Posted by brynb on September 19, 2012, at 13:58:22
In reply to Re: Non-benzo PRN for sleep/anxiety, posted by bleauberry on September 19, 2012, at 13:47:40
> If wanting meds, I would probably consider low dose remeron, as in 2mg to 7.5mg, no higher than that. Much more sedating that way. Even a tiny crumb can work.
>
> Other than that, I dunno, I tend to feel meds for insomnia should be PRN, as you are thinking of doing. Remeron for that. On a regular basis, savella can make very good sleep, but not in a sedative way. It just does something to quiet down excess adrenaline stuff, probably through feedback loops, best guess. The first few days can have worsened sleep.
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> I personally prefer the use of plant medicines prior to synthetic ones. Their power to improve symptoms and disease are not well known in our society. In your case, the primary herb to take control of your symptoms, all of them, would be rhodiola rosea. You may not even need anything for sleep after it has had a few days or a couple weeks to start doing its stuff. Good for sleep, energy, depression, endurance, anxiety. For PRN usage, I like Lemon Balm, Skullcap, Passionflower, and Valerian Root. They aren't really potent sedatives, but through a variety of mechanisms they calm everything down so sleep can happen. That said, they all do have some immediate sedative quality to them, probably Skullcap the most. Lemon balm is more relaxing, calming, soothing, with only a hint of sedation. But in the background as part of a cocktail, it works to turbocharge the others.
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> Just some ideas. Been there done that, so I'm just sharing what I have noticed over the years.Thanks, bleauberry. I appreciate the input. We went with Seroquel, which I can deal with right now. And yes, I'm definitely thinking just a PRN right now, as both my pdoc and I agree that when my mood gets better, ideally, so will the anxiety and insomnia. I gained a lot of weight from Remeron. Do you think this is still likely at that low of a dose? Curious.
I like your alternative ideas. I'm very interested in holistic/alternative medicine, but I haven't had much success with supplements. I'll have to revisit.
Thanks again.
-b
poster:brynb
thread:1026039
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20120912/msgs/1026122.html