Rain City Story

On Insomnia. (Part II)

Read Part I

My recent battle with pneumonia made me finally get off my ass and find a GP doc. I ended up going with the one I first saw at the urgent care center but I really liked her and her location in Issaquah is convenient so it all worked out. On a side note, I've always preferred female doctors for some reason and generally trust their advice more than a male's.

Anyway, doc had me come in every couple of days for checkups (my lungs were really bad) and she had me fill out the cursory five page, medical history. Insomnia was on the list and I checked it not thinking too much of it. Doc noticed it and we talked for a long time about my struggles with sleeping. I told her I had tried Ambien but didn't like it and she knew exactly why, lol. She didn't prescribe me anything then because I was already on a truckload of crap already but she'd have something for me when I came back on the following Friday.

On the nights before the appointment, I found myself anxious for Friday like it was Christmas morning. Hell, I didn't care if she prescribed me Ambien because I was so desperate for anything that could help. Please, please, please let her give me something good, I thought.

On Friday, she gave me a one month's prescription for Trazodone, an anti-depressant. Here are some interesting things I've found out about Trazodone:

General:
Trazodone, is a modified cyclic antidepressant. Trazodone belongs to the group of medicines known as antidepressants or "mood elevators." It is used to relieve mental depression and depression that sometimes occurs with anxiety.

Pharmacology:
n animals, trazodone HCl selectively inhibits serotonin uptake by brain synaptosomes and potentiates the behavioral changes induced by the serotonin precursor, 5-hydroxytryptophan.

Peak plasma levels occur approximately one hour after dosing when trazodone HCl is taken on an empty stomach or two hours after dosing when taken with food.

For those patients who responded to trazodone HCl in clinical trials, one-third of the inpatients and one-third of the outpatients had a significant therapeutic response by the end of the first week of treatment. Three-fourths of all responders demonstrated a significant therapeutic effect by the end of the second week. One-fourth of responders required 2-4 weeks for a significant therapeutic response.

Warnings/ Side effects:
Trazodone has been associated with the occurrence of priapism (inappropriate and excruciatingly long erections). In approximately 1/3 of the cases reported, surgical intervention was required and, in a portion of these cases, permanent impairment of erectile function or impotence resulted. Male patients with prolonged or inappropriate erections should immediately discontinue the drug and consult their physician. If the condition persists for more than 24 hours, it would be advisable for the treating physician to consult an urologist or appropriate specialist in order to decide on a management approach.

Insomnia. Trazodone has been associated with the occurrence of insomnia. (WHAT?)

I know drug makers have to warn about every possible side effect but I was concerned that almost every website warned about the drug causing insomnia, though they also said that Trazodone is often used to treat insomnia.

Make no mistake though, I'm not anywhere near depressed, it's just that serotonin reuptake inhibitors often help insomniacs "turn off" their brain at night and allow them to sleep.

So how has it helped me? I'm on my third night and I have to say that the only difference I've noticed are incredibly vivid dreams (and not the good kind either, lol). I haven't fallen asleep any earlier than I would have normally but most of the research I read on Trazodone said that it takes 8-10 days for the drug to become effective. We'll see.