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Ambien Tolerance?

BabyGurl3171

BabyGurl3171

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May 25, 2010
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In my mind. The choices are many, the consequences
I'm suppose to take 10 mgs at bedtime. Problem is I'm up 3+ hours til I fall asleep. I've taken as much as 100 mgs and nothin happens.
Is this tolerance or perhaps the med just doesn't work for me?
I also take 300 mgs Seroquel, 1,200 mgs Neurotin & 100 mgs Trazodone for sleep.
Insomnia sucks!!
 
Did it used to work? If it used to work and you've been taking it a while, it's tolerance. If it has never worked then it just doesn't work for you or takes a long time to take effect for you.
 
You've got to much other stuff in there BG to really judge the Ambien on it's own, that said that doesn't help you get to sleep now. I find Z drugs almost useless and tolerances rises as quick as any Benzo I've used.

It's is quite short acting and really supposed to help you drop off rather then keep you asleep all night, so if it's taking you 3 hours after taking it to fall asleep I'd say it's doing little to nothing for you, dosing higher might help in the very short term but within days you'll be back to where you were.

The Seroquel is supposed to be quite sedating but obviously not enough to get you to sleep, you are going to need to speak to your doctor if this is a constant issue.

Sorry that's not much help, having been a long sufferer of insomnia my best advice, is to do something with the time instead of laying in bed getting more and more frustrated about not being able to sleep. People often advise against TV and Internet as they stimulate the brain but If your not going to sleep anyway I don't really see and issue, audio books can be good as you can lye quietly in bed and you might even drop off but at least your relaxed and getting some physical rest.

Hope things get better for you you seem to be having a really rough time of it lately.

Best Wishes
 
I thought that combo would knock somebody out quite well.... obviously im mistaken.

I know you say you take Trazadone which is an anti-depressant with sedative properties, how sedative is it compared to Amitriptyline?
 
If you're not trying to go to sleep right after dosing, then there is no hope of a hypnotic ever working. Don't expect any sleeping pill to knock you out like Propofol.

I really dislike the Z-drug I also extend my vote towards temazepam if the problem is occasional moderate to severe insomnia. Definitely not an option for people who want to take a sleeping pill every night.
 
Is there really a sleeping pill you can take every night, one that actually works and doesn't have addiction or tolerance issues. Not that I've found Valarian root and sedating antihistamines don't do it for me.

Benzos are going to work at some dosage but tolerance will rise and addiction is inevitable with daily use, I haven't tried Seroquel but its not working for BG Mitrazapine did nothing for my sleep but others report results, I'm currently on Venlafaxine and that doesn't help either.

I'm tapering off benzos and suspect my sleeping problems will worsen when I'm off them, so I am interested in what other people find effective, I was offered a low'ish dose of Amitriptyline by my doctor due to the headaches I get from the Venlafaxine but decided against it as I'm fairly stable as I am and adding another chemical seemed to risky. My father in law takes Amitriptyline and his sleep is terrible.
 
I ended up til 6:30 am. Grr.
I'm goin to be taperin off diazepam soon bc PO wants me off benzos (hopefully I get a taper..). So no tempezam =(
The huge freakin combo of meds just doesn't work & I haven't been able to sleep on my own for almost 4 yrs (minus the occassional pass out).
Ambien use to kick my ass, as did Trazodone alone. When the Traz quit workin my old psych added Ambien. Don't get me wrong, Ambien was a decent med for me but now nothin.
So effin frustratin to not be "normal" and just decide ok, I'm tired & go to sleep.
I was also on Effexor atm, I took it in the mornin & it never tired me. I tapered myself from it about 3 weeks ago, maybe 4.
If I tried only takin my Ambien sparingly could my tolerance drop? Or is it like benzos/opiates where tolerance pretty much stays?
Thanks =)
Also, bf takes amitrip and it doesn't help him sleep. Never did. His dosage is 100 mgs at night. He also takes Halidol and that does seem to help since they've added that for him.
 
You are on a lot of meds just to sleep, and frankly the conconction is a bit concerning to me. The Seroquel dose is quite high, itself, and tacked on to that is 1,200 mg Neurontin, 100 mg trazodone, and 10 mg Ambien. Your PO also wants you off your diazepam, which won't help sleep issues. You are on a number of drugs to try to induce sleep yet none of them work, and taking a neuroleptic like Seroquel daily is not a healthy option, and your PO is trying to get you off benzos. This is a quandry. I don't know all of what you are prescribed day and night, or all of what you take day and night, but I would think a re-evaluation of your meds is in order. Until then try to practice good sleep hygeine. Be in a calm, non-stimulating enviroment before going to bed, enjoy your sleeping-place, etc. You can read a lot about it on-line, I am sure. I really hope this helps. Try natural relaxation practices, and all of that. Hope your situation improves.
 
