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  • BDD Moderators: Keif’ Richards | negrogesic

Best sleeping pill other than ambien

L

Legally High

Bluelighter
Joined
Sep 21, 2014
Messages
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I told my doc I wanted to try something other than ambien due to the nasty feeling I get the next day, which defeats the purpose (great recreationally, but I'm trying to be functional, not a broke drug addict). He is open to suggestions, but the other options don't look too promising. If I don't come up with something he will prolly go with lunesta.
 
Hey Legally, I've had insomnia for many years and had a very nice Dr. who pretty much let me do my own research & give suggestions. Most sleep aids don't really keep working more than a month so I'd rotate or try new ones but one of my favorites was Prosom (estazolam) 2mg. It worked fast & good duration. It wasn't all benzos Dr & I rotated. 700mg carisoprodol helped too. I tried many though. Temazepam 30mg OK, Triazolam .25mg short acting amnesic like ambien.
Ambien I didn't like.... too much amnesia & doesn't work unless stomach empty. Works though. Lunesta makes stuff taste terrible in the AM too bad for that. He knew I knew my stuff & even gave me an Rx for xyrem but was $$$$ so no. GHB is (usually) not a pill but will induce sleep in sufficient doses.

Oh and also OTC doxylamine helps, theanine & valerian too (look at structure of valeric acid... almost GHB)
 
I have taken just about anything to get a decent night of sleep. Opiates and benzos apart, Seroquel can really work. It's impossible not to work imo!

You can start with 50, 100 or even 200 mg. The only problem is the feeling of drowsiness on the following day. But you'll sleep alright. I have had insomnia for most of my life and this was the only thing that actually worked, if you can deal with the drowsiness.
 
Ambien, from my experience, works pretty well if it's done right. Just take a reasonable dose, get in the mindset to go to sleep and let it happen. You should definitely be asleep inside 20-30 minutes. To boot, you should be fine in the morning. BTW, Lunesta gave me the nastiest taste in my mouth, I couldn't even deal with it. It wouldn't have even mattered if it worked well or not. That side effect was a major deal breaker.
 
Sonata, zaleplon, works exactly the same as zolpidem but has an even shorter t1/2 and will be cleared by the next morning (it is so short a half that many even redose after 3 to 4 hours if they awaken).
 
The metal taste of water you cant washout after i took lunesta was one of the most unpleasant tastes ive ever experienced in my life.

I gave up on sleeping pills because any few minutes i fell asleep earlier i felt like i lost in alertness the next day. Id sleep 7 hours but id feel the same as if it was 5-6 anyway.
 
Seroquel is not a benzo, not an opiate and it is very effective but you would still need a prescription. It will make you sleep for 8 hours, regardless of what you have taken before. It's an effective medication prescribed for various conditions but excellent (as in unique) to get you to sleep without having problems with addiction or tolerance.
 
I called and mentioned soma but he called in ambien again. Which like I said, is lots of fun, but feel very off the next day. Serequil I experimented with a few years ago and I remember being groggy the whole next day. My biggest thing is how I'll feel the next day. Because it doesn't matter if you get knocked out only to feel worse the next day. I'll probably stick to my anti depressant (cymbalta) at night. L tryptophan put me to sleep pretty well and is natural but has next day grogginess. Really I'm getting the sleeping pills just because I have the opportunity to get something, so I might as well, unless I could forgo the sleeping pill for something general. Right now I get dex, lamictal, and ambien. I have scripts for gabapentin, baclofen, lyrica (too expensive), belsomra (new sleep aid), focalin, every ssri/snri...you get the idea. Still have to give cymbalta and lamictal time to kick in.
 
Although they are non-narcotic, I have found a couple that work well for me... Clonodine, seryquil, and trazadone. They will all put you out!
 
Mirtazapine works at low doses of say 15mg. The higher you go in dose the less effective it is.
 
I'd recommend asking about trying Trazodone, Seroquel, or Zyprexa as the main prescription med, and also about adding on diphenhydramine or Melotonin with it. Ambian really isn't that effective for sleep compared to other prescription drugs.
 
Give phenibut a try at doese of 500mg. But dont use every nite as tollerance can build quickly but in the short term can be quite effective?
 
It sounds like Sonata/zaleplon would be a good choice for you. It's very similar to Ambien but is only active for a really short time, so there's pretty much zero chance of any kind of hangover in the morning.
 
Nitrazepam is the best sleeping pill I have ever tried. It puts you to sleep as soon as you lay down and keeps you asleep for the whole night. I have never had any hangover with nitrazepam the next day.
 
Sleeping aid

Legally High said:
I told my doc I wanted to try something other than ambien due to the nasty feeling I get the next day, which defeats the purpose (great recreationally, but I'm trying to be functional, not a broke drug addict). He is open to suggestions, but the other options don't look too promising. If I don't come up with something he will prolly go with lunesta.
Click to expand...

Zolpidem (Ambien), as you have discovered, is a 'dirty' drug with a 'hangover'. The safest drug type for aiding sleep is the benzodiazepines. A really effective one for sleep issues you may be able to try is Oxazepam. It is a metabolite of Diazepam and has no active metabolites itself, meaning once it is metabolised, that is the end of the therapeutic effect. The world is full of incorrect and misleading information about benzos. The facts are they are safe and effective. There is a high likelihood your doctor will not prescribe them. If this happens, just be aware that this will be for no valid medical reason.
 
Zolpidem (Ambien), as you have discovered, is a 'dirty' drug with a 'hangover'. The safest drug type for aiding sleep is the benzodiazepines. A really effective one for sleep issues you may be able to try is Oxazepam. It is a metabolite of Diazepam and has no active metabolites itself, meaning once it is metabolised, that is the end of the therapeutic effect. The world is full of incorrect and misleading information about benzos. The facts are they are safe and effective. There is a high likelihood your doctor will not prescribe them. If this happens, just be aware that this will be for no valid medical reason.

I originally quoted when I should have replied, Am new here.
 
Drug Truth Aust said:
Zolpidem (Ambien), as you have discovered, is a 'dirty' drug with a 'hangover'. The safest drug type for aiding sleep is the benzodiazepines. A really effective one for sleep issues you may be able to try is Oxazepam. It is a metabolite of Diazepam and has no active metabolites itself, meaning once it is metabolised, that is the end of the therapeutic effect. The world is full of incorrect and misleading information about benzos. The facts are they are safe and effective. There is a high likelihood your doctor will not prescribe them. If this happens, just be aware that this will be for no valid medical reason.

I originally quoted when I should have replied, Am new here.
Click to expand...

You're joking, right? Have you never heard of benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome? You know, that thing that can kill you if you take one for long enough and then miss a dose or two? Kinda puts benzos into the "actually dangerous" category that most sleep aids will never in a million years get anywhere near.

Either way I'm pretty sure benzos can cause a hangover effect just as well as zolpidem. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong on that one though; I don't get a hangover from any benzo or Z-drug (not even zolpidem ER ever had me feeling that way) so I might just be misremembering that I've read they can.
 
I thought benzos wherent addicting and it was all bs till i couldnt stop and was hospitalized for a suicide attempt because i thought it was the only way id be able to get off them
 
Temazepam has worked well for me for about 5 years now.
 
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