Hi all. I have tried multiple sleep aid prescriptions. Ambien has been found to be the best but, for me it lasts about 2 hours and a 1/4 mg of Xanax is necessary to maintain some sedation with continued broken sleep. All in all I get about 4 fours of broken sleep a night. A prescription sleep med called Silenor has been on the market since 2010 and is dosed at 3 and 6 mg. It's active chemical is doxepin which is an H1 histamine antagonist. Doxepin is also used in an antidepressant called Sinequan but at a 25 - 150 mg daily dosage. Sinequan is generally prescribed with graduated dosages and when stopped must be decreased slowly. Silenor's patent is for 3-6 mg and prescribed ONLY for sleep. Sinequan is not prescribed at low dosages.

As my treatment is provided by the VA I am unable to get Silenor due to the cost of appx. $200 a month. Doxepin can be prescribed at 10 mg and comes in a gel capsule.

Has anyone used doxepin at this low dosage and experienced an improvement their sleep?

In addition I have moderate apnea. I do not use the CPAP as I cannot get somnolence so the mask will keep me awake even with the Ambien. My goal is to get somnolence with the doxepin and start using the CPAP.

Thanks