Sleep ease with melatonin and Unisom

What were your side effects as you tapered off the clonazepam? Were they sharp and severe effects or subtle in nature?

raina726, so sorry you had to go thru all that! Hang in there and be careful with the meds. I always loved diazepam for occasional anxiety. Took Flurazepam just a couple times a week, and it was like magic for me too. Slept so good when I took Flurazepam. Was prescribed both Flurazepam and Diazepam but usually didn't take them both the same day. I think I might have once or twice but nothing bad happened. Then Flurazepam got discontinued and the hunt was on for a new sleep med. Lorazepam works pretty good, but I take the Amitriptyline also every night. I take 30mg. Started out on 10mg for just a couple months, then started taking 30mg. It helped alot with sleep and anxiety and depression. You should try it again. I don't have any side effects from it. And I do agree with you about other antidepressants having lots of side effects. I did my own research on Drugs.com and told my doctor I wanted to try Amitriptyline. So happy it works for me. Lorazepam isn't for everyone... Good luck to you.

raina726, one more thing... over the counter Unisom works great for sleep. But be sure you get the kind with the ingredient Doxylamine succinate. Take care.

Thanks for sharing your experience, CindiSue. I tried Lorazepam(1 mg.) again a few nights ago and got 4 hours sleep. A good 4 hours, and was able to go back to sleep with a Midnite for a few more hours. However, NOW I remember why I stopped taking it! It's a serious mood de-stabilizer for me. I get very strange and dark and it lasts for days. I googled and sure enough they're reported in some individuals. Benzos are very different from each other. People raved about Xanax but it also was horrible for me, only took it once.

When you know, you KNOW! Klonopin was magic, but with long term use I believe the body's nervous system, metabolic system, even the liver become completely reliant on it. When you quit the side effects are really wide ranging and painful. Bereft. I was bereft without klonopin. This ever present headache that seemed to sap any joy from me and I just couldn't THINK! All withdrawal symptoms even when reducing by small amounts.

Diazepam is the only one that I don't feel is addictive, and seems to have no side effects as long as I don't take it regularly. It can be a depressant then.

But, Flurazepam, magic. Not addictive. I take it 2-3 times a week only and it seems to fix me and the other night's sleep seems better as well. No hangover. 15 mg does it. Occasionally if having trouble 30 mg will fix me in a couple of days.

Flurazepam IS available by Chartwell but they are price gouging because they are the only manufacturer. Rising is releasing this year but don't have a date as of last month.

I await Flurazepam and will make sure I get qty 90 from my doctor so if supply becomes an issue I am covered.

I took a Unisom sleep gel last night which has 50 mg of Benadryl in it. It must be time released. It worked surprisingly well. I also have the doxy variety tablet which will give me a few hours. Midnite is my middle of the night favorite it's just 1 mg of melatonin and herbs. It doesn't always work but it works often enough.

I try very hard not to mix cbd, benzos, or OTC sleep meds. When I do it results in complex dreams and hangover so it's not GOOD for you. But occasionally I feel desperate and forget what I've already taken and in the wee hours take something else. Thank God I don't have a full time job anymore or I'd be in trouble!

Thanks for your perspective it helped me. And thanks for getting me to try Lorazepam so that I this time I WROTE DOWN what it does to me so I'll never take it again. When I used it several times in one week in 2023 I had almost an entire week of DOOM descend on me. It was so surreal.

But taking it once brought back the memories, so never again. I'll be getting rid of this bottle!

Let me tell you about my experience with melatonin -- the wrong dosage and I it's like speed to me.

Seriously, I once inadvertently got a product with 10 mg in it. OMG. For two days I was sick with feeling anxiety and speediness.

Even 5 is too much for me.

I've discovered 1 mg is perfect. Weird, huh? 3 mg sometimes but other time it, too is just a bit over the top. So I bought 1 mg gel tabs and am experimenting with 1 and 2 mg.

It's worth experimenting.

I read several years back that between 1.5 and 3 whole mg is adequate for most people when it comes to melatonin. The article's authors pointed out that it can be problematic to take more. Also, not only is is a pretty good soporific, but it is also THE most powerful antioxidant one can ingest.

Yet many common supplements have 5-10 mg of it! And you read the reviews and they're polar opposites. "finally found something that works" and "Made me even more speedy.."

I think there ARE people out there that for some reason need a megadose of it. But it seems wise to me to start with 1 mg and work your way to your dose.

I've always been a light touch! Learned the hard way to never just accept a prescription from a doctor without saying first let's start really small and work our way up to find the right dosage.

I wish more doctors understand this kind of finesse with pharmaceuticals because it would 1- save people money, and 2-save them awful side effects from too high a dosage. One size fits all does NOT work, I'm living proof.

And, I've been a medical assistant and seen what doctors do, and don't do when prescribing. They may cut back when a patient comes in saying "I can't take this med anymore it's making me sick!" But, hey here's an approach to avoid that -- don't start everyone at the 'usual' dose.

"...I wish more doctors understand this kind of finesse with pharmaceuticals because it would 1- save people money, and 2-save them awful side effects from too high a dosage. One size fits all does NOT work, I'm living proof...'

I couldn't agree more. It's one thing to just use a prescribing brochure or a rule of thumb, which we both know is exactly what happens 90% of the time, and on to the next patient, but when you turn your patient against YOUR OWN prescription by making the experience awful or worse, you rob that patient of an opportunity to become accustomed to, and to use thereafter in a salutary way, the very drug that would have been best of several options!!!

Very well put! The doctor wants the patient to succeed but is seemingly unwilling to do the necessary work to get them there... I've seen so many patients labeled as difficult when they're classic 'sensitives' and can get by on low doses with excellent results. It's sad.

Good discussion that clearly shows how different we all are, and meds/supplements can be quite tricky. Clonazepam was seemingly perfect for me until I had to taper off it. Hindsight- I was having balance issues and falls and disinhibition issues even at 1mg at night. However, unison makes me so wired I don’t sleep at all- same with Benedryl. Thankfully Lunesta works if I take 1/2 at bedtime and the other half 2-4 hours later. No am hangover and good sleep.