[beth80]

I lost my insurance and I cant afford to stay on these meds, so I decided to take myself off of them, day 3 without effexor, which isnt so bad, Im just tired, I take a tylenol in the morning so I can feel a little better, also Ive been on ambein and I am starting to just take half, tonight is my first night with that, I know Im not going to sleep well for a good long time, and i will admit I love the ambien, hallucianations and all. should I be on the lookout for withdrawals from ambien? I know all about effexor withdrawals, but ambein, not so much, if anyone has any advice about this please chime in.
Beth

[Robert_325]

How much ambien do you take at a time? Do you take it every day? Same with the Effexor. How long have you taken both meds? Reason I asked about both meds is that the w/ds could be affected by detoxing from both meds at the same time. Just depends on how much you were using and for how long. If we use about any medication for sleep on a daily basis for an extended period of time it's safe to say we will see the effects if we abruptly stop using the medication. However if you have gone for three days with basically NO w/d symptoms after stopping the Effexor I am just guessing that you were probably not taking a huge dose ... which is good! Am I correct about the usage? Doesn't sound like you are dealing with too serious of a time doing this. Hope thats true and its also the case with the ambien. Good luck.

[beth80]

I havent had much of a problem getting off the effexor, I was taking 37.5mg, its the ambien thats killing me, mostly because I jsut cant sleep! Ive been taking 10mg for over a year, every night. I cut down to just 1/2 pill, and its brutal, I cant get past the really light stage of sleep, and Im exhausted. I have tried warm milk, chamomile tea, relaxation teqniches, nothing is working, and Its not even like Im off it yet, Im still taking 1/2 a pill. Its got to get better right?

[mom2my3boys]

Originally Posted by beth80

I havent had much of a problem getting off the effexor, I was taking 37.5mg, its the ambien thats killing me, mostly because I jsut cant sleep! Ive been taking 10mg for over a year, every night. I cut down to just 1/2 pill, and its brutal, I cant get past the really light stage of sleep, and Im exhausted. I have tried warm milk, chamomile tea, relaxation teqniches, nothing is working, and Its not even like Im off it yet, Im still taking 1/2 a pill. Its got to get better right?

Yes it will get better but it's going to take time and it's not going to be easy. I have been off and on ambien (reg and CR) for the past 14 years. Obviously we take it due to imsomnia and it would be nice if it would "cure" us of it, but in reality it doens't. It's just a daily fix for it. Have you tried taking Benedryl or Melotonin? They are both OTC and Melatonin is all natural, it helps kick in your natural melatonin to promote sleep. Personally it doesn't effect me, but everyone is different. Would you be able to get something cheaper, I know Resteril is pretty cheap and it promotes sleep, or even some kind of anti-anxiety Rx, there are tons are really cheap ones out there. Your doc would know which ones are dirt cheap and maybe he would prescribe them for you instead. I wish you the best of luck and hope you are able to get some good nights of sleep in the near future.
Just a thought, do you have a walmart nearby? You could check their $4 Rx's and show your doc the list and maybe he will see something on there that would work, I'm thinking trazadone is on it.

[jcobb]

Don't know if this helps much since it sounds like you are doing well off the Effexor, but when I didn't have insurance and couldn't afford it, I found out Wyeth (who makes Effexor) has a patient assistance program for those who need the meds and can't afford it. You have to meet a couple of requirements such as not making over a certain amount past the poverty level. But this was a lifesaver for me when I needed my meds but couldn't buy them. Just something to check out.

God bless!

[Chaschata]

I too take Ambien, but I take the generic version Zolpidem 10 mg, and I only pay $19. Call around and check prices if you want to continue to take the Ambien. I live in the Dever area and Walgreens wanted $78.00 for a one month supply and I went to King Soopers and that is where I get it for $19.00

[melinda7.5]

Hi
I take ambien to sleep.I have stoped a couple of times.just to see if i could.
I did replace it with valerian root and melatonin,or benadryl.
dont think i slept the first night just rested. but the second night i slept a little.but i have never sleped very good,i guess that is why i take it.LOL