posted
hi all, this is my first time posting however ihave been an active reader since my wife got sick 3 years ago. my question is what can my wife do to help her insomnia. which has been acting up since jan. that was one of her original symptoms back in 03. she has tried klonopin,ambien, lunesta,benedryl, elavil,remeron,sominex. the problem she is having is her mind won't shut down.
the stuff that has worked in the past was a combo of elavil/ klonopin,however she gained weight with the elavil and she will not use it again. she is at her wits end. any suggestions would be helpful.
thanks, Paul
Posts: 1 | From Bangor Maine | Registered: Apr 2006
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5dana8
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7935
posted
sorry to hear about your imsomnia
I have trye a natural thing that has helped along with my regular nite meds. Low Trazadone and klonipin have helped me the most over the years. And also...
one-mag tab,oneB-6,one calcium tab.
I take this right before bedtime. its been helping me get sleepier.
Ask you LLMD about anything you may read here on this forum
-------------------- 5dana8 Posts: 4432 | From some where over the rainbow | Registered: Sep 2005
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kelmo
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 8797
posted
Ask your doctor about Rozerem. It's a new prescription melatonin med. That with Seroquel helped my daughter with her racing thoughts and night terrors. No sleep, no healing!
I know that changing up meds causes flares, so I'm sorry that your wife has to go through all that, but it's worth asking your doctor about these two medications. We've tried everything else, and finally landed on this. But, everyone is different.
posted
Try to get off of sleep meds, drink way more water and google "hop pillow".
quai
-------------------- "In spite of the ever increasing cost of living, it remains quite popular" S. Shackel Posts: 87 | From walla walla wa | Registered: Dec 2005
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posted
Did you try 5HTP? -- the racing thoughts sounds like a lack of serotonin.
Sounds like an imbalance of neurotransmitters to me -- getting rid of the Lyme will not fix this. Have to balance the brain chemistry with nutrition and supplements.
Drugs may help in the short run, but as you have found out they won't continue working because the body does not have an unlimited supply of nutrients. Once it gets out of balance and runs out of something -- well, you can't keep beating a dead horse and expect results.
That's my opinion based on experiences with hubby.
Also need lots of antioxidants like COQ10 and resveratrol to calm the inflammation in the brain so serotonin can work.
Melatonin and magnesium will work well with the 5HTP as well plus add in some B6.
Good luck finding what works.
Bea Seibert
Posts: 7306 | From Martinsville,VA,USA | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
neurontin, Source Naturals' timed release melatonin, trazodone are my favorites. Luckily, I'm now down to only the trazodone and melatonin. Yippeee!
Herbal teas with chamomille would help too.
-------------------- --Lymetutu-- Opinions, not medical advice! Posts: 96222 | From Texas | Registered: Feb 2001
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WildCondor
Unregistered
posted
Insomnia is very common with Lyme disease. Most of us are backwards in our schedules, I know I am! Has she tried a warm bath, magnesium injections, and melatonin before bed? That combination works well and they are not Rx drugs.
Make sure she has no caffiene, or food before bedtime obviously, stuff like that. Self hypnosis tapes can really help. Put then into a walkman or iPod and they will make you sleep really fast.
Massage? A running water fountain? Xanax? Phenegran plus Xanax as far as Rx goes work the best for me. Knock me out for 2 days. Get all toxic things out of the bedroom, no TV, no lights, no nothing but a bed and a nightstand, turn off clocks, use the bedroom for sleeping only, not eating, watching TV etc. get the stress out of the room! Hope that helps!
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
Breaking this up for us neuro lymies who can't read it as is.
Paul, please hit enter often and double space tween paragraphs; really helps us lymies; thank you
quote:Originally posted by mehockeynut:
hi all, this is my first time posting; however i have been an active reader since my wife got sick 3 years ago.
my question is what can my wife do to help her insomnia. which has been acting up since jan. that was one of her original symptoms back in 03.
. she has tried klonopin, ambien, lunesta, benedryl, elavil, remeron, sominex. the problem she is having is her mind won't shut down .
the stuff that has worked in the past was a combo of elavil/ klonopin; however, she gained weight with the elavil and she will not use it again.
she is at her wits end. any suggestions would be helpful. thanks, Paul
Paul, I can relate to your wife. My mind races all the time and gets on one subject and like a "stuck 45 record" goes on & on. It's hard to take my mind of something like this. Best bet is going to sleep & forgetting it that way.
Welcome Paul to the board.
Welcome to this 24/7 LYME support group board!
Here's TREEPATROL's and Tincup's combination newbie links.
Print off the links then check them off as you read as you could spend several months reading all of this.
print & read Dr. Barrascono's 2005 info first; you will come back to this often.
Extensive info in Treepatrol's newbie links about the meaning of WESTERN BLOT IGM/IGG test results from Igenex! Be sure to read or print this info IF Igenex tested you ok!
