Has anyone had any experience with taking sleep aids along with thier regular depression/anxiety meds? My doctor has me on Buspar, Serzone and Clonopin and recently my anxiety got so bad that I couldn't sleep. I took some unisom for a couple of nights and although I did get some sleep out of it, the after effects were very unpleasant. It seemed to have nullified my meds and made me feel so helplessly anxious.

Any insight on this?

Frank

many of the sleep aids have dyphenhydromine, or benedryl in them. benedryl is an antihistimine. Antihistimines are amazing lil meds that can save our lives ( I have chronic urticaria) BUT they not only depress the histimines that are bad and hurting us but they supress the ones that help us, so many of us go into a tail spin from them. I become suicidally depressed, no exageration there, literally suicidal. Some react less violently. i can only assume my brain chemical make up is so iffy that any upset will trigger depressionf or me.

I am the same way when it comes to the chemical makeup of my brain. Caffiene, sleep aids, and sometimes foods that are loaded with sugar can send me into a tailspin. Thats one of the reasons I am on a low carb diet. It helps regulate my moods and the weight loss is just a perk. This highs and lows I used to get from high carb foods really screwed me up.

I agree withyou. I was on a doctor made lower carb , high protein diet ( specifically made fro my body chemistry by a wonderful doc up in NY) This was before meds and it was the closest I had ever come to normal feelings every. i remember crying in releif one day after coming home fromwork and i didnt want to die. I was so grateful. I am working my way slowly back to the diet. I stay away from man processed carbs (flours etc) white sugar, low fructose intake, and lots of protein. Dont forget your water :) liver needs a break.

Oh I drink plenty of water, I am practically keeping Poland Spring in business:D

I know it's tough staying on the low carb track sometimes, but when I fall off it is so not worth the horrible feelings I get after I eat that piece of cake or whatever it was that I shouldn't have eaten. I have been on track and going strong since Valentine's day and I have lost 15lbs in the process. :cool:

Excellent :) I also lost weight on it though Im not supposed to be on it for that reason ( I have to stay away from 'dieting' per se) I actually lost like 75 lbs. I wouldnt mind losing fifty (though the docs might lose their minds about it) I will be happy if I just feel less---------bulky------I think the sensory issues played more a part in my eating disorder than actual anxiety did, though anxiety played a role. I cant stand to feel extra stuff on me, likeat my stomach, it feels like its in the way etc.

75lbs? WOW! That is outstanding! My first time on Atkins I lost over 50lbs, put almost all of it back on and now I am slimming down again. Even at my age, my parents are constantly on me about my weight. I am 6"2 and I weigh 215lbs and my ideal weight for my hieght and frame is around 180lbs so I am not as overweight as it may sound. I remember when I was in HS, I was so skinny that my football coach wouldn't let me play running back in fear that I was going to get seriously hurt so they stuck me at defensive back until I put on a few pounds. :mad:

Awww poor kid you :) 75 was too much to lose ( a history of mine) but we were working on adding foods into my diet right then and I was pregnant with my youngest. So I listened to my midevial doctor and went back to eating potatos, etc. I of course having csrewed my metabolism so much over the eating disorders years, gained most of it right back. Im going to split this thread and move part of the posts over to the weight forums since we, as add'ers do, have gone off topic lol.

LOL! You know I was thinking the same thing about going off course with these threads. :p Focus Frank, focus!:D

Please be careful about taking over the counter meds with depression meds.

Have you considered changing your ADD/depression meds? Take a look at the side effects and how they can interact.

I was on Serzone for awhile, and concerta. In addition an allergy med called Zyrtec D. And I was extremely exhausted all the time.

Just switching one of the drugs, from Serzone to Wellbutrin XL, helped my depression and energy right away.

So all this to say, talk to your doctor about trying a different combination of meds. Or you might start with your pharmacist. I never would have believed that just changing one of them would make such a difference until I experienced it. And I thought the exhaustion was purely related to depression/stress, so I didn't think to ask about changing drugs.

I'm not neccessarily advocating for Wellbutrin, since you're having trouble sleeping, but I am advocating for taking control of your medication. There are many, many different combinations of drugs that you could try, and your doctor should be open to trying something else if the ones your using are the cause of this problem. Or they may not be the cause, but another combination could provide help with sleep more effectively.

Hope you get more rest soon!