• The Dark Side 💕 Welcome Guest 💕
    Posting Rules Bluelight Rules
    Notable Threads Urgent Hotlines
    Bereavement Mindfulness
    Suicide Support Anger Management
  • TDS Moderators: AlphaMethylPhenyl | paranoid android

Mental Health Insomnia and Drugs

C

ComedownsSuck

Greenlighter
Joined
Jul 11, 2013
Messages
17
Hi ---

Over the past few months i have been beginning to experience what i believe to be insomnia. I have been having great difficulty falling asleep, and when i do its a restless sleep and i wake up many times during the night. I have tried things such as cutting out caffine a few hours before bed time and etc. I plan on talking to my doctor about this next time i see him.

Recently, i have started smoking cannabis about 30 min to 1 hour before i go to sleep, and find that most of these insomnia-like symptoms have been gone, and i have no problems getting to sleep and staying asleep, but in the mornings sometimes waking up groggy. Should i tell my doctor about my cannabis use before bed and how it seems to be helping me sleep?

Also, what would they even prescribe (if anything) for one with insomnia/trouble sleeping?

Thanks in advance and any help/advice is much appreciated. Also thank you to the mod who moves this into the correct forum :)
 
I'd probably not tell the doctor about the cannabis use. Admitting to using illegal drugs (assuming it is illegal where you live) to medical professionals should only be done when absolutely necessary. The risk that they will just label you as a crazed drug seeker is very high. The chances you will get working meds in the future will drop by a signficant amount. Don't do it, take it from someone who made that misstake before and is now in chronic pain while no doctor will prescribe decent medication...

First line of treatment for insomnia consists of antihistamines, then after that it's the Z-drugs and usually after that it is benzos. Be wary of the Z-drugs and benzos, as they really work at first but tend to cause tolerance quite rapidly and lose their effects over time. In the end, all I was left with was an addiction to a drug that didn't work (nitrazepam/clonazepam).

I'm a chronic insomniac, I've been all my life. I suggest cutting out the caffeine completely, I personally avoid it like the plague. Exercising a few hours before going to bed helps. I also use weed to sleep almost everyday + added antihistamines. I find this to be the best combo. Tolerance does not ruin the effects of weed and antihistamines like it does with benzos, and they don't cause physical addiciton.
 
Over the past few months? Has something changed in your life to be the cause? Do you feel anxious? How many hours do you sleep per night?

I concur with Toz, you need to cut out caffeine completely. And do not tell your doctor about the weed.

(Honestly though, marijuana for sleep is way better than any sleep medications due to the addiction potential)

Some other natural remedies that should be tried first are: Melatonin (sleep), Valerian root (anxiety), L-theanine (anxiety & sleep), and magnesium (sleep).
 
There's really no telling what a doctor would prescribe you for anxiety. I have had some doctors prescribe benzos right off the bat, then others completely refuse to prescribe anything for sleep. Take medication as a last line of treatment, try to figure out the root of the problem instead of throwing a bandaid over it.
 
ComedownsSuck said:
Hi ---

Over the past few months i have been beginning to experience what i believe to be insomnia. I have been having great difficulty falling asleep, and when i do its a restless sleep and i wake up many times during the night. I have tried things such as cutting out caffine a few hours before bed time and etc. I plan on talking to my doctor about this next time i see him.

Recently, i have started smoking cannabis about 30 min to 1 hour before i go to sleep, and find that most of these insomnia-like symptoms have been gone, and i have no problems getting to sleep and staying asleep, but in the mornings sometimes waking up groggy. Should i tell my doctor about my cannabis use before bed and how it seems to be helping me sleep?

Also, what would they even prescribe (if anything) for one with insomnia/trouble sleeping?
Click to expand...

It depends on the doctor.

They could prescribe OTC supplements or drugs such as melatonin, chamomile, diphenhydramine, etc. They may prescribe a "z" drug, a low dose muscle relaxer, or (probably not) benzodiazepines.

Cut the caffeine out, increase your exercise level, and make sure you eat a well balanced diet.

Also, if you end up seeing a doctor, you may want to request blood work to rule out any potential underlying physiological causes for the insomnia. It could be something hormonal or something may be off with your endocrine system.
 
There's not much to gain by telling your doctor about weed use in this instance. But props for even considering it.

There are lots of causes of insomnia and many drugs/supplements/lifestyle changes that can help. Definitely tell your doctor about your symptoms. Maybe keep a journal of what helps or makes your sleeplessness worse so you can pick up on any patterns (caffeine use, naps, etc).
 
