Posted by yxibow on March 20, 2009, at 19:15:02
In reply to Re: Is Temazepam (Restoril) 'too much'? » yxibow, posted by SLS on March 20, 2009, at 7:05:00
> In what order would you place the pseudobenzodiazepines in terms of efficacy or side effects?
>
> zolpidem (Ambien)
> zaleplon (Sonata)
> eszopiclone (Lunesta)
>
> Personally, I am happy to use Ativan. I have used it in the past with and without combining it with Halcion for MAOI-induced insomnia. Restoril is a good drug for sleep maintenance, but helps very little to initiate sleep. I consider both Restoril and Ativan to be "clean" in the way they affect my mood and cognition, and with very little hangover the next day. Restoril is also a clean drug, in my experience.
Regular benzodiazepines do have a greater potential for habituation, of course they all do eventually.I would place efficacy of the above as Lunesta, Ambien, and Sonata.
Side effects -- not terribly much unless you read the FDA warning on -every- possible sleep medication that you will wake up and not remember baking a turkey roast (I know, it sounds a bit snide, there have been cases, especially in the elderly).
Lunesta for some people gives a metallic taste, which I did get, but it disappears during sleep and I don't taste it in the morning. Some people have claimed that they do taste it in the morning.
It is better for long term use.Ambien, well it seems to be a semi-placebo these days but then I have major cross pollination with Valium so I can't really take any benzodiazepine or related for sleep. However I did take it at 20mg, which is about the ceiling for it.
Sonata I might have tried in the distant past but from what I remember hearing about it, it isn't all that effective and can have some odd side effects, visual or something.
-- Jay
poster:yxibow
thread:886139
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090313/msgs/886282.html