tek Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 Pdoc gave me a sample pack of Seroquel for "those nights" where I just can't get to sleep. Having recently tried Lunesta, and hating it, I decided to go for Seroquel last night. I took 25mg and felt pretty drowsy within 20 minutes...turned the light off in just under 40 minutes. Don't remember waking up once before the alarm went off nearly 9 hours later. Only problem is: I needed to get up when that damned alarm went off! I hit snooze twice, THEN I GOT UP AND RESET IT to an hour later. I haven't had problems getting up since returning to work this week and needless to say I was bummed. Now I'm working from home like a loser, when I really needed to go into the office today. Anyway, I was still so sedated and whatever you want to call it until my morning meds kicked in (Provigil and Wellbutrin were probably the key helpers). I mean, so out of it that my vision was trembling...if that makes sense. Since I was supposed to help get my kids ready for daycare, that was totally unnacceptable. Other than this excessive sedation, Seroquel kicked ass in terms of getting me a great night's sleep so I need some help fine-tuning the usage. I'd love to use this every other night, when I don't have watch of the 5-month-old baby (who wakes 3+ times). One would be amazed at how a good sleep at least half the time makes up for the other half of the time when you get horrible, crappy, interrupted sleep. So, guys, give me your input! What are some ways I can take Seroquel that will lessen the morning sedation? Crap, I STILL feel out of sorts and it's been over 12 hours since I took it. How long does it take for this stuff to work out of your system, anyway? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r.mcmurphy Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 i'm using it for sleep as well. 25 =sleep, 50=sleep. 100=sleep. after a week at 100 now there is no sleep again. i mention all this as an indicator that the sleepiness, as an effect of the histamine effecting action in it, may pass for some who take it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
borzage Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 Take it very early and plan to sleep for about 10 hours. Seroquel has a very long half-life. After 3 weeks or so, if you take it every night, your body will adjust to it and you won't sleep for so long. If you take it every other night, you probably won't acclimate to it. I didn't realize people who worked from home were losers... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loon-A-TiK Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 i had all kinds of weird reactions to seroquel at the lower doses and just excessive sleep at 700mg-900mg. i don't take it anymore. no amount of tweeking ever made it better. yes, i slept...for like 12 hours solid, with nothing to wake me up. i don't have children to take care of. i'd ask your pdoc about trying Zyprexa for sleeping. but i really don't like using AAPs for that reason, just because of how powerful they are and my experiences with bad side effects on all of them except abilify. even abilify makes me into Ms. PMS. i use Z for emergencies and for sleeping sometimes. it's powerful stuff, but i can sleep for 8 hours and i'm able to wake up during those hours (just not get back to sleep). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tek Posted November 1, 2007 Author Share Posted November 1, 2007 I didn't realize people who worked from home were losers... They're not...I used to do it on a regular basis, whenever the job/company allowed. I meant that I felt like a loser in terms of not being able to get up, get ready and get out of the door and into work. That's a major thing for me right now. It's so major that I ended up getting ready and going into work 2 hours late today. Somewhere in my head, I've got it locked in that just being able to get up and go means something good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tek Posted November 1, 2007 Author Share Posted November 1, 2007 Thanks for all of your responses. I'm thinking Seroquel would've been a winner a few weeks ago when I had REAL insomnia (had low TSH at the time, so "they" blamed hyperthyroid). But, it's probably just not what I should be using for my chronic problem...which is just being able to fall asleep. My head won't fucking shut up. For hours. It's been like this my whole life. Ever since I entered the rat race and committed to the get-up-at-dawn schedule, I've been sleep deprived. It only got worse after having children...then you don't even get to sleep in on the weekend! Hmm...I guess it's back to Ambien for me. Lunesta was a joke, but worth a shot since it was a free sample. