5 replies to this topic

[MiD]

Hello everyone,

 

For years now, my girlfriend has had major sleeping problems because her mind essentially "doesn't turn off" when she is attempting to sleep at night. She doesn't drink any caffeine during the day or ingest anything else that would other wise prevent her from sleeping. She has had success with klonopin and recently tried ambien, however, the latter has made her too groggy in the morning so she wants to avoid it. She also has tried phenibut but that also makes her very groggy in the morning. 

 

Does anyone have any other recommendations for her to try? Thank you. 

[Junk Master]

Has she ever had a daytime sleep onset test done?  It could be she is suffering from idiopathic narcolepsy (I do), in which case she would be eligible for prescription Xyrem, which would work like a charm.

 

If not, I would investigate Baclofen, Gabapentine, and Pregabalin.

 

Of course, there are always issues of sleep hygiene.  Simple supplements like melatonin, bright light therapy, and sufficient exercise.   As far as exercise, I don't know many people who do aerobic exercise for 45 minutes 6 days a week who have any trouble sleeping.  Of course, I don't know many people who do 45 minutes of aerobic exercise six days a week for an extended period of time!

 

Phenibut works like a charm for me, but the addiction/tolerance issues are too severe to make it a workable solution longterm.

 

I loved Ambien, but unfortunately I also got up at night and ate whatever I could find in the fridge and didn't remember doing it in the morning!

[MetaphasicSystems]

Ghb.


Truly Blessed.
That's what fixed my issues for 7+ years now. But keyboard warriors and the Internet will tell you it's the devil. Talk to someone who's used it regularly for three plus years.


Truly Blessed.

[Strelok]

You could consider eszoplicone/lunesta, as it seems to be less side effect heavy as ambien (night eating, walking driving, etc.).  Etizolam works better IME than lunesta, and is available w/out prescription from oversees pharmacies.  I suggest the TOWA brand from a japanese pharmacy.  Clonazepam does work very well, but will likely lead to more of a tolerance issue and downregulation of GABA receptors than either lunesta or etizolam.  It might also be worth trialing the cycling of different drugs, to prevent building too much of a tolerance to any specific substance.  You could consider 1 month of substance A, 1 month of substance B, 1 month substance C, and go back to substance A.  Or you could do on a week by week basis.

 

A time-released melatonin helps me.  You'll have to find what dosage works best for you.  Right now 3mg time released is working well, but I am going to tone it down to 2mg.  Many respond best to doses of the 0.5 - 1mg range.  I also feel that 400+mg of a magnesium glycinate helps before bed, and perhaps ginkgo biloba. 

 

Sleep hygiene is important.  Bright, natural light in the eyes early and mid-day, and keep blue light to a minimum in the evening and especially before bed.  Apps like Flux for phones and PCs can help reduce blue light emission from screens.  You could also consider blue light blocking safety glasses (under $10 on amazon).  I have found HRV breathing (such the emwave pro from heartmath) to be helpful.  You can also just use a breathing timer with an app (I use Pace Breathing) and make both the inhale and exhale set to 5 secs, so that one respiration takes 10 secs, and therefore 6 respiration per minute.  Doing this for 15-20 mins when I wake up in the middle of the night really seems to help.

 

Finally, I am trying a CES machine right now from Fisher Wallace, but it is too early to tell if it is helping at all.  I will report back on that once I've had adequate time to test it out. 

 

 

[platypus]

I would recommend to stop using screens (including TV) for 1.5-2h before anticipated bedtime. Reading a book could help, it's calming instead of stimulating.

[MetaphasicSystems]

Never mind.

Edited by MetaphasicSystems, 07 May 2016 - 10:07 PM.