Long term use of Zopiclone

I wanted to share my experience of zopiclone. I was prescribed it along with a cocktail of other drugs after a

breakdown in a country I had recently emigrated to. Zopiclone was then 5€ for a packet of 30 over the

counter at any pharmacist. This was in 2004 and I became very addicted to zopiclone to the point whereby I was physically addicted to them and began to shake if I did not take them throughout the day.

Cutting a long and messy story short, I ended up being admitted to hospital several times, both for mental

and physical issues. I was eventually sectioned and returned back to the UK still with this dreadful addiction. I was then put into a psychiatric hospital upon my return home. Obviously I was not prescribed zopiclone in

the hospital and I ended up having an epileptic seizure in Marks and Spencer of all places! On the escalator

actually. There has to be a comedy element somewhere. This seizure was caused by withdrawal from

zopiclone.

Anyway, I got off the zopiclone but in periods of stress have returned back to abusing them. I am currently

taking 10 (7.5mg) a day just to function and it is very worrying as I know my functioning is impaired which

stops me from doing many of the things I used to enjoy so much such as motor biking, cycling, travelling.

I guess what prompted me to post on here are two things. Firstly to dispel any myth that zopiclone is not

physically addictive. It is, highly. The second thing is to find out if there are any other people out there that

have a similar addiction to zopiclone. I have a diagnosis of bipolar disorder and self medicate, I do not take

any other meds. I have been studying at University for the last 5 years and work within the mental health

sector. Nobody knows about this dreadful addiction that I have. In October I start another's 2 year MA and I

so want to be rid of zopiclone as I fear what damage I could be potentially doing.

Finally, I would like to say that I was very ignorant about any form of addiction until it happened to me in my

mid 30's. I was successful in my career and had a lovely family. Zopiclone has robbed me of everything, my

family, my home and my life. I had no clue I had an addictive personality.

Any help/advice would be really gratefully received.

I disagree its highly addictive cause i have been using it on and off for quite some time now

What concerns me a lot is who the hell is prescribing you 3 boxes of zopiclone per week!

The standard NHS detox is Valium which if you were taking as prescribed and not topped up with zopiclone you should have no problem with step down doses. Im not saying for 1 minute you're not physically addicted because of the ridiculous amount your Dr is supplying you with.

All i know is zopiclone when taken as prescribed can be taken for long term (over 12 months) and when not needed causes no rebound insomnia or other "benzo type" withdrawal and it seems the only major addiction problems occur when the patient ups the dose without Doctor approval and the doctor isn't monitoring the ridiculous amounts he/she is prescribing.

Im unsure which country you were buying them in because the UK is quite lax in prescribing cause most people who use as prescribed encounter no problems but in continental Europe zopiclone is tightly controlled because of the amount of drug abusers steal prescription pads to forge zopiclone prescriptions because apparently it enhances the effects of heroin with the country with the biggest problem being France.

I only know this cause my parents live in France and i travel with Fentanyl and Oxycodone both majorly controlled drugs i have legit prescriptions for both but French customs were more interested in confirming the legitamacy of the zopiclone which is a POM (prescription only medication) and not a CD (controlled drug) like the other 2. You seriously need to report your GP to the PCT who runs your NHS services in the area before you kill yourself. Although zopiclone is not a benzo drug it has similar effects like putting you in a coma (which is the main use for benzos in the intensive care units of the world to induce and maintain como's)

I hope you get rid of the totally unprofessional GP you've got at the moment and with a habit that large it wouldn't surprise me if a detox was done as an inpatient at a secure unit as you've indicated its likely if you were prescribed Valium on a taper you'd probably binge on those too. I hope this has been some help and you get a GP that knows what they're doing instead of doing out ridiculous supplies that should last 2 months in 2 weeks just to get you out of their office. Don't forget to repost when there's an action plan or you've been through supervised detox

Good luck

Thank you for that advice. I was just looking at another local doctor as I feel my own Dr does not appear to be concerned so long as it is keeping me out of his surgery. I have detoxed before with Librium but I think I need a Doctor who will take this a little more seriously, you are right.

Thank you again.

They should be struck off for regularly giving you that much, my GP knows i don't abuse it but it's seen as very bad practice to prescribe more than one box of benzo's or benzo type drugs and its obvious by your post they're regularly prescribing more than one. Very surprised your pharmacy hasn't been in contact with the Doctor for excessive prescribing or the PCT cause its them funding it and although its a very cheap drug and not controlled in anyway its still a drug that should be closely monitored like oramorph and valium are monitored even though they're not controlled drugs under the controlled drugs act because its recognised theyve got a low chance of abuse and addiction.

