Psychiatrist won't give me sleeping pills?

Hey all. Hope everyone is doing alright. I'm having a bit of an issue.

I've been seeing my psychiatrist for almost 2 years now. I've always had trouble with insomnia but now it's gotten so bad to the point where I'm crying because I cannot sleep. I'm lucky if I sleep a straight 2-3 hours.

My psychiatrist knows my insomnia is bad but he stated a long time ago, "I don't give sleeping pills".

The problem is that I've been trying natural remedies (like Valerian Root) and sleeping aids (like Zquil, Sleepinal, etc.; they don't work, by the way) to help me fall asleep and every time I tell my doctor about them he ALWAYS SAYS, "Oh, that's bad for you". So I had to flat out ask him, "Well, what do you recommend?" And he said, "Try Valerian Root. I've never tried it but I heard it works". It doesn't work for me. It worked for the first couple of days and now it doesn't.

I am so upset because I just cannot sleep and I have no idea why he won't give me sleeping pills. He won't give me an explanation as to why but he has known since the very beginning that I have insomnia. He never offered any suggestions, just kept criticizing what I was using, until I flat out asked him for a suggestion.

I don't know what to do now and I honestly feel like he just isn't taking me seriously. I am just feeling so alone because I spoke on here about the problem with my therapist and my psychiatrist but I'm just so lost. I'm trying to find a new place that will accept my insurance but I'm not having any luck...

Anyways, I was just wondering if it was common for psychiatrists to NOT give out sleeping pills or sleeping aids to patients who have had insomnia? If it's common, what's the reason? I can only think of the fact that they may be worried the patient may overdose...

Any help would be much appreciated...Thank you

Just to clarify since I'm seeing these questions a lot: I have a therapist but she doesn't know what to do. She suggested melatonin and that didn't work for me (tablet or liquid form). My psychiatrist gave me Trazodone for my anxiety and it gave me the worst migraine of my life. I don't drink alcohol. I don't even drink soda. I just drink water because it helps with my acne. Figured I'd mention this since I keep seeing these questions asked, hehe.

Have you ever had a sleep study done? I think they look at more than just breathing issues when you sleep. I know when I had my sleep study done (which was for breathing issues) I had to answer lots of other neurological questions regarding movement, sleep walking, .. ect.

What about a general practitioner if you use mds - around here, most are super willing to hand out prescriptions for sleeping drugs from what I hear? When I get really bad insomnia - I use pot which puts me to sleep and does not involve the permission of an md.

I had the same thought as stopdog-ask your GP.

Maybe the psychiatrist could try an antidepressant and trazadone or one or the other. ADs somtimes help sleep and trazadone is an antidepressant that is used for sleep in small doses. Gabapentin or Amtryptline. Or do you already take an AD? Maybe a medication you are taking is aggravating the insomnia.

But I think your Dr. is dangerous in the way he practices. Getting that little sleep damages your body and makes depression and anxiety worse. You're body slowly breaks down. I agree he is minimizing your situation and that's not good.

If you can't see any other doctor, log your sleep times for a few weeks. Take it back to the doctor. If he refuses to help you, file a complaint against him, with his supervisor or however that works where you are. Lack of sleep is a true medical problem and like i said, can cause your body to slowly break down as that is when your brain produces certain hormones (eg growth hormone for muscle repair). It's a horrible state to be in. It also can put you in an anxiety spiral that can be impossible to climb out of.

Yes, some won't prescribe them because they think some are addictive (I personally don't see them any more addictive than an antidepressant). However, I've gotten dependent on them for sleep, but not addicted. It doesn't matter which ones whether they were scheduled or not. They are not good at all for long term. But going 2-3 hours every night is likely worse for anyone than taking a potential addictive pill.

Epsom salt baths before bed can help a lot (infuses magnesium directly in your body). A strong magnesium supplement. Melatonin helps for some. You can also do CBT for yourself. Sleep hygeine rules (google). Youtube deep sleep recordings, etc.

Also some gentle stretching or yoga before bed, and exercise during the day if possible. And eating something non-caffeinated, non-sugary before bed.

Insomnia can sure be h3ll. Did you try melatonin? Might be worth a shot for immediate relief.

Most doctors give out this information, but in case not, passing along. This stuff, is by no means, usually a cure for really bad insomnia; as bad as your's is.

It's supposed to have exercise too-not to exercise about 3 hours before sleep. ATAT mentioned excercise in the day.

