Results 1 to 4 of 4

Thread: Heightened anxiety/agitation/jumpiness day after taking sleep meds

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    27

    Heightened anxiety/agitation/jumpiness day after taking sleep meds

    Hi all,

    I've been taking Trazodone 100mg nightly for a little over a month for insomnia. Last week my doctor also added in Lunesta 3mg because the Trazodone was not effective on its own many nights. I'm able to sleep with this combo but shortly after waking up in the morning and throughout the day I feel SO jumpy and agitated. It's as if I drank 5 cups of coffee. I feel like I'm going to jump out of my skin and I feel really anxious.

    My doctor has written this off as "just anxiety" and wants me to try more meds to manage the anxiety. In the past I had awful experiences trying low doses of Zoloft (only took 3 days and stopped due to extreme panic attacks, appetite loss, diarrhea, etc.) and later Mirtazapine (took 4 days and despite sleeping ok was agitated/shaking so badly the next morning and day that I couldn't even type on the computer and was knocking things over). When I stopped both of these meds the side effects greatly lessened or stopped completely. Because I had these horrific side effects with Zoloft and Mirtazapine I'm wondering if the Trazodone could be causing the agitation and anxiety I'm experiencing now. Maybe I am extremely sensitive to serotonin-targeted drugs? Or if it could be related to the Lunesta?

    I'm really getting no assistance from the doctor who thinks more meds are the answer to everything. I'm starting a CBT-I course in 2 weeks which I hope will help me develop better coping skills for the insomnia and greater resilience, but I'm kind of on my own until then to figure out what to do with these meds. Have others found any of these side effects from Trazodone or Lunesta? Can anyone offer help for tapering off these meds for sleep? I've read about taking sleep meds every other night instead of every night as an initial way to cut dependence. Or I was thinking of reducing the Trazodone to 50mg to see if there's any effect from that.

    Any input is much appreciated. Thank you.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2017
    Posts
    3,557

    Re: Heightened anxiety/agitation/jumpiness day after taking sleep meds

    Quote Originally Posted by bg222 View Post
    I've been taking Trazodone 100mg nightly for a little over a month for insomnia.
    Was 100mg the starting dose, or did you start on less and it was subsequently increased?

    Last week my doctor also added in Lunesta 3mg because the Trazodone was not effective on its own many nights. I'm able to sleep with this combo but shortly after waking up in the morning and throughout the day I feel SO jumpy and agitated. It's as if I drank 5 cups of coffee. I feel like I'm going to jump out of my skin and I feel really anxious.
    Both trazodone and eszopiclone (Lunestra) have very short half-lives, around 10-12 hours for trazodone (I'm assuming you're on immediate-release tablets) and 6 hours for eszopiclone so I would expect the symptoms to be worse just after you wake up and easing through the day. I'm wondering if the drop in plasma levels of one or both is triggering these symptoms.

    My doctor has written this off as "just anxiety" and wants me to try more meds to manage the anxiety.
    He could be right. It's hard to tell. An anxious mind is very capable of generating our worst nightmares if given half a chance.

    In the past I had awful experiences trying low doses of Zoloft (only took 3 days and stopped due to extreme panic attacks, appetite loss, diarrhea, etc.)
    How low a starting dose?

    and later Mirtazapine (took 4 days and despite sleeping ok was agitated/shaking so badly the next morning and day that I couldn't even type on the computer and was knocking things over). When I stopped both of these meds the side effects greatly lessened or stopped completely.
    They may have lessened/stopped because you discontinued the mirtazapine, but it could equally be that stopping caused your mind to stop generating the symptoms. Despite what it says on the packaging, mirtazapine is really only an antihistamine, not AD, which mostly eases anxiety by sedation, not by tackling the underlying biological cause.

    Because I had these horrific side effects with Zoloft and Mirtazapine I'm wondering if the Trazodone could be causing the agitation and anxiety I'm experiencing now.
    The only way to know is by stopping trazodone. Talk to your doctor first though.

    Maybe I am extremely sensitive to serotonin-targeted drugs?
    Sertraline (Zoloft) is the only serotonergic med of the four. Neither trazodone, mirtazapine, or eszopiclone have much effect on brain serotonin pathways.

    Or if it could be related to the Lunesta?
    The usual eszopiclone start dose is 1mg. Did you start at 1mg, or go straight to 3mg?

    Can anyone offer help for tapering off these meds for sleep? I've read about taking sleep meds every other night instead of every night as an initial way to cut dependence.
    I doubt you have become dependent on either med after being on them such a short time. Their short half-lives further mitigates the risk.

    Or I was thinking of reducing the Trazodone to 50mg to see if there's any effect from that.
    That might be a good idea as trazodone is usually at its most sedating at the lower end of the dose range becoming less so as it increases with sedation being only a minor issue at the *doses at which it acts as an antidepressant, especially when taking slow-release formulations which are better at keeping plasma levels above the sedative threshold. However, you should get your doctor's okay on this first.

    * 150-400mg/day for immediate-release tablets, 150-375mg slow/extended-release and up to 600mg for severely depressed hospital inpatients
    __________________
    The opinions expressed above are based on my observations and, where applicable, interpretation of cited data and are general in nature. Consult your physician before acting on anything stated.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Posts
    27

    Re: Heightened anxiety/agitation/jumpiness day after taking sleep meds

    Thanks for your reply. The Trazodone was 50mg initially - I took that for about 3 days and then upped to 100mg because the 50mg had barely any noticeable sedation effect. The Zoloft was 25mg. I dropped the Trazodone to 50mg last night and took it with the 3mg Lunesta. Slept about 30 minutes and then was up the rest of the night. My doctor had me start at 3mg Lunesta which I wondered about, but she said she really only recommends lower dose when someone is elderly or frail in some way.

    I know my insomnia issues arose due to a variety of factors - postpartum hormones, baby waking during night for feedings, and extreme other external stressors at the time (COVID, family stuff, kids' medical issues) - all of which I've made major progress on with my therapist and actually feel pretty at peace with now; I have experienced a lot of resolution around many of these things. I really feel the insomnia which started because of these things has sort of morphed into its own thing at this point. It was an intensely scary and traumatic experience when it first hit me, and the fear around it has really lead to the ongoing obsession with sleep. Hence my hopes for CBT-I being effective, though I know it can be a difficult process to stick with at first.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2017
    Posts
    3,557

    Re: Heightened anxiety/agitation/jumpiness day after taking sleep meds

    Quote Originally Posted by bg222 View Post
    I dropped the Trazodone to 50mg last night and took it with the 3mg Lunesta. Slept about 30 minutes and then was up the rest of the night.
    Were you still jumpy and agitated?

    I would persevere with the 50mg trazodone and 3mg eszopiclone for a few days if possible.
    __________________
    The opinions expressed above are based on my observations and, where applicable, interpretation of cited data and are general in nature. Consult your physician before acting on anything stated.

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. Heightened anxiety with bad sleep
    By LondonRain in forum General Anxiety / Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD)
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 27-05-21, 11:19
  2. Heightened anxiety from new on meds
    By Noworryjonny in forum Sertraline / Zoloft / Lustral
    Replies: 16
    Last Post: 02-10-17, 16:08
  3. Health anxiety and taking meds
    By jayjoe18 in forum Health Anxiety
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 20-09-13, 18:09
  4. anxiety because i am taking meds
    By dabrucru in forum General Anxiety / Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD)
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 07-01-11, 09:24
  5. Heightened anxiety and negative thoughts before a Big Day
    By NoPoet in forum General Anxiety / Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD)
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 05-09-09, 20:25

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •