Trazadone And What To Expect?

[Bozo]

I saw the pdoc today and he is upping the Zoloft to 200 mg per day. I told him my anxiety was almost to the point of calling in sick to work and not being able to sleep and being sick to my stomach.

First off he was going to go with something called Seraquel. I asked if he ever heard of Trazadone. He said yes, that was the other one he had kicking around in his head. So we decided on Trazadone for now.

I am only taking a little bit at a time until I discover how it effects me. At his direction I took 25 mg at 530 PM today and it is now 710. I really cant say that I have noticed anything at all.

What should I expect if and when the medication starts to work?

[shutterbug]

the only time I took trazadone was in the hospital to help me sleep...and it could have easily killed me. It knocked me out cold (and I later learned I had sleep apnea and it's potentially deadly to take strong sleeping meds)..and then next morning I had the worst hangover of my life (from lack of oxygen during the night I suppose).

But I've known others who swear by it and don't have problems with it.

You could also look at trying a different anti-d. Effexor and Wellbutrin also help with anxiety, I believe.

[Live]

I think Effexor has extreme withdrawal from what I have read aroung here.

25 mg trazadone is a very, very low dose. You know that I am a fan of it! I started at 50mg and went up to 100mg...and now 150 mg because of benzo detox. Working marvelously!
The dosage range for trazadone is 50 mg to 600 mg/day.

I had about 3 wks of side effects. First grogginess. (Coffee!..shoot myself in my foot but manage the symptoms....keeping a job is up there on the priority list.) The coffee intereacted and made me silly, giggly and bouncing around like a super ball. I had headaches...but am prone to them, so that area is a sensitivity of mine. And, like I am coming to believe with almost all psychotropics (like antid's) they take 6-8wks to adjust and arrive at a homeostasis. Then adjustments first, the benefits building.
Sounds life free association "Recovery" LOL...adjustments and benefits.


live

[historyteach]

I have 50 MG Trazadone to take as needed. It works by "letting" me sleep, not "making" me sleep.
Take it 10 hours before you want to get up. No grogginess that way.
Best thing since sliced bread if you ask me.

Seroquel is not something I liked. Felt groggy all day after taking it. But, I'm sensitive to drugs. But, this didn't even pass the 10 hour test my counselor told me about. Forget it! (for me!)

Also, do NOT take Welbutrin for anxiety. It's well known to increase aggitation and jittery behavior. I haven't had a panic attack since I stopped taking it 2 months ago.

Best of luck!

Shalom!

[Bozo]

Originally Posted by liveweyerd

You know that I am a fan of it! I started at 50mg and went up to 100mg...and now 150 mg because of benzo detox. Working marvelously!

live

When you say it works well for you, what do you mean? That you can sleep?

I took another 50 mg. last night at 830 and did not sleep that well at all again.

Does this stuff work right away or does it take the usual 6 to 8 weeks to kick in? I am just a little confused right now.

[historyteach]

Mike;
FOr me, it "allows" me to sleep. It doesn't make me fall asleep.
If I awake during the night, I am able to fall back asleep.

I am able to take two 50 mg tablets if needed. I have only taken one, however. That's all I've ever needed.
Also, if I don't take it 10 hours before I want to get up, I'm groggy all the next day, like a hang over groggy, ya know.

I didn't have to wait weeks for it to build up in my system. It worked right away, but, then again, I was so tired....But, I take it only as needed, so, I don't think that's an issue.

Finally, Trazadone is a mild anti depressant with sedative properties. The usual dose is up to 150-200 mg/day, divided into three times a day.

Hope this helps.

[meli2005]

Trazodone is a big sleep helper. I take it occasionally when I have trouble sleeping. My AH takes Seroquel, it is very sedating. 25 mg is a pretty low dose. I only like to take a max of 50mg, otherwise, I feel very drowsy in the am and have trouble waking up.

[Bozo]

Does anyone take Trazodone in small doses during the day for relief from anxiety?

