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insomnia in my seventies !

Posted , 4 users are following.

angela192
angela192

I am 72 years old and all my adult life I have had NO problems sleeping - until now that is !

GP put me on Zopiclone 7.5 mg but said I should try not to take them after 2 weeks.

I slept like a baby while on them with no side effects. I have tried to wean myself off by breaking tablet in half , taking for one night and take nothing the next night. On the nights I don't take anything, I wake up virtually every hour and wake up feeling so tired.

It is very well for the doctors to say you musn't take them any longer then a month, but the difference when you get a good nights sleep, with drugs or otherwise, is mind blowing.

I have tried no caffeine after mid-day, no alcohol, no computer etc. etc. makes no difference I still sleep badly. Any help or others of you that have tried to wean yourself off Zopilcone, I would love to hear from you.Sweet dreams ! (we hope)

0 likes, 14 replies

14 Replies

  • david72184
    david72184 angela192

    Posted

    Yes angela zopiclone are addictive. I am surprised if you were given them just to  try to get you back into your routine. If you are taking one 7.5 then you are on the maximum dose but best quickly see the doctor for something you are allowed to take with no nonsense. I have been and am addicted to zopiclone but am not you. Best you get off them asap. You are only a little way down the path, turn  back but make sure the doctor gives you something that acts in a similar way to zops. All the best
    • angela192
      angela192 david72184

      Posted

      Thanks David for answering.  I am seeing my GP today about it. There is obviously other things that can be prescribed, but all must be addictive. Personally I would rather be dependent on them rather than suffer exhausting nights and fatigued days.   All the best to you !
    • david72184
      david72184 angela192

      Posted

      You have said what I did not want to say but being honest Angela, you are like me no spring chicken and who gives a damn at our age on addiction AS LONG AS IT WORKS.
    • vivien58797
      vivien58797 david72184

      Posted

      I utterly agree with what you and Angela say about older people taking them, Does it really matter that much. I am also 70, and docs tried to take me of them, but now found another one for the time being that is.
  • RobertT
    RobertT angela192

    Posted

    Sleep problems in older people are well documented. Also documented is that they are able to sleep more in the day – at 62 I sometimes can't stop myself falling asleep postprandially at my computer but can very rarely sleep at night satisfactorily without a sleep aid.

    If you can sleep during the day and not sleeping at night isn't causing you tension problems or leaving you bored out of your mind but still too tired to do anything, maybe you can sleep a few hours in an armchair or on the sofa to make up for the loss of sleep at night. (If you have RLS, like me, that makes it rather less practical.)

    • angela192
      angela192 RobertT

      Posted

      Yes, I can doze off in the afternoons.  I know sleep in the elderly is common.   By the way what is RLS ?     Enlighten me !  All othe best and thanks for answering my post
    • RobertT
      RobertT angela192

      Posted

      RLS – Restless Leg Syndrome. You sit or lie and you keep gettiing a sensation that's only satisfied by moving your leg or pressing it against something that won't move. It's somehow dopamine related and, because of that, it's somewhat circadian – it tends to start in the afternoon or evening and fade in the early morning. However, if I go to sleep during the day I tend to wake up again, perhaps just after a few seconds, and feel the need to twist my whole upper torso, almost as if my whole being is about to stall. It's not the same as sleep paralysis, though I too used to get that when waking up in an armchair – maybe it's not so bad if you get it in bed.

      I really don't know why the medical profession has gone so much against sleeping pills. If you don't need them all well and good, but if you do need them ...

    • angela192
      angela192 RobertT

      Posted

      Oh yes, I occasionally get RLS. Thanks for enlightening me. I have had it since childhood, but rarely.

      Just a thought on sleeping tablets - I wonder what GPs take if they have sleep problems ?

      Going to wind down now before taking my Zopicone !

    • RobertT
      RobertT angela192

      Posted

      From what I read, GP's are among the "worst offenders" for nervous system pills! Sitting all day giving out prescriptions which may make someone suicidal or which would give them the means to do it, deciding whether someone is better off with something or without it, I don't doubt it.
    • vivien58797
      vivien58797 angela192

      Posted

      Hi. I used to get RLS when i was prescribed Mirtazapine, an anti-depressant, given to me when i was once refused any more Zopiclone from my gp. What with that and various other side effects i decided to give them up. The gp said they should help me sleep, but of course they didnt. The only thing that works for me is Zopiclone.
  • vivien58797
    vivien58797 angela192

    Posted

    Hi Angela. I too am a pensioner (69) and have had insomnia for years.  I have been taking Zopiclone for around fifteen years now and quite honestly i cant sleep without them now. I don`t think its a problem when you get to our age. Does it really matter. I had a period of around a month when my gp refused to give me any more and i must say i felt dreadful during that time. I thought it might be a good idea to try and do without them, but no. So i changed docs and have now got some again. I only take one 7.5mg a night and have a reasonable nights sleep, next day i feel ok with no side effects and able to get on with my day and pursue some hobbies. Without them i dont want to do anything and feel like a zombie.  I know which option i would choose. I wish docs would try and be a bit more undersdtanding, we are not all abusers of drugs. 
    • angela192
      angela192 vivien58797

      Posted

      Yes, Vivian I agree with you.  As you say, does it really matter at our age anyway ?    

      Doc today gave me a supply of lower dose 3.75 and said to try to break it in half.    I can't be fussed to do that with such a small dose.  It angers me to think that drug users that have been using Heroin and Cocaine) - ALL SELF INFLICTED I HASTEN TO ADD - can get drugs that mimic hard drugs (Methadone I think it is called)  and get all the support they want, yet us pensioners through no fault of our own can't get our needs seen to. As you say, we are not all abusers of drugs. Makes me very cross (mind you what doesn't in this damn awful country) !!

    • david72184
      david72184 vivien58797

      Posted

      Yes vivien its zopiclone for ever. The point is that sleep is only part of our day and should not be anything but.  Best I hope that it wlll all go away and we can as we were, go back to normal
    • vivien58797
      vivien58797 david72184

      Posted

      I doubt that very much, david Unfortunately,. The NHS is changing, and with it , doctors attitudes .
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