Sleep has always been one of my biggest issues, and this stuff hadn't helped me very much. I do have a problem with not using the phone/internet before sleep, which can stop natural melatonin from being created.

Might be worth a try.

There are light boxes that may help regulate sleep too. And staying on a regular schedule.

This is such a huge issue for me, so I can really relate. But hope i'm not bombarding you with too much. Good luck

This is a bit of a tangent, but is it possible he's been cautioned (or whatever the term might be, if there is one) for over-prescribing? His response just doesn't make much sense otherwise--unless sleeping pills are addictive and you have a vulnerability to that. I mean, their job is to dispense meds basically, so he response just doesn't add up.

Yeah, Trazadone...ask about it. It's an older AD that is sedating and frequently used for insomnia. It's not addictive.

My pdoc tried various sleeping pills with me, but they didn't work at all.

Some doctors won't prescribe any scheduled drugs. I think they're jerks who don't want to take the least little chance on their reputation to help their patients. It's obvious he doesn't believe or care about the seriousness of your sleep problems. If that's his "reasoning" then maybe he'll prescribe you a small dose of Seroquel (25-100mg). It works beautifully and it's not a controlled drug. Keep looking for a different psychiatrist though.

(I wouldn't think a general doctor would prescribe sleeping pills when he knows--or guesses--that your psychiatrist won't).

Agree with that is often the case.

I thought of the possiblity of abilify or seroquel for sleep. Both my psychiatrist and i thought it was a bad idea to start APs because of how they effect blood sugar. I know some are helped by it a lot, but even a small dose can cause a weight gain.

In my experience, GPs always have prescribed me sleeping pills when I asked until I started going to a psychiatrist, then they wanted me to get them from the pdoc. It was like that with several GPs.

Out of curiosity, do you drink alcohol? And if so, does your p-doc know this? My former p-doc refused to prescribe me any benzodiazepenes (to take as needed) for my anxiety because of the fact that I do drink alcohol regularly, even though I told her I wouldn't mix the two. (I eventually got her to prescribe me like 8 of the smallest dose of Ativan and haven't even used them.) I know you're not specifically looking for those, but I think some sleeping pills aren't safe with alcohol either, so that's a possible reason for the p-doc's refusal to prescribe them. I think they worry about liability/lawsuits.

I agree that you could ask about trazodone or Gabapentin. I also briefly took Trileptal (for bipolar II), but it made me incredibly sleepy (same with Gabapentin--haven't tried Trazodone). So maybe a small dose of something like that would help? And it wouldn't be a technical "sleeping pill."

In the U.K., GPs are VERY cautious about giving out sleeping tablets, because similarly to opiate-based drugs, it has been proven that your body develops tolerance so you need more and more to achieve the same effect, and also that they are very addictive and the side effects can be horrible and as bad or worse than the original problem when you stop taking them.

Do you have a T who you can work with on the insomnia issue? It may be that if you were able to do some therapy, e.g. some CBT- type work around reducing the anxiety about not sleeping, then you could use a drug for a very short-term way to help you to break the cycle. I have done this in the past. Insomnia is often linked to anxiety, and therapy can be helpful to learn ways to reduce anxiety.

Hey there, I tried melatonin (tablet and liquid form) and Trazedone. None of those worked and Trazedone gave me the worst migraine of my life. My psychiatrist actually gave me Trazedone to help with my anxiety and it was awful.

Nope, I don't drink alcohol. I don't even drink soda. I just drink water. And I also took Trazodone and it gave me a horrible migraine.

Yea, I have a therapist and she knows about my insomnia but she doesn't know what to do. I think that's the case anyway because she's never offered any suggestions besides melatonin, which didn't work for me.

Honestly, I think the sleep study is a great idea. I'm going to look into that right away. Would you happen to know how I can have one done? Would I have to ask my GP? I just changed insurances so I have to find a new GP. -sighs-

I should look into asking my GP! I just have to choose a new GP because I changed insurances and I switched medical centers.

I actually tried Trazodone. He gave it to me for my anxiety and it was an awful experience. I got a huge migraine that literally almost put me to tears. I also agree that he's minimizing my issues. He has a habit of saying statements that are invalidating. I actually think my psychiatrist is one of the directors of the counseling center I go to. -sighs- My anxiety is getting worse with my lack of sleep....

I'm on Lamictal for my depression. I tried antidepressants but they didn't work, and the ones that did work gave me horrible side effects (like seizures).