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cetkat Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Hmm...I guess it's back to Ambien for me. Lunesta was a joke, but worth a shot since it was a free sample. You could do that. You could also take the seroquel prn for when you really just can't get to sleep - or, even try taking 50mg instead. Seroquel gets less potent at higher doses and the longer you take it. When I first took it, I couldn't wake up the next day to save my life.. but that feeling passed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tek Posted November 15, 2007 Author Share Posted November 15, 2007 An update: I've successfully taken 25-50mg of Seroquel several times now! I always got pretty good sleep, and didn't have much morning grogginess. I try to take it at least 10-12 hours before I need to get up, so I think that is helping. Is it possible I may have also gotten used to it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trg247 Posted November 15, 2007 Share Posted November 15, 2007 Hi: When I was no longer able to take Remeron due to med interactions with the new Ad for sleep I switched to Seroquel at night, 75mg, and have found that it serves me two purposes which are to slow my brain right down so I am able to sleep and also it has tamed the nightmares down a bit. I also take Temazapam as well for sleep. Slowly over the last month the amount I sleep has decreased and it takes a bit longer to slow my head down but overall it still works pretty good. take care trg247 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AirMarshall Posted November 15, 2007 Share Posted November 15, 2007 An update: I've successfully taken 25-50mg of Seroquel several times now! I always got pretty good sleep, and didn't have much morning grogginess. I try to take it at least 10-12 hours before I need to get up, so I think that is helping. Is it possible I may have also gotten used to it? Yes, of course. That is typical for many drugs, and so too for Seroquel. I had pretty much the same experience. Glad its working for you now. a.m. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiet storm Posted December 7, 2007 Share Posted December 7, 2007 My doc just gave me some 50mg samples to try out. He wants me to try it out instead of lunesta, which does work most of the time but I think it may be excerbating my depression. I hope it works. I'm going to give it a few days and see how it goes. I imagine its alot like trazodone in that the first couple of days can be pretty hairy. I've heard lots of good things about for sleep and I am going to give it a fair shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiet storm Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 Well last night was my second night at 50mg. I dont have the hangover today like I did yesterday, but I still feel pretty tired. Does this get better or is it pretty much the nature of the beast? I did sleep well, but I judt odnt know if I could handle this feeling of tiredness every day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CER Posted December 10, 2007 Share Posted December 10, 2007 Well last night was my second night at 50mg. I dont have the hangover today like I did yesterday, but I still feel pretty tired. Does this get better or is it pretty much the nature of the beast? I did sleep well, but I judt odnt know if I could handle this feeling of tiredness every day. Yes. It does get better once you get adjusted to the med. Hang in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IHeartAAPs Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 Well last night was my second night at 50mg. I dont have the hangover today like I did yesterday, but I still feel pretty tired. Does this get better or is it pretty much the nature of the beast? I did sleep well, but I judt odnt know if I could handle this feeling of tiredness every day. I acclimated rather quickly to the daytime sedation and tiredness. I am taking 100mg tid and the only thing that I still notice is the "googly eyes" effect that I get. Other than that, Seroquel has been a dream med for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnowWhiteQueen Posted December 30, 2007 Share Posted December 30, 2007 I started out on 25mgs, have been as high as 800mgs, and have now landed in the middle at 400mgs. Just fair warning to everybody... DON'T take your very first dose ever of Seroquel, then go see Spiderman 3 at IMAX and sit in the very front row..... talk about a trip, oh man, that was terrible. Anyway, I went home (thankfully I wasn't driving) and then slept for 14 hours. Those first doses when you're body is adjusting will knock you out for quite a while. But I've been taking it for a while now, and have insomnia again at 400mgs, which is why I'm also taking trazodone. It works pretty well without a hangover effect. Have you ever tried trazodone? If not, perhaps you could give it a try. I like it. Well, whatever you take, hope you can get back to a normal sleep schedule. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiet storm Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Doc just bumped me up to 300mg XR. Yeah, it doesnt really make me tired anymore either. I still have to take lunesta to get to sleep at a decent hour, BUT when I am asleep I am sleeping much deeper and I'm not waking up early anymore. This stuff has also done a great job of calming my mind. If you have anxiety, try seroquel. It kicks anxiety's ass! I hope the 300mg works even better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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