Why not use sleeping pills?

[made cummsies]

So what's the problem with chemically induced sleep?

I've never had good sleep hygiene and beddy bye time has always been when the voices in my head decide its a great time to have a party. If I'm at home and don't have an early morning meeting its no big deal, I'll read, go for a walk, whip the pony, have a warm glass of milk, etc. and will inevitably fall asleep. However, if I'm on the road (I spend about 150 nights/a in a hotel and still hate them) or if I do need to get up early I'll take an Imovane (I'm pretty sure its same product as Lunesta). The routine for the past 8 or so years has been that between hotel and over active brain I'll take about 10 pills a month. For the first 7 of those years I had the same family doctor and the guy kicked ass! Never preached, was easy to talk to about anything, could see him on short notice if needed....generally everything you'd want in a doctor. Unfortunately he moved about a year ago and my new guy isn't quite the same. I'd never say the first doc ran fast and loose with his script pad but he didn't seem to have a problem with my usage of Imovane. The new guy on the other hand seems to view them along the same lines as narcotics and thinks I should cut back the usage.

So my lengthy preamble aside (this is one of those nights where I can't sleep so figured writing would be helpful :down: ) what's wrong with chemically induced sleep? The side effects of drugs like Imovane seem to be minor, relatively speaking they're not expensive and at least for me are very effective.

THX!

[Dr Steve]

So what's the problem with chemically induced sleep?

I've never had good sleep hygiene and beddy bye time has always been when the voices in my head decide its a great time to have a party. If I'm at home and don't have an early morning meeting its no big deal, I'll read, go for a walk, whip the pony, have a warm glass of milk, etc. and will inevitably fall asleep. However, if I'm on the road (I spend about 150 nights/a in a hotel and still hate them) or if I do need to get up early I'll take an Imovane (I'm pretty sure its same product as Lunesta). The routine for the past 8 or so years has been that between hotel and over active brain I'll take about 10 pills a month. For the first 7 of those years I had the same family doctor and the guy kicked ass! Never preached, was easy to talk to about anything, could see him on short notice if needed....generally everything you'd want in a doctor. Unfortunately he moved about a year ago and my new guy isn't quite the same. I'd never say the first doc ran fast and loose with his script pad but he didn't seem to have a problem with my usage of Imovane. The new guy on the other hand seems to view them along the same lines as narcotics and thinks I should cut back the usage.

So my lengthy preamble aside (this is one of those nights where I can't sleep so figured writing would be helpful :down: ) what's wrong with chemically induced sleep? The side effects of drugs like Imovane seem to be minor, relatively speaking they're not expensive and at least for me are very effective.

THX!

The short answer is there's nothing in theory wrong with chemically induced sleep. It just ain't "natural".

Many studies have shown that people who take sleep meds do better initially than people who practice good sleep hygiene, but in a few months, the sleep hygiene folks will do better.

Melatonin is a hormone that you can take orally and it does help to set your sleep clock and induce restful sleep. I was at first VERY wary of using melatonin because it's a hormone secreted in the pineal glad and NO ONE KNOWS WHAT THE PINEAL GLAND IS FOR. However, long term studies have indicated that melatonin is safe and effective, so my reservations are slowly wearing down.

If nothing else works (and you've done a sleep study to determine you don't have a reversible sleep disorder), I see no benefit to withholding sleep aids from someone, especially if they're just exhausted all the time. I'm pretty sure that Ambien and it's pals interfere with REM (dream state) sleep, though, so taking a few nights off a month is still a good idea (purely my opinion).

Your pal,


Steve

[jauble]

Every once in a while I will take melatonin, I have some valerian, but that tastes like shit.

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Well said.

[kdubya]

The short answer is there's nothing in theory wrong with chemically induced sleep. It just ain't "natural".

Many studies have shown that people who take sleep meds do better initially than people who practice good sleep hygiene, but in a few months, the sleep hygiene folks will do better.

Melatonin is a hormone that you can take orally and it does help to set your sleep clock and induce restful sleep. I was at first VERY wary of using melatonin because it's a hormone secreted in the pineal glad and NO ONE KNOWS WHAT THE PINEAL GLAND IS FOR. However, long term studies have indicated that melatonin is safe and effective, so my reservations are slowly wearing down.

If nothing else works (and you've done a sleep study to determine you don't have a reversible sleep disorder), I see no benefit to withholding sleep aids from someone, especially if they're just exhausted all the time. I'm pretty sure that Ambien and it's pals interfere with REM (dream state) sleep, though, so taking a few nights off a month is still a good idea (purely my opinion).

Your pal,


Steve

Is there a risk of someone becoming psychologically addicted to the pills? A belief that they can't sleep without them leading to them not being able to sleep with out them.

[cougarjake13]

thats what im worried about


if i take it too much then i wont be able to fall asleep without them

[travisball7]

I also agree that sleep aids are overused. I don't think they are all bad, but for every person who needs it there are 10 that claim to need them.

[zildjian361]

Advil pm only knocks me out for 3 hrs, if I use them two nights in a row almost nothing. stopped using them due to my blood pressure.:flush:

[Katylina]

Melatonin rocks!

[sup3rstar]

hey all,

sleeping pills slow the heart which i have heard there is a chance you could die from it :(

[keithy_19]

hey all,

sleeping pills slow the heart which i have heard there is a chance you could die from it :(

Bring it. I love me my ambien.

[danner1515]

I tried taking Simply Sleep (basically Tylenol PM minus the acetaminaphen) a few years ago when I was having some on-again/off-again insomnia issues. It helped knock me out, but it wasn't quality sleep. I always woke up feeling groggy, almost like I had a hangover. I figured I was just as well off staying up late. Getting into a decent exercise routine wound up helping a lot.

Edit: I just realized that this thread is two years old, so that was kind of a pointless post on my part. Oops.

[keithy_19]

Someone kill him. Preferably a mod. They get away with murdering folks I hear.