Doxepin and Sleep Study

[lliann]

I am finally having some success with finding a mask style. Despite my deviated septum, I have had some success with nasal pillows (the new airfit10 is great) and the wisp and tapap.

That said I am scheduled for a sleep study this week. In the last month, I was prescribed Doxepin for puritis. I itch a lot for various reasons.(most we haven't identified yet) I started on 10-mg and it really takes care of the itching great and for that reason I am somewhat willing to suffer the side affects.

The side affects are vivid dreams, dry mouth, some restless leg. But mostly extreme sleepiness. I sleep great on this. I can actually sleep for at least 4 hours straight, sometimes more. Which with the apnea I have not been able to do so for a very long time.. So with the new success of the masks and the doxepin, I feel like I am finally getting some sleep (and the ahi is below 10 and lately below 5) But I am groggy for at least 1/2 the day. Thats the side affect the is impacting me the most. But still its a trade off of quality of life for quality of life.

My question is should I take a sleep study on the doxepin? I could see where it would influence results. I would like to know what a new mask style alone could result in, yet this dosage of Doxepin is as low as I can go without going generic (and going from $9 copay 3.months to over $200 a month(wouldn't meet the preauth reqs.) does seem to be helping me is 2 ways that are important.

Anyone have this experience with this or could share thoughts on this with me? Thank you. I have a vpap and I believe the setting is 15/10

[Lukie]

I take Doxepin for sleep. I took 10 mg of Doxepin for both my sleep study and titration. I think my sleep doc said it might shorten REM but it won't hurt your study if you are looking for sleep apnea. If you can do without, fine. I cannot sleep without it.

[Guest]

I take Doxepin for sleep. I took 10 mg of Doxepin for both my sleep study and titration. I think my sleep doc said it might shorten REM but it won't hurt your study if you are looking for sleep apnea. If you can do without, fine. I cannot sleep without it.

I can do without it as I have not been on it that long and I went off it several days because of a misunderstanding. But I suspect it has enough of a half life to be in my system for a few extra days. I already know I have sleep apnea. I think this is a way to measure progress or what my rates should be..if they have changed.

[Sir NoddinOff]

On the advice of my GP, for my last sleep study, I took trazadone, a hypnotic med (sleep inducing) that is similar to most tricyclic anti-depression meds, including Doxepin. Trazodone is classified as an atypical antidepressant, but it shares many of the properties of tricyclic antidepressants ( amitriptyline, clomipramine, desipramine, doxepin , imipramine, nortriptyline, protriptyline and trimipramine ). It is often prescribed as a short term occasional usage drug for treating insomnia. Anyway, I have trouble getting to sleep at home and by the time I'm at the sleep lab and all hooked up, I'm usually in a tense state, to say the least. The only problem I found with trazadone (and this happened in the sleep study) is that its hypnotic sleep inducing effect only lasts for one and a half hours after it hits your bloodstream. If you don't go to sleep during this short term hypnotic action, then you simply lay there spaced out and groggy, but unable to get to sleep very easily (like I did in my last sleep study). I don't know if Doxepin has exactly the same effect but it might be worth checking into, at least in terms of a sleep study situation. I've also heard amitriptyline has a similar short term hypnotic time span.

Ambien is the usual go-to drug for a sleep study and virtually all sleep doctors will Rx it for that purpose, plus it has the least impact on the test results. When I told my sleep doctor about the problems with my last test he said 'double up' your dosage of ambien (generic) if you have to... but then I'm physically a big guy, therefore in your case be sure to use caution. I'm not a doctor and this is just personal observation and not medical advice. Consult your doctor.

