Dying for sleep, but getting no relief! HELP!?

you can take Buspar if you wish, but everybody knows that it does nothing for anxiety), then taking Elavil as well just for insomnia is--frankly--a terrible idea!! I would recommend that you try to taper off of this as slowly and comfortably as you are able to do. In fact, the same advice goes for those of you who only take Elavil for sleep. The fact is that--as already mentioned--Elavil is a tricyclic antidepressant, and for the 2 groups of people I just mentioned, this has extremely likely effects for causing:

1) Serotonin system, as well as an overall over-stimulation of any and all of the neurochemicals (and, of course, the thousands we do not even know about yet) that have been placed into a state of disarray. Psychiatrists tend to do one thing (unless you are very lucky and find a good and thoughtful doctor who is willing to think "outside of the box," rather than simply follow the steps of their mentors... as well as make as much money in a day as possible... these are easy to spot: if you see them once every 1-6 months for less than 20 minutes, you need a new doctor... period)): If you are depressed, they will give you a medication for that. Now you have anxiety? Here is another pill to treat that. Now you cannot sleep? Here is a pill that I have found has had a lot of positive results with my other patients... and on and on it goes (and nearly everyone here knows exactly what I am talking about). However, what these doctors fail to realize--or simply do not take into consideration (typically b/c of the sheer number of clients whom they see each month)--is that they are creating some pretty nasty combinations of cocktails for many of their patients... a good number of which are considered to be dangerous! The same is true of trazodone: It is a very potent SSRI that was later discontinued (when the "miracle drug," Prozac," eventually emerged). Basically, the extreme drowsiness--the most obvious and common side-effect of trazodone--was then replaced with more tolerable SSRI medications. Nevertheless, trazodone is still used as an effective antidepressant medication for a number of individuals... the only catch is that they must take their medication at night (obviously). This is a good thing if you wish to try SSRI treatment, and are simultaneously experiencing problems with sleeping! I have already typed way too much (as always), but my main point is pretty clear: taking another medication for insomnia while already on an antidepressant is usually a bad idea, especially b/c the little PDR on your psychiatrist's desk will recommend one of the older anti-depressant medications for sleeping troubles (because they were all replaced y newer meds that did not have the side-effects, the most prominent of which were drowsiness, dizziness, and dry mouth)... hence, you are now taking TWO different medications for the same things (even though one may help you with an additional issue as well).
2) This is perhaps just as important--if not more important--than my first point: Taking Elavil, trazodone, or any of the benzodiazipines for that matter (typically Klonopin or Restoril/temazepam) is, in general, a very unhealthy remedy for sleeping issues. If you are not already dependent on any type of medication (be it prescribed or not), taking any of these medications will undoubtedly mess with the correct functions of your brain... and, in my own opinion, Elavil--out of the medications I have seen listed here--is by far the worst of them. Tricyclic antidepressants (besides being the only antidepressants hat are "less" dangerous than MAOIs) not only specifically alter the levels of the 3 main neurochemicals that we currently know of (and which are extensively spread throughout the brain), but they cause interactions with many other hormones, transmitters, etc that we both know--and do not know about.

Last--and although I will definitely sound like your doctor, therapist, psychiatrist here, the absolute best thing that you can do for sleeping disorders is to follow the guidelines for healthy sleep habits (and NO, they are not going to work immediately... if you would like to pop a tab on Lunesta and wake-up groggy for the next 3-4 days, then that is your immediate remedy... although it will not work for very long... trust me). If you actually make a commitment to following the healthy sleeping habits, I guarantee you that you will fix your problems within 2-3 weeks max., and without the use of a single medication that doctors themselves do not even know the total consequences of their use (let alone their specific mechanisms of action)!

3) I just want to mention 2 last things that I saw in this thread before I forget: 1) Take melatonin is actually a very unhealthy thing for your body and your own equilibrium... you don't need to read any scholarly articles either; simply type the words into Google and I bet you will learn the truth within an hour. Secondly, to whomever mentioned taking Nyquil for sleep: You should know that NyQuil is simply the same thing as Benadryl, except that it is mixed with a lot of good-old liver-damaging acetaminophen. Therefore, if this works for you--and trust me, I have been there, and it will stop working eventually--then please just go to WalMart and buy the little pink Benadryl tablets. Not only will you no longer have to drink that crap (or take those horse-pills, you will also save money, as well as your liver, kidneys, and God even know what else!

So, just to finish my long tirade on this topic: I would seriously implore each of you to speak to your doctors about non-medical methods for altering your sleeping disorders. Medications do not work for very long periods of time until you have to switch to another, and not even your doctor knows what effects it has on your grain (other than "it increases this one chemical that induces sleep"). Ask him/her "how" it does that exactly, and then ask what else does it affect? They will either feed you babble (in order to appear intelligent b/c, in reality, they do not have any clue) or--if they are the more genuine and honest doctors--they will tell you the truth: They have no idea what any other long-term effects may be...
There are other interesting (and very effective) methods for insomnia (other than simply following a routine of well-proven sleeping habits... and, no, I'm not talking abuot "Deep-Breathing, Muscle-Relation, or Yoga/Meditation, etc.)... and, please trust me when I tell you this, they are incredibly safer than any medication that a doctor will give you!
REMEMBER: Just because a person has an MD after their name, they actually tend to accept (or agree with/listen to/ etc.) more recently-proven knowledge which you, yourself, could easily find in a medication ID book (which you can purchase the next time you visit a WalMart or CVS... they only cost $5.99 at the very most).
I hope that this helps, and I wish you all the best in your attempts to overcomes one of the many awful effects that often occur along with depression and/or anxiety!
Take care, and best wishes!
Sincerely,
Kiera

like you... sleeping is a big issue. I don't think I can call it sleep, I would say it is more like being knocked out at night from my meds. I am on 8 different ones at different times of the day... in the last two years, I have tried a total of 27 different meds.
One that crosses my mind first, is Seroquel. It is an antidepressant and mood stabilizer. All I need is 50 mgs of that, along with clonodine (actually blood pressure med but really helps anxiety also)... Lamictal... and I am down to just one Xanax 1 mg with them. I use to need more .

Some of the meds I can think of, that I have tried are
Trazadone-antidepressant-very sedating
Requip-actually for restless leg- but also sedates
WHILE THESE ARE AD'S, THEY ARE USED "OFF LABEL" TO HELP
YOU SLEEP.

Don't give up hope on this... you need to be aggressive with your Doc. Call him back if a med is not working... right away... "sleepy meds" are not like the antidepressants... You'll know right away if it works or not, for sleeping... unlike the AD's that you have to wait up to at least a month to get the full value of it.

Sorry if this is so messy and unorganized, but I have been where you are at, mentally-not the divorce part. After so many years!
Do you have a lot at stake in this? Children?
PLEASE -communicate more with your Doc... you are in a really bad time in your life now and need some assistance.

Of course, I am not as knowledgeable as a Dr. would be.
And in no way do I consider myself a know-it-all.
I do a lot of research on the internet , and have been playinig in this game a long time.

good luck with everything
and get on that phone or into the office... there is so much more out
there your Dr. can work with.
Feel better.
lINDA