Chronic sleep problems

[lizerdbits]

I had a sleep study done in January which said I frequently wake up in the night (not to the point where I'm consciously aware of it) and the failed treatment so far has been various drugs affecting neurotransmitters which do nothing other than give me side effects and in some cases make my cognitive function worse than "normal" even for someone who doesn't sleep well. His theory is I have an abnormality in my hypothalamus-pituitary axis. I have an appointment with this guy Tuesday where I think I'm going to tell him I'm not coming back because this doesn't seem to be working. The drugs seem to be a shot in the dark- let's see if this one works. I think I need to see someone who is willing to change their theory if it's not working. Am I too impatient? Are these drugs like anti depressants where people often go through years of finding one that works? I don't really have that kind of time if I want to stay employed and I'm putting off doing some grad school because I just can't mentally do it.

I also have an appointment with my GP the next week for something else and I'll see if she has any suggestions in terms of who she thinks can help. Men may want to stop reading here. The last time I felt great was when I had a period last fall and then I went down hill again the next week so there is the possibility that this could be hormonal. I wound up on bcps due to severe bloating, as in I was practically waddling and having trouble working out. I didn't have a period after that 'magic' one for 7 months though I've been irregular my whole life so I don't have a 'normal' cycle to know if anything is 'abnormal'. Good for bloating but hasn't affected the sleep. One of my coworkers said she felt like this during perimenopause which is possible at 34 but probably not likely. I could see if I can get some hormone blood work though I may have to stop the pills for a bit. :shrug:

So the first drug was paxil for what he was sure was just prolonged PMS. Terrible for me, I was nearly having panic attacks and was really anxious. The next was oxcarbazapine, an anticonvulsant which caused me to be out like a light at night but still felt like I had a hangover in the morning (feel that way off any drug too). Then was provigil, a stimulant for narcoleptics (no evidence of that in my MSLT) that I took in the morning that also had no effect. However I did start waking up in the middle of the night with my arms and legs jerking around. Then was depakote, another anticonvulsant that had no effects other than making my short term memory even shorter- about 3 seconds. I also had to decrease the dose because I sometimes would forget mid sentence what I was saying. I tried plain old benadryl a couple nights (I was NOT taking other meds at the time) which also didn't help and is not a long term solution.

I guess I'm just bitching because I've been tired and cranky for the last year though it somewhat relieving to get it out. :) If you're still reading I'm surprised and I thank you. I talked to my ex nurse mom and she said she thought that was a good idea, especially bringing up the possible hormone angle. Has anyone else had problems like this? I'm rarely tired/sleepy during the day, just really out of it. Even on weekends I don't sleep more.

FYI: I rarely drink caffeine and if so only the mornings, alcohol maybe once every couple months, quit smoking, and don't eat close to bedtime, and my exercise is in the morning.

[LuckyLib]

1. I'm on the other side of menopause now, and I can't even begin to believe what I went through:

horrible sleep problems, some migraines, depression, etc. Unfortunately, the process of menopause takes a few years -- in the meantime, I kept as a goal not getting caught up in hormone replacement, anti-depressants, or other mood-altering substances. Sleep problems affect everything -- memory, attitude, sharpness, etc. After a sleep study, I began taking Ambien (5 mg.) -- a low dose -- when needed. It has made all the difference. My body just had to work its way out of the other stuff. Since we're all different in terms of our biochemistry, it's an individual thing, but as you say, all of those drugs can't have been helping.

[lizerdbits]

2. The menopause thing never crossed my mind until my coworker mentioned it

Due to my age but I'm not a doctor so I'll see what her recommendation is. She might refer me to someone or maybe run some hormone tests to rule it out. It might not be hormone related at all, who knows.

Sleep definitely affects everything which is why I need some soon! I feel like I have half the IQ of 5 years ago.

[mopinko]

3. no sleep drugs?

no ambien? lunesta? seems to me the longer acting sleep drugs would be helpful.
i take ambiem, because i have fibromyalgia, and if i don't sleep, everything comes apart, as you said. i have always had bouts of insomnia. taking a low dose of ambien at night just helps to make things more manageable. if nothing else, it spares me the hours of flopping around trying to sleep. i have few enough hours. i sleep up to 12 hours a night. ambien helps to make sure that i am not wasting that time. i stick with the old version, because i am happy with something that just gets me off to sleep without leaving me heavily unconscious all night. you never know when the teenagers are going to explode in the wee hours of the morning.
if you took something, maybe at least a few hours a night would be good restful sleep.

[lizerdbits]

4. That might be more effective for me

I don't have trouble falling asleep, my sleep study said the sleep was not restorative due to brief awakening. I'm going to talk to my GP about what else might help, maybe she feels something like that would help or could refer me to someone specific (that better take my insurance). The problem with the guy I'm seeing now is that neurotransmitters are his primary focus (I originally saw him for depression years ago) so that's the only way he will treat this. That doesn't appear to be working, so I need to move on to someone else.

[ThingsGottaChange]

5. Was sleep apnea considered?

With apnea you wake up frequently, because you stop breathing, but aren't aware of it. I just had a sleep study and I have "events" 8 times an hour. You should ask is that's a possibility.

Good Luck!

[lizerdbits]

6. My study said my breathing was normal

I was sure I was going to have sleep apnea because those are the symptoms and my dad has it (along with one of the genes associated with narcolepsy, but my MSLT was normal and I've never had issues with sleepiness during the day). But the study said no. I'm seeing my GP on Tuesday and will see what she says because this course of treatment is going nowhere. Hopefully she can recommend another treatment method or refer me to someone else.

Thanks!