# Divorce Complete, Not Sleeping Well -- OTC Pill Advice?



## Dreald (Aug 30, 2012)

Was wondering if any of you have suggestions on over-the-counter pills or tablets to aid in sleeping. I'm joining a gym today so will start to work out but could use some suggestions on what to look for that won't make one zonked out the next day.

I'm on a high coinsurance health plan ($5,000) so to get on Ambien would be extremely expensive. 

Tried melatonin but didn't seem to make much difference


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## Mavash. (Jan 26, 2012)

I went through a rough patch in 2012 where I didn't sleep well for 3 months. Tried a few OTC meds but none worked. I finally came to the conclusion that until I learned to calm myself that sleep would not come.

I believe now it's just normal when we go through rough times in our life sleep is one of the common things to go. If you have faith in yourself it will pass. It just may take a while.


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## Dreald (Aug 30, 2012)

I know, so far the OTC remedies leave me feeling exhausted. I'm joining a gym today so maybe that'll help.


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## Mavash. (Jan 26, 2012)

It sucks I know. I didn't sleep more than 3-4 hours a night during my stressful time. Couldn't even nap. When it was over I caught the flu and slept A LOT for 3 weeks. LOL

I was exercising too and even that didn't help. For me it just took time.


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## CharlieParker (Aug 15, 2012)

Try valerian root, seems to help me a bit. My wife swears by the stuff.


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## 827Aug (Apr 27, 2008)

Benadryl (25mg to 50mg) at bedtime works for me. It's cheap in generic form too.


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## Dreald (Aug 30, 2012)

Thanks for all the suggestions folks. 2013 will be a very interesting and life-changing year for me. 

Maybe at 43 I'll finally know what I want to do with my life.


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## EleGirl (Dec 3, 2011)

I use Melatonin. It's the chemical your body produces when you get sleepy. Before the invention of all kinds of devices that produce light all night along, it would get dark and people would get sleepy because their body produced Melatonin.

It works great. It's not habit forming its inexpensive. You can get it at any drug store, vitamin store and grocery store that has natural supplements.


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## Waking up to life (Nov 29, 2012)

I second the melatonin suggestion.


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## CallaLily (Jan 13, 2011)

Melatonin is good, there are different mgs, you might check out some to see which works best for you. I have never cared for sleeping pills that are prescribed. I was on one a few yrs ago and had a awful experience. I heard Valerian root is good, never tried it though. Also meditation, and certain kinds of music might be helpful to wind down the mind too.

Also Melatonin is not meant to take every single night. Its used to get the body back on track so it can function more properly with getting itself back on a decent sleeping pattern. When I first took it, I didn't know this and took it almost every night, it didn't work. Its something you might want to take once or twice a week. The more you take it the less it works. Its meant for short term use.


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## ShawnD (Apr 2, 2012)

Dreald said:


> Tried melatonin but didn't seem to make much difference


How you take drugs makes a huge difference. I find that swallowing melatonin does nothing, but letting it sit under the tongue is very powerful. Several bottles I've had explicitly say on the bottle to keep it under the tongue.
I find that phenelzine (prescription) and melatonin mix extremely well. Melatonin is a monoamine, so an MAOI drug like phenelzine makes it significantly stronger. I slept 6 hours yesterday and I feel great.

Most other OTC drugs will not work well. Diphenhydramine and dimenhydrinate are both strong anticholinergic drugs, so they drastically reduce sleep quality, but they do cause sleep.

Valerian root is a good alternative to most prescription sleep drugs. Prescription sleep drugs are mostly benzodiazepines or z-drugs, which are similar to benzodiazepines. Benzos and z-drugs cause sedation by working on GABA receptors. Valerian root works on GABA receptors as well. Alcohol is another one that activates GABA.


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## betterme (Jan 23, 2013)

i feel the same way too when my h cheated on me many times and i choose to leave him..3 months i can't sleep, i can't eat..full of stress and i came to a point that i'm super depressed..but now, 7 months i live by my own with my daughter i can say that "not totally ok, but much ok than lately..it takes time...goodluck and godbless...


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## Homemaker_Numero_Uno (Jan 18, 2011)

Audio books on CD or downloaded. Get a routine so that you have a cup of Sleepy Time tea (you can get this at the grocery store, in the herbal tea section) and some cheese (for some reason cheese seems to be good for sleeping...slow release protein and fats through the night I think...) and do some mediation/stretching, make a routine to go through your living space to turn off lights, etc. Then settle into a nice comfortable bed (I have a down comforter) with clean pillowcases (clean pillowcases are statistically proven to improve sleep) and turn the light down to low or even off and listen to audio books. I love Wliia Cather books and E. L. Doctorow and also Haruki Murakami. But you'll find your own favorites. Make sure that the narrator/reader is high quality and has a soothing, expressive voice. Don't worry about getting a book that's about self-improvement or about sleep. Just get a book that you look forward to listening to at night, and is conducive to getting you in bed for your 'session' of listening. Invariably, you will relax and eventually become sleepy. Bedtime stories are tried and true. You can never be too old for them. Also make sure you are comfortable when you wake up, that your coffee will be ready and that you have an awesome rug to step into in the morning, a bathrobe if you like one, and a great pair of slippers. If you live in a cold area, make sure you can get up to turn up the heat and go back to bed with your coffee, or have the heat on a timer. 

One last thing that helps me sleep at night, is that I open the window just a crack and leave the blind up where I have the best view of the sky, and the sky me. I can't sleep unless I can see the sky. There is something about the phases of the moon and the sky and stars, I don't want to be separated from them when I'm sleeping. It seems wrong somehow.

If you do decide that you need Rx, ask at Walmart or your pharmacy how much the various Rx are that are for sleeping. Many times the generics are very cheap for any given Rx. It pays to shop around, if you're just going to use it short term, all you care about is that it works, and you're not allergic.


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## ShawnD (Apr 2, 2012)

Dreald said:


> I'm on a high coinsurance health plan ($5,000) so to get on Ambien would be extremely expensive.


zolpidem (Ambien) costs $0.14 per pill. link

That website is neat. I love pricing out random stuff. 
20mg Prozac (antidepressant) - $0.09 per day (way cheaper than stupid "herbs")
40mg Celexa (antidepressant) - $0.11 per day
400mg Seroquel (antipsychotic) - $0.67 per day
15mg Nardil (antidepressant) - $3.73 per day (It's way cheaper than this in Canada)
1mg Ativan (anxiolytic/hypnotic) - $0.12 per day
30mg Remeron (antidepressant) - $0.34 per day
20mg Zyprexa (antipsychotic) - $0.80 per day

Try to remember that "hypnotics" are not the only drugs you can take for sleep. Remeron (mirtazapine) is an antidepressant, but it's a very powerful sedative. Almost all drugs sold as antipsychotics are powerful sedatives as well. 400mg of Seroquel will virtually put you in a coma; nothing in the world will wake you up until the drug has worn off. 20mg of Zyprexa will kick your ass as well.
Those Ativan things are ridiculous. A friend gave me one, and I passed out hard. I slept through an entire house party. Loud music and people playing beer pong didn't wake me up. I had a really great sleep too.


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