Insomnia

Or an antihistamine like that.  And I read that blue light from computer screens is causing some sleep disturbance.  Reading your computer or phone at night, or before you go to bed might make sleep more difficult.  I think you can use lots of different things, not just one when you have such sleep problems.  Trazadone  is a medication that helps sleep and is not in any way habit forming.  It is something else you can add in.  The anxiety that makes sleep difficultcan be treated with anti anxiety medication.  If you try not to take it every night it might not stop working.  Or become habituated.  I changed beds for a time, to get away from the anxiety and it helped.  I hope you can find a solution.  I read that meditation can be as simple as repeating a poem over and over.  I used the Lord's prayer, but other poems would work.  Repeat them over an dover in your head.  My poem would be "The Daffodils" by Wordsworth.

Ive had xanax off and on for five years. And while it has a reputation for being  addictive, for me, it is not. I may need to take it for a week or two and then not again for several months. I don't know what triggers my anxiety. Certainly cancer does but sometimes I'm anxious even when things are going smoothly. When suffering anxiety I become depressed, terribly sleep deprived, cranky and have problems making decisions. I'll resist but finally take xanax for a short period and "voila" I seem to do better. I am on a low dose and can snap it in half during the day and go about my business without problems, driving included. My radiation oncologist suggested it when I was describing problems sleeping and concentrating. Maybe ask your doctor about it.

Feelingalone74 said:

Ok thanks for the suggestion

Ok thanks for the suggestion jan9wils

A question....did u get chemo while receiving radiation? I will be getting 5 days a week radiation and with that 1 day cystplasm chemo for 5 weeks. That seems like a lot for 1 body!!!! Just wondering if anyone else gir chemo during radiation. 

At the beginning my treatment was five weeks of daily radiation and one day a week I had Taxol and Carboplatin.  After I finished that I had six Taxol/Carbo treatments three weeks apart.

Taking Unisom, doxylamine succinate, has helped me to get to sleep and also go back to sleep if I wake during the night. My daughter is a pediatric RN and her doctor said she could take it when she was pregnant. I also take magnesium citrate or glycinate in the evening. Insomnia was a problem before cancer and became worse after. During chemo, I took Ativan and it helped. Hope you find something to help.

dgrdalton said:

Unisom helps me

Taking Unisom, doxylamine succinate, has helped me to get to sleep and also go back to sleep if I wake during the night. My daughter is a pediatric RN and her doctor said she could take it when she was pregnant. I also take magnesium citrate or glycinate in the evening. Insomnia was a problem before cancer and became worse after. During chemo, I took Ativan and it helped. Hope you find something to help.

After reading dgrdalton's suggestion, I bought some of the Unisom SleepTabs, which contain the Doxylamine Succinate antihistamine. While I've used Benedryl occasionally when I've had problems sleeping, the Unisom SleepTab knocked me out much more quickly and enabled me to fall back to sleep right away after a bathroom visit. I slept like a log that night.

Although Benedryl works okay for me, I'm a new convert to Unisom!

I should note that some of the Unisom products use the same antihistamine as Benedryl (Diphenhydramine), so check the box label to make sure you're buying the one with Doxylamine Succinate if Benedryl hasn't been effective for you.

Thanks for the post, dgrdalton!

Feelingalone74 said:

Ugh! Insomnia is not getting

Ugh! Insomnia is not getting any better. I've been taking 1 mg of Ativan and it gets me 3 or 4 hours sleep. Last night only 1.5 hrs and then maybe an hour.  

My primary doctor was out of the office this week. Saw a PA yesterday.  She prescribed Trazodone.  Reluctantly didnt go get the prescription for it as it says it could take up to a week or 2 for the effects to work. Debating about trying it this weekend or waiting for my primary to be back Monday to be sure this is the right med for me. I just wish something would help get me back in a good sleep pattern and get off the med. I'm hoping to be able to go to work a little starting in September if I can during treatment and dont want to be on Ativan.Wondering if I should get a referral to a specialist who specializes in insomnia. 

On my good days I'd really like to wake up feeling well rested and begin my day. ..especially getting out for a walk before it gets to hot but I'm too tired to most days. 

Fortunately once I get up and going I'm ok. And amaze myself how much I can do sleep deprived. Occasionally rest (I can never fall asleep) during the day. 

 

The delay may be more for the antidepressant effects than for the sedative side effect you're going for.

I'm going to try Unisom. Luckily for me, once I fall asleep, I stay asleep (I credit the CBD oil for that) BUT that "falling asleep" might not be until after 3 a.m. or after! Around midnight, I become wide awake. My whole life I have been a night person. The best job I ever had was working 6 p.m. to midnight proofing environmental health reports for an insurance company. I worked that shift so we didn't need a babysitter but it felt so good. I remember how miserable I was when I switched to working the daytime. 

I woke up today at 1:20 p.m. If I lived alone I really wouldn't care but my husband is one of those people is up by 6:30 every morning! He needs very little sleep while I need at least nine hours. If only I could fall asleep by midnight!!  Hopefully, the Unisom will help because I've tried just about everything else.  I'll report back.

Love,

Eldri

https://www.verywellhealth.com/rebound-insomnia-how-long-sleep-worsens-after-stopping-pills-3014747