Joint and muscle pains from seroquel

[Heapsreal]

I have severe chronic insomnia. I basically treat it with a combination of meds i rotate between to reduce tolerance and limit my benzo use to no more then an equivalent dose of 10mg of valium, but mostly alternate between zopiclone and zolpidem and occassional valium. They seem to work well for sleep initiation but generally add an antihistamine to sustain sleep, diphenhydramine, atarax or doxylamine. I do use lyrica for neuropathy pain at night. so a typical night i may take zopiclone 7.5mg, 5mg valium, 25mg doxylamine and 150mg lyrica.

I do get a tolerance to benzo very quickly as in 2 nights which is why i change things around. I dont have bipolar or another mood disorder just severe insomnia from post viral fatigue? What i find helpful when in a bad sleep phase is seroquel 25-50mg and will only add lyrica to this, i will also maybe add this for a few night to take a break from benzos too and on return to benzos they work well. My problem is the seroquel works well and knocks me out, i wake with abit of a hangover but it clears within a couple of hours and something i can put up with. But i do wake up really stiff and sore from it and the last few hours of sleep can be interrupted by increase neuropathy type pain in my legs that seroquel seems to aggravate. Otherwise it works well for sleep.

does anyone else have these issues and does anyone know any tricks that can help avoid this increase in pain and stiffness from it. I really would like to use it for longer periods of time so i can take longer breaks from benzos?? i also have this problem with trazadone, doxepine and phenergan.

[Ravenousbird]

@Heapsreal my first question, and not to be cheeky or disrespectful, is why do you take Seroquel if you are not bi-polar? It is meant expressly for the treatment and management of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder? It's really none of my business, but in my training I worked with bi-poloars and that's a serious BP drug. I really wouldn't mess with it if you are using it just for sleep. It will affect the brain in other ways than that.

[Heapsreal]

It's commonly used off label for chronic severe insomnia. Doses used are much lower then used for BP. This minimizes many of the side effects of higher doses plus I use it intermittently. Off label doses for insomnia range from 25mg to 100mg. Doses above 400mg seem to be what's commonly used for BP etc.

I haven't slept normally for last 12 years since getting chickenpox then mono from ebv then cmv within a 6 month period. Tests since show i have very low natural killer cell function, lymphocytosis and neutropenia. My doc says it's not uncommon in my situation that damage has been done to the sleep Centre in the hypothalamus that controls sleep.

I have had sleep studies to rule out apnea etc. Besides minimal sleep in these studies, all they told me was that I didn't go any deeper than stage 2 sleep.

insomnia has been one of my worst symptoms. I have seen many people given whatever med for insomnia and doses increased over time by their doctor. When it comes time to get off for whatever reason, mostly stopped working, they have a lot of problems with withdrawal issues. While working with my doc he is happy for me to alternate between meds to avoid increasing doses and trying to avoid tolerance.

I understand what seroquel is indicated for and think its a much safer alternative than using ever increasing doses of benzos.

If you have a cure for insomnia I'm all ears.

[miffytherabbit]

It's commonly used off label for chronic severe insomnia. Doses used are much lower then used for BP. This minimizes many of the side effects of higher doses plus I use it intermittently. Off label doses for insomnia range from 25mg to 100mg. Doses above 400mg seem to be what's commonly used for BP etc.

I haven't slept normally for last 12 years since getting chickenpox then mono from ebv then cmv within a 6 month period. Tests since show i have very low natural killer cell function, lymphocytosis and neutropenia. My doc says it's not uncommon in my situation that damage has been done to the sleep Centre in the hypothalamus that controls sleep.

I have had sleep studies to rule out apnea etc. Besides minimal sleep in these studies, all they told me was that I didn't go any deeper than stage 2 sleep.

insomnia has been one of my worst symptoms. I have seen many people given whatever med for insomnia and doses increased over time by their doctor. When it comes time to get off for whatever reason, mostly stopped working, they have a lot of problems with withdrawal issues. While working with my doc he is happy for me to alternate between meds to avoid increasing doses and trying to avoid tolerance.

I understand what seroquel is indicated for and think its a much safer alternative than using ever increasing doses of benzos.

If you have a cure for insomnia I'm all ears.

This is absolutely correct. I take a therapeutic dose (350mg PD) for a constellation of severe anxiety disorders. It has been used off-label for insomnia for quite a few years. However, I'm aware that dosing guidelines have changed regarding low-dose administration. It is not recommended that people take 25mg doses on an intermittent basis. From my own understanding it is now recommended that people take a minimum ceiling of 50mg pd and to take it regularly - whether this precludes the use of Seroquel for intermittent insomnia, I'm unsure. But I have seen this information on several source websites.

Best

Miffy ^_^

[gt35r]

@Heapsreal, I have taken it for sleep - nothing wrong with intermittent low dosing for insomnia, thats a bit like saying you must drink a whole bottle of wine not just a glass Bipolar treatment would be a totally different story.
Anyway I can say that drinking plenty of water is a must, I could hardly pee the next morning after taking it so perhaps dehydration could be the cause of your discomfort?

[oldgrayman]

to heapsreal- Years ago I was administered an anti-psychotic drug- Haldol (I feel I was mistreated, I just wanted to withdraw from PCP and that's what they gave me). It was horrible my muscles all cramped and the nurse came running with an injection of cogentin, a muscle relaxer. I learned that stiffness and restless legs were a side effect of many of the older anti-psychotics and cogentin had to be given along with them in many cases (like mine). Don't know anything about the newer drugs like seroquel, but you may mention to your doctor the stiffness. Maybe you need a muscle relaxer to take with it?

