Baclofen and insomnia - my story

[RedThread12]

My heart is pounding a little as I write this I truly don't want to lead anyone down a path that is not right for them, but:

I have titrated up to as much as 260 mg of baclofen/day and never lost a night's sleep. Since I never lost a night's sleep I never suffered from insomnia. I use an "anti-psychotic" med that was prescribed to me by a psychiatrist years ago when I was in the middle of a bender from hell. Upon further reading, I've found that it is often prescribed off-label for sleep. I think there are some subtle calming qualities from it's "anti-psychotic" intentions - or maybe I AM psychotic and that's why it works for me. :H

I use quetiapine fumarate. Brand name: Seroquel. I take 50 mg/night. I have to make sure I'm in bed by 30 minutes as the latest after I take it or I will fall asleep wherever I am.

In off-the-board interactions with a few members who were struggling profoundly with insomnia, I've even over-nited it, and they, too have had good results. I order it very cheaply from AllDayChemist - Prescription drugs, Generic medicines, online indian Pharmacy

There. It's out. I've come clean about my further illegal on-line drug activity. I hope it helps someone.

Not sleeping due to peri-menopausal symptoms was, I believe, I huge contributor to my demise into the wine bottle. When the psych originally prescribed it she told me to take 300 mg. I did, and slept 18 hours. Literally. And then I got sober for 3 years. Knowing that I can sleep, every single night, is beyond wonderful.

I also order it for a couple of friends who are not alcoholics but were suffering from insomnia. Same thing - 50 mg, sleep all night. Some people have reported "hangover" type effects, but they started at higher doses because they were utterly desperate. I have none, nor do my friends. It's also available as 25 mg.

If you're struggling with insomnia, wiki quetiepine fumarate and do some Goggling. You'll see that it is often prescribed off-label for sleep. Again, like baclofen or any of the other things we try, it's a serious medication and must be treated with respect. But hey, we're hanging so far out the edge of the envelop anyway . . .

[Isolde]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

RedThread, thanks so much for sharing this. :l

I've been hanging tight at 140mgs, as I feel REALLY good here, completely indifferent. But I still struggle nightly with getting good sleep. I don't want to titrate down either though. I've been relying on xanax at night, but once it wears off after a few hours, I am back to tossing and turning, and wide awake every morning before the alarm goes off. I'm off to research!

[Isolde]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

Have you experienced any side effects from it?

[Greg]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

I can add here that trazodone has helped me sleep, at a dose range of 50-100 mg. There are few hangover effects at 50 or 75 mg, but a fairly strong hangover at 100 mg. It has a fairly short half life, allowing it to wear off by the next day. Another member here also told me about quetiapine as a sleep aid while taking baclofen, although I have not tried it yet due to having trazodone.

[Ne/Neva Eva]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

Thanks, RedT. Any information related to insomnia is important. I have a friend who is struggling mightily with it atm, post-indifference, and it's wreaking havoc in her life. She takes the same sleeping draught (can't remember the name. Ambien, maybe?) that she's taken for years. Lo and behold, without the actual sleeping draught (booze) she has always, always taken, it doesn't work. She's reluctant to switch it up, but I will pass on the info you've provided. (Minus the necessary illegality of your methods! :H)
xo

[Bruunhilde]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

Thanks RT, I'm with Is, need something besides the xanax which is short-lived.

[RedThread12]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

Look at the Xanax thread and you'll see my experience/opinion of that. The hell of my alcoholism didn't burn nearly as hot at the hell that I've seen with Xanax addiction. And I was was completely crisped.

Here's my experience with Seroquel: it's all I have to share.

Quetiapine fumarate does not act in the same way as benzo's. I've been taking the same dose for 3 years and getting the same benefits. I, personally, do not have any "hangover" effect from the low dose that I take. When I started with what my psych prescribed - 300 mg - I was completely zonked for most of every day. But that was a good thing, because it kept me from wanting to drink.

i have taken 50 mg on nights when I needed to sleep, but also needed to wake up in as little as 4-5 hours. When I first met that demand I was afraid that the quetiapine would make me "hungover" if I did not get a full 8 hours sleep. Didn't happen. Alarm went off, I got in the shower, and was off into the day.

I do suggest that if you try it you do it on a night when you have at least 8 hours to sleep. As we've seen with so many pharmaceutical options here, everything is different for everyone.

To synopsize: I don't experience any "hangover" effect; I don't experience any need to increase dosage to get the desired effect (over years of use); I think there may be some anxiety-reducing properties that are beneficial to me and my personal biochemistry.

I have a bottle of Trazadone in my "medicine chest" that I have never tried. I took it from a woman who was abusing it - taking more than prescribed, during the day, and drinking vodka from the bottle. My minimal experience makes me think it has the same kind of abuse potential as any of the other conventional sleep meds/benzos. Man, there are a shitload of them out there. I couldn't even begin to make a list. Short-lasting, long-lasting, probably some medium-lasting.

I'll admit that I haven't done much serious research about quetiapine fumarate. I was taking it before i started baclofen. I'm pretty sure that if I looked at "the list" of things not to take with other things, this combination could be regarded as dangerous.

I just know what I've listed above about my own experience, and a little bit about how it has helped others with the bac insomnia.

