Sleep on Lupron & Chemo with Nyquil - Advanced Prostate...

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Sleep on Lupron & Chemo with Nyquil

greatjohn profile image
38 Replies

hmmm. My night's have been NOT like they used to be. I used to sleep 7 to 8 hours straight and wake up ready to go....I've been lucky to get 2 or 3 hours in a row...wake up, pee...go back, get back to sleep...wake up 1 or 2 hours later...all night. I took NyQuil the other night...and I slept (I couldn't believe it) for 7 hours straight...woke up refreshed and happy ! Then I thought I should try Zquil because I probably didn't need the other ingredients...but, alas, Zquil did NOT work. I went back to NyQuil and the next night slept for 8 hours straight..I felt so good it was hard to contain. Sleep is a wonderful thing. Has anyone else had this effect / tried this ? / or know of any reason it's a bad idea to use a few nights a week to get a really good night's sleep?

sleep(full) in Ft. Lauderdale.....LOL...aka John

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greatjohn
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38 Replies
dockam profile image
dockam

Hey, I feel that it's way more important to get some full sleep than to worry about other meds. During my chemos/ ADT in the summer - I would have a hot flash and chemo can cause insomnia and I would lay there and try to get back to sleep. I did 25mg of diphenhydramine/Benadryl to help and it did for me.

Randy

esmitee profile image
esmitee

I feel you John. I'm on Lupton as well. I get up every night on the average of 4 times a night to pee... a lot of times more than 4. I have one of those little battery push to turn on lights on my vanity next to the toilet , because if I turn the room lights on.....I'm ON, and will lie there for hours till I fade back to sleep. I take Ambien. It don't knock you out, but it let's me go back to sleep quickly. In the last month, I got my NJ medical marijuana card. They have some nighttime strains that help for sleep. They work. I'm trying the medical marijuana to get myself off the opiates I've been taking for more than a year and a half for pain and fatigue.

Too early to tell if they will be a good substitute.

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn in reply to esmitee

Try a swig of Nyquil...it's been a miracle for me...and I tried cannabis oil....didn't work as well. Good luck . Sleep is a beautiful thing!

in reply to esmitee

I second the medical marijuana. It also reduces inflammation, pain and gives me a very excellent night's sleep when I use it.

in reply to esmitee

I have my medical marijuana card. The wife hates that I want to use this substance. I hope it provides a benefit to you.

in reply to

My wife promotes it.

herb_8789 profile image
herb_8789 in reply to esmitee

My son raised two plants for me this last year. I just started the cataratc kush and working very well so far. You might check out that strain.

herb

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn in reply to herb_8789

Thanks

npaulson1 profile image
npaulson1

Be wary of the pink benadryl. I took one every night for years to fight allergic reactions to vitamins -- itchy feet. My internist shifted me to fexofenidine, a non-drowsy antihistamine that also fought the itching, though it does nothing for sleep. After a few weeks off of benadryl, I noticed my memory had improved.

vandy69 profile image
vandy69

Hi greatjohn,

After a sleepwalking episode with Ambien, my Med Onc prescribed Xanax to take before bed. It has gone generic and works wonderfully for me!

Best wishes. Never Give In.

I think we all seem to have to get past this one bugger of a side effect. Those on ADT anyway. For me the best sleep I got was on Trazadone. My Primary suggested I try it, but it's primary use is for depression. But a dose at night makes for a fantastic sedative, with no drowsiness in the morning.

Joe

MrJack profile image
MrJack

Hi John, yes I can see that happening, I too suffered in the beginning , you will see that you can get used to it. I use a variety of meds and etc, without meds I would get up five to eight times a night, now with meds I get up about three times a night, if I knock myself out too good then I wet the bed. ha ha other than that, my continence is ok so far, but iv had some close calls with making it to the bathroom on time.

peace

jack

chestnut7718 profile image
chestnut7718 in reply to MrJack

It's hard to sleep well with bowel and bladder IC and briefs and plastic pants. I try to stay in bed even if brief needs changing. Changing in bed and keeping supplies next to bed helps. I use oxazepan to keep asleep. Sometimes pot helps too but I tend to wake up from sleep when the pot wears off. I suggest self managing if able. I also suggest a adult diaper pail which seals. They can hold 10-15 used briefs and contain odor really well.

Smoke a joint, pop a Valium and put a classic Cagney/Bogart gangster movie in your DVD player. Within an hour you will sleeping like a baby.

j-o-h-n profile image
j-o-h-n

My problem is my recurring nightly dream.

