Psycho-Babble Medication Thread 499238

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Lunesta addictive?

Posted by SadDoggie on May 17, 2005, at 22:55:27

I went to my psychiatrist today and asked about Lunesta which I would like to start taking on a more or less permanent basis because my sleep cycle is horribly affected from my depression. I stay up at night and sleep during the day a lot of times. I wish I could control it but I can't. I was under the impression that Lunesta wasn't addictive but he said it was and that it was the same as Ambien, and in the same class of drugs. I've read everywhere the complete opposite and that it isn't addictive and also doesn't stop working if you keep taking. I think he may be wrong because he says he hasn't started prescribing it, so he probably hasn't had a rep visit him and give him the correct facts on it. Is he wrong about this?

 

Re: Lunesta addictive? » SadDoggie

Posted by Jakeman on May 18, 2005, at 0:01:20

In reply to Lunesta addictive?, posted by SadDoggie on May 17, 2005, at 22:55:27

> I went to my psychiatrist today and asked about Lunesta which I would like to start taking on a more or less permanent basis because my sleep cycle is horribly affected from my depression. I stay up at night and sleep during the day a lot of times. I wish I could control it but I can't. I was under the impression that Lunesta wasn't addictive but he said it was and that it was the same as Ambien, and in the same class of drugs. I've read everywhere the complete opposite and that it isn't addictive and also doesn't stop working if you keep taking. I think he may be wrong because he says he hasn't started prescribing it, so he probably hasn't had a rep visit him and give him the correct facts on it. Is he wrong about this?

I've been taking Lunesta for about 3 weeks nightly (in addition to Elavil). I would not be surprised if I developed a tolerance to Lunesta but that hasn't happened yet. It has been approved by the FDA for long term use, while Ambien has not.
I'm not sure if that really means anything- many people take Ambien long term as well. I don't know how Lunesta compares to Ambien in terms of it's class or mechanism of action (maybe Lar or Ed will comment). I've taken Ambien before and for now I prefer Lunesta.

My former psychiatrist was never up to speed on on new meds and never liked to prescribe sleeping pills. I had to ditch him and go to another doctor who knew something about sleep disorders
(who gave me samples of Luesta).

best wishes- J

 

Re: Lunesta addictive?

Posted by med_empowered on May 18, 2005, at 1:07:09

In reply to Re: Lunesta addictive? » SadDoggie, posted by Jakeman on May 18, 2005, at 0:01:20

Hey! Lunesta and that other new sleeping pill...Sepracor (?)...are in the FDA's Schedule IV of controlled substances. This class by definition means there is a minimal risk of addiction and what not compared to therapeutic benefits, but there is still a potential for problems (mostly withdrawal problems, not really addiction per se), so docs still have to follow the 5 refills in 6months rule, blah blah blah. Anyway, my shrink has me taking Atarax all the time for sleep, with Ambien as needed; we talked about it, and he opted to go with something well-established but still very, very safe. My problem with the new pills, which I expressed to him, is that they're being marketed so heavily with no really good post-marketing data available yet. I know, this sounds overcautious, but look at your psychiatric history here---Quaaludes, those notorious downers of the '70s, were put into Schedule V (no restrictions, but RX required) by the FDA in 1965 because there didn't seem to be any indication they caused problems. Well, the FDA screwed up, to put it lightly. By the early 70s, Quaaludes were crazy popular and kids were buying them for 3 bucks a pop at their middle schools and high schools. As per usual, docs and the FDA took a while to a) recognize the problem b)realize their mistakes and c) address the issue. It wasn't until 1980 that Quaaludes were put into Schedule II (no refills) and it wasn't until 1984 that Quaaludes were removed entirely from the market in the US.

 

Re: Lunesta addictive? » med_empowered

Posted by ed_uk on May 18, 2005, at 6:39:54

In reply to Re: Lunesta addictive?, posted by med_empowered on May 18, 2005, at 1:07:09

Hi!

>My problem with the new pills, which I expressed to him, is that they're being marketed so heavily with no really good post-marketing data available yet.

Eszopiclone isn't really 'new' as such. Zopiclone has been popular in many countries since the 1980s.

Ed.

 

Re: Lunesta addictive?

Posted by Phillipa on May 18, 2005, at 18:38:02

In reply to Re: Lunesta addictive? » med_empowered, posted by ed_uk on May 18, 2005, at 6:39:54

They say it's not addictive. But I took a l0mg ambien along with my l0mg of valium and still woke up in a few hours. Fondly, Phillipa


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