I'd agree with Alex, I don't know the diagnosis on your mental health issues but assume some medication is required at the moment in order to aid stability, but as far as sleep is concerned it seem drugs are just not cutting it so I would start to cut them out one by one. There's no point in swimming around in a soup of this stuff if your not getting any benefit from it.

I'm tapering off of Diazepam and my sleep is actually better at the moment, when I was on much higher doses I would easily fall asleep but wake about 3am and not really get back to sleep until I gave up and got up about 5am, this has improved as I've cut the benzos down, this was a similar sleeping pattern to when I was drinking apart from the getting up bit, but that was more down to being to low to want to get out of bed.

The quality of sleep you get when its drug induced isn't great anyway, you do not get the normal patter of REM etc. that you would have drug free.

All easy to say but so much harder to do, especially letting go of those benzos but it sounds like you need to try and step back and take a run at this from a different angle, drugs simply do not seem to be bringing sleep and reliance on them to do so is bringing further frustration that you could well do without.

Best Wishes
 
I'm with you on that o0ne tricomb, in the end sleep is a natural process and no pills I've ever taken have managed to replicate it even if they have put me to sleep.

Like so many things drugs can be a short term fix but in the longer term they become ineffective as they do not address the underlying issue.

All that said I feel for BG insomnia is a seemingly never ending (un) nightmare, drugs are not the answer and clearly not working. I don't know what the full list of legit and not drugs BG is taking but removing all the ones that aren't working or required and getting back to some kind of baseline would be a start.

Strangely one of the reasons I liked to abuse stims for days on end was the relief from insomnia, there is some logic in there somewhere:\
 
I see this new psych today my PO picked.. I agree a re-evaluation on my meds is needed but jackass (PO) wants me off everything =O
So far I've been told I have: bi-polar, insomnia, depression, anxiety disorder & panic attacks.
Now accordin to PO (like to kno where this fuck got his degree) you can't be diagnosed bi-polar & depressed.. Any truth there?
Anyway, I take bout 19 pills at night & cut my mornin meds except my RLS meds & diabetes meds. Oh, and I still take a bp med for kidney function not high bp.
Thanks a lot guys =)
 
I could see why he would say that cuz bi-polar is cycles of depression and mania, if you were diagnosed with depression first and bi-polar later, the diagnosis of just depression wasnt correct, so that means they "changed/altered" your diagnosis to bi-polar (being the right diagnosis). correct me if im wrong, but thats just how i understand it
 
I'm sorry, but; God DAMN you take a lot of pills. 100mg's Valium, antidepressants, Sleeping pills. Livin' the good ol' pharmicutical life huh?
 
and I thought I was a medical curiosity :) Sorry BG with all that in the mix its well beyond me to advice you on anything.

Hope things get better for you, your (just for my benefit can someone from the US tell me what PO stands for in the next post please)
 
tricomb said:
If you're not trying to go to sleep right after dosing, then there is no hope of a hypnotic ever working. Don't expect any sleeping pill to knock you out like Propofol.
Click to expand...

Hit the nail on the fucking head. I get the feeling your not trying, because IME ANYONE on that combination of drugs and actively trying to fall asleep WILL fall asleep. I was prescribed ambien and seroquel too and all the times i took em and actually TRIED to sleep that shit worked.

Youre taking a shitload of meds. I'm surprised any doctors would in good conscious prescribe all of that. Sounds like your issues are ones that needs to be resolved mentally because clearly drugs aren't providing the relief you seek.

I mean just the sleep issue, from a logical perspective: if ambien, seroquel and trazadone in combination FAIL to knock you out, 1) why do you keep taking them and 2) nothing else will probably work because that is a powerful, knock-your-ass-out combo.

TBH it doesn't even sound like you really want relief, because you kind half joking half serious say "Oh well I wish theyd prescribe me the GOOD stuff eh? Bet THAT"d work even though these drugs should be!" Youre taking powerful drugs, and they should be working; plus if all you desire is relief from your problems then it shouldn't matter whether you get the "good stuff" or not. Not stopping to realize that if this powerful combination fails to ameliorate your problems I doubt the "good stuff" will either.
 
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