I dream that I'm sleeping.....

j-o-h-n Sunday 10/15/2017 5:21 PM EST

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn in reply to j-o-h-n

that sounds dreamy....lol.

in reply to j-o-h-n

I have dreamed that I couldn't fall asleep. Only to wake up to the realization that of course I was asleep.

paulofaus profile image
paulofaus

Hey John, while on chemo and for about 2 months after I didn't sleep well. Medicinal cannabis helped a lot. I tried sleeping pills, AXIT and Temtabs which do work, but they leave me feeling groggy and hungover in the morning. I will see if I can find the Nyquil you speak of as even though I'm now 4 months post-chemo, I tend to get to sleep easily, but I often wake up in the middle of the night and stay awake for 2 to 4 hours, which is a pain.

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn in reply to paulofaus

It's worth a try...it's been giving me up to 8 hours...straight through ! Let me know how it goes if you find it.

John

paulofaus profile image
paulofaus in reply to greatjohn

Will do. I live in Australia and a quick Google indicates it's not available here. I'll keep searching.

Try 20 mg before bed of melatonin. Also said to have cancer fighting quailties. Better for you then NyQuil .

in reply to

Also my Nat onco prescribed low dose Naltrexone 4.5 mg before bed along with the melatonin. Taken since the start. It’s used in high dose to help kick opioid addiction, but in low dose a cancer fighter. Not very costly either. Just saying.

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn in reply to

Thanks...it's never worked for me. I'm doing nothing, like last night...most of the time. I'm only using it(Nyquil) for bad days.

StephanB profile image
StephanB in reply to

Needless to say for those who take opiods for their cancer pain should abstain as it would send you in withdrawals. Just saying... :)

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn in reply to StephanB

Stephan...I'm not totally sure...but I don't think I have had "cancer" pain yet...I've been having "treatment" pain....I was diagnosed after closely (CLOSELY) monitoring my psa....and asking the doctor when he would do a biopsy. When we did, finally, I was Gleason 6. I had radiation and they said I had almost 100 % chance of everything going "peachy"...welll, alas, they were wrong. PSA kept climbing...very slowly and it was very low...but it never went below 2.0 (after radiation). Finally did bone scans and pet scans and all came back good...THEN did another biopsy and found cancer...gleason 7. I had HIFU (high intensity focused ultrasound~~at an out of pocket cost of 20K). After that my PSA still did NOT go down...THEN I had the new ultra-sensitive for prostate cancer Pet Scan done..and they found about 5 spots on bones of pelvis and about 5 lymph nodes in groin to be "involved". OUCH. I got here (at Stage 4) from what seemed like an unlikely "platform". Feel very unlucky some days...but I guess I'm glad they just got the pet scan approved and we found it had spread VERY early...so I was hoping that this "Stampede" type early HIT it with Lupron AND chemo ...right at the start...MIGHT be a "bright spot that will give me a few years of feeling .....normal?....again...LOL.

StephanB profile image
StephanB in reply to greatjohn

Wow, it's amazing all those procedures and testings (and cost!). It will be for the best. And it really sounds from where you are at that Stampede and ADT will be a good hit to those punk cells. Keep your spirit up John. You'll go through this, and you can ask away or vent all you want here. Never was big on group things all my life but really found this community great and it helped me a lot on many levels. :)

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn in reply to StephanB

Thanks, your reply just now helped already!

StephanB profile image
StephanB in reply to StephanB

Just for clarification, I meant [naltrexone] would send someone taking opioids for their pain in withdrawals. Otherwise, low-dose naltrexone has been known to help some with all sorts of pain and inflammatory disease, but still pretty unknown as a medical treatment.

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn in reply to StephanB

p.s. boy does the naltrexone sound interesting...I guess it's too late for me...since I've already been on Lupron for over 4 months now. I read it only works if you have NOT used hormone first.

in reply to greatjohn

Not too late. Doesn’t have anything to do with ADT and doesn’t interfere either.

in reply to StephanB

High dose naltrexone can be used to help kick opioid withdraws. Low dose I’m using to fight “C”.suggested to me by naturalpathic . I’ve been on it for over 2 yrs now.

StephanB profile image
StephanB in reply to

To be more accurate, high-dose naltrexone help in kicking opioid 'dependance'. Once on it, any opioid taken will not be felt by the patients because blocked by naltrexone.

Have been curious about LDN...have you felt or seen the difference in your body since 2 years of being on it, as far as you know?

in reply to StephanB

What’s LDN ?

StephanB profile image
StephanB in reply to

Low-dose naltrexone :)

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn in reply to StephanB

So far..so good with just a couple of drops of cannabis oil before bedtime. But I'll keep this in mind for future.

Thanks,

John

StephanB profile image
StephanB in reply to greatjohn

I hear you, cannabis oil works for me too ;)

greatjohn profile image
greatjohn

Sounds interesting. Thanks.

MelaniePaul profile image
MelaniePaul

Hi. My husband has never been a great sleeper but it is worse on Chemo now. He is taking Zorclone (Zimovane). A fantastic sleeping tablet in my opinion. Mel.

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