Also, see Cheryl's extensive web sites on: LD DIAGNOSIS, SYMPTOMS, & TREATMENT ... wonderful! Read the area on CO-INFECTIONS! You could have from 1-12 other illnesses that tick is carrying...lyme, malaria, etc.
If you are showing symptoms of co-infections, I would like to suggest being tested for co-infections when you have LYME western blots done. It isn't cheap!! But if you are positive, you can treat the co-infections first, and then work on LYME symptoms.
EYE SENSITIVIES & NOIR, no infrared sunglasses info., 2-28-06 updated
YES, I have what you have! Are you on doxy too? That made my extreme eyes 200% MORE sensitive than they we were earlier. I learned a lot about eye sensitivity/lighting on www.marshallprotocol.com board. Look for AUSSIE BARB'S EAST FINDER and then eyes/sunglasses, etc. Wealth of info there.
You will need 2% amber and 10% amber ... Style no. 901 and 910. 1-800-521-9746 TOLL- FREE
mention you have lyme and marshall protocol, they will give you 20% off! Also they have been kind enough to replace the SCRATCHED LENSES & BROKEN BOWS! How's that for service?
I don't drive often at night, but I can wear NOIR's 901 lenses at night while driving; it creates soft candle lights coming at me...tolerable. NOT to wear in town with all the action of people crossing where they shouldn't be, etc.
from LOU to Betty on LONG web links and Thank You Lou!: "If you hit the return key in the middle of a link, I don't think it will be clickable anymore. An alternative that maybe Betty should be telling people about is the tiny url website. I have it on my tool bar at the top of the page and use it for those incredablylongwebsiteaddresses.
All you have to do is ask tiny url to produce a short version, which it will do with a unique address, which you then use instead in your post. Works just the same when clicked! Here is the website, spread the word!
3-1-06, fyi, I tried dragging tinyurl to my toolbar without success, so that's why I currently have LONG addresses vs. short tiny ones! I'll keep trying.
posted
I have BAD!!! insomnia. I haven't slept since I started antibiotics 5 weeks ago. I didn't have it before that. I don't know what's causing it but Doxepin works. It's a tricyclic like Elavil. It drugs me so bad though I'm out of it until the next evening so I can only take it on days I don't work.
Posts: 340 | From Ohio | Registered: Oct 2005
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liz28
Unregistered
posted
For me, insomnia turned out to be a co-infection symptom, for both bartonella and babesia.
Two good natural supplements that probably won't work on their own, but may augment the effect of ambien, are valerian and melatonin.
But also, you might want to try one of these, if you feel comfortable with them. First, try artemisinin supplements for a week (try www.vitacost.com, Allergy Research Group, or the Vitamin Shoppe).
If your doctor feels okay with this, you can also get a small prescription of rifampin. Rifampin can react with a lot of other drugs by lowering their strength, but it also goes through your system quickly, so I found it worked well as long as I took it far away from other medications. Pour a third of one capsule into an empty gel cap (you can get a bagful at a vitamin store), and take this smaller dose for a few days. If bartonella is a culprit, there should be an immediate, noticeable effect. For me, I found that the insomnia was a little better, and that my anxiety level went down, relatively speaking.
I still can't get to sleep without a half an ambien, but at least I stay asleep now.
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
I haven't slept well in 30+ years!
I can't reach level 4, delta sleep where the body rejuvenates & body heals; therefore, I'm as tired as I was when I went to bed.
a key question is, when does your wife sleep? does she actually suffer from day/night sleep reversal, ie, she is able to sleep during the day, but not at night?
is your wife able to exercise?
what I would suggest is that you forget about solving this problem with meds. that's not healthy. part of what your wife needs to do is stop being so anxious about her condition! this contributes a psychological factor to the insomnia problem and only makes it worse.
your wife needs to exercise during the day. I suggest an exercise bike. she needs intense exercise, something that gets her heart pumping. walking isn't enough, that will result in her feeling worn out. she should only walk in the evening, 2-3 hours before going to bed.
during the daytime, I'd suggest that she utilize an exercise bike for brief yet intense periods when she is feeling like napping. coffee in limited amounts and never after 4 pm and ginko biloba will also help. {again never after the early afternoon}
finally, after at least a 2-3 mile walk in the evening, she should take a hot bath.
this problem is not going away suddenly, it will take some real effort on your wife's part to "normalize" her sleep patterns. a couple of weeks at least. she should use an alarm clock in the morning at first, and always wake up at the same time, definitely by 9 am.
does she work? if not, she needs something other than disease, insomnia, negativity, and anxiety to focus her thoughts during the day. I would suggest a creative hobby, such as art or writing, or perhaps music. volunteering for political organizations, charitable organizations, church, etc. such as the audabon society or the humane society can also be good, if she has talents that are otherwise going to waste because of the disorder induced by the disease.
Posts: 523 | From Stillwater,OK,USA | Registered: Sep 2004
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