Hello lovely ladies
ive read your posts regarding sleepless nights, cleaning at all hours, i take sleeping tables, is there anyone else out there who does? is it ok to take them with all the chemo and other drugs we have to take?
thankyou
love and hugs
donna
Hi Donna,
Am pretty sure at pre chemo appointment that they discuss any medication that you may be on & whether its ok for you to continue through chemo.
Sarah.xx
thankyou sarah,
i have mentioned it to them when i went for chat, they didnt seem to be to bothered about it though, i just wondered if anyone else takes them
love and hugs
donna xx
Hi donna
I take sleepin tabs too- they are fine during chemo. I take them mainly on days where I’ve taken steroids as they stop me sleeping altogether. I also se them when I wake in the night + can’t doze back off. Do what you have to do to get some rest during chemo + if that means popping pills, do it 
love tina x
Hiya, 14mths after the end of active treatment i still take sleeping tablets on occasion! I have had insomnia to some degree since diagnosis- too many worries!!! I find they switch my mind off and allow me to rest.
X
thankyou tina soo much, what do you take?
My onc prescribed me sleeping tablets (Zopiclone 7.5mg) for the steroid/post chemo high I went on after each dose - these really helped me to sleep and cope. I don’t like the aftertaste they leave (only real side effect) so try to come off them after a week - when I do I do have one night of bad nightmares but that’s worth it for the calm sleep on other nights and I’ve now got used to them so don’t worry. Was worried about taking them but they really have helped
Good luck with getting help
Fran
Hi Donna, Yup I too take sleeping tabs.Been taking them (zopiclone) for 4 years and yes I find they did and still do help. They say it for ‘short term’ only but many are on them long long term Think they maybe become something that becomes habitual, but hey for me they work.I have tried cutting down and not taking them but then stare at ceiling most of night, so yup I gladly take them!.
Donna, I have been offered sleeping tablets at intervals throughout treatment, eventually the day unit doctor prescribed Zopiclone half a tablet, don’t know that they helped much, but certainly not banned by the doctors. I was on FEC6.
Lavender
ohhh you wonderful ladies, ive been taking zopiclone 7.5mg now for 5 years, and i know they are addictive but i dont care i could not og managed with them after being dx
love and hugs
Donna xx
Ladies with sleeping problems not wanting to take sleeping tablets… you can now get melatonin (the sleep hormone) tablets in the UK on prescription from your GP. No addiction issues. They are available over the counter in most of the world but rather restricted here. I THINK I’m right in saying they are only really allowed for over 55’s with acute sleep problems. I’m 46 and was prescribed them by a sympathetic GP during chemo. xx
I’m also on zopiclone but a lower dose (3.75 mg I think) so sometimes take 2 over the course of the night. I think even a full packet wudnt help on steroid nights tho!! Anti anxiety tabs like diazepam can help u relax + sleep on particularly anxious nights but these are also addictive. I take them very sparingly- usually wen awaiting scan results or other similarly awful stress times.
Good luck with ur treatment + don’t read too much about triple neg…
Tina x
aww Tina thankyou
xx
Hi everyone, just seen this thread, I am not sleeping at all, I just tense up when I get to bed. My doctor has prescribed sleeping tablets for me, but I have been to scared to take them. I do take quite a lot of medication for other problems that I had before BC. A friend off here sent me some CD books which do help me get off to sleep, but after about 2 hourse I am wide awake.I have said for the last 2 nights I was going to take them, then I chickened out, but I have promised hubby I will take one tonight.
Heather
Hi Heather,
I’ve slept poorly for years - would sleep for an hour or so, then wake up and be awake for 2 or 3 hours, before falling asleep and waking up early. usually got 4/5 hours per night. I took the odd sleeping tablet, but didn’t want to get addicted.
Then my GP said I could try a low dose of amitriptyline. It is used as an antidepressant at 100mg dose, but for sleeping problems only 10 or 20mg is needed. It is not addictive. I take 10mg and find that I either don’t wake or go back to sleep more quickly. Things are a bit all over the place at the moment because of the steroids when on chemo and I find amitrip not good when I’m on steroids. On steroids I don’t sleep at all, so take a sleeping tablet to get 3/4 hours sleep. But for non steroid times, I find it really helps. It’s certainly worth a try. I’m glad I tried it before chemo though, so I know how it works for me, as obviously chemo messes with everything.
Good luck. Stella xx
Hi Heather
I so relate to your sleepless situation - lots of nights of medative music, yoga nidra practice, camomile tea and still I’d only get a couple of hours sleep - I got so tense with lack of sleep and finally tried the Zoplicane and it worked so well for 6hrs even during steroids - hope you find something to help you to counter chemicals that seem so hard to manage with self-help strategies. It’s a relief for me knowing that something can help.
best wishes
Fran
x