hello everyone
im still not sleeping and im sure this is why im still feeling sick and dizzy most days
i finished chemo in feb and finished rads in march and am just finishing my 2nd box of tamoxifen
i stopped sleeping during chemo and now on a good night i might drop off around 1 or 2am but wake every 1hr to 2 hrs
sometimes cos of sweats but always needing to get up for loo and then im wide awake
there is just myself and 5yr old in the house and ive never taken a sleeping pill in my life they make me nervous and i wouldnt want to wake even more fuzzy headed than i do lol!
i would get them free from dr but would i be better trying herbal ones? or should i stick to stuff from dr? and do i need to run what i buy past the dr??
I do sympathise - I was the same all the way through chemo. It has gradually got better, but I still get up for the loo every night, usually twice but sometimes more. When it was really bad I used Nytol, and it worked well for me. I still woke up when I needed to for the loo, but slept soundly in between. Now I keep the radio on all night, so when I wake up it sends me back to sleep without my mind wandering off into cancer worries.
If you want to try Nytol, you can start with a fraction of a tablet and see how you go. I never needed more than a half, often a third was enough.
I’m exactly the same. Zopiclone did help a bit but have run out now. Tried Nytol but no good. Even tho on pills for it, still suffer from night sweats which doesnt help. Up for the loo at least once in the night. I long for a good, unbroken nights sleep!
I found the lack of sleep very difficult - my BCN said that they wanted me to run all medications by them first but generally they didn’t object and I tried pretty much everything - Valerian tincture seems to be best currently. I have taken the occasional Temazepan and do find that I can wake up very easily if I need to - I think sleeping pills are better forumlated than they were in the early days. I have quite a kamikaze approach - tried pretty much anything - pillow mist, relaxation tapes. After a few months my sleeping did get better but don’t know which - or if - any of the above helped.
However, the things that helped me most were a Chillow (Amazon sells them) - I have two so I can swop them around if one gets hot - and a course of acupuncture.
Hi lincs lady - yes with the Nytol you would wake up if needed, and no hangover feeling - for me, anyway - I guess we are all different. But make sure you take it about 30 mins before you go to bed - not half way through the night if you are having trouble sleeping. Also, just start with a small dose. I think most of these remedies work by helping you get off to sleep - not necessarily keeping you asleep - but that may be enough to help you.
A number of years ago I had a major sleep problem. I tried all the usual such as a regular bedtime a warm bath a restful time before bed. These helped but in the end I found Valerian & Hops really helpful They were in liquid form. I found them in the health food shop. Dilute with water. It tastes disgusting but it worked for me. Wash it down with a drink of water. You can take it several times during the night and to know ill effect in the morning.
Zopiclone… what would I do without it? - Not sleep. I’ve been taking this for 2 years and am undoubtably hooked, but when I weigh this up with the other options (no sleep), I think of this as the aid to get me through the rest of the treatment years.
When all this is done and dusted, I’ll get off the Zop. They dont knock me out completely and I wake on hearing normal sounds (eg, anyone in the household doing toilet trips). I think it depends on the dose and finding which level works best for you (not too much, not too little).
If you can manage without, well done, but I think we suffer from enough stuff and lack of sleep should not be one of them.
well after humming and harring in the pharmacy lol
i have gone for kalms, thought id try the mildest ones 1st
and ive left a message for my b c nurse to check i can take them
Can you change the time that you take the tamox? i used to take it at pm9, but im not sleeping,. anyway, my gp suggested taking it at 7pm instead- which does help a little. I still get up about 3-4 times a night, but go back to sleep easier now. Just a thought.
Ive been on tamox since beginning of April this year.
eva
Evening lincs lady - I have taken calms night time and did find that they worked for a couple of weeks, then not so well. Perhaps body gets used to it. I am also drinking a night time herbal tea made by Clipper called sleep easy, containing chamomile and valerian among other things, which seems to help. Tastes nice too. Also use lavender oil on pillow. To get to sleep I listen to recorded stories the more boring the better lol- and fall asleep with it still on. Bit like poodle anything is worth a try better than prescription pills for me anyway. Good luck and sleep tight ! Marli