What is the most powerful non benzo drug for sleep?

[cutstack]

So as the title States, I would like to know what the most powerful non benzo drug is that provides a knockoit effect to help sleep.  I have been on every benzo including midazolam for sleep and am desperate for something else. I have built a huge tolerance to both hypnotic benzos as well as the z drugs such as Ambien. If I told people how high my tolerance to drugs like midazolam is, you guys will thing I'm lying. I'm wondering what the most powerful sleeping drug that isn't a benzo is. I would prefer if it didn't have permanent or severe side effects. Thank you so much in advance everyone. 

[yellowdog]

All these pills decrease in effectiveness the more you use them. you need to right down what you are taking/have taken. And make sure you are not buliding a tolernace . Stop taking Z drugs for a few weeks, then take them occasionally.

i dont think it is a case of what is stongest, you need what will be effective considering you ( i assume) have a dependnecy/tolerance to various sleeping tablets.

you should avoid barbituates try and detox and perhaps try old fashioned anti histimines you can buy one fro ebay but i dont think i allowed to name it, but avoid taking too much or taking strong sedatives. Z pills DO work great as long as your are NOT already tolerant.

sleeping problems are horrible but you need to play it smart and be aware of what you are consuming etc.

[barq2]

If you have that much benzo/z-drug tolerance then a) beware acute withdrawal effects (taper down if necessary), and b) you may get a rebound effect.

Anyway, to strong non benzos for sleep...

Promethazine comes to mind as a powerful and very sleepy antihistamine. Or a totally different route would be mirtazapine. This is an antidepressant, but at low doses it puts people to sleep. I suppose there is seroquel - but that's pretty serious business, so do your research first. In all cases, check with a medical professional or legitimate source online for any interactions with other medications you may be taking or complications with existing conditions. Obviously none of the above should be mixed with alcohol.

[cutstack]

Is the weight gain on mirtazapine tolerable? What side effects can I expect? Thank you.

[MrFussbudget]

Hi cutstack,

I too have built up a tolerance to zolpidem. It helps me fall asleep still, but only for 1-3 hours. I've been taking trazodone--prescribed from my doctor. It's technically an antidepressant, but it really helps me sleep through the night (though it doesn't always help me fall asleep initially.) The side effects are dry mouth and drowsiness in the morning.

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Also, my mother takes lexipro and it helps her sleep through the night. My doctor was hesitant to prescribe it to me, saying it's a "real drug" and a good friend of mine had terrible health problems linked to lexipro. However, my mom is on a low dose and it really has helped her sleep through the night.

[invisiblejungle]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypnotic#Others

If you click the box at the bottom called "Hypnotics/sedatives" it will show you the different pharmacological methods of inducing sleep. Benzos and z-drugs work on the GABA-A receptors.

Other hypnotics include GABA-B agonists (baclofen), antihistamines, alpha-2 agonists (clonidine), 5HT2A antagonists (trazodone), orexin antagonists (suvorexant), gabapentinoids (gabapentin, pregabalin), etc.

[cutstack]

Hi cutstack,

I too have built up a tolerance to zolpidem.  It helps me fall asleep still, but only for 1-3 hours.  I've been taking trazodone--prescribed from my doctor.  It's technically an antidepressant, but it really helps me sleep through the night (though it doesn't always help me fall asleep initially.)  The side effects are dry mouth and drowsiness in the morning.

---

Also, my mother takes lexipro and it helps her sleep through the night.  My doctor was hesitant to prescribe it to me, saying it's a "real drug" and a good friend of mine had terrible health problems linked to lexipro.  However, my mom is on a low dose and it really has helped her sleep through the night.

I'm afraid to take trazadone as the priapism issue is more common then what it appears to be.  A well known Manhattan psychiatrist told me that some time ago. As far as lexapro, I can't take ssris. I know too many people who have suffered permanently from them in ways that are even worse than benzo withdrawal. I am trying to figure out if seroquel is right for me or rameron. Another one I hear about is viibryd. I'm not sure it would help sleep though. A psychiatrist consultation would cost me like 500 dollars and right now I'm in a desperate state in which I can't start experimenting with drs who might not even help me. All I know is i need something powerful to knock me out.  I can taper myself off benzos it's just the sleeping problem which is destroying me.

[MrFussbudget]

I had to google priapism. My goodness. I didn't know trazodone could cause that issue. Even though my screen name has "Mr." in it, I don't have the proper equipment to have such issues.

[barq2]

Is the weight gain on mirtazapine tolerable? What side effects can I expect? Thank you.

I think it varies. I good friend was on it for about a year at a high dose for it's antidepressant qualities (so 2 or 3 times what you'd have for sleep). He's the slimmest man I know and he put on about 4 or 5 lbs, but then got it under control. I think it took a bit of messing around to hit the right dose, but he used mirtazapine for over a year after struggling with the addictive side of z-drugs. But I appreciate your concern. Weight gain can be an issue, but I think people tend to post the horror stories.

[cutstack]

I, like you cutstack, have a tolerance to Benzo's, although have tapered down to about a third of what I took just six months ago. Just started a thread about the same topic, and Benadryl (Diphenhydramine) even at the 25mg dose, they make extra strength 50mg, knocks me out! This is coming from a heavy user of Benzos for 14 years. I am guessing since I have tapered so much is why I need a sleep aid? Give it a try, you got nothing to loose and can buy it at the Grocery stores for 5 or 6$  Good Luck!-FF

The funny thing is that my tolerance to the anti anxiety daytime benzos hasn't gone up. I can get away with sometimes one valium a day. Or sometime a total of 1 mg of Xanax spread through the day. My daytime issue is bad but I know taking the benzos during the day would really destroy me. At night I need huge dosages of hypnotic benzos or z drugs to sleep. I'm talkikng high doses. What started out as 15 mg of midazolam turned into a number I won't write here. Same with zolpidem and temazepam. I always alternate to keep the tolerance down but it's coming to a point where I have to think outside the box because I'm waiting on magazines and I'm panicking I'm going to not have hypnotics soon since this is the longest it's taken me to receive. I have tried diphenhydramine as well as doxylamine in the past and remember being disappointed but I'm going to try them again. At this point I'm so desperate. I am going to have to shell out a lot of money for a good psychiatrist soon. I need professional guidance on how to use rameron or seroquel as those are not drugs I'm familiar with enough to use safely without guidance.

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Is the weight gain on mirtazapine tolerable? What side effects can I expect? Thank you.

I think it varies. I good friend was on it for about a year at a high dose for it's antidepressant qualities (so 2 or 3 times what you'd have for sleep). He's the slimmest man I know and he put on about 4 or 5 lbs, but then got it under control. I think it took a bit of messing around to hit the right dose, but he used mirtazapine for over a year after struggling with the addictive side of z-drugs. But I appreciate your concern. Weight gain can be an issue, but I think people tend to post the horror stories.

Did it have an effect on libido?