Does the side effect of not sleeping EVER go away? 40mg of pred daily and the inhaled steroids has equaled LACK OF SLEEP!!!
I don't want to add any sleep meds to my growing list of meds. Anyone know of some natural supplements that can help me sleep? (Oh how I dread asking that question lol). I have heard calcium tablets can help. Anyone know if that is true?
Thanks for the help!
I never had it go away until the dose was reduced. Don't knowCalcium with magnesium is supposed to be good as a sleep aid, though I've not tried it myself. My doc told me that it takes quite a bit to get the right sleep effect if I'm also dealing with pain, which was my complaint at the time. He ultimately prescribed diphenhydramine ("Benadryl"), and I had good results.
Valerian root also helps with sleep. The tea form, specifically for sleep, is available at most grocery stores.
Personally, it was not strong enough for me. If you try it, don't take much more than the recommended dosage, or it quickly becomes a diuretic...then you wind up drowsy, but also traveling frequently to the toilet! NOT conducive to a restful sleep!
I'm on a very low dose of pred now (2 mgs., after 17 years of 20-60 mgs.), but I still find myself dealing with some insomnia (I suspect that my other meds also contribute). Yet, I can certainly validate your particular problem, as I still recall my sleepless nights at 40+ mgs. of prednisone.
I had to relent to an OTC sleep aid. As I mentioned, "Benadryl" or it's generic equivalent works and is usually safe. My preferred sleep aid now is doxylamine succinate ("Unisom"); I can get good results with a half a pill or even just third.
I know another med is not the way you want to go, but you really can't beat some good rest, if that's what is to be gained. Consider at least an OTC, if herbals don't work. Hopefully you will find a natural remedy that works; I'm sure there are others out there.
Keep us updated on whatever you try...
EDITED to add some sites that might help:
http://www.helpguide.org/life/sleep_aids_medication_insomnia _treatment.htm
http://sleepdisorders.about.com/cs/herb/a/herbs_3.htm
http://www.drugdigest.org/DD/HC/Treatment/0,4047,22,00.html
http://www.professionalcounselling.co.uk/natural_sleep_remed ies.html
I know you said you didn't want more drugs but how about a tab or 2 of benedryl. I find it to be a good sleep aid. Are you on the inhaled steroids for asthma - the antihistime in benedryl might help that.
I really do not think sleep on 40 mg of pred is possible. I just curl up in an afgan on the couch and watch TV...sometime I manage a short nap and at least I don't keep my husband awake.
Thank you everyone! I am going to try the tea first. I have high blood pressure and have to check on the benadryl and OTC sleep aids. I am on inhaled steroids for the asthma. Advair (100/50..the low dose cuz of the blood pressure) and my rescue inhaler (Albuterol) for those bad times.
Lifetime Movie Network and my TIVO'd shows have become my best friends at night lol. Since my husband works 2nd shift we are getting more quality time together at night since I am awake lol. There is a silver lining in everything!
I am doing my pred in the morning and trying to time the Advair so I am not doing it after like 7pm.
If you're getting wired from pred, whatever you do don't take St John's Wort. You'll go thru the roof.
What about tryptophan? (The sleepy stuff in a turkey dinner
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tryptophan
Another question ...... I have been lowering my dose from 10mg... now at 7mg, but I have been getting terrible migraines every morning. Does prednisone help with headaches? Is that why they almost stopped when I was on the higher dosage??Boy, vickilee I do not know.
I have lots of headaches. I've had migraines since the age of 9. My mom, aunt, and grandmother all had them too. I wake up with a headache 9 days out of 10. Most of the time it is mild and fades away within 45 minutes. I have a head splitter about 1 in 10 days.
I don't wake up with headaches on pred but I don't sleep much either.Yeah.... I've always had major headaches, migraines, etc. I
still get small ones every day, but now the BIG ones are coming
back. There must be something good coming out of the
prednisone... but I'd rather keep trying to level down and take more
excedrine migraine that cope with the other stuff.... oh, and now
my arms aren't as badly bruised as they were... I would just brush
something with my arm, and ..... another BIG Bruise.... but now, my
arms are looking pretty good!!
When Justin goes on ANY steriod, he has to have a rediculously slow taper, or he gets massive migranes. They said it was just a side effect for him. It could be that you've developed the need for a slower taper. :( That would suck. I hope thats not it, but then again, it's an easy fix! I suffered from migranes for years and years and years and only just figured out that mine are reactions to cigarette smoke! Could be an allergy as well. :/Katie,
You must be on to something... I have been lowered every 2
weeks.. so when I went to 7, the headaches started. Maybe if I go
back to 8 for a while, then it won't be so bad. I am leaving
Sunday to go to Sacramento (trick-or-treat with my 14 mos.
granddaughter) and I don't want to be headachy... then I go to
Vegas for my b-day Nov. 9th... another reason not to have
headaches... hummm.... so, I'll see what tomorrow brings,
after the cardio guy. Thanks!!!
Yeah...Justin tapers like this:
He uses 5mg pills, and for example...6 days of 6 pills a day, 5 days of 5 pills a day, 4 days of 4 pills a day, etc etc. If you do the math, I'm sure you can figure out what that equates to for you. It's a very annoying taper..but it works for him! He's had as much as 12 pills a day, and we've had as few as 3 pills a day. Just depends on how much of a boost his Crohn's needs.
It seems important to taper off of prednisone very slowly, if you've been on it for any length of time.
After years and years of being on at least 15 mgs. to as high as 80 mgs., I'm finally down to 2 mgs. of prednisone a day. It has taken me almost four years to get my dosage that low. When the prednisone was either raised or lowered by several mgs. at a time, I would get headaches, insomnia (worse than usual), fatigue, restlessness, and MAJOR mood swings. I have found that lowering the drug by very small amounts helps to avoid these adverse reactions.
The way I've been doing it has been excruciatingly slow, but extremely successful. I lower the dosage by only .5 mgs. at a time, and stay at each newly lowered level for a minimum of two months. It's sometimes tempting to accelerate the timing or to reduce by a larger amount, but I know from trial and error that this careful snails-pace method is what is working for me.