|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
Posted by elizzzzz on August 10, 2005 at 06:21:36:In Reply to: Xyrem reality please! posted by prop on August 03, 2005 at 11:22:03:
Here's a brief summary of my experience with Xyrem:
-It's great for C. I had tried imipramine before and it helped, but didn't make it go away completely. Xyrem did. It also helps the EDS tremendously. I still have sleep attacks and they may be as frequent as before but they don't last as long and they're not as severe. I also used to have HH almost every night and I don't think I've had any since I started the Xyrem.
-It MAKES me sleep and when I wake up in the morning I actually feel like I slept (this feeling was foreign to me before I started Xyrem).
-It makes me feel like I am very, very, very drunk. If I have to wake up for any reason while I'm on it (e.g. if my son has a nightmare and starts crying), I feel and appear to be very drunk. I stumble and slur my speech and pass out within a few seconds if I sit down. I would say that Xyrem doesn't so much make me *sleep* as it does make me pass out. I'm very uncomfortable with this.
-The first night I took it, I actually woke up vomiting and I was nauseated for the first few hours of the day for about a week. That passed though.
-It really suppresses my appetite. When I do eat, I can only eat very small amounts before I feel full to the point of being ill.
-I've had a problem with acne ever since I started taking Xyrem. I'm 27 and I've always had very clear skin but now I look like the "before" picture in an ad for zit cream.
-I have to devote 9 hours a night to Xyrem. For me, when I wake up in the morning, I'm still feeling the effects and I can't walk around safely yet so I usually have to stay in bed for awhile until I'm able to get up.
-It makes me (more) depressed (than usual). It happened slowly, I guess, so I didn't notice it until I was out for a week (waiting for insurance to ok it). After about four or five days of not having it, I suddenly said to myself, "Hmmmm... this is strange. I'm not severely depressed. I wonder why that is?" Then I realized it was probably the Xyrem. And sure enough, after starting it up again, I'm back to feeling down. I started Effexor two days ago so hopefully that will help (and if I decide to stop the Xyrem, it should keep my C at bay).
-One thing I really don't like about it is that you're not supposed to eat for several hours before you take it and if you do, it *really* slows down the effects. I prefer to get most of my calories in the evening and this pretty much messes that up.
-I know all the literature says it's not habit forming and you shouldn't experience any withdrawal symptoms, but that has not been my experience. I went out of town one weekend and forgot to bring it with me and probably ended up sleeping a grand total of two hours the entire weekend. It was hellish. When I was out for a week I took Benadryl and Advil and that helped a little but I still had a lot of trouble sleeping.
So.... I think if you have the opportunity, you should try it. It really has reduced all of my N symptoms significantly. I've had some rather unpleasant side effects and I'm considering discontinuing it, but everyone's different.
|
Copyright ©1995-2005 Sleepnet.com., All rights reserved