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Opiate withdrawal and rebound insomnia, how long will it last?

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sickofthisshiz

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Joined
Sep 23, 2012
Messages
132
Location
Nor Cal
I have spent hours reading through old threads all over BL, l have a very specific question that l want an answer to. How long will the rebound insomnia last if l take no type of sleep aide. I am not on any maintenance drugs or l wouldn't be not sleeping. I want to just avoid putting any drugs into my body. How long will it take...it's the non sleep that drives me crazy. Has anyone went with no help? I have a script for benzos which l am currently out of, l don't want to fill it this month, just want my brain to get back to normal asap. I haven't had opiates since Friday, and benzos since Saturday. Handfuls of somas and benedryl and l have still only slept three hours the last couple nights. So l may as well keep that shit out of my body, l really want to get through this this time...it's just the insomnia that always breaks me down.
 
heres a forum that talks a little about it
http://forum.opiophile.org/archive/index.php/t-18414.html

Some peoples opinions range from a few weeks, to months..so i guess it all depends on your body's chemistry

i also have had problems with opiates, but im a natural insomniac so i could never depict the difference because ive been on sleep aids my whole life. If it bothers you that much where it puts your social/work life in jeopardy, id really think about some sleep aids that are non habit forming like tylenol pm or whatever..only problem with those is sometimes you can wake up with a hungover/groggy feeling :|
 
Sickofthisshiz, my record is 21 days with no sleep whatsoever. Some will say that's not possible and I must have nodded off at some point, to which my reply would be you've clearly never done a heroin detox, have you? ;) I was in prison at the time which is hardly conducive to sleep at the best of times what with the constant background noise, the general low level anxiety and a stranger sleeping feet away in your pad but even so. Average would be around 10-14 days with no sleep from start of withdrawal, broken sleep for a few hours a night kicking in from then on.

Keep the benzos on hand, try not to use them if you can once you're out of the acute withdrawal phase, taking them only when the lack of sleep gets too much and your resolve is weakening to the point opiates are starting to look atrractive purely as a sleep aid. Like you it was the lack of sleeping that always broke me in the end and led back to heroin but I think it's better if you can try and let a natural sleeping pattern develop by itself as much as possible. Certainly don't want to become too reliant on benzos for it, you're absolutely right.

Some on here recommend melatonin. Never used it but think that may be a better, more natural option? Best of luck with it.
 
It gets better but slowly. Originally when withdrawing from a large dose of Suboxone I would stay awake for literally 3 days straight until my body just crashed. About 7 weeks later and manage to get around 6 hours a night but it's usually very broken, unsatisfying and have really horrible nightmares, sometimes waking up with panic-attack like symptoms (random sudden increase in heart-beat and shallow breathing).

So yeah, it's been this long and I still actually fear going to bed as it's not fun.
 
That's why I'm just gonna struggle through it this time...the only thing that helps are benzos, but like l said my script lasts two weeks, and l can easily see myself just getting a new addiction. There is unfortunately nothing over the counter that works...might help me fall asleep but then lm awake two hours later. Thanks for sharing your experiences guys...thankfully l am not detoxing off of subs, l relapsed detoxing off those when l tried to get clean in February.
 
Benzos would be my first choice when going through opiate withdrawal. I have the same trouble with taking too many as well. Once I gave the bottle to my dad and asked that he only gave me xx per day. Then I would scour his hiding spots to find the pills. It sucks! I always had trouble sleeping so my experience post-opiates is most likely not typical. Quit my pain doctor June 2011 and my sleep is still not satisfactory. I use benedryl sometimes but it doesn't last more than a couple hours. :(
 
It's better than using an opiate for the same purpose by a long way sickofthis. That's far and away the main concern so I wouldn't worry about it or beat yourself up about needing the benzos from time to time in the slightest. If you're managing to get through a few days at a time holding things together without using anything you're very much winning mate. You're a few more days nearer something approaching normalcy. Good job dude, stick with it! :)
 
sickofthis... it obviously depends on your habit, but for me using .3 - .5 grams of b.t.heroin a day, i went about a week with next to no sleep, but then it started to quickly improve from there. i know this is hard on your body and mind but just keep your mind on the prize of how badly you want your life back, and the week will pass :) just my experience but an honest answer to your question. good luck, you'll make it :)
 
sickofthisshiz said:
I have spent hours reading through old threads all over BL, l have a very specific question that l want an answer to. How long will the rebound insomnia last if l take no type of sleep aide. I am not on any maintenance drugs or l wouldn't be not sleeping. I want to just avoid putting any drugs into my body. How long will it take...it's the non sleep that drives me crazy. Has anyone went with no help? I have a script for benzos which l am currently out of, l don't want to fill it this month, just want my brain to get back to normal asap. I haven't had opiates since Friday, and benzos since Saturday. Handfuls of somas and benedryl and l have still only slept three hours the last couple nights. So l may as well keep that shit out of my body, l really want to get through this this time...it's just the insomnia that always breaks me down.
Click to expand...

I've been clean 9 months and i can count on 1 hand the number of nights i fell asleep unaided and slept through the night. That being said, i'm also Bipolar and everyone's body/brain chemistry is slightly different.

I'd strongly suggest getting some GABA at place near you that sells supplements, natural grocer, vitamin place, or an online retailer. GABA (Gamma-amino butyric acid) is a naturally existing substance (neurotransmitter) and so goes with the body's natural process of letting you fall asleep as opposed to a man made chemical that will get the job done but also have side effects.
 
Thanks for suggesting the GABA, totally interested in natural remedies. Unfortunately my habit was huge, and daily for three years. I think l will use benzos about every third night for awhile just so l can maintain some sanity! At least when l can't sleep l can hop on BL....thanks for all the support guys... it has been amazing just to know other people are dealing with the same struggles, you all restore my faith in humanity :)
 
I'm just about 5 weeks clean off poppy tea and I'm still lucky if I get 4 or 5 hours of sleep. Bedtime has become a nightmare for me. I start getting anxiety when I go to lay down thinking if it's going to be another night of terrible sleep. At 3 weeks I was still not sleeping at all some nights. So I would say you are doing well! Your going to have bad nights here and there early on so try not to let it get to you. Things do slowly get better so g angry in there.
 
I've been off methadone for 26 days. The 25 day I didn't go into detox at all. I slept really good, solid 8 hours then I took a 4 hour nap. I went to church and came home and took my temazepam (2x30mg) with 4 benedryl and 2mg's of Xanax. Plus I'm on 3 100mg Seroquill and a 200 XR release for night time. I'm in insomia for the 2nd time. Sometimes the benzos work and then suddedly I'm wide awake through the night. It's usually good to me and Sleep fine. But for some reason it's done this to me twice but this 2nd one sucks bad. I'm simply confused as to what's going on.
 
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