Sleep aid & Apap?

[kaiya2465]

I am Pre-diabetic...lol. Dr says it is from sleep apnea, I have no known family members with diabetes. Sleep would be good

[Perrybucsdad]

When I had my heart surgery back in '97, I had a hard time sleeping in the hospital. I was in a lot of pain and very uncomfortable. I told the doc and he had ordered something for me to help me sleep. The nurse gave it to me, and I just remember how good I felt the next day. I was wide awake and rested feeling. I then had to ask the nurse and was really surprised what she told me... Benadryl.

My cardiologist told me it was safe for me and I use it from time to time when I can't sleep. I don't know how much it contributes to OSA, but I do know it gets me to sleep and I don't feel all doped up in the morning.

I'd be interested in trying the Ambian though.... but then I hear all those stories about these people who end up being ax murders and such at night, but I suspect there was some extra-curricular substances going on with all that too. Since I don't drink or use recreational meds, I guess I wouldn't need to worry about that. Just my luck though...

-John

[kaiya2465]

Wow, now I am really worried about taking the ambien

[Bikersguide]

For me GABA works fine. I take 3000mg 30 Minutes before bedtime.

[kaiya2465]

I have never heard of that before. Anyone else?

[cherylann]

Ambien 5mg, which I understand is a very low dosage to start out with & I did actually do the search for side effects, & that is what I am afraid of. I put a call into the dr but nothing as of yet.

I've also never taken a sleep aid - scared too death of them. There is no allergy pill (even the ones that say "non-drowsy" that don't render me groggy and unable to function for at least 24 hours. But, the night of my sleep study, they gave me a 5mg Ambien. I went to sleep at 10:30 - they woke me up at 1:00 to put a mask on me - fiddled with getting the right mask for 30 minutes. I went back asleep at 1:30, woke up at 5:30 and felt better than I have felt in two years.

Since the night of the study, I have not had a decent night's sleep.

[kaiya2465]

Looks like Ambien is the way for me, I will give it alittle time & go fromk there. Thanks

[ameriken]

Fortunately, I don't have any problems with insomnia or falling asleep so I don't need or know anything about sleep meds. When my head and mask hits the pillow, I'm usually out quickly so I am quite thankful I don't need a sleep aid.

However, any medication has risks of side effects. When I take a med, I try to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of both taking the med and NOT taking the meds. So while Ambien or other meds may come with risks, the benefit of getting sleep may outweigh those risks of side effects. It's also possible the sleep med may help you sleep and actually have NO side effects at all. On the other hand, if you continue going on with NO sleep, what are those risks and side effects? What can happen? Could that cause you more problems?

There is no clear answer and that's why they are considered risks. So don't just run away from a med because you've heard of side effects or heard a story that sounds scary. Think about what the meds can do, think the risks and benefits, also think clearly about what can happen if you DON'T take the meds and continue to go without good sleep.

[ameriken]

Looks like Ambien is the way for me, I will give it alittle time & go fromk there. Thanks

Oops, looks like I was writing my post while you posted this. I think this is a good idea. Good luck!

[kaiya2465]

Thank you ameriken

[avi123]

Ambien 5mg, which I understand is a very low dosage to start out with & I did actually do the search for side effects, & that is what I am afraid of. I put a call into the dr but nothing as of yet.

See here that Zolpidem (generic Ambien) is recommended for Central Sleep Apnea syndrome:

Excerpt:

Due to the heterogeneity of the central sleep apnea syndromes, different medications have been used under different circumstances. No single medication can be considered a drug of choice.[1] Several different medications aimed at improving central sleep apnea include acetazolamide, theophylline, and sedative-hypnotic agents.

•Acetazolamide (Diamox): Acetazolamide is a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor that causes bicarbaturia and metabolic acidosis, which presumably shifts the apneic threshold of PaCO2 to a lower level. It has been shown to be effective therapy in primary central sleep apnea and CSB in patients with heart failure and in the treatment of high-altitude periodic breathing.
•Theophylline: This agent has been studied in patients with heart failure and was found to be effective in attenuating CSB.[34] It may also be effective for high-altitude periodic breathing.
•Sedative hypnotics: These agents have been used successfully in treating nonhypercapnic central sleep apnea. Temazepam and zolpidem have been shown to be effective under these circumstances and are believed to work by consolidating the sleep pattern, thus minimizing the instability in ventilation induced by sleep-wake transitions. A case series showed zolpidem reduced central apneas, and the overall apnea-hypopnea index, without worsening obstructive events.[35]

Source for above:

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/304967-medication

Another source:

Improvement of Idiopathic Central Sleep Apnea with Zolpidem
Syed Quadri, M.D.,1 Christopher Drake, Ph.D.,2 and David W. Hudgel, M.D.2

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2670330/

More on taking sleep medication while CPAPing.

From my experience:

Taking a 10 mg of Zolpidem ( generic Ambien) helped me a lot with my fragmented sleep for years, long before starting CPAP for OSA. When I started CPAPing, 9 months ago, I took half a tablet (5 mg) as soon as I mounted the mask at around 11:30 p.m. which let me sleep for 3 hours. Then after going to the BR I took another half a tablet which gave me 3 more hours of sleep. For the hangover the next morning I took two tablets of Tylenol and for the ingested air I took Pepto Bismol.
I have learned about the value of Ambien when I was prescribed it at the hospital after a joint replacement (hip) operation. It’s a true miracle sleep drug as long as you don’t continue on it for long time because of addiction. About 4 months ago I decided to withdraw from it. So I was prescribed Xanax to help me with the withdrawal which I did in two weeks, by following TonyCog approach. See below.

About Ambien

viewtopic/t28525/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=63 ... og#p593574

Sleep without Ambien!!

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=60835&p=570869

p.s. here is a true story about those who listnen to others who are against taking Rx (and try very hard to convince others to follow). When my wife who happened to be a registered pharmacist at the time, gave birth to our first child she decided to do it without taking any sedation. This was after listning to some fanatics who preached to stay way from medication for heaving healthier babies. But after 5 hours of labor, boy o boy, she vowed never to repeat it again.


.

[napstress]

I took Ambien for a couple of years before starting CPAP therapy. Low dose, on an as-needed basis, when I woke up in the middle of the night. Then for a while, I was crying all the time and exhausted. My doctor told me to go off the Ambien. I thought she was crazy; the Ambien was the only thing that helped me sleep, and I thought sleep-deprivation was the cause of the depression. She never told me why I should go off, just that I should. A couple of years later, another person taking Ambien told me that it can cause depression.

Every body is different, though. And now I'm wondering if I would have reacted the same way if I was getting the quality of sleep one supposedly gets on CPAP therapy while taking the Ambien. Maybe taking Ambien and still having microarousals all night long is a bad mix?

Maybe try it sparingly and be on the lookout for low moods before they move in permanently.

Good luck.

[kaiya2465]

Dr. up'd the Ambien to 10 mg, a little bit afraid of taking it.

[ems]

Dr. up'd the Ambien to 10 mg, a little bit afraid of taking it.

Personally, I would take it. You need to sleep. After a few weeks of some good, restful sleep, then you can reevaluate.

[kaiya2465]

I think I am just afraid of how I will feel when I wake up. But I guess I won't know til I try the 10mg. Also trying to evaluate if going to bed @ 9pm has anything to do with it...