As a matter of fact, I just returned from 12 days at my 83 year old mother's home, 3.5 hours away from where I live. She has contracted a very rare disease that is calling forth all my resources, and they are considerable, to help her. I am unable to restart my professional classes because of the demand of helping her, and I need some rest. I think I'll take some quetiapine fumarate and get to sleep before midnight tonight

[_serenity_]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

After reading this thread, I ordered Seroquel. I remembered taking it a few years ago and was struck by how well it helped me sleep! Before reading this I'd actually been shopping around for some, but all the distributors I checked out were quite pricey.

Here's my report: it unfortunately didn't work for me at 50 mgs. I tried 75, then 100. 100 mgs usually sends me right off to sleep, although there are times when it takes a little longer (an hour or more).

In the past I've tried Xanax (way too addictive in my experience), amitriptyline (didn't work for me at all), and trazodone (worked only so-so). I've resorted to doing double shots of Nyquil in recent months, which worked great but surely wasn't the healthiest option! :H

Thanks, RedThread for this post. I was really happy with the supplier--as I mentioned in another thread, I got my order very quickly (12 days)--not bad for India to the U.S.!

[Bruunhilde]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

Thanks Red and Serenity - good to see you both here!

[AJ22]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

Be very careful with Seroquel. It may help you sleep but one of the side effects of that drug is elevated blood sugar levels. I have a life long friend that was on it and he is also a heavy drinker. He was diagnosed as a diabetic about 3 months ago. He did his research and identified the side effects of Seroquel and eliminated it from the drugs that he takes. His blood sugar levels are now in the normal range. I would recommend at least monitor your blood sugar if you are going to take that drug.

[RedThread12]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

Yes, your right AJ, re side-effects of Seroquel. I've read all the studies. and been on forums where people reported what you mention, in extremis.

HOWEVER, please - anyone suffering with insomnia from baclofen - don't be too intimidated. When prescribes "off-label" for sleep, lower dosages produce the best results. I took it for 3 years without gaining weight or having measurable tendencies toward sugar. And each of those years I did yearly "check-ups" measuring my blood sugar. It was always stable and in the lower ranges of normal.

THEN I started taking 6-10 GRAMS of l-glutamine every day. I could feel my blood sugar finding rock-solid territory; so much so that I had to quit drinking my beloved coffee :upset:. It screws up my blood sugar and makes me soooo uncomfortable now.

I also quit taking AD's and lost 25 lbs. as I continued on my journey with baclofen, seroquel, l-glutamine, and a lot of other supplements. So, of course, remembering that we're all different (cue Monty Python scene again) and have to find our Own Way Out, even though the side-effects of Seroquel are real, I have and do take it without experiencing ANY of the associated negative side effects. I usually take 100 mg/night, too, Serenity. And agree, it sometimes takes a while to "kick in." But when it does, I need to be close to my bed. Otherwise, I walk into walls getting there. :H

Good luck, all!!

Onward!!

[redhead77]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

I wouldn't touch Seroquel with a 10 foot pole. I also have profound blood sugar problems, which L glut can't fix, so that's part of it. I think the fact that it's an antipsychotic, with so many potential SEs (less if on low dose) should make people stongly consider this before taking it for sleep.

[redhead77]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

I think a lot of people are trying to avoid benzos, Bluto. And I'm not sure that the low doses make people feel like zombies. There have been many here, and on this thread, that don't feel that they work well for sleep...and there's the worry of cross addiction. Seroquel may be an option for some, but as I stated above, people should consider it strongly before taking it. Maybe do the research that RedT has done first, since we are all different. Especially the folks on HDB.

*It can have other SEs outside of diabetes. Tardive dyskinesia comes to mind. Again, less likely on lower doses, but it has been known to happen.

[RedThread12]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

Please note again that my original Seroquel prescription was written by a friend of mine who is a psychiatrist.. I've never seen her as a psychiatric (nor anyone else) patient, but she was trying to help me come out of a horrible binge, and the med protocol she gave me allowed me to do that.

Actually, she doesn't even have a counseling practice. All she does is write scripts for psych meds. And she'll go to great lengths to avoid prescribing benzos.

Just thought I'd let everyone know that I didn't just make-up the idea of taking low doses of Seroquel for sleep. She has the full arsenal, and Seroquel was her selection. I never had any side-effects from it, except during the 1st 2-3 weeks of taking it, it was a little harder to get out of bed. That passed ages ago. The only way it remotely creates zombie-ism is if you take it and DON'T go to bed. Can get a little difficult to navigate and talk, kinda' like being drunk :H

AND, other than trying to drink myself to death during that particular time, I'm quite healthy and fit. So I'm sure everyone's own health status/history plays into whether or not Seroquel is appropriate.

We're a pretty intelligent, resourceful group, accustomed to doing our homework. If you're not sleeping due to HDB, this is just an option to explore.

[redhead77]

Baclofen and insomnia - my story

I'm sorry RedThread, I'm not trying to insinuate you made it up. I'm just saying that people should take other things into account before ordering it on the internet. And, yes, considering personal health status is important. As well as other factors such as HDB. That's all. Thank you for sharing this with us.