil has no beneficial effect on the sleep patterns of children with autism attending a residential school. It was suggested that this therapy may show greater effects in the home environment or with longer-term interventions [81].

 

Full article here:  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3612440/

 

 

Sounds like you are just experiencing what everyone else does at 13 days off of a CT...Benzo induced insomnia!

 

I used lavender internally on and off this past month as Andros01 is suggesting and it works well for me. 

 

Some things work paradoxically, especially early on in your WD.  However, lavender is clinically studied and seems to work well for most for sleep either internally or in a diffuser or both.

 

4.4. Sleep and Lavender

Lavender has been suggested as an excellent natural remedy to treat insomnia and improve the sleep quality. Single-blind randomized studies investigated the effectiveness of lavender odor on quality of sleep showed that lavender improved the mean scores of sleep quality in fifteen healthy students [74], in sixty-four ischemic heart disease patients [75], and in thirty-four midlife women with insomnia [76]. Ten individuals with insomnia, verified by a score of 5 or more on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), were treated with lavender odor. Six to eight drops of lavender oil added each night to the cartridge improved the PSQI score by −2.5 points. More notable improvements were seen in females and younger participants. Milder insomnia also improved more than severe ones [77]. Oral lavender oil preparation (80 mg/day) showed a significant beneficial influence on quality and duration of sleep and improved general mental and physical health without causing any unwanted sedative or other drug specific effects in 221 patients suffering from subsyndromal (mixed) anxiety disorder [52]. A mixture of essential oils including lavender, basil, juniper, and sweet marjoram is shown to reduce sleep disturbance and improve overall well-being in older patients [78]. In a clinical study on four benzodiazepine dependent geriatric patients, there was a significant decrease in sleep duration by stopping benzodiazepine treatment, which was restored to previous levels by substitution of aromatherapy with lavender oil. This study suggested that ambient lavender oil might be used as a temporary relief from continued medication for insomnia and reduces the side-effects of these drugs [79]. In a study on thirty-one hospitalized patients, administration of lavender odor showed a trend towards an improved quality of daytime wakefulness and more sustained sleep at night [80]. In contrary to these data, it should be noted that the use of aromatherapy massage with lavender oil has no beneficial effect on the sleep patterns of children with autism attending a residential school. It was suggested that this therapy may show greater effects in the home environment or with longer-term interventions [81].

 

Full article here:  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3612440/

 

Yes you are completely correct. Although my sleep has returned to 4-6 hours a night now. I will try again soon with the lavender capsules

Sounds like you are just experiencing what everyone else does at 13 days off of a CT...Benzo induced insomnia!

 

I used lavender internally on and off this past month as Andros01 is suggesting and it works well for me. 

 

Some things work paradoxically, especially early on in your WD.  However, lavender is clinically studied and seems to work well for most for sleep either internally or in a diffuser or both.

 

4.4. Sleep and Lavender

Lavender has been suggested as an excellent natural remedy to treat insomnia and improve the sleep quality. Single-blind randomized studies investigated the effectiveness of lavender odor on quality of sleep showed that lavender improved the mean scores of sleep quality in fifteen healthy students [74], in sixty-four ischemic heart disease patients [75], and in thirty-four midlife women with insomnia [76]. Ten individuals with insomnia, verified by a score of 5 or more on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), were treated with lavender odor. Six to eight drops of lavender oil added each night to the cartridge improved the PSQI score by −2.5 points. More notable improvements were seen in females and younger participants. Milder insomnia also improved more than severe ones [77]. Oral lavender oil preparation (80 mg/day) showed a significant beneficial influence on quality and duration of sleep and improved general mental and physical health without causing any unwanted sedative or other drug specific effects in 221 patients suffering from subsyndromal (mixed) anxiety disorder [52]. A mixture of essential oils including lavender, basil, juniper, and sweet marjoram is shown to reduce sleep disturbance and improve overall well-being in older patients [78]. In a clinical study on four benzodiazepine dependent geriatric patients, there was a significant decrease in sleep duration by stopping benzodiazepine treatment, which was restored to previous levels by substitution of aromatherapy with lavender oil. This study suggested that ambient lavender oil might be used as a temporary relief from continued medication for insomnia and reduces the side-effects of these drugs [79]. In a study on thirty-one hospitalized patients, administration of lavender odor showed a trend towards an improved quality of daytime wakefulness and more sustained sleep at night [80]. In contrary to these data, it should be noted that the use of aromatherapy massage with lavender oil has no beneficial effect on the sleep patterns of children with autism attending a residential school. It was suggested that this therapy may show greater effects in the home environment or with longer-term interventions [81].

 

Full article here:  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3612440/

 

Yes you are completely correct. Although my sleep has returned to 4-6 hours a night now. I will try again soon with the lavender capsules

 

I find it puzzling how some people can go C/T off these drugs, and still be able to get decent amount of sleep on their own.

 

I have a feeling that the Z-Drugs are even more deadly to sleep than most Benzos.

I wish I could answer that for you but I have no idea why. It doesn't mean I get great sleep.. sometimes it's broken.

That is strange cause lavender is known to be a natural "sleeping pill" . I use lavender for sleep and love it. I have a diffuser and a lavender essential oil is the best for calming.

 

Edit: Removed commercial link.