Flexeril and Drowsiness: What Users Say (Page 2)

• Sus...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 16, 2018

For Muscle Spasm "Told to take 5 mg once a day - 1 pill. Felt like I had taken Benadryl and Claritin at the same time. Took yesterday at 1:30 pm, it is now 10:30 am the next day. I feel drowsy, incoherent, and disoriented. My heartbeat is fast. Called and told the doctor to get me something else. I will never take it again. Makes no sense considering it’s been 21 hours later that it is not out of my system. This is the exact reason I don't take medications. I could have just dealt with the pain from my neck, than the side effects of this drug."

• Mie...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 16, 2015

For Muscle Spasm "Ok, so I got Flexeril 10 mg prescribed from an ER NP, after going through ultrasounds, etc. for what I feared was a DVT. Things came back normal, so she gave me this. I took one the next night, and about 30 minutes later, started nodding off... but this wasn't your normal dozing off. Every time I would feel myself dozing, I'd start hearing voices. These sleepiness/auditory hallucinations were the first effects. I didn't even notice if the pains were still there because I was constantly fighting to stay awake because the auditory hallucinations started to really scare me. Probably about an hour or so later, I completely knocked out (around 11:30) and didn't wake up until 1 pm the next day. Won't take this ever again."

• Dan...
• July 9, 2018

For Muscle Spasm "I've been on Flexeril now for about 2 years. My neurologist was treating me for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) syndrome. I was okay taking 10 mg once a day. It was when he increased my dosage that I started to have very, very serious side effects. Among the normal side effects-sleepiness, grogginess, confusion-that's a given, but it was working, so I tolerated it. When I jumped to 20 mg a day, within a week or two, I started to develop much more serious side effects. I developed a rapid heart rate, and one of the most serious was I could not urinate. I was put on a catheter on Easter Sunday for about 5 weeks. Just prior to that, I was having difficulty swallowing. Along with that, I started to have hallucinations big time. I ended up with such bad nightmares that I literally fell out of my bed three nights in a row. My urologist finally put the pieces together when he found out how long I had been on Flexeril. He told me to stop immediately, and when I did, within a week or two, most of my symptoms have disappeared."

• Dan...
• July 9, 2018

For Muscle Spasm "I've been on Flexeril now for about 2 years. My neurologist was treating me for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) syndrome. I was okay taking 10 mg once a day. It was when he increased my dosage that I started to have very, very serious side effects. Among the normal side effects-sleepiness, grogginess, confusion-that's a given, but it was working, so I tolerated it. When I jumped to 20 mg a day, within a week or two, I started to develop much more serious side effects. I developed a rapid heart rate, and one of the most serious was I could not urinate. I was put on a catheter on Easter Sunday for about 5 weeks. Just prior to that, I was having difficulty swallowing. Along with that, I started to have hallucinations big time. I ended up with such bad nightmares that I literally fell out of my bed three nights in a row. My urologist finally put the pieces together when he found out how long I had been on Flexeril. He told me to stop immediately, and when I did, within a week or two, most of my symptoms have disappeared."

• Anonymous
• November 25, 2009

For Fibromyalgia "Helps overall, but leaves me with a terrible hung-over-type grogginess until mid-afternoon the next day. Doctor said it should go away after a week, but no luck - still had the next day druggy haze feeling even after 3 weeks on it. I do still use it occasionally for bad shoulder or back spasms, but not every day for my fibromyalgia anymore."

• Sci...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 30, 2017

For Muscle Spasm "I read through some of the reviews here and wow, what doctors are you seeing that prescribe 10 mg, 3 times a day?! Of course, you have side effects lol. That's jumping off the deep end. You always start low and ramp up. Make sure you Google medications before just taking them. Doctors can be wrong and are wrong lots of times. My doctor told me 5 mg to 10 mg a day only at night. I'm on my first day after taking 10 mg last night and feel pretty groggy, but I only slept 7 hours (more than I usually get). I took a 5 mg pill at about 10:20 pm last night and was laying down for an hour before I took another 5 mg pill at 11:20 pm. It was about 12:20 am when I last looked at the time. I did wake up with a headache that went away after an hour though."

• Pau...
• May 16, 2018

For Muscle Spasm "I can't really say whether Flexeril helped with muscle pain or not because within 45 minutes of taking it, it had knocked me out for several hours. After I woke up, I felt like I'd been drinking all day. Even the next day, I'm still very groggy 16 hours after taking a single dose. Wouldn't recommend it unless pain is unbearable."

• whi...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 12, 2013

"Took for lower back pain. Definitely made me drowsy, dry mouth, and throat. It did not relax me. I found myself tightening the muscles all over my body to compensate for feeling so tired and weak to be able to move, stand, and walk with the pain. Did nothing for the pain and was so drowsy I had difficulty focusing through it to function. I did lay down to try to relax and breathe through and ended up passing out for over 4 hours. I guess it was good to get some rest, but not having a choice about it... very uncomfortable with that idea."