Many doctors will label you wrongly if you admit to illegal drug use, but you should share your insomnia troubles with him/her.

If the doctor is to prescribe anything or recommend an OTC medication it'll be, as others have said:

antihistamines (regular use will make insomnia worse in the long run and can cause memory problems)
melatonin (I personally find it not to be beneficial if taken more than 2-3 days in a row)
Z-drugs (habit-forming, tolerance builds up fast, not helpful except for short term)
benzos (same as z-drugs, if pot is leaving you groggy in the morning, benzos will most likely be worse)

I've seen psychiatrists sometimes prescribe Seroquel (an antipsychotic, not a pleasant feeling) for sleep, as well as Mirtazapine (Remeron, an antidepressant that's probably sedating due to it's histaminergic effects).

I've had trouble with insomnia all my life and there is no drug that's a long-term solution. I've used pot for sleep long-term as well, and nothing's particularly wrong with it, it's safer than most prescription medications for insomnia. I don't enjoy pot anymore though so I don't use it.

Things that help me with sleep are:

Cutting back on caffeine
1-2 cups of chamomile tea before bed
A consistent sleep schedule
A consistent pre-sleep schedule that involves removing exposure to artificial light and avoiding something to focus on. I tend to just drink tea and lay in bed and reflect on the day
Regular exercise (lifting or running), but at least 4-6 hours before bed, otherwise I have more trouble sleeping
Avoiding carbs a few hours before bed.

I also still use many of the sleep meds mentioned above (mostly benzos and antihistamines), but only when absolutely necessary (i.e. I need to be well rested for an exam) and no more than once a week with the benzos and antihistamines. I'll use melatonin more often, and on rare occasion ambien.
 
Here is my OTC knockout cocktail. YMMV. Not recommended long-term or at all really.

2 tbsp of Nyquil Cough (no tylenol)
2 bags of Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime tea (in one mug)
Some weed (kinda otc)
a glass of red wine or a beer

Sleep can really affect your quality of life. Talk to your doc but don't insist on getting strong meds. You may not need them.
 
Last edited:
weekend addiction said:
Here is my OTC knockout cocktail. YMMV. Not recommended long-term or at all really.

2 tbsp of Nyquil Cough (no tylenol)
2 bags of Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime tea (in one mug)
Some weed (kinda otc)
a glass of red wine or a beer

Sleep can really affect your quality of life. Talk to your doc but don't insist on getting strong meds. You may not need them.
Click to expand...

Ah that tea is amazing :)
 
Every doctor reacts differently to drug use. On the whole i have found that most doctors don't give a shit about Cannabis use. Hell i have been through maybe 4 GP's, 3 psychiatrists and 2 chronic pain doctors and neither one of them thought much about my Cannabis use. They basically took the attitude that if it was causing no harm to me and if it helped my sleep, chronic pain and bipolar disorder then there was no reason to stop smoking it. This has been my experience in my area where everyone and their mom smokes Cannabis so it's not looked at as a big thing here. But i have friends in the US that have gotten taken off opiates and even benzodiazepines all because they smoke weed or hash. They also tend to drug test alot more in the US if your a chronic pain patient on opioid's where as i have not even heard of it here. So unless you know the doctors attitudes about drugs and specifically Cannabis then i would not tell the doctor about your Cannabis use. In a perfect world you could tell your doctor the truth without being judged but this is not a perfecy world.

Have you tried OTC drowsy anti-histamines such as diphenhydramine, dimenhydrinate or doxylamine? The sometimes prescription anti-histamines hydroxyzine and promethazine help some people sleep to. Unfortunately these drugs will usually stop helping you sleep pretty quickly.

I would say that the doctor will probably just a Z hypnotic first such as zopiclone or zolpidem. Most doctors i know usually try zopiclone first before they will try you on any of the more sedating benzos. Benzos like temazepam, nitrazepam and Valium can also help you sleep but i personally find that temazepam is the only benzo that has any psychological addiction to it so i would say becareful if you get that one and don't take it more then a few times a week.

There are other drugs that are often used off label for sleep such as the tricyclic anti-depressants amitriptyline and doxepin, the anti-depressant Remeron (mirtazapine) and also the atypical anti-psychotic seroquel. I would say try a tricyclic or something else before trying seroquel. I think doctors are way to quick to prescribe seroquel but that's just my opinion. Amitriptyline helped me sleep like a rock and it didn't stop working for atleast a year and a half. I used to feel more rested after taking amitriptyline before bed time as well.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top