Long Acting Anxiety Meds - Can You Function In The Day?

[falling_wave]

I am about to lose my sanity from lack of sleep and I need to try something new. I've tried just about every sleep med and a bunch of natural stuff which actually worked for a while. The only thing that really routinely helped was xanax even at .5. I haven't taken it for a long time because I've been trying to avoid dependence. I tried a whole mg tonight and yesterday with my natural stuff and feel sick to my stomach from tiredness and probably the fact that I took 8 pills tonight but I'm awake. I'm pretty desperate now. I've only slept two hours in the last three days and barely more before that. I'm restless, unfocused, tired, and become tearful and depressed like very easily and frequently.

I requested a dr appointment tomorrow which I'm hoping is not a waste since I'm unresponsive to medication. The only thing I can think of is maybe long acting anti anxiety twice a day. The thing is how will I function at work and how safe is it to drive if I take it in the day because I do a lot of driving for work. Is it doable and worth it? I may ask about a sleep study too. Any experiences with long acting anxiety meds and daytime functioning would be very appreciated.

 

[danny33]

Have you tryed remeron? It works really well for me at 15 to 30mg for sleep and the daytime sleepy ness wore off for me within 2 weeks and was never enough to stop me driving, working etc and I didn't have any unpleasant side effects. But we are all different of course. I hope you find something soon :-)

 

[sun seeker]

Have you tried amitriptyline? You only need to take it once a day, it helps with sleep, and I don't recall it making me groggy. Hope you find something soon, you sound desperate. Sending good sleep vibes your way...

 

[anonymous]

See a sleep doctor. Best thing you could ever do.

Your symptoms sound the same as mine.....unless there's something you're not mentioning in your symptomology.....ie waking up because you stop breathing....then you won't have a sleep study ordered as it's pointless.

My doc ripped me off all sleep meds....which to her surprise I WANTED....and gave me a long list of things to do every day to ensure my sleep got back on track. It all worked and I no longer need drugs to sleep. I actually had to retrain my brain to learn how to fall asleep again...

 

[Deleted member 28740]

Buspar. Started over a week ago 7.5mg twice a day. It has helped the sleep and anxiety. No significant side effects, non habit-forming is not an SSRI or a benzo. Relief at last. I use drugs.com to research my meds.

 

[shrinkingviolet]

I use Restoril, 15 mg at bedtime. Never wake up groggy and helps sleep through the night. It was prescribed by my neurologist, who also does sleep studies. Before I was sleeping 3 hours or less a night.

 

[falling_wave]

Thank you everyone. I was feeling very desperate last night. I just saw my primary and she switched the xanax to at ativan and told me for now sleep is important enough I should just take it everyday. She told me sleep is so important that withholding it was used in world War two as a means of killing people and it was very effective so she is concerned. She also wants me to see a psychiatrist again even though I'm not willing do anti-depressants because they don't work and withdrawal is awful. I'm not really sure the purpose because I have no need for anti-psychotics and she is already prescribing anxiety meds. I probably won't follow up with that. Actually I think lack of sleep is causing my issues in the day a lot of times but we will see how ativan does and for how long. I was under the impression it was weaker not stronger. Is anyone on this?

Oh and how do I find a sleep doctor? What would be their title as I though you are supposed to see a psychiatrist for that? I would definitely do that if my insurance covers it.

 

[Sammyiam]

They put me on seroquel and that knocks me out at night around 200 mg.makes you feel like crap the next day tired and puts on weight..... Gee why am I on this tell me again !

 

[Powder]

@falling_wave what do you notice with the difficulty sleeping? Is it racing thoughts, or heart pounding, or fear of nightmares?

If it's the above three, especially the pounding heart, despite the anti-anxiety meds, like it was for me, they put me on a very low dose (lowest possible) of Clonidine. That has taken away my nightmares and allowed me to fall asleep easily. Clonidine is a blood pressure drug. It is used to treat ADHD (even in children) and to treat Delirium tremors in alcohol and opiate withdrawal.

As said above, however, I have more difficulty falling asleep without it now that I take it nightly. I can't quit cold turkey. Have to taper.

Ativan is the shortest-acting benzo. That means it hits you harder and makes you feel a "bump" of relief when it hits you. This is good if you time it right before bed. This did not work well for me. You'll grow tolerant too fast, and this med actually makes anxiety go up when you feel it leave your body, which is dramatic.

Xanax XR (extended release) worked much better for me because I can't feel the several times a day withdrawal that was making life with PTSD worse.

So I take the low 0.5 mg Xanax XR after dinner. I take half of a Clonidine 0.1 mg (0.05) before I brush my teeth and ready for bed. By the time I get into bed, I can hardly keep my eyes open, but I don't feel drugged, just sleepy and ready to rest.

I don't have nightmares now. I have dreams related to my trauma, but they don't tend to upset me or wake me up. They tend to occur right before I wake, and allow me to think about my abuse in a more reasoned and calm way. So I'm pretty happy with my medicine choices. I've made a lot of progress in healing through sleep and processing my traumas.

 

[falling_wave]

@Muse It's definitely fear of nightmares, fear of managing my feelings all night when I'm so tired but can't go beyond that, and restlessness. By nighttime I'm so ready for a break from pain that comes with sleep and resetting my day and when that doesn't come it gets frusterating. I get nausea and headaches from the tiredness too. I am definitely going to tell my dr about this one. It's exciting that it works. I've tried ativan for two night now and a 1 mg will get me kind of groggy so I sort of go in and out of light sleep and nightmares. It's an improvement but not much. The xanax used to make me all the way sleep.

 

[Powder]

I hope you find something that works well for you. Sleep is important to healing and quality of life, concentration, and much more.

 

[new gamma rays]

It's a good thing to remember that Xanax is a very short acting benzodiazepine. I should look it up, but its half life is only about 4-6 hours, meaning its out of your system quick when you take it. Ativan is probably a lot better. I've become pretty much married to about 2 mg klonopin. Its not the best benzo for mood. But I would just add that just taking a benzo is not the best solution for sleep in the long run. You may develop a tolerance after awhile.