User Reviews for Quetiapine to treat Insomnia

"I have been prescribed 25mg quetiapine for sleep and am baffled as to how the people who are prescribed 100mg a day could remain conscious?? After being on this for 2 years I am still totally knocked out by one 25mg tablet. Most nights I take half a tab or less. I haven’t noticed any increased tolerance in the time I have been on it. Anyway can someone tell me, is my reaction abnormal? If not how do any of you on doses of 50,100, up to 800 stay awake.. once I take 25 mg, that’s it, I AM gonna sleep, like it or not. I have read that it is prescribed in doses up to 800mg for bi polar and thought omg if someone with bi polar was prescribed it at the doses I read (around 250mg) and they reacted like me.... they would literally be incapable of functioning... at all So I was just curious... if you have bi polar, does bi polar, by its nature, mean you have a much higher tolerance or different reaction? Or is my reaction to 25mg abnormal?"

"I would like to share the fact that this drug is prescribed for sleep at 25-50 mg maximum because the lower strength it acts like antihistamine similar to sleep ease or other sleep meds that cause drowsiness. If used at stronger doses it can engage not sleep favourable conditions, such as why it is used for depression and psychosis on label. I am a male weighing 210 lbs, and take between 12.5-max 25 mg. 25 knocks me out for 12-14 hours, 12.5 mg for more like 8 hours. I have studied this drug extensively and in most people(not all) it does not help sleep at higher doses. It can cause increased blood glucose at doses higher than 50 mg. Other negative effects are also shown in doses over 50 mg. I refer to a large study done recently in 2021."

"I've been taking 50mg seroquel to sleep for a couple years now. It works every night for me. Within 1/2hr of taking it I am asleep for 6 hours. I tried quitting and got no sleep for days before giving up and taking it again. It felt like without it I would never sleep again. Apparently I'm dependent on it to sleep. Oh well, a good night's sleep is worth it. It's a 10 rating for me (minus 1 because I can't get off it)."

"I read in various places that Seroquel is not a sleep med; apparent doctors and the like claim that that is not its purpose. Yeah, we know that, but I can assure you it is a very effective sleeping pill at 100mg. I have been taking it for four years and it has failed me not once. I've taken Trazadone and Ambien in the past and I will say Seroquel is the best by far. I wake up completely refreshed, I have gained zero pounds and it helps tremendously with helping one fall asleep and stay asleep. Give it a try, that would be my recommendation. Best of luck to you."

"I was prescribed Quetiapine 25 mg for insomnia however I found out that it is really not a sleeping pill because it’s for depression, schizophrenia and anxiety. It have sedative side effects so I guess that’s why it was prescribed to me for sleep. This pill causes me to sleep half the day and feel like a zombie the other half of the day. I don’t know how anyone can take this and work or take care of any responsibilities. I told my dr. that I can’t take this, very disappointing that she prescribed this for me."

"Quetiapine 25mg has literally changed my life. I’ve been a poor sleeper all my life but in the midst of menopause I’m lucky to get 3 hours a night and developed anxiety, depression and felt utterly lost. I have friends who are on large doses for bipolar features and tried 25 mgs for sleep and it worked. No daytime grogginess just sleep. I could only use it for sleep and happily my doc had no problem scripting off label for me. It’s only been a few days but I could cry with relief that I won’t spend 20 hours awake anymore. I’ve tried everything and this medication at this dose has changed my life."

"I went on Seroquel 6 years ago because I mentioned to my psychiatrist on a visit that I wasn’t sleeping well. She prescribed 150 ER and it knocked me out at night. And reading the other reviews, I get what they are saying about the next day drowsiness. I’m now up to 300 mg ER but I have to take it 3 hours before I go to sleep so it times it out right. HOWEVER, even though I says it’s not addictive, I cannot sleep without it. I don’t want to be on sleeping medications forever. I’ve gone 5 days with no sleep when trying to quit. DO NOT TAKE! they are lying about it’s dependency!!"

"I have to start by stating every drug effects everyone differently and some respond positively to certain meds and others had horrible reviews. For me, this drug quetiapine literally saved my life. I was going on 3 weeks of no sleep from chronic stress. I was manic and could not sleep no matter what I tried. I took Xanax, over the counter antihistamines, downloaded meditation apps, etc. I was literally on the verge of the end of my life until my parents forced me to go to behavioral health hospital. At intake, I was in the worst shape of my life, lost so much weight and looked like a complete paranoid schizophrenic out of his mind. The psychiatrist told me that they were going to give me something to knock me out and I asked what. She said seroquel and I asked what kind of drug is that and she said an antipsychotic. I took 100 mg and sure enough, I finally got rest. It did take a while to get back to normal again, about a month but I really believe if I hadn’t been given this drug, it would have been the end of me"

"This medication was prescribed after I tapered off of Klonopin and could not sleep. I had weight gain at first but only because the doctor had me taking 200mg. I tapered down to 25mg and lost all the weight and still slept great. In fact I felt much better on the lower dose and slept deeper. I had nightmares and sleep paralysis at the higher dose. It also helped my anxiety without feeling groggy the day after. I even take a half of the 25mg to help soothe my anxiety. It’s been a game changer for me."

"I have been taking quitiapine for more than 15 years for bipolar but especially for insomnia. Lately my brain feels sick and tired and sometimes anxious all too often. I tried stop taking the quetiapine but it is absolutely impossible to sleep without it. I am taking 200mg which is necessary. I understand that l can go insane without adequate sleep. My doctor up till now has not given me a solution. Do you have any suggestions l could try as l am caught between a rock and a hard place."

