are you dependant on your meds??

foreverhopeful · 12-19-2008, 03:03 PM

iv been on my meds for 6 months (was of them for 18 months) on citalopram 60mg and quetiapine ( very low dose ) think in the US you call it seroquel

im ok with the anti depressant its the quetiapine that the problem no matter what i do i cant sleep without it end up giving in and taking it at 3am and sleeping till 2pm somtimes later just wondered if anyone else found that they began to feel dependant on there meds??

thanks!!

Bethann · 12-19-2008, 05:29 PM

What are you taking them for? I take Seroquel, for bipolar related insomnia (and some other bipolar stuff), so I can't sleep without it but that's not drug dependency.

If the drugs are preventing problems due to a disorder, it's normal that not taking them will cause the problems to reemerge.

foreverhopeful · 12-20-2008, 12:56 PM

take the seroquel because i tend to have nightmares but since taking it they have doubled and gotten more realistic sometimes i cant figure out if it was a dream or reality iyswim? but i never had problems getting to sleep before getting them, tried to not take the seroquel because of this and now i cant sleep without it (Well thats what i think) mayb its just the fact that my mind knows i havent taken the tablet and just cant settle without it

A0000011208 · 12-21-2008, 03:34 AM

hmm I was very dependent on my meds... couldn't sleep without them. My first 4 days without any at all I didnt sleep at all... eventually my body caught up though and three months later I sleep a average of 6-8 hours a day. When I was on the meds I probably slept at least 12 hours a day... sometimes even more... it was miserable...

Bethann · 12-22-2008, 12:10 PM

While abroad I had faced an extremely anxiety provoking situation, and ended up doubling my seroquel to cope (a plan my psychiatrist and I had made). To reduce the dose and still sleep, I've had to drop it by 12.5 mg/week (half a pill). So you may need to taper off much more slowly than you think.

foreverhopeful · 12-22-2008, 03:58 PM

iv now been of the tablets for about 5 days and last night was the first night that i didnt toss and turn for hours went to bed at 1am and about 30min later i was asleep AND got up at a resonable hour 10am and dont feel sleepy at all durning the day !!

still waiting for an appointment for pych but i feel more "well" than i have in months today !

sconner · 01-02-2009, 06:12 PM

try taking the seroquel at a regular time every evening- without fail.

newzealandcyster · 01-08-2009, 05:00 AM

Hi,
This is my very first post here

I have been on venlafaxine for depression for 1 year after a major depressive breakdown/addiction to sleeping pills. I have been on 25mg of quetiapine every night too. I find that if I miss my dose I don't sleep, but I also find that it makes me very dozy during the day.
I am seeing my doctor at the moment to try and find out how to adjust my meds to be more awake during the day. I think I am probably dependant on it!! (But it is not nearly as bad as the stuff I was addicted to - I think it was called Zopiclone).

Gretel

foreverhopeful · 01-08-2009, 12:52 PM

hi welcome to SC

iv come of the quetiapine because i just couldnt live with the effects took over 2 weeks to really feel "normal" with the sleeping patterns good luck with getting the meds sorted !!

becciliz · 01-13-2009, 01:06 PM

i was. i took quetiapine for 3 years, but it was increasing my weight so much i decided to come off it myself.
it was VERY hard for the 1st two weeks.. hardly slept at all but now its worth it. Have finally started to lose some weight after not being able to shift it and actually feel a lot more free than i did whilst taking it. im glad i first took it,, it got me out of a black hole, but i'm not intending to ever restart if i can help it.
i still have some nights i can't sleep but i figure when i finally conceive and have baby, its going to be like that anyway and could be helpful

i was also on zopiclone and venlaflaxine, previous to that prozac/citalopram...
each of which i gave up, all at once. i think i sat down and thought about it long term, and losing AF to venlaflaxine scared me into thinking i may never be able to conceive and i'd rather be without the meds and with some kind of hope.
its the only thing i've ever been strong and full of will about- having a baby means so much to me i'd literally do Anything...and that was one of those things

days are hard and scary sometimes...but ultimately i know it'll be worth it...whether a year or 10

good luck with things everyone