[shutterbug]

Yeah...Effexor does have a pretty hairy side affect if you miss a dose (but the side affects start out minimal and get stronger until you take your dose - so if I take the missed dose as soon as I feel a little "off" then I don't have any trouble). For non-compliant peeps like me...it worked perfect to keep me taking my meds like I was suppose to. And it has helped my depression better than other meds.

I agree with HistoryTeach...I didn't like the Seraquel either and it made me crave sugar and chocolate like oxygen!

Bozo...I personally haven't heard of it being used during the day for anxiety. Most peeps are prescribed it to help them sleep (from my very limited knowledge of it

[PaleRider]

Trazadone does wonders for sleep and the "Groggyness" goes away after a week or so.

[Don W]

Bozo, When I was in the Brocton V a detoxing, the doctor put me on traxadone. He suggested it would help me sleep. although i thought i was sleeping fine, it was a fitful sleep. Anyway, when i first took it I actually felt a little hung over the next day. Also, my wife was concerned because of some slured speach and balance problems. This went away after a few days. My doctor at the Bedford VA continued the prescription, however on an as needed basis. He is also having me take 1/2 of a pill. I forget the size now but, will tell you later.

[kshow215]

I took 100mg of trazadone in detox to help me sleep, and it helped me a lot. Trazadone is an antidepressant, but the effective dose to have an effect on depression is so high, that the drowsiness side effect is so great that it outweighs using it as an antidepressant. Kind of wierd if you ask me, but it is rarely used as an antidepressant anymore.

[Don W]

I had been taking 100mg while in Detox and for awhile afterwards. My doctor at the Bedford V A has reduced it to 1/2 a pill as needed. What I do is keep a few in my locker at work. I work the 3 to 11:30pm shift. I take it before starting home if I have high anxiety. By the time I arrive home I'm ready for bed. I have learned that lack of proper sleep really affects my thoughts and paterns. Hope this helps.

[Gary2140]

Like the others said, just be sure you have enough hours to sleep it off.

I was on Trazodone years a ago for insomnia/anxiety and it worked well.

One doctor actually told me that I could take it during the day because it will "calm me down." Big mistake, I had to down a bunch of caffeine or I would have passed out.

[Don W]

Thanks Gary, You are right. This is why I started taking it at work before heading home. The subway and train take about 1 1/2 hours. I used to take it when I got home. It would kick in around 3 or 4 am, and I'd have a hard time getting out of bed. Anyways, I only use it sparingly. Many times reading on the way home has the same results. I'm trying to learn how to handle the axiety/stress and not always depend on the Trazodone. It has been about 2 weeks since my last pill.

[meliejv]

I have been on Trazadone for about 2 months and i am at 400 mg. I was on Nefazodone for 11 years and it stopped being effective. After trying almost evry ssri out there along with wellbutrin which only added to my panic attacks, my Dr said that trazadone is very similiar to Nefazadone so i gave it a try and so far i am doing really good with it. I didn't notice the drowsiness really until 150mg. I still take zanax occasionally for anxiety but i am noticing the higher my dosage the less anxiety i am experiencing. I was thinking of trying to take it in the morning to spread it out but I'm afraid I'll be tired all day so I haven't tried that yet but i suppose I should. In the morning, I don't feel groggy if I can sleep for 9 hours. I am planning to go up to 600mg which will take another two weeks and then I will be completely off the nefazadone. One thing i have noticed is i definitely have an increased appetite. No more eatting like a bird but I'll deal with a little weight if it means me being comfortable in my skin again. I hope this info helps someone.

[butterflylover]

I was rx'd Trazodone for sleep as needed. The doctor gave me 50 mgs. It made me sleepy and also made my legs feel very heavy. It usually would take an hour or two to kick in. There is a great site that i use to get patient reviews on meds. It's askapatient.com You just type in the med you're looking for and it will pull up all of the reviews. Patients give a rating of 1-5, tell how long they've been on it, side effects, and the reason it was rx'd. Very helpful site.

