Does anybody with neuro Lyme and history of paradoxical reactions have success with ambien to sleep?
I am a little afraid to try with my brain symptoms and in the past, only benzos have worked. Right now they don't work because I am taking rifampin and zith and haven't slept since I added the rifampin (5 days ago). I have a script for ambien and am pondering it.
Has anybody had any terrible effects from ambien? Or great results?
I have one friend with Lyme who had psychosis for the night that he took it. He then had to take klonopin all night and pray that he would not lose his mind. I am similar to him with my Lyme symptoms so am a little wary...
Thanks! I would love to get some sleep!
[ 25. April 2007, 11:33 PM: Message edited by: luvdogs ]
Posted by rmruss (Member # 11409) on :
I have used Ambien and Ambien CR and have had excellent results with both of them. It has enabled me to sleep at night and getting enough sleep has made a positive impact on my recovery.
If you are a little nervous about using it, then you might want to try splitting the pill in half. If that works for you, then great. If not, don't be nervous about taking a whole pill. Just make sure that you take it close to bedtime and be prepared to sleep for about 7 or 8 hours.
Posted by Beverly (Member # 1271) on :
Hi luvdogs,
I primarily take Elavil, Melatonin and sleepytime tea for sleep and add the Ambien in when I am herxing and need the extra help. I have had good success with Ambien so far. I did start out with a very small dosage 5 mg.
I don't know what I would do if I didn't get any sleep. I hope you find something that helps.
Posted by Vermont_Lymie (Member # 9780) on :
I use Ambien, but only one-half pill and only when really needed, like no more than once per week. It makes me feel a bit confused and weird the next day. Taking one Advil and homeopathic (Hyland) Calms works better for me.
Posted by Cobweb (Member # 10053) on :
I started with half an ambien , no problem. Now take whole pill but still only sleep about 6 hours at night.
Carol
Posted by luvdogs (Member # 9507) on :
Thanks so much you guys. This is encouraging. I am not seeing too many negative reactions here, and I think that if I start with a tiny tiny maybe quarter of a pill, it cannot do too much harm and maybe even help!
It would be nice to have something besides the benzos to help me. I have weird reactions to all of the natural things too - including teas and herbs to help me sleep. Last night I slept after taking an herbal product to help me sleep - but that gave me an allergic reaction and so I had to take tons of antihiistamines - and I think it was the anithistamines that helped me to sleep!
Thanks again, Sara
Posted by Lymelighter (Member # 5310) on :
Amb CR works VERY well for me.
Posted by Nebula2005 (Member # 8244) on :
Yes--5mg (half a pill) keeps me asleep through the pain for six or seven hours. There's something unnatural about the quality of sleep, but I can't quite describe it.
It beats laying awake all night long, it works better than anything else for me.
Check for drug interactions.
Posted by Cass A (Member # 11134) on :
Some B vitamins and lots of B1, C and magnesium might help better without the possiblity of having a psychotic reaction. If you've already been without sleep for 5 days, I'd go with the vitamins first!! Say, 100 mg of B complex, 300 mg B1, about 1-2 grams of C, and a magnesium suppliment. You'd need to work on the doses of C and Magnesium, as they both tend to loosen the bowels up.
Also helpful would be to walk as far as you can until you get exhausted, then turn around and walk back.
Love,
Cass A
Posted by randibear (Member # 11290) on :
I tried it, but I didn't like it. I'm so sensitive I cut it in half.
It was like I had died. You know when you're under anesthesia, you are completely out...
I cut it in fourths, and still was completely out. The house could have burned down and I would not have been able to wake up.
Sorry, I didn't like the feeling of having absolutely no control. I'd just rather cat-nap and be aware of my surroundings.
Besides, my husband travels a lot and I don't like being that out. Anything could happen....
Posted by luvdogs (Member # 9507) on :
Thanks again for your replies... I have not taken it yet and seem to be sleeping with the antihistamine for now.
Cass - I appreciate your thoughts, but I am a paradoxical reaction type person. B vitamins wire me so bad that I I can't even take a supplement that has b vitamins in it in the morning and be able to sleep that night. They also make me very anxious. I manage to get some b vitamins in my EmergenC in the a.m. and that does not seem to affect me.
As for the C and magnesium - I take large quantities of each. Probably about 1000 mgs of magnesium (my Lyme doc said I could even do more up until I have loose stools). Normally it helps me sleep but it seems not now. Also the C - I am actually on about 6 grams of C (in the ascorbate / non-acidic form) right now. Normally I take about 3 grams a day but recently ramped it up for other reasons.
But I am glad that you wrote this here because it might help others as I know that B complex is supposed to be great for the nervous system. I also wrote mine here instead of in a PM so that others could see what happens with some people.
In Chinese medicine when we studied nutrition and B vitamins, my teacher said that B vitamins were too "warming" for some people, and those people would not be able to take them. I have a lot of "heat" from a chinese med perspective and so that could help to explain some of it.
I am trying to avoid the ambien as much as possible... and think I might succeed. I think the lack of sleep right now is mostly the drug withdrawel induced by the rifampin. It feels like it is reaching a stable point, and hopefully after that, things will get better.
Thanks everybody and may you all sleep well whatever it takes!!
Posted by CatWoman (Member # 10900) on :
luvdogs,
I'm glad you mentioned the paradoxical reactions. I rarely see this mentioned. Nothing works for my sleep, including benzos and Ambien and Ambien CR. I recently tried Xyrem at the full dose and that didn't work either, didn't put me to sleep.
I am at a total loss for what to do about my sleep. I didn't have a bad reaction to the Ambien it just didn't help me. But I have had a lot of paradoxical reactions to things. Nothing works for me.
~cat woman
Posted by Foggy (Member # 1584) on :
My sleep disorder improved with Cortef, believe it or not.
Posted by pomegranite (Member # 3339) on :
Worked like a charm for me for 4 years...but I would caution that you build tolerance and require more and more over time to get the effect. I started with one fourth of a 10 mg pill and now take 10 mgs. Also, it can make you unable to sleep without....
Sweet dreams~ Pom
Posted by gailsy (Member # 10536) on :
I also had a terrible time with sleep. My LLMD , Dr. F, recommended Klonopin Wafer and I couldn't believe the results. I sleep through the night and have numerous dreams. It has certainly helped me improve my immune system so that the meds can work better. Just another something to think about. Best of luck. Getting good night sleep is very important. if nothing else works!
Posted by CatWoman (Member # 10900) on :
Foggy,
I do believe that Cortef would help your sleep disorder. I've heard it can be helpful for that. I personally didn't have success with Cortef for sleep but I've heard others have.
~catwoman
Posted by Anneke (Member # 7939) on :
Ambien caused serious memory problems for me!! At first I did not notice it. It only became noticeable around 4 months of use. It was so bad, I seriously wondered about ALzheimers!!
![[bonk]](graemlins/bonk.gif)
if nothing else works!