*Misuse of drugs act* There's no such thing as the controlled drugs act lol

Hence my complete ignorance upon becoming a 'drug addict'! I was brought up to do whatever the Doctor

says. Having been shifted through various mental health systems now I just try to help manage myself.

I was very concerned at your reference to coma and I think that could be the wake up call I need to sort this

out by changing Doctors and telling somebody else. I wanted some harsh facts and that fact was a good one!

Thank you again.

Well that's where benzo's are used most, still mostly when used at home on an as needed basis more so with zopiclone and other "z" drugs are perfectly safe, whenever a patient doesn't respond anymore the next step up is Diazipam a full benzo where if physical addiction happens its usually at that point

Im not sure why cause I've never needed to ask but GPs don't prescribe higher dosage than the max strength 7.5mg where they'll most likely taper you to 3.75mg then take them only every other night and then off if the patient had a problem with addiction

I've never personally had any problem and used them for nearly 2 years so if anyone were to ask me id say there's a low chance as the only people I've seen with physical addiction to zopiclone are the ones who end up taking 2,3,4 etc then even in the day too like yourself and although you do hold half the blame for doing this by not taking as prescribed or not telling your GP when you started using the dose on your own you don't hold 100% of the blame you GP should really be monitoring usage and now all Drs surgery are computerized it takes one click on zopiclone to see how much you've used in the past months. Your chemist can easily do that too and if they don't intervene and at least speak to the prescribing GP they could lose their license and ultimately their job! You'll have to post your Dr and Chemist details so we all know where to go for drugs our own GPs would be reluctant to prescribe like cocaine or heroin cause you'd earn a fortune selling pharmacy grade smack lol

Let us know how you get on next week and don't forget zopiclone at 75mg per day! Is more than enough to kill someone and the longer you use the more chance someone will find you dead in your house after not seeing you for a few weeks. That's no joke either its not difficult to find information on zopiclone toxicity....... Be carefull

I appreciate the tough talk, I needed to see it as I have nobody to ask what dangers I am facing. I'm intelligent enough to know there is a danger of course. In relation to pharmacists, a good friend of mine died aged 31 a year ago. He was addicted to all manner of prescription drugs although nobody would have ever guessed.

His best friend was a pharmacist who was apparently caught supplying but it was kept very quiet.

I am glad for your honesty, I have never posted on any site before but feel glad that I have as I needed to be

made aware that what I am doing is dangerous. Now is the time to kick it once and for all. It is a hard thing to admit particularly when nobody knows and I don't wish to disclose to friends and family.

Thank you.

I have been taking Zopiclone 15mg at night for the best part of 17 years, I only take them at night, as I don`t see what benefit taking them during the day would be (unless you work nights). Plenty of times I have run out and apart from not being able to sleep,when this has happened. I have never had any Physical or Psychological problems when without them.

Like everything else, if someone is taking them for some kind of "high" or as a sort of self medication for anxiety or other mental problem, then it is obvious that they will keep increasing the dose, trying to get the same effect. This won`t work especially with Zopiclone, as although similar, they are not the same as the Benzo`s, where the more you take the more doped up you get (for a time).

Also I have found that taking any more than 15mg at night is counter-productive.

Take them as prescribed, and they will work for extended periods, without any major problems.

That is my experience. But I know everyone is different.

BTW I take 15mg, because when I was originally prescribed them, that was the dose.

Paddy

I have taken Zopiclone on and off for many years and would say that I am addicted. I initially took them to sleep better, but even after my sleeping pattern had returned to normal, I still continued taking them. they made me happier and food tasted better, I even felt more confident. Eventually though I found that I was having to take more and more to get the desired affect. At one stage I was purchasing them on the net and taking 45/60 mg every 3 or four hours. Today I am off them, but I still yearn for them occasionally. A strange thing I found they were useful for was alcohol withdrawal.

Firstly, most "sedatives", and especially Benzos will make you feel better if you are in Alcohol withdrawals, just make sure you don`t end up replacing 1 addiction with another.

As for using Seroquel as a sleep aid, it is very popular with UK GPs at the moment (i can`t think why as they cost about 10x as much). I found that the sedative effects were un predictable, I would take them at night, (I think I eventually was on over 100mg at night), but many times, I would not be able to sleep, yet in the middle of the afternoon, I would be "nodding" to an alarming extent, even once fell face first into my dinner plate. Because of the un predictabilty in my opinion, I stopped taking them.