I hope everything works out for you.

[daydream]

I've been on Trazadone for sleep the past 2 years or so. Lower doses of drugs rarely work for me. The pdoc started me off on 50 mg which did not work at all. Don't give up if it doesn't work at a low dose. I didn't get a lot of benefit until they got me up to 300 mg. It makes me slightly sleepy for about a 30 minute window. After I go to sleep it helps me stay asleep, but I can easily be woken up if my child needs me and I have no grogginess the next day. No side effects at all. I did try seroquil one time and it made me feel like a zombie. No more of that for me.

Also, a LOT of antidepressants cause increased anxiety. I will not take benzodiazepines because of my addiction. But in times of severe anxiety I have taken a low dose of Visteril (hydroxyzine) which is actually an antihystimine. You might ask your doctor about it, if you feel solid enough in your recovery that you think you wouldn't abuse it. It does not make me feel high or zonked....I just notice that the shaking stops and i'm not as freaked out. However, if a person were to abuse it, they probably could acheive a mood-altering effect and end up in relapse. Because of this, instead of taking it daily as prescribed, I only take it when i cannot perform my daily tasks due to the anxiety being intense. I don't take any medications that I can do without. I take them in the lowest dose that will work and I keep my sponsor involved in these decisions ALWAYS.

[ccgirl]

Bozo, fancy seeing you here. My husband takes 50 mg. trazadone to help him sleep and it's helped a lot. As far as Seroquel goes, some people mentioned that it makes them crave sugar and I read that in some people it can cause type II diabetes,hmm, kind of makes sense no?


Shutterbug, I too, take Effexor and I've been sick the last couple days and forgot to take it. The side effects you talk about. Mine are not physical, but I realized this morning that I'm kind of a basket case. Are those the kind of side effects you mean?

[Bozo]

I forgot about this thread, I started it over a year ago, I think. Anyways, I did use the trazodone, 50 mg. per night, for quite sometime.

I stopped taking it for a couple of reasons. Number one was the continuing bizarre dreams that usually included a lot of violence.

The other reason was the grogginess would just not lift in the morning, and it was becoming more of a hassle than a help.

The good news is I just stopped taking it and have had no problems sleeping, as a matter of fact I am sleeping better lately than I have in a long time.

It is nice to have a drug to help you if you need to take it, and also to be able to walk away from it without repercussions.

[shutterbug]

ccgirl...there are several links to threads people have started around here about Effexor and the side affects. If you go to the stickies at the top of this forum it is called "The Med Thread". Just scroll down to where you see Effexor listed and you'll find at least a handfull of threads on Effexor.

The side affects i experience when i don't take it 24 hours from the last dose is one that is physcial and that intensifies the longer i go without it. It's what some describe as "zaps"....but i don't think anyone has given the feeling an official name yet even though so many experience it. I describe it as being similar to quick electrical currents that start at various points in my body and travel to my head in like a 10th of a second and sometimes multiple ones firing at the same time. The uncomfortable part of it is felt mostly in my head and it has a bit of a disorienting feeling to it.

I've discovered that mine are tied directly to any eye movement i make. Each time i move my eyes it seems to cause another zap to be fired off...regardless of if my eyes are open or shut.

It's this "wonderfully" very uncomfortable side-affect that helped me become and stay med compliant. So i'm super thankful for it.

BOZO.....your like the visiting stranger....once in a blue moon you pop in from out of no where. YOu little rascal! lol ((((hugs)))) hope you are doing well and better than the last few times i've heard from you around here

hugs,
Jenna

[meliejv]

I am up to 450mg of trazadone for depression and anxiety and i have noticed that since i have gone up another 50 mg, i feel very depressed that last two days. I don't know why. I just feel like isolating. has anyone been on this high of a dose? i'm wondering if i need to go down. i just don't know. Feeling scared and hopeless again. Don't see my Doc for two more weeks. I'd love to hear from you.

Mel