quetiapine

[phatemu]

'Holy smokes Batman', that Seroquel knocked my socks off. Started 50mg before bedtime and I couldn't even complete folding my laundry 45 minutes later. Slept a good 8 hours straight, or was just in a coma? Hung over this morning.

Two questions: 1) how long before I can expect to drift gently off to sleep, rather than feeling as though I had been tranquil-darted by an big game hunter?; and 2) has anyone experienced or heard of insomnia waxing and waining as though there are seasons ( periods of time) when it's present and then when it remits (remission)?

Hope all are doing well out there on our big blue marble - third rock from the sun. Cheers!

[Eden]

Haha, it's potent stuff.

1) I found that the sedation lessened in about a month for me, your mileage may vary.

2) I've had all sorts of weird sleep patterns, but not seasonal ones, are you affected in other ways by seasons? The only thing I can think of to explain this would be Seasonal Affective Disorder.

Disclaimer: Not saying you have or don't have SAD, just answering the question to the best of my abilities.

[bpladybug]

I think it was at least three or more weeks before the impact of the Seroquel lessened.

But several years later, and taking 400 mgs, I still sleep very deeply and remember no dreams.

It makes sense to me that insomnia would wax and wane. Certainly I have had my share of midnight

strolls on hot summer nights. and crawling into bed with a book in the cold, dark northwest winter.

[crtclms]

Moved because this was a med question.

[enlightened_plutonian]

For me it probably took a couple of months before I got to the point where the sedation didn't kick in straight away. But I do find now that the sedation is pretty much how I want it. It kicks in 3 hours or so after taking the pills (though I am on the XR) and I get a good 8-9 hours at the time that best suits my body clock (1am till 10am, but I am not asleep all that time).

My insomnia has always been intermittent, but not seasonal. It was more like a few weeks of not sleeping (or max 2hrs per night, if I was lucky) then a similar length of time where I could sleep. But lack of sleep really brings out my psychosis, so I am grateful that since starting on the Seroquel I have been able to sleep normally. There would be many things that would trigger my insomnia as well, such as being too frightened to sleep.

[g8orgirl]

I've been on quetiapine (Seroquel) for 13 years. It does take a few weeks for the sedation effect to wear off. But even all these years later I still find that I sleep very good when I take my Seroquel. I've heard that the lower doses can be more sedating than the higher ones.

[Alien Navel Cord]

I just started taking the XR type, 50mg, and haven't had any sedation yet. I move to 150mg in 3 days so maybe then I'll feel it, but I am kinda glad I don't have any sedation yet.

[rowan77]

I take 400mg XR at about 7:30pm every night. I don't feel any sedation kicking in until around 10pm, and often I don't feel any sedation. That said, If I were to take my Seroquel at 10pm and have to get up at 7:30am I would be like a zombie, very sedated and hung over. In my case I need to take it at least 12 hrs before I have to get up

[Chiaroscuro]

I've been on Seroquel XR 100mgs for almost 2 weeks, before that I was on the IR version for about 1 1/2 weeks. I had to swtich to the XR version as I was so sedated by taking the IR morning & night (like my GP wanted me to) that I couldn't do ANYTHING.

My Shrink (after talking to my GP) put me on the XR and said that I HAVE to take it at night as Seroquel in any of it's forms is well known for sedation. And it sure does sedate me!!

I take my 100mg XR dose at about 6pm at night & sleep well -though have weird dreams- but am getting frustrated as the sedation makes it hard for me to get up in the morning & organise X for school and feel like doing anything else (like house cleaning or exercising)...

Hopefully it'll wear off soon, or I might have to consider switching meds as I can't afford to feel so zombied out all the damn time during the day!! :/

[Amethyst674]

Pdoc put me on Abilify after a Symbyax freakout over possible s/e. He told me he never meant to keep me on Symbyax due to the weight gain and diabetes it could cause, He had only prescribed it bc I presented with severe depression/mini nervous breakdown when he first saw me, However, I was not able to tolerate Abilify, unfortunately. It made me super hyper and I wasn't able to sleep all week, which sucked cuz the lack of sleep was one of the reasons i had my mini nervous breakdown in the 1st place, He told me to give it a chance , but even at 2.5 mg and 0.5 mg of xanax I was going nuts, so....today...

I went back to my pdoc (just showed up and he was nice enuf to see me w/out an apt.) I told him I could not stand the abilify. he told me to finish taking the last few symbyax I had left over and then he said I could start on 25mg of Seroquel at bed time once I run out of the Symbyax (I only have 5 left so hopefully I will not gain any weight ) I feel much more stable now that I am off the Abilify. Am also on lamictal but not sure what it's doing yet... but at least no s/e there. Still titrating on the lamictal , now on 50mg. Anyway, I am hopeful Seroquel and I get along and that this will finally do the trick for my treatment resistant depression and mixed episodes thanks for listening

• 0