"I’ve been taking quetiapine for over 3 years and it absolutely has helped me sleep. I began on a 25mg dosage, but self- reduced the pills to quarter dosage to ween myself off of these about 3 months into my prescription. What worries me is that if I forget to take my little 6.25mg portion of pill, then I wake up after 2 hours sleep each and every time, and after trying 3 or 4 days I become so tired I start using again. These work good, just too good."

"5 years on Trazodone, and quetiapine for sleep. 50mg-75...A month ago I decided to start the process, with my doctors approval, to decrease my dosage. 37.5mg 3 wks, 4 wks later 12mg 4wks later I'm done. Last night was the first night. Woke up early 1.5 hours earlier. And a little out of sort. But I know this will pass. The traz, I'm in 1/2 tab soon I'll be off of that. It can be done. Put tabs of melatonin in the pill holder or bottle instead. You have to get off this stuff. And you will."

"After trying MANY sleep remedies (Natural and prescription) I tried seroquel as a last resort. This is the only thing that has worked for me!! I only take 12.5 mg and have no ill side effects. I am so very thankful my doctor suggested this. It helps turn off all the worry during the night so I can sleep 8-9 hours. A true miracle!"

"I have been on Quetiapine for sleep for about 3 years. Started at a low dose but increased up to 200mg, which I have been on for about 2 years. I get sleepy about 20 minutes after my dose and can sleep a full 8 hours. It has been a complete game changer for me."

"After quitting my 20 year marijuana habit, I developed insomnia and then I developed anxiety about the insomnia. 50 mg of Seroquel works for my insomnia every single night. I am so thankful for it. It usually takes 30 minutes to kick in. Been on it for 3 weeks."

"I have been taken the generic Seroquel for 3 months. I am up to a 50mg dose at night. It does make you have very vivid dreams, some scary life like, and I am a zombie most of the day. I get up maybe once and try to eat everything in the house too. Gaining weight!! I wonder if that will go away? Any thoughts on that? I do also take Klonopin, and Effexor for panic attacks and depression. My doctor put me on the Seroquel for a mood stabilizer and sleep too. My Mother took Seroquel XR for years. Her doctor took her off it because it made her a diabetic. She had a lot of trouble sleeping for months. I take the tablets only. Good luck to everyone."

"I've been on it for a week and a half for insomnia. Taking 75 mg per night and helps with sleep but can often wake and not get back to sleep after only an hour. Have felt increased anxiety the next day which is worse than when I don't sleep at all. I haven't been diagnosed with any particular mental illness but would consider myself to have some form of PTSD. My thoughts are not normal and have increasingly intrusive thoughts and ruminations. Will be getting off this from today and hopefully on something that levels me out and helps me sleep. Strange how we all react so differently"

"Seroquel saved my life, due to PTSD I have insomnia for over 7 years it was so bad I felt crazy and unstable, I contemplated suicide daily and I couldn't function. I was finally able to sleep with seroquel after trying everything else. Unfortunately it made me gain a lot of weight and I have very irregular periods. I don't want to continue long term but it does help me sleep at night. I could not function without it."

"Got prescribed this for sleep after trazodone failed to help. It is VERY powerful at the 25mg dose for me. Please let your psych know if you have frequent or strong side effects to medicine before using. It knocks me out and keeps me asleep, but makes me VERY groggy in the morning, like I am hungover, and make me hungry while I'm getting drowsy. Be sure to go straight to bed after you take it to combat eating and risks of dizziness."

"I used to have really bad insomnia. I don't know the cause but it made me sleep 7 hours in the span of three days. My mind was like a radio, non stop playing and talking. When I took seroquel for my bipolar disorder I was super drowsy and I could not wake up during the day. I started 25mg but I noticed that I was getting sleep. Overtime I had to increase my dose to 300mg to get good sleep. My body always gets use to meds and I ended up increasing every-time. I found that 300mg was good to give me 8 or 9 hours of sleep at night. If I take it early I can wake up early and feel well rested for the next day. I noticed that if I need to wake up sooner I less my dose with 200mg. The only downside to this medication is the weight gain. I would wake up in the middle of the night hungry and thirsty. Spoke with my doc and tried Trazodone and Temazepam but none worked better compare to Seroquel. Still a life saver."

"I'm on a very small dose of seroquel. The side effects are really horrible, I need to use my glasses all day because I keep making spelling errors and it does not effect my pain medication (morphine sulphur)."

"I’ve had trouble sleeping for so long. My issue is that I can’t fall asleep but when I do, I sleep without it being disturbed. It has caused me so many issues when I have to go somewhere in the morning and I haven’t slept not even for a minute. And when I don’t get sleep, I have muscle spasms, i vomit etc. So it is very important I get my sleep every night. I also have anxiety and I was prescribed this medication to help calm down my anxiety and unfortunately like every other medication I have tried, it doesn’t calm down my anxiety. However, it makes me so sleepy and puts me to sleep. Not straight away. But it is so amazing. It has helped my insomnia so well and I love it."

"I have been on quetiapine 50mg a night for almost a year it has helped me sleep which I am truly grateful for. I do think I rely on this drug now and feel like I won’t ever get off it. The only negative side effect is my memory is awful I have to write everything down."

"Seroquel drug works wonders for my insomnia. It’s the only thing that’s ever worked for me and it also helps with my hallucinations. Only downside is that it makes weed completely ineffective (no tolerance and half a gram and you get no effects whatsoever). Still think it’s a fair trade off if it means I can sleep and don’t have to worry about my psychotic symptoms though."

"After years of chronic insomnia my GP prescribed 25mg of Quetiapine. It's been a miracle drug for me. Still walking in the night, but able to go back to sleep and get a full 8 hours. Godsend is all I can say :) Only weird thing is that I have a lot more vivid dreams - weird!"