[lliann]

On the advice of my GP, for my last sleep study, I took trazadone, a hypnotic (sleep inducing) is similar to most tricyclic anti-depression meds, including Doxepin. Trazodone is classified as an atypical antidepressant, but it shares many of the properties of tricyclic antidepressants ( amitriptyline , clomipramine , desipramine , doxepin , imipramine , nortriptyline , protriptyline , and trimipramine ). It is often prescribed as a short term occasional usage drug for treating insomnia. Anyway, I have trouble getting to sleep at home and by the time I'm at the sleep lab and all hooked up, I'm usually in a tense state, to say the least. The only problem I found with trazadone (and this happened in the sleep study) is that its hypnotic sleep inducing effect only lasts for one and a half hours after it hits your bloodstream. If you don't go to sleep during this short term hypnotic action, then you simply lay there spaced out and groggy, but unable to get to sleep very easily (like I did in my last sleep study). I don't know if Doxepin has exactly the same effect but it might be worth checking into, at least in terms of a sleep study situation. I've also heard Remeron has a similar short term hypnotic time span. Ambien is the usual go-to drug for a sleep study and virtually all sleep doctors will Rx it for that purpose, plus it has the least impact on the test results. When I told my sleep doctor about the problems with my last test he said 'double up' your dosage of ambien (generic) if you have to... but then I'm physically a big guy, therefore in your case be sure to use caution. I'm not a doctor and this is just personal observation and not medical advice. Consult your doctor.

Thank you. That is very helpful. Doxepin is in the same class. I never had a sleep issue of falling asleep. If anything, I feel asleep too well. But staying asleep was a different matter. At my age now (65) there are lots of reasons why I wake. But I was being treated for constant itching and in a low dosage doxepin can treat that. The sleep is a bonus. The day after sleep hangover..not so much. I am currently weighing quality of life issues to determine if I will stay on the doxepin. The only negative is the day after drowsiness, so I suspect I will stay with it. It I do, then it would seem logical to measure me using it. It was interesting to hear drs will prescribe a sleep aid. I was worried I would go into such a deep sleep, I might forget to breathe. But now that I am finally ok with a mask, that has perhaps solved itself.

[Jay Aitchsee]

LLiann, Silenor is a prescription drug which is approved for the treatment of insomnia. It is simply doxepin in 3 and 6 mg formulation. If you need a small Rx dose of doxepin, Silenor might do. I tried the 3 mg dose, a sample from my Dr, but I found even in this small dose, it left me too groggy the next day.
It would seem you could just spit your present 10 mg pills for 5 mg dosage to see if it would work for you.
Jay

[49er]

On the advice of my GP, for my last sleep study, I took trazadone, a hypnotic med (sleep inducing) that is similar to most tricyclic anti-depression meds, including Doxepin. Trazodone is classified as an atypical antidepressant, but it shares many of the properties of tricyclic antidepressants ( amitriptyline, clomipramine, desipramine, doxepin , imipramine, nortriptyline, protriptyline and trimipramine ). It is often prescribed as a short term occasional usage drug for treating insomnia. Anyway, I have trouble getting to sleep at home and by the time I'm at the sleep lab and all hooked up, I'm usually in a tense state, to say the least. The only problem I found with trazadone (and this happened in the sleep study) is that its hypnotic sleep inducing effect only lasts for one and a half hours after it hits your bloodstream. If you don't go to sleep during this short term hypnotic action, then you simply lay there spaced out and groggy, but unable to get to sleep very easily (like I did in my last sleep study). I don't know if Doxepin has exactly the same effect but it might be worth checking into, at least in terms of a sleep study situation. I've also heard amitriptyline has a similar short term hypnotic time span.

Ambien is the usual go-to drug for a sleep study and virtually all sleep doctors will Rx it for that purpose, plus it has the least impact on the test results. When I told my sleep doctor about the problems with my last test he said 'double up' your dosage of ambien (generic) if you have to... but then I'm physically a big guy, therefore in your case be sure to use caution. I'm not a doctor and this is just personal observation and not medical advice. Consult your doctor.

Personally, as a female, I haven't noticed this side effect of feeling impaired the next day on 10mg but women who are considering this ambien for a sleep study or anything else might want to look at this sixty minutes report on how advisable it may be to start with 5mg instead of 10mg. The reason is that studies have shown that many women who took 10mg had a much higher level of the dose in their body the next day vs. men who didn't.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/sex-matters ... fferently/

[lliann]

My allergy doctor did prescribed a lower dosage of Doxepin upon my request. The insurance company would not pay for it. Wanted me to go through some preauth hoops that had nothing to do with nothing. The cash price is over $200 for a 30 day supply. I can't split the the doxepin 10 as its a capsule.