[vytis drakona]

does anyone else have these issues and does anyone know any tricks that can help avoid this increase in pain and stiffness from it. I really would like to use it for longer periods of time so i can take longer breaks from benzos?? i also have this problem with trazadone, doxepine and phenergan.

I definitely know what you mean about leg muscle issues on Seroquel. I've been prescribed it on and off throughout the years for insomnia and BPD. The leg cramps happen to me, too, especially with higher doses - it feels almost like restless legs or opiate withdrawal. Never bothered me too much, though, because even if I'd be kicking my legs a bit I'd still be knocked out after a couple minutes of lying down.

BTW, 25-50mg is totally fine to be prescribed for insomnia. That's an extremely low dose, as I've heard of some people with BPD/schizophrenia being prescribed 800+mg a day!

A few tricks that might work to aid leg muscle pain/cramps:
-Exercise/stretch your leg muscles daily
-Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water
-Some herbal relaxants such as chamomile tea, valerian root, or kava can help
-Take an anti-inflammatory with the seroquel (such as naproxen, ibuprofen, etc.)
-Take Magnesium supplements (you can find these in pharmacies or vitamin stores)
-Take Potassium supplements (also found in pharmacies/vitamin stores)
-Eat foods high in magnesium: See which foods here.
-Eat foods high in potassium: See which foods here.

Remember, these methods may or may not work for you - they've worked for me, and others have vouched for them as well; however, it is important to make sure with your doctor that they are okay (especially with the herbal supplements).

[rollo89]

I've taken seroquel in the past for insomnia. Didn't work very good and I felt off mentally for a week when I stopped. I now alternate ambien and trazodone for insomnia

[AlaskanSkimo]

Quetiapine -Seroquel really need to be taking under the direction of a doctor..
There are side effects that may occur that can not be reversed if not monitered correctly...
Please use caution.. If your taking it on your own..

[Sassypat]

Quetiapine -Seroquel really need to be taking under the direction of a doctor..
There are side effects that may occur that can not be reversed if not monitered correctly...
Please use caution.. If your taking it on your own..

Please be careful on this drug. It is easy to OD on it.

[baz]

serequel is highly abused and severely sedating in high doses.so much so that in the green isle they use high doses to sedate prisoners because there is a strict no benzo policy in all the prisons. i was put on a very high dose of serequel when i was hospitalized for severe insomnia. withdrawing cold tukey was a nightmare. i still have some and from time to time use it for insomnia.it will knock you on your ass on the right dose,but it never provides quality sleep and the side effects that all have mentioned are just not worth it in my opinion.however there is no harm in taking a small dose now and again when you are in a bad way.you can OD on anything,even water when you over do it.a small dose of serequel,i think not.side effects will always come with medications.we have all read the huge leaflet they leave in those boxes.

[chris100]

I'm sure I have said this before but Seroquil is a geat med for sleep. My psyc doctor put me on it a few years ago. It only worked for sleep, nothing else. It's pretty bad the only way I could get a benzo was to see my sleep doctor and she gave me Klonopin. She was a life saver for me. My psyc doctor at the time told me I had bipolar. He was soooooo wrong. It scares me what doctors think you have before they really listen to you. I guess it comes down to finding the right doctor who will listen to you and ask you questions about what you told them. That means they are listening to you. I would love to see my psyc and tell him off how wrong he was about me, but I'm over it and moved on. Good luck friends.

[Walty]

I definitely know what you mean about leg muscle issues on Seroquel. I've been prescribed it on and off throughout the years for insomnia and BPD. The leg cramps happen to me, too, especially with higher doses - it feels almost like restless legs or opiate withdrawal. Never bothered me too much, though, because even if I'd be kicking my legs a bit I'd still be knocked out after a couple minutes of lying down.

BTW, 25-50mg is totally fine to be prescribed for insomnia. That's an extremely low dose, as I've heard of some people with BPD/schizophrenia being prescribed 800+mg a day!

A few tricks that might work to aid leg muscle pain/cramps:
-Exercise/stretch your leg muscles daily
-Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water
-Some herbal relaxants such as chamomile tea, valerian root, or kava can help
-Take an anti-inflammatory with the seroquel (such as naproxen, ibuprofen, etc.)
-Take Magnesium supplements (you can find these in pharmacies or vitamin stores)
-Take Potassium supplements (also found in pharmacies/vitamin stores)
-Eat foods high in magnesium: See which foods here.
-Eat foods high in potassium: See which foods here.


Remember, these methods may or may not work for you - they've worked for me, and others have vouched for them as well; however, it is important to make sure with your doctor that they are okay (especially with the herbal supplements).

This is good advice.

If the natural stuff does not work you could try baclofen, a muscle relaxant. If you combine it with Seroquel you might be able to reduce the dose because baclofen also helps with sleep. Although I know a friend with similar problems as you mentioned at the beginning of this thread, taking this combination it is better to check with your doctor. In any case start low and work up to an effective dose.

[Walty]

I was searching for low dose Seroquel for a backup when my insomnia gets worse such as noise from building work preventing me from sleeping in in the morning.
I found Quitipin 25mg from Sun Pharma India. Has somebody experience with this brand? Is it comparable to the astraZeneca Seroquel?

Thanks in advance if somebody can answer.

[j2thalea]

I was searching for low dose Seroquel for a backup when my insomnia gets worse such as noise from building work preventing me from sleeping in in the morning.
I found Quitipin 25mg from Sun Pharma India. Has somebody experience with this brand? Is it comparable to the astraZeneca Seroquel?

Thanks in advance if somebody can answer.

Yep, I've tried it & it's identical IMO.

[Walty]

Thank you @j2thalea, this is reasuring.