I can't get off of seroquel!!!!

Question

7 years ago I was in detox for alcohol and cocaine. I was having nightmares and the Doc. put me on 200mg of seroquel. It cut out the nightmares and made me feel like a zombie. I take cymbolta for depression. I am not bipolar. I gained a about 30 pounds. I can't sleep without seroquel. I tried to stop it and was up for six days! Being an addict I can't take much of anything. I have two years in AA so I will not take anything that will harm my recovery. My problem is that I want off this stuff and can't get off. I don't like the drugging feeling. I take 75mg now. I have gotton down to 25mg. My psyc. seems to feel it is ok for me to be on such a low dose. I hate this stuff! It makes me pig out at night when it hits and I know it affects me during the day giving me a drugged feeling. My hair started falling out recently. I wonder if seroquel has anything to do with it. I have tried several other sleep meds such as ambiem and nothing works!!! Does serquel make your bones sensitive? Just a little pressure on my bones hurts! Seroquel is a nightmare to try to get off of. I am addicted to it for sleep only. Do you go into rem sleep with seroquel? Has anyone had sinular problems with this med and found a way out? Please help!

Answer 1

I use to take serqual 400mg.  Now i take serqual 100mg.  I find it very hard to get off and I get hungry at night too. I have gain 30 pounds.  It does take the nightmares away. I tried to get off it to and I couldn't. But it takes time and you have to go slowly.

Answer 2

Seroquel is a freaking devil I was on it for 4 years. I have been off of it for almost 2 years. and I am slo and recovering drug addict... i have been in your exact spot... It is not a safe sleeping drug... some studies have lead to believe that it causes stomach canser also... I do believe that your side effect are a resault of it because my hair thined out horribly when I was on it and I noticedmy bones being briteler.. My advise would be to start weening your self off cut your pills into half and try taking those then if that works after a couple weeks maybe a month try cutting them into 4th and taking one 4th of the pill... my doc didnt agree with it but it helped me... You could alsp try taking 2 or 2 1/2 pills of tylonal pm instead of seroquel... it is not half as addicting as what your on but it is still a good sleeping pill... Well Im not sure if this will work for you but I wish you the best of luck with getting off of it...  

Answer 3

I was also on seroquel for sleep and found it very to get off. The only thing that worked was slowly lowering my dose, when I got to 0, My doctor prescribed trazadone, which is very good for sleep and not addictive. Good luck to you.

Answer 4

Hi.  I take 62.5mg Seroquel w/other meds for bipolar.  My issues with lowering it are a little different than yours, but sleep is a factor.  What I found is that a pill cutter is your best friend.  A 25mg decrease is too much for me.  Half a pill is better.  A quarter pill is almost transparent.  Give it at least 2-3 weeks in between decreases or until you are sleeping normally.  Also, make a real point of getting up and exercising aerobically in the morning and staying up w/o caffeine all day.  I don't know about you, but I've slowly crept back onto caffeine because of med sedation.  As you cut out the drugs, that has to go, too, or it will keep you up.  Of course, work this with your pdoc.  Btw, the trazadone suggestion isn't a bad one.  It is a very mild antidepressant that works well as a sleep med for some.  It would also be easier to quit than Seroquel.

PS - Seroquel munchies aren't uncommon.  Don't know about bone sensitivity.  

Were you on Cymbalta before Seroquel?  It's an antidepressant that can be activating for some meaning it might be causing a little sleep trouble. ???  It's a thought, but you'd have to be off Seroquel and caffeine long-enough to know if it makes you jittery.  I don't know that this is common.  Maybe ask your doc about it.

Answer 5

i,m on seroquel.   it stoped my nightmares too---and finally let me sleep at night----before i could only sleep at daytime.    i do have [i don't want to lable my problems] a broken head----  i only take 25mg too but not every night-just when i need to----   it took me 3 yrs to get there,maybe don't take it everynight.   it works very quick.   it gave me body aches and did make it hard to wake up very quick---sluggish   it is the only medication i found that wouldlet me sleep---and the hellish nightmares?--MY GOSH--i don't know what i am more thankful for--the sleep or the nightmares stopping

Answer 6

I am also taking Seroquel 200 mg. to help me sleep.

I feel like I need more because I am not sleeping as well as I would like to.  You are doing very well to be able to cut down to 75 mg. and 25 mg.   I have not gained weight because of the Seroquel.  Maybe your weight gain is coming from something else.  Ask your doctor about the sensitivity you are having in your bones.  Maybe this is related to something else.  I hope you will be doing better soon.  I don't like Seroquel either because it can bring on diabetes in certain people.  

Answer 7

Try exercising and exposing yourself to a lot more sunlight during the day.  Expect to have some trouble getting off any of those mind-altering drugs, and whatever you do, STAY AWAY FROM AMBIEN.