Why is Zopiclone so awful

Posted , 22 users are following.

Will somebody tell me the reason for the hysterical comments, and hate

campaign against this sleeping tablet . Please don't tell me to read 

yards of stuff on different forums and sites, What is so bad  about it. .

I get sleep, and nothing else, (thankfully ). 

It can't be so bad ,some people have used it for years,so they say, 

So, no yelling or shouting, or soap box attitudes, just tell me, nicely,

what it's all about  ..

 

1 like, 155 replies

155 Replies

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  • Posted

    still no withdrawal symptoms now 7 days I did cheat and took one night nurse yesterday never again.
  • Posted

    hi i wish i understood too,im sick to death about hearing how addictive they are,so are lots of other tablets all of which can cause all sorts of health problems,ive been on them for years and diazepam.now they say i have to come of them and keep ccutting me down,the worry and stress of this has made me very ill,im 63 now and really dont see the point.i have alot of problems at home my son has mental health problems annd my daughter has spina bifida,the doctor says i have acute anxiety.so it makes no sense to me to take me off my tablets,like you i dont want to read loads of stuff about them.what i would like to know is how doing this to me makes any sense,cos for the iife in me i cant see any.
    • Posted

      Hi Carol

      ​I would google nhs health advocacy. With your situation as clearly disrupted as it is as your age and childrens conditions, they will have no problem helping you out

    • Posted

      Hello carol. how does one try to explain other peoples reasons for

      the Zopiclone attack, Probably a fear of the unknown,and the constant

      bad press ,which never seems to include the good Zop does for a 

      large number of people. Bit like the Statin onslaught, which 

       was pushed by the Health dept, that the whole nation should

      take them, just in case  a heart attack is on the cards.

      Sleep Deprevation is not listed as a medical condition. but it can 

      cause major health problems. There may be alternatives to 

      inducing sleep. but  the taking of a tablet, is proven, and works.

      Stress ,as far as I am concerned ,a bit like a soul, is invisible ,but

      there. and doctors seem to think it something that can be cured

      by exercise and diet.  If you have a G'P who will treat the person. and understands your  need for sleep ,you are lucky, if you have one that won't listen, or understand, and is determined to have his way, do what I did, change surgeries .

      I don't think that taking Zop is terminal, rather the opposite.

      Time for you to attack Carol .If I can do it. so can you, after all, it

      is a personal issue, and you don't have to follow the masses

      You and your life is the most important issue

      Changing surgeries is quite simple.

      Take care,x, 

       

       

  • Posted

    I've taken it every night for 8 years, from 3.75mg up to 15mg - I didn't sleep for nearly two weeks and the drug gave me my life back. For that I love it, but I'm now dependant, I sleep and live a relatively normal life so I'm OK with it.

    I do have rashes all over my body, pains in body, brain fog, can't focus or concentrate on anything but I'd rather that than not sleep.

  • Posted

    Nothing wrong with Zopiclone if it works for you.

    It is commonly prescribed and wouldn't be if it was so bad.

    I had it for a while but felt it made me depressed, changed to Zolpidem which does not work as well (ie only two hours sleep), but no depression.

    Sometimes reading stuff on the 'net is not helpful  I'd keep taking the Zopiclone if it is effective.

    • Posted

      hello Lynda, nice of you to come in. I have just realised by scrolling through  the replies of a year ago,why I did a runner, some response became really nasty, and not called for, so I never did get a proper answer, but, as you have just said, it is prescribed, and does help a lot of people. I also think that if you are told that there will be awful reactions  if you stop taking  Zop, there is a probable chance that there will be, because you are waiting for them to happen. Every consultant that I have seen, has not objected to me using it.so, like yourself. it helps .My problem is getting off to sleep due to a dominating Tinnitus, that fills my head with noise, and falling off to sleep is impossible.  

       

  • Posted

    Zopiclone is meant for 'short term' use, and prolonged usage is bad, no matter the dose.  It has little effect after long term usage, but worse, it's withdrawal, even on minor addiction (7.5mg), can be utter devastating, and counteractive to whatever else one is taking, i.e, myself, Venlafaxine (220mg), which is not a good cocktail.  Believe me, I take 1 (ONE) 7.5mg tablet per night, and have done for the past 6 years, and if I miss (forget) to take it, then all hell breaks loose.  Awful feeling, and the only reason I take them now, as they do not aid what they were meant to do no more, but I am dependant on them now, yes, just that single tablet that used to get me off to sleep, but that I now take because I don't want to ever go through missing one again.  

    • Posted

      I haven't been taking Zop for as long as you, and probably for a different reason ,I take two 3.75's and if I drop down to one, my sleep pattern is stop ,start,which makes the night ,very long, I do find that strangely enough, I am not tired the next day when this happens. .The problems that sleep deprivation causes  ,and,is not to be endured, at any cost.

  • Posted

    Zopiclone has a short half-life (compared with other sleeping tablets) so people who take it for any length of time find that they start to wake up in the middle of the night. gradually they take more zopiclone to overcome this. Then they realise that they are addicted.

    Cue visit to GP who (usually) stops the prescription immediately.

    Cue EXTREME WITHDRAWAL SYMPTOMS. GP will not help. You will be in hell.

    That is why zopiclone is hated so much. I hope you reconsider your use of it.

    If you find this hard to believe, try going without them for seven nights. By night three you will understand.

     

  • Posted

    That's quite scary Jacqueline, I had no idea it was such an addictive drug or there were such horrible associated withdrawal symptoms.   Just didn't happen to me!  I took it for a few months and, as I said previously, it felt it was making me depressed so I just stopped taking with no ill effects.

    You're quite right to say it is for short term use only (I probably took it longer than I should, it was a few months, but I was lucky).

    That must surely be true for all hypnotics.

    • Posted

      Hi Lynda,

      Yes, it is true that all benzos and z drugs are highly addictive.

      I have heard many doctors say that it is harder to come off them than it is to come off heroin.

      I watched my partner go through hell, trying to come off zopiclone. A recent Canadian study has found that there is a high rate of dependence and addiction associated with the z drugs. These particular drugs were considered safe and non-addictive when they were first marketed, but it wasn't true.

    • Posted

      hi lynda, think you have sent your mail to me instead of mac I'm quite happy with my Zop---- I sleep ,so  that is the most important thing for me. As I did say ,if you are expecting howling side effects, it's because yo u have been told you will, so your brain tunes in, ready for the supposed attack .Millions of people are using drugs which are allegedly habit forming, but G.p's prescribe them . I get depressed, but not because of the tabs, it's just situations,,, life throws us some real back hander's, and they have to be dealt with.On the whole I am quite happy. xx 

    • Posted

      Of course GPs prescribe addictive drugs! They haven't got time to listen to all their patients' problems, have they?

      It was GPs who got millions of people addicted to diazepam (valium) in the 1960s. And doctors also prescribed thalidomide to pregnant women for morning sickness - and we know what happened there...........

    • Posted

      Sad but true mac, doctors work to orders from government or health departments, we ,the ignorant and trusting mortals ,expect  them to care for us and our ailments ,sometimes, as you say, with disastrous results .  

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