Sleep Sleep Sleep

ananda8

One of the side effects of the drugs we take to prevent recurrence is insomnia.   This condition should be discussed with your doctor.  Arimidex caused me to become staggeringly sleep deprived.  I tried Benadryl which helped for a while but made me groggy all day.  I tried other over the counter meds but they either didn't work or left me "hung over".  Finally I went to my doctor who gave me a prescription sleep aid.  I asked for the very lowest dose.

That night I took the pill and slept like I melted into the mattress.  I took two naps the next day.  That night I took 1/2 a pill and still slept well.  The day following I did not feel groggy or sleepy.  The third night I took the other half pill and the next day I felt normal for the first time in months.  I didn't take any more sleep aids for several weeks because I didn't have a problem falling to sleep.

What I had done was break the cycle of sleeplessness.  Arimidex still cause insomnia but I was able to control it by my routine of 3 days on a sleep aid (half pill for me) and then not taking any until I missed or had trouble sleeping for two nights.  A 30 day supply of pills lasted almost 9 months.

Hope this information helps.

 

 

dlb823

I wholeheartedly agree that sleep is essential to our well-being, and have read studies (will find them if anyone needs a link) suggesting that chronic insomnia can actually be linked to risk or recurrence. I personally prefer to go the natural route, but notself's suggestions if you need to go to an RX are excellent.

If you don't want to use a pharmaceutical, check your natural foods market for natural sleep aids that contain things like Melatonin (which has bc-prevention benefits), Valerian, Passion Flower, Camomille, etc. I like the blends, but had to try several to find ones that work (Dr. Whitaker makes an excellent one), and sometimes have to switch them up. I also use things like lavender oil fragrance spray, and there's an excellent guided imagery CD I can recommend if anyone's interested. Deanna

NatsFan

Good topic, and I agree 100%. Thanks to suggestions here on BCO, I tried melatonin (with my onc's permission). I was one of the fortunate ones it worked for - I can honestly say it was a life changer for me. After 2 years of never sleeping longer than 2 hours at a time, melatonin has allowed me to string 4 -5 hours of straight sleep together, and also as importantly, when I do wake up in the night (hello, hot flashes) I can get back to sleep very quickly. What a difference it has made to my QOL to get a good night's sleep on a consistent basis!

If melatonin had not been helpful to me, a prescription sleep aid would have been next. Absolutely talk to your onc and/or PCP if sleeplessness is an issue. As dlb says, sometimes it takes a fair amount of trial and error, but when you finally find what works for you, it's a life changer.

ruthbru

Yes, do whatever you need to so that you can get some sleep. You simplify can not cope if you are sleep deprived. I ended up with a prescription sleeping pill, because nothing else worked, and it was WONDERFUL for me. And I didn't worry about taking it, I needed to get through that period. Later I found some great relaxation and hypnosis CDs, which now work really well for me. Especially the hypnosis ones, which are scarily amazingly effective in knocking me out!

pipers_dream

I may have to try one of those hypnosis ones. I've always been interested in that anyway and it would be good for relaxation.

I've found a sleep routine that works really well for me and it's mostly even gotten me through these nights of worry and I slept like a baby on the night of my dx. About 1/2 hour before bed I take my Ca and Mg pills and I also take a C vitamin b/c it would interfere with a med I take earlier in the day. By taking it at night, it does interfere with the amphetamine and helps me to sleep and dream. Then I settle in with a good book that I can easily put down, or a sudoku puzzle. Then a chewable melatonin and lights completely out. No night lights and I even turn the clock face away from the bed. The addition of the vitamins to this routine really helped though--so much so that I can't hardly open my eyes when I get up to go to the bathroom. I'm one of those women who can't sleep when I'm hormonal and was up every night when I was pregnant.

Zillsnot4me

please share names of sleep aid and guided imagery cd.

I have problems staying asleep. I also have young children so need to be extra careful what I take and SEs.

Thank you!

ruthbru

This will seem odd, but several years ago I went to a benefit dinner & the entertainment was a hypnotist who would bring people up on stage & get them to do silly things. Well, after his show, he was selling CDs; improve sports skills, lose weight etc. through hypnosis. One of the CDs was titled, 'Reduce Stress and Tension plus Power Napping'. They were cheap, so I bought one & it truly knocks me out (I forced myself to stay awake and listen to it once to make sure he wasn't giving me messages to run naked through the streets or something!). I bought the same CD for my sister, who also really liked it, and have reordered it for myself a time or two when my old one starts skipping. The website is www.FrederickWinters.com the CDs cost $9.99. 

Pawprint

ruthbru

I laughed at you making yourself stay awake just in case there was a hidden message to run naked through the streets :-) I listen to Hypnosis cd's from time to time, and enjoy meditation apps such as 'simply being'. There are lots of positive effects from mindfulness, meditation, deep relaxation.....