May 08 2008
Treating Anxiety and Depression Symptoms with Medication to Help You Sleep
***Please note: I am not a physician and I cannot provide you with medical advice about your sleeping problem. If you have difficulty sleeping for a long period of time, you should discuss your problem with your primary care doctor.***
If you tried developing good sleep habits and still have a lot of trouble falling or staying asleep at night, your doctor may decide to give you a prescription medication to treat your sleeping problem. Your treatment will depend on what is at the root of you sleeping problem.
For instance, if you have a medical condition which makes it difficult to sleep at night, your doctor will treat your medical condition first in order to see if treating your medical condition helps you sleep better.
Anxiety and depression can also cause sleeping problems. If you have one or both of these conditions, your doctor may choose to treat you with an anti-depressant medication.
There are four types of medication doctors use to treat depression: SSRIs, SSNRIs, MAOIs, and tricyclics. Doctors typically try an SSRI medication such as Zoloft, Paxil, Prozac, Lexapro, or Celexa to treat symptoms of depression and/or anxiety initially. If SSRIs do not work effectively on your symptoms, your doctor may prescribe a medication from the tricyclics