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Has anyone dealt with REM Behavior Disorder (RBD )

Posted by Sarah @emyliander, Apr 22, 2024

I have had a sleep study and met with my Neurologist who thinks I have RBD and wants me to meet with my sleep specialist . RBD has poor memory as on of its components. My Neurologist didn’t tell me I have MCI but he put it as my diagnosis on my discharge paper. I have been on
Venlafaxine for many yrs and discovered that it is one of two meds that can cause RBD so I met with my GP and asked to switch off it. I am transitioning onto Bupropion. An MRI 2yrs ago showed “ white matter”.
My current symptoms are poor memory which interferes with my daily activities, loss of smell,
Nightmares in which I scream and kick and have fallen out of bed hurting myself. Foods I have loved I no longer care for, 8lb weight loss, poor concentration and feeling overwhelmed, keeping my house tidy seems impossible.
I’ve been told by Neurologist to get a test to rule out Lyme disease. Also to make an appointment for CBT classes.
Looking for some insight.
Thank you.

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gloaming | @gloaming | Nov 25, 2025
In reply to @looplu79 "Interesting I started low and increased My neurologist recommend the 5 mg tabs which I take..." + (show)
Profile picture for looplu79 @looplu79

Interesting I started low and increased
My neurologist recommend the 5 mg tabs which I take every night
Have not considered lowering the dose as I was worried about the disorder manifesting again I will however discuss this with my neurologist
Thank you

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@looplu79 These responses are interesting to me, a non-expert with no medical training but who, with age and sleep disruptions, has done a fair bit of personal research into ways to improve sleep. Many of the articles say 3 mg of melatonin is about the most anyone should take, but I see that neurologists often recommend, or actually prescribe, two or three times that much. So, the science seems to be a little 'all over the place' on this, with individuals being the lowest common denominator....the patient is the one who gets to figure out what works and what doesn't do so well.

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newtoni48 (Jim) | @newtoni48 | Nov 26, 2025
In reply to @looplu79 "Interesting I started low and increased My neurologist recommend the 5 mg tabs which I take..." + (show)
Profile picture for looplu79 @looplu79

Interesting I started low and increased
My neurologist recommend the 5 mg tabs which I take every night
Have not considered lowering the dose as I was worried about the disorder manifesting again I will however discuss this with my neurologist
Thank you

Jump to this post

@looplu79 , I've found that if I go in 1/2 mg increments using a pill splitter and multiple tabs of different doses, that any recurrence (at least for me) is mild, allowing me to increase again without serious incedent.
My goal is to use the minimum dose necessary to keep any side effects at a minimum.

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sbryan76 | @sbryan76 | Jul 24 12:20pm
In reply to @emyliander "I can understand your being hurt, a man has a lot more strength than a woman—usually...." + (show)
Profile picture for Sarah @emyliander

I can understand your being hurt, a man has a lot more strength than a woman—usually.
Maybe if you accompanied your partner to his Doctor appointment they could explain why these actions happen.
I fell out of bed and hurt myself, I certainly wouldn’t do that while awake. It’s not due to repressed aggression toward anyone. When it happens with me it’s because in my dream, I am being attacked by someone and i am responding to that.
You can also do research online, there’s quite a bit of info about REM Behavior Disorder,
I hope things will be better for you, thank you for your well wishes.

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@emyliander
I have found that a grab bar/rail inserted under the mattress has stopped all falling out of bed. On the man/woman strength issue, even a weak person who slugs you in the middle of the night would produce some pain!

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