Benzo free, when does sleep restore itself

[[...]]

I've been benzo free almost four weeks. I've a night here and there where I slept OK. Most nights I've needed something to facilitate sleep (unisom, Alteril, an occasional ambien).

 

My whole benzo disaster started with taking xanax for sleep. Had I done estrogen replacement for menopausal-related insomnia, I might've never needed the xanax.

 

Now I want to restore my sleep without aids. (Am on estrogen replacement now.) Just wondering when the natural sleep might return. I'm thinking of sleeping several nights separately from my husband (he has sleep issues, too!), and letting nature take its course.

 

However, another thought is that it may be too soon for my post-benzo brain to settle down into natural sleep. Thoughts? Opinions? Advice?

 

So nice to get support and help from people who really know.

[[Be...]]

Hi Yram,

 

It took many months for my sleep to gradually improve.  And, as in common in benzo recovery, sometimes you take two steps forward and then three steps back.  I am now 11 months benzo free and my sleep is almost back to 100% normal.  And I can nap again!!!

 

Hang in there.

[[Mi...]]

Hi Yram,

 

It took many months for my sleep to gradually improve.  And, as in common in benzo recovery, sometimes you take two steps forward and then three steps back.  I am now 11 months benzo free and my sleep is almost back to 100% normal.  And I can nap again!!!

 

Hang in there.

 

I agree with Bev.  I am 8 months off tomorrow, and last night I slept almost 8 hours straight for the first time in over 4 years.

 

 

[[St...]]

I'm pretty much the same as Bevoir. It took me several months to get decent sleep, but it's slowly improved over time. The best part now is that the quality of sleep is great!

 

I'd try to avoid sleep aids as much as possible if you can, but some have tried L-Tryptophan (or having something like a little banana or turkey before bed) or melatonin to help with sleep. It will come back, it may take some time but I think it's a lot better than benzo sleep.

 

Be well

 

Star

 

 

[[we...]]

I'm 4 1/2 months off and I've gone from 3 1/2 average to 5 hrs now.  All over the place.  Ashton says 6-12 months.

[[...]]

Thanks everyone! The things we know that doctors don't know could fill an encyclopedia!

 

I'm glad someone mentioning napping. People tell me, go home and take a nap. I can't nap. At most I'll fall off for a minute and come right back awake. Oh well. It's good to hear that sleep will improve eventually. Lost sleep is a piece of cake compared to the throes of withdrawal. This is nothing!!

[[...]]

My sleep normalized around 9 weeks benzo free.  I still had the weird sleep starts for quite awhile after that and still very rarely get them now at 14 months off.

[[Be...]]

 

I'm glad someone mentioning napping. People tell me, go home and take a nap. I can't nap. At most I'll fall off for a minute and come right back awake.

 

That is what happened to me during my taper and early recovery, and it royally SUCKED!  I had always enjoyed the odd weekend nap pre-benzos, so when I was having trouble sleeping during my taper and the ability to nap was stolen from me I was beyond angry and frustrated.  But, a few months ago, I was able to enjoy my first nap in over a year, and now I find I can take one most weekends - YAY! Healing really does happen.

[[ro...]]

Hi Yram:

 

I am a little ahead of you - 9 weeks off.  My sleep is still interrupted many times a nite, but I am getting back to sleep.  I've been logging the good nites (>5 hrs. of sleep) vs. poor nites of sleep (<5 hours of sleep), and the past two weeks, I've had only 1-2 nites of poor sleep.  This week has started with 2 nites of poor sleep with 1 bad withdrawal SXS nite.  I feel like I'm slowly creeping up there in good nites though.  :sleepy:

 

I do take half Doxylamine Succinate (tapering that now), and some melatonin.  I think the biggest aid that has helped with sleep is melatonin.  But I want to get back to sleeping naturally.  I totally agree with you - going without sleep is not going to kill us. 

 

I went on and off HRT to improve sleep.  I have been off HRT now for two years and finally figured out the interdosing withdrawals from a Lunesta here and there started this whole crappo benzo mess. 

 

Let's enjoy our post benzo freedom and hang on for our lives!  I'm glad to hear other postings about their sleep coming back -- yahoo!!  :yippee:

Take care,

Rocko

[[...]]

Thanks Rocko. Think I'll do a unisom tonight. Need a good night at this point.

[[am...]]

10 months off and sleeping 8 hours most nights, always broken, usually get back to sleep pretty quickly.

 

You might want to avoid taking ambien as it acts on the same receptors as true benzos.