But I know lot`s of people find them very useful.

As for Zopiclone making things "taste better", I`m amazed to hear that, most people complain of a metallic taste when taking them. When they first came on the market, this was very pronounced, and I`m not exagerating when I say i was like you had been chewing on a tin can for half an hour when taking Zopiclone, the formula was changed somewhat when Generic versions became available, and the metallic taste is much less noticable now than it was.

I have been taking Zopiclone continuously since 2005 except for a period of about 6 weeks earlier this year when I suddenly seemed to be able to manage without them but then almost as suddenly needed them again.

Most nights I just need one 7.5mg (I also take Ropinirole for RLS and Gabapentin for RLS, anxiety and cramps), but 15mg when I have something stressful to do the next day.

I understand the 7.5mg level was set as being the amount most people can take and then be reasonably safe to drive etc 8 hours later.

Far from being over-prescribed, however, my doctors seem very concerned about my long-term use of the drug. Prescribing it for more than 28 days is, of course, off licence in the UK, though in America Lunesta (eszopiclone) is licensed for long-term use. Most recently I was cited heart problems as being of concern with the drug – no matter how readily and within licence they can prescribe anti-depressants, including still dothiepin/dosulepin. From my reading, cancer seems to be the main concern for Zopiclone takers.

Are these concerns of the medics medical, legal or a combination of the two?

Life without sleep is not a life I really want to contemplate having to live. Surely medical evidence is strongly towards getting enough sleep, even if one uses and needs to use medication to achieve it?

Hello,

Zopiclone doesn't cause you to wake up too early, shortly after you fell asleep?

About a month and a half ago, I started this huge anxiety/depression/insomnia problem. I didn't sleep for 3 weeks. Literally, I slept probably 12 hours per week MAXIMUM. While being a student who gets very good marks, I have had to drop three classes just to give me less stress and more time in case I dont sleep I was having panic attacks at night and was terrified to go to bed.

The two first weeks of the insomnia problem, I went to see three different doctors. One gave me Ativan and I didnt sleep at all that night so went back the next day. Then the doctor gave me citalopram and another sleeping thing that didnt work. The citalopram made me unbelievable sick even if I just took it for four days. I lost three pounds and i am already very thin naturally. i had diarrhea 24h a day. So, I stopped taking that because also, thats when my suicidal thoughts got more serious and intense.

After, I went to my appointment with my CBT psychologist and she told me my case was too urgent and serious for her to help me right now. She said I needed to go to an emergency room and get some real drug to sleep and an anxiety medication. So thats what I did, waited 12 hours... -.-

the doctor gave me Quietiapine and zopiclone. i took the Quietapine for a few days but stopped because it made me like a zombie, no emotion. No doctor told me that the first 10 days usually on some medication like that are difficult and that after it gets better...

Anyway after I went to see my family doctor so she can follow me and know exactly what Im taking. Two weeks ago she told me to take 5mg zopiclone every night for a month to get rested. She knew I was too scared to take citalopram again so told me to take the sleeping pill instead.

Ive been taking it every night but the last two nights I have taken 7mg.... I take that because I go to bed at 9:30 at night and wake up EVERYMORNING at 4:00 or 4:30 am. I am still. SO tired and not getting rested at all. When i get out of bed, in the morning, I feel alright. Around noon I start feeling so exhausted, eyes hurt and head hurts.

i tried taking 5mg zopiclone at bed and 2.5mg zopiclone at 4 am but I still didnt fall back asleep at 4 am. What the hell do I do? i cantsee my doctor until another three weeks and I have a month of school left.

I need sleep but cant fall back asleep after 4 am!!! Before this whole problem, I was someone who needed 10 hours of sleep

09:30pm to 04:00/04:30am is 6½/7 hours, that's pretty good, for me anyway. If you're getting up at 04:00/04:30am, of course you're going to feel tired by afternoon – eyes smarting a little bit and head also (feeling) a bit sore inside is something I also get. Can you not gradually go to bed later so you sleep something more like 11:00pm to 05:30/06:00am?

I don't know where you're getting all these different dosages for Zopiclone; as far as I know the only two dosages in the UK are 3.75mg and 7.5mg and the pills are far too tiny to break up. Are you sure it's Zopiclone you're taking?

Hope CBT works for you, if that's what you are trying.