Zopiclone withdrawal?

[SarahH]

Hi
I have been taking Zopliclone every night for 14 years (yep you read right!).
I started on 7.5mgs on and off in 1997. It was then prescribed as the non-addictive alternative to Temazepam. We now know this is a pile of doo doo. Gradually over the years and a couple of major anxiety breakdowns I ended up taking 2-3 tablets (7.5mgs) a night to get sleep.
I was told I was not "addicted" but "dependent" on Zopliclone as I did not use it in the day but needed more and more to sleep.
However before Xmas last year I spoke to a Mental Health Prescribing Nurse whole told me the anxiety I felt building up each day was withdrawal symptoms of Zopliclone. So I became determined to reduce my Zopliclone.
I now take one tablet a night (7.5mgs). I suspect the withdrawing from the drug caused my anxiety to peak and I did end up being prescribed Pregabalin for anxiety which has a side effect of somnolence (result ).

Hope that helps

Sarah

[susanblack]

omg 14 years that's incredible!!!

I was told zopiclone should not be taken more then 4 weeks

thx for sharing your experience

have a great day!

[Zophead]

I agree, I find the oval tablets more effective than the round ones. I'm grappling with this, Zopiclone, my latest addiction. When I don't take them get crippling anxiety/feel doomed. Have to order them online as docs won't prescribe for me anymore. Have been told I could be taking anything from baking powder to rat poison.

[susanblack]

Hi again

I'm not on Zopiclone any more, I simply don't need it. But I have to say it was a great help. My sleep cycle is back to normal now and I can have a full night sleep which is so great!!!

If anyone in need of Zopiclone I can recommend you <link removed>

[lucky58]

I have been on Zopiclone for over 1 year and like some of you have said, it only helped me sleep for couple of hours and then I would be awake , tossing and turning...then I would find myself taking another pill around 3 am....2 months ago my doctor told me to take 2 at bedtime...so I did and after a while same thing again...only sleeping couple of hours. I then starting increasing again myself during the night and sometimes, I'd forget how many I had taken :( !! 3 nights ago, after realizing that I had no idea how many pills I had taken and was really confused that day, and forgetful, ....I decided to stop taking the pill, cold turkey!! I have been experiencing alot of anxiety , headaches, nausia, and NO sleep!!! I haven't called my doctor , and don't want to take any more meds, but because of my severe pain,...I need something to help me sleep, or pain gets worst :( !! Any one have any suggestions?? I need to get some sleep and need this headache and sick feeling gone!!

[Pete_uk]

After ten years I'm off of them. I do feel they will be needed again sometime but I am enjoying the natural sleep i'm getting.

[Peter_Billy]

Hello everyone, I have found reading your posts very helping in gaining knowledge of how to withdraw.

I was drugged with LSD and raped in May. The whole ordeal destroyed me. I am a Professor, 31 years old, and came to Canada just for 1 years, and leave back to the UK next week, hence why I want to withdraw.

I was given Trazodone at first, for 2 weeks, then they put me on Trazodone to help with anxiety and panic attacks that began after the incident in May, because I did not sleep for 4 days after. Then they put me on Lorazepam, which is perhaps the most evil drug invented. It calmed my anxiety completely, but after a while I started needing more for it to work. I was taking it for 3 months, when finally my new doctor indicated I should never have been on it for this long. I got signed off work, and I tapered off over 3 weeks. It was probably the most scariest event in my life. I would never advise taking this.

In order to taper off, I will given a small dose of Zopiclone (3.75 mg). It works, and I slept much better. I am anxious all day still, but I don't want to take any more medications. Now however, like some of you have said, when I take it, I feel like all the anxiety goes away. I also do a lot of OCD in the day and am paranoid of being attacked again. But gradually life is getting better.

I have tried tapering off Zopiclone, but nights I don't take it, I have the worse nightmares, and wake up feeling very anxious. Some nights I go to half my dose, but normally wake up after 3 hours. Other nights I don't take it, but I feel I have to have a case of beer instead, which is not good, just to calm my nerves. It feels like I will be on this drug forever. Now it has started affecting my life. My head feels very foggy in the day, and I shake a lot. Not great for a fit and healthy man, and also wrecking my career. I ended up quitting my job last week because I could not handle all the meetings and teaching we have to do.

I'm scared it will never get better. I am taking 1 month prescription back to England, but when that runs out, I don't know what I will do.

Any help would be very appreciated. You are all very kind on this website.

Thanks, Billy

[SADnomore]

As much as I myself hated to realize it ... yes, yes, they are that bad. After 6 years (complete with memory loss and worsened depression, another s/e) on them, I withdrew with the help of Trazodone. ... I did take two of those once and slept next day til noon! No problem just going to one next day. With lots of patience and slow progressive relaxation exercises, I have been able to drift off to sleep on my own, once I had been switched to the traz for a few weeks.
Good luck!

---------- Post added at 17:29 ---------- Previous post was at 17:19 ----------

Peter Billy, I am so sorry for what has happened to you here. I wish you well as you return to the UK. My hope is for your sleep to resolve and for you to be able to safely withdraw from zopiclone once home.
Marie

[MyNameIsTerry]

Peter Billy, welcome to NMP

That is an awful experience and you must have been through so much.

I was on Zopiclone for a month due to difficulty starting Citalopram and how it gavce me bad insomnia where I would be lucky to sleep for an hour. It did help at first but after a week or so I slept less on it and it would take me hours to recover upon waking. It was if I would get 6 hours sleep but the drug wanted me to have 12. I could barely eat until I felt it wearing off.

A month on it daily and my GP said he couldn't prescribe any more so gave me 7 days to wean off. I had become tolerant to it in that time and not realised as I knew nothing back then. I had to spend about a week and a half using a "night on, night off" protocol which the crisis team nurses said I should have used anyway (which my GP never advised!). I had the same issue with sleeping when taking it and then not sleepling at all or maybe for an hour. This did get better by the end of the week and by the time I stopped I was getting maybe 5 hours so I could on it from there.

You've become tolerant to one Benzo and now you are having issues with a Z drug. I think when you get back you need to talk to a GP about all this and come up with a safe plan of withdrawal and maybe even something else to help with your anxiety that can be taken daily such as a SSRI or maybe a sleep inducing med like the Traz or maybe things like Mirtazapine but this is really something for your GP to decide on.

Are you getting any therapy? That would seem the most important to deal with your anxiety as I'm guessing it will be PTSD? The OCD type behaviours can be seen in any anxiety/panic disorder, OCD is only diagnosed when it is sufficient enough to affect your life since OCD traits are seen in many people without anxiety disorders at all.

I hope you get the support you need. Getting you on a Benzo for 3 months is disgraceful and something only specialists should be doing where it is warranted but they will also manage you back off the stuff afterwards"