Circadin
Posted , 6 users are following.
Hi, has anyone used this and is it worth taking if it doesn't work on the first night?
0 likes, 21 replies
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Notes on Circadin
caitlin39841 Cleora3
Posted
Caitlin
Chase12 Cleora3
Posted
Cleora3 Chase12
Posted
caitlin39841 Chase12
Posted
thank u in advance
Caitlin
Capodingos caitlin39841
Posted
caitlin39841 Capodingos
Posted
Caitlin
Nuttymut Cleora3
Posted
Would you mind if I asked what you have been prescribed it for please?
Nuttymut
Cleora3 Nuttymut
Posted
Nuttymut Cleora3
Posted
Thank you for your reply. Circadin is a synthesised form of melatonin. It's not a sleeping tablet. Nor is it a sedative.
Melatonin is released into our blood stream to sned signals to hte brain and other parts of the body that it needs to begin preparations for sleep.
If your issues with sleep are due to a faulty circadian clock, or in laymans terms your 24hr sleep wake cycle is not working correctly then circadin can sometimes help.
However, if you inability to sleep is based on something else then it is highly unlikely that circadin will be of any help to you. For example if you inability to sleep is caused by stress related issues or as a direct result of clinical depression then circadin won't do it for you.
As we age our sleep wake cycle does deterioate. I believe NHS guidance for the use of circadin in men who are struggling to sleep is they have to be over 54 years of age.
I have been on melatonin for over a year now. On it's own it doesn't really help me greatly. However, it does take the edge of my mirtazapine "hangover" and I seem to come round a little more quickly in a morning.
If your GP is on the ball (and some aren't) they will allow you to go up to 10mg's of circadin per night in an effort to find out if it will help.
Does any of the above help?
Nuttymut
Cleora3 Nuttymut
Posted
Nuttymut Cleora3
Posted
I'm by no means qualified to say what circadin can and can't do, but I'd suggest you exercise caution in your expectations of circadin.
By all means try and speak to your GP about how much you can take.
I personally found even at low doses circadin helped me straight away. However, I have a sleep disorder as opposed to medically induced insomnia.
Nuttymut
caitlin39841 Nuttymut
Posted
with thanks
Caitlin
Nuttymut caitlin39841
Posted
I think I have probably not worded my reply to well. Sorry. I was suggesting that Cleora didn't raise her expectations in regard to this medication.
On a slightly different note can I talk to you about your sleep problems please. I have a circadian sleep disorder, delayed sleep phase disorder. May I ask if you have read any of my other posts which delve into vitamins and aslo mirtazapine?
How do you manage to sleep?
Nuttymut
Cleora3 Nuttymut
Posted
Nuttymut Cleora3
Posted
Sounds as if you are having a tough time with your sleep.
I was prescribed mirtazapine off sheet. Off sheet means I was given it for it's side effects first and foremost.
It may be worth talking to your psychiatrist about this option?
Nuttymut
caitlin39841 Nuttymut
Posted
my CRD started 4 years ago following a very stressful house move. i've tried all the natural OTC stuff with no effect. melatonin helped for a while, but not more latterly. even in high dose it dosen't touch it. i take b vit. supplements including b12. maintaining by good 'sleep hygiene' practice makes no difference. i have ME/CFS.
thankful in advance for any useful suggestions
Caitlin
Cleora3 Nuttymut
Posted
Nuttymut caitlin39841
Posted
I'm in no way qualified in medicine. I can only talk about the little I have picked up from my own experience. That maybe of some help. It may not.
Mirtazapine is an antidepressant. I know your wondering what on earth am I doing suggesting you try Mirtazapine then. Well Mirtazapine has a rather frustrating side effect. It acts a little like a sedative. Sooooo, my cunning neurologist prescribed it for me to try and help me sleep. I take it about an hour before I go to bed. It works. I also take it along with circadin.
I'm vaguely aware that Mirtazapine is sometimes prescribed for help with sleep. I am not sure if you have to suffer with depression for it to be prescribed. Which may preclude it from an option for your psychiatrist. It's worth asking. But bear in mind it's a terrible medication when you first start taking it. Mirtazapine isn't the only antidepressant available that can be used to help with sleep. Amitriptoline is another.
I've touched on Mirtazapine and Amitriptoline more as a secondary thought. And as I've said I have no idea if your psychiatrist has either of these as options.
The big issue I want to touch on is Vitamin B12. I have a sneaky suspicion you may well find what I am about to talk about very difficult to understand. I will attempt to keep it as simple as possible.
Your psychiatrist or GP may have done blood tests on you in the past to establish the levels of your B12. If they haven't I would strongly suggest you prioritise this.
Vitamin B12 is measured in the blood in picogrammes per millilitre or pg/ml. The NHS states that a result of between 150 and 1100 (ish) is "normal".
Also the NHS test doesn't differentiate between active and inactive B12 in your blood. So you could have a result which (like mine) was 300 pg/ml suggesting "normal". However, there's no proof that any of that B12 is active.
What your GP should do is review your symptoms and your blood results together. The blood test should not be viewed in isolation if you have any symptoms of B12 defficiency.
And the symptoms of B12 defficiency can be similar to CFS & depression.
It doesn't stop there. Vitamin B12 taken as a tablet should be taken sublingually (allowed to dissolve under the tongue). If they are swallowed there impact upon the amount of B12 available to your body isn't considered sufficient.
I took B12 suppplements sublingually. They helped. But they didn't come close to the effect I got when I had an injection.
Vitamin B12 does need Vitamin B6 in good supply so that it can carry out some of it's functions. So you may have sufficient B12 in your body but be low in B6. This will show as symptoms of low B12.
I would suggest you take the time to understand the above. There's a website called B12D-org. It's run by an NHS GP Dr Chandry. That will help you greatly.
I am not suggesting your CFS is incorrectly diagnosed or that you are low in B12. What I am suggesting is you may feel some benefit from B12 in dealing with your symptoms.
B12 is also responsible for making seratonin and melatonin.
There's another vitamin you may find helpful. Vitamin D3. I take 5,000 iu's per day. Within two days fo starting on that level I felt some reduction in my depressive symptoms. There are issues involved in taking such a high quantity of D3. However, these don't appear overnight and if you want to take that level of D3 for a week or two to see if it helps you will suffer no ill effects. I've been on that level for a year now.
Nuttymut :-)
caitlin39841 Nuttymut
Posted
believe it or not, i'm on the b12/folate deficiency band-wagon big time, as i found out the consequences of low b12/folate the hard way. i had reached the point of having severe cardiomyopathy (non age realted failure of the heart muscle) & had become almost (cognitively speaking) imbecilic. i ended up doing my own research - read the books 'could it be b12' / 'pernicous anaemia - the forgotten disease', dr chandy's wesite etc. etc. my ME/CFS specialist commenced me on a protocol that included b12 injections and it's been a life saver. i think if i had been diagnosed with b12 def. in time, my health would not have deteriorated to ME/CFS.
unfortunately, the insomnia persists or to be more accurate the 'ciarcadian rhythm disruption' (CRD) - awake all night/ sleepy all day. sometimes, i don't sleep for days. i don't have a Psychiatrist, just a disinterested GP?
do u know how low ur b12//vit D went & how frequently do u have ur injections? my D levels were within the low norm parameters. however, i'm willing to give the D3 a go to c if it will help.
with thanks
Caitlin