• Bam...
• June 27, 2019

For Muscle Spasm "This medication is great short term or for a one-off just to release muscle tension, but make sure you don't take it with any other medications for pain like opioids, anti-depressants/anxiety, even natural medications, or hay fever meds. If you take something else, make sure it's out of your system before taking Flexeril with it or other meds with Flexeril. I never really felt drowsy or depressed with Flexeril alone, but I started on a very healthy diet and herbal medication for ovulation, and there was a huge difference. The leaflet says there is no interaction with melatonin, but that is in my ovulation meds, and I do believe it makes you more drowsy. That it's interacting with my cleaner system. Now I'll only take this as a one-off but not with other meds or herbals. My neck/shoulder pain is stress-related, which also links in with diet, so I'm going to work on that first and use Flexeril as a last resort. Could be a dangerous medicine if not taken with caution."

• Ano...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 19, 2021

For Sciatica "I was prescribed this on two separate occasions, one was for TMJ issues 4 years ago. I heard really great things about this medication, including complete relief from pain and the ability to have a good night's rest. I took 10 mg every night for 30 days and didn't notice a difference in pain, nor was there an improvement in my sleep. It did absolutely nothing. I could barely open my mouth enough to take a bite of food or to yawn. Fast forward 4 years, and I'm prescribed it again for tight muscles in my lower back, causing some sciatica and lower back arthritis. I've taken it about 4-5 days, and my pain has actually gotten worse. I don't feel any positive effects from the medication whatsoever, no drowsiness, no pain relief. But I will say that I do believe it is negatively affecting my mood. I am also taking Elavil and noticed improvements with my mood while taking Elavil only. When Flexeril was added, on the 5th day, I noticed my mood has drastically declined (depression/anxiety)."

• Rit...
• December 8, 2019

"It's amazing to me that so many people feel this is a strong medication. I took 10 mg Flexeril for carpal tunnel a few years ago and felt absolutely nothing. No lethargy, no sleepiness, no relief of symptoms. I also tried Soma, which didn't help either. My doctor finally switched me to a real, well-known, tried and true muscle relaxant-diazepam (Valium) 10 mg, which would knock most folks out. But not me, and I'm of average weight for my height. The Valium helped some, symptoms improved a bit with rest, but still not a whole lot. So, after 2 months of trying meds and hand therapy, hot wax treatments, and rest... my doc and I decided I needed to have the carpal tunnel surgery to get some relief. That's what helped the most."

• Ran...
• October 3, 2009

For Muscle Spasm "Flexeril is a good muscle spasm medication for acute issues. For chronic pain, it is basically not effective. I was hospitalized years ago with a ruptured disc and was given Flexeril 3 times a day. I was so out of it that I could hardly stay awake, and it took about a week to get back to normal after I was released. However, now that I have had spinal fusion at C4-5, the Flexeril is not really effective at relaxing my very hard muscle spasms. I have had 3 surgeries, 2 of them failed. The second was anterior (back of the neck) and cut through the nerves and muscles in my neck. The result is chronic muscle spasms in my neck and generally my left shoulder area. I rated a 5 based on the different indications."

• Dra...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 18, 2022

For Muscle Spasm "I began taking 5 to 10 mg at night of Flexeril for terrible pelvic floor pain. I thought it was a UTI, but no. My doctor said it was a pelvic floor muscle problem. The Flexeril really helps. I have had no side effects except some drowsiness at night. It really works after about day 3."

• the...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 26, 2022

For Muscle Spasm "I was prescribed Flexeril in the emergency room after a week of low back pain with no immediate known cause, but they suspect that my back pain could be related to uterine fibroids. I was asleep within an hour after taking. I've also been experiencing insomnia related to pain. I woke up about 3 hours after taking Flexeril and was able to eat dinner while still feeling functional and able, and went back to sleep for 5 more hours. When I woke up, I felt a little groggy, but I have a lot of sleep to catch up on, and the grogginess seems to be fading away. After my first experience with the med, I will only take this before sleeping. My back pain has decreased to the point of being able to move around better, but did not take the pain away completely."

• Lil...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 1, 2012

For Muscle Spasm "This is the best muscle relaxer, in my opinion. I took a star off because it knocks me out cold. If I'm asleep, I'm not going to feel pain or spasms either way."

• Iri...
• October 2, 2014

For Sciatica "Flexeril makes me so drowsy that I fall asleep before I can feel actual relief of pain, and then I miss out on everything. The only good thing is that it relaxes me so that I'm not tense."

• rub...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 31, 2016

For Muscle Spasm "Very helpful for spasms of the lower back. A little occasional dizziness, the only side effect, plus some drowsiness early in the course of treatment."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 11, 2014

For Muscle Spasm "Made me sleep constantly. Did not stop spasms or pain."

• Mik...
• August 2, 2009

For Sciatica "The first time I took Flexeril, I slept for 15 hours straight."

• Anonymous
• September 24, 2010

For Muscle Spasm "I took Flexeril for my back, and it did help, but it made me extremely tired and gave me bad cotton mouth. I would take it and be drowsy for 16 hours afterward."

• Chu...
• July 6, 2014

For Sciatica "It seems to be making me slightly drowsy. But I'm sure after a few days I won't feel anything."

• lad...
• October 2, 2009

For Muscle Spasm "I have taken Flexeril, and other than putting me to sleep, it never helped."