I'll try the epsom bath idea. That sounds really interesting and easy to try.

I actually do exercise during the day. I exercise for 3-4 hours every week. But even on the days that I DO exercise, I still have insomnia. I may try doing yoga before bed. And what do you suggest I eat? I try not to eat much before I go to bed. If I'm a little hungry, I just eat some crackers or slices of toast.

Thanks for the good luck! My psychiatrist never gave me this information so it's super helpful! I've heard of light boxes used for depression but I didn't know they could help with sleep too. And yepp, I exercise throughout the week, about 3-4 hours per week, but during the day, not before I sleep. It doesn't help with the sleeping but it does help me feel proud of myself for doing some activity. ^__^;;

I also think his response doesn't add up at all. It makes no sense. Maybe the over-prescribing thing is true. I'm not sure how that works but I'll google it. I think he's cautious because the first medication I ever took (Wellbutrin) gave me seizures. He's been a bit cautious ever since then. He's an odd man. I've had issues with him since the beginning but it's so hard finding a psychiatrist that my insurance will pay for.

I'll suggest Seroquel to him...I'm afraid he'll come up with some issue as to why I can't use it, though. He seems to have backlash with my suggestions. He's been worried ever since I had seizures on the first medication he ever gave me (Wellbutrin). It worked wonderfully and I wouldn't have gotten the seizures if he didn't raise the doasage for no reason (other than having sleep paralysis and he thought that would help).

When I get a new GP, I'll definitely ask them. That seems to be the consensus among other members in this thread too. It may definitely help me! I'm honestly surprised my psychiatrist hasn't suggested Abilify or Seroquel because those sound popular and as if they may help with my insomnia and anxiety (I'm assuming). But he just won't give me anything to sleep...If it's strictly for sleep he won't give me anything...

I use Doxepin for sleep but it is an antidepressant so it might not work for you.

I was going to suggest asking your GP too. I have trouble sleeping and all of the over the counter meds seem to work opposite for me (they keep me up or make me anxious). I used Seroquel for years and it was the only thing that worked for me. Even the prescription sleeping pills worked opposite on me and kept me up. A small dose of seroquel can work wonders for sleep. Good luck and hope you get some relief soon.

I tried Trazadone for sleep as well, and hated it.

I've been on Seroquel for almost 2 years for sleep, and it has worked wonders. I really think your psychiatrist is bizarre for refusing to help with this issue? Can you try another one?

Also, a GP might help, though mine won't give me sleep aids knowing I see a pdoc.

My previous psych prescribed me a variety of things for insomnia- trazodone, seroquel, and ambien when nothing over the counter helped (e.g. benadryl, melatonin, and somethi else I forget). Sadly, none of the prescription stuff helped either :/ In my case, it was my SSRIs causi the sleep probs, which is why I went off of them for a year after trying different ones. (Eventually found one that worked and didn't keep me up). Sorry for the details, but basically it was super easy for me to get sleep meds. I'd really try someone else if OTC remedies don't work.

He really should have given you information on sleep hygiene. .

Trazadone can sometimes make you feel like you're head is stuffed with cotton or a hangover, heaches, etc., but moreso at larger doses. What dose did he start you at? I am sensitive to meds so I have my pdoc write smaller doses sometimes. With Trazadone, i took 50 mg and could add one if I wanted to. If your pdoc prescribed you Trazadone for anxiety, he might have given you dose larger than 50, just a guess. Which would have made you feel like crap.

Not trying to talk you in to it-but i do think Trazadone is worth trying if you've never tried the smaller dose. It is one of those tricky ones, where different doses work for different people, and it doesn't always work consistently. When it works, it can work really good, but this one I'd give about 2 weeks.

Have you had seizures with other meds? Wellbutrin is known to have a higher chance of seizures than many of the ADs. Good to be cautious, but considering that one has a higher seizure threshold, i wonder if it's also having trouble with side effects all around.

I'm also surprised to he's never added seroquel or abilify.

Do you guys mind sharing what dose you are on, how it affects you, side effects?

I'm hating ambien right now...

i missssss ambien, but i had an episode where I went to bed with my regular dose, woke up in the morning covered in puke, 5 more ambiens missing, half a bottle of bourbon gone, my cat outside (who lives inside), and bruises all over my body :eek

Anyway. I was on 300mg of Seroquel, but it made me lethargic all day. I've been on 150mg for over a year, and I rarely have a night with little sleeping.