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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 6 of 6. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by noREM on October 13, 2004, at 13:04:28
i am in the us army and have a traumatic brain injury I have not had rem sleep in obout a year. even with the dex and the rittilan + anti-deps I still get vey little up time 4 hrs or less somtimes. i might as well have been captured over there its like being inprisoned in my own body. any med suggestions. oh yeah i canyt take provigal and allready take zyrem
Posted by noREM on October 13, 2004, at 13:21:03
did sleep labs 4 times with cpap and zyrem i to 2 hrs rem max. is there any drug combo or different drugs that work. oh yeah i have a brain injury from playing cowboys and arabs, i am in the U.S. Army
Posted by utopizen on October 13, 2004, at 13:22:52
In reply to 150mg of Dexidrine 40 mg ritilan still sleepalday, posted by noREM on October 13, 2004, at 13:04:28
> i am in the us army and have a traumatic brain injury I have not had rem sleep in obout a year. even with the dex and the rittilan + anti-deps I still get vey little up time 4 hrs or less somtimes. i might as well have been captured over there its like being inprisoned in my own body. any med suggestions. oh yeah i canyt take provigal and allready take zyrem
>Xyrem made me so depressed I got way more tired than I was better I started.
Have you tried combining Strattera (high-dose) with Provigil (high-dose) along with some Adderall or Desoxyn? My sleep doc swears by this combo-- he says the combo of Strattera and Provigil lets him take his patients off of amphetamines entirely, or drastically reduce their dose.
Also, keep switching, maximizing your dose of antidepressants, forever, until one helps you. Cymbalta is brand new- just came on the market. It gives a lot of people energy, so I would think it might help you if you took it along with some Strattera, Provigil and Adderall or Desoxyn.
Posted by utopizen on October 13, 2004, at 13:48:26
In reply to 150mg of Dexidrine 40 mg ritilan still sleepalday, posted by noREM on October 13, 2004, at 13:04:28
> i am in the us army and have a traumatic brain injury I have not had rem sleep in obout a year. even with the dex and the rittilan + anti-deps I still get vey little up time 4 hrs or less somtimes. i might as well have been captured over there its like being inprisoned in my own body. any med suggestions. oh yeah i canyt take provigal and allready take zyrem
>Oh, sorry, didn't read you can't take Provigil.
Xyrem made me so depressed I had to stop it. I was weeping, I was incredibly tired, anxious, everything. It was terrible for me. It's not suppose to ever be given to patients with history of mental illness whatsoever. It could very well make your problems worse.
You may want to try Straterra at a high dose and Adderall or Straterra and Desoxyn. And a high dose of Cymbalta (60mg is the starting therapeutic dose, but you can go up to 120 mg).
Also, combining an antipsychotic, Lamictal, or Lithium to Cymbalta or some other antidepressant could also help you. But if you have depression, STOP SEEING YOUR CURRENT DOCTOR. No doctor worthy of his degree would overlook the obvious fact that patients with depression should not be on it. It made me miserable in ways I can't describe, and incredibly sleepy during the day.
Get a sleep study if you haven't already. You may have another sleep disorder like apnea that is worsening your trauma to your brain, or you may have central apneas. I am thin as a twig, and I have sleep apnea at age 21-- don't assume anything, get a sleep study.
Also exercise. I know, you're sleepy. But exercise means hope. And you need hope. Hang in there.
Posted by utopizen on October 13, 2004, at 13:49:40
In reply to 150mg of Dexidrine 40 mg ritilan still sleepalday, posted by noREM on October 13, 2004, at 13:21:03
> did sleep labs 4 times with cpap and zyrem i to 2 hrs rem max. is there any drug combo or different drugs that work. oh yeah i have a brain injury from playing cowboys and arabs, i am in the U.S. Army
>go off the Xyrem. It doesn't work, and makes you depressed more. I tried it, and it was the worst experience of my life ever.
Posted by utopizen on October 13, 2004, at 15:03:23
In reply to 150mg of Dexidrine 40 mg ritilan still sleepalday, posted by noREM on October 13, 2004, at 13:21:03
> did sleep labs 4 times with cpap and zyrem i to 2 hrs rem max. is there any drug combo or different drugs that work. oh yeah i have a brain injury from playing cowboys and arabs, i am in the U.S. Army
>Do you use CPAP or BiPAP? Because even if the studies said you didn't need CPAP or BiPAP, taking Xyrem can easily cause sleep apnea to appear, in which case you'd need a new study to determine if this is the case-- that may account for why you're still tired from the Xyrem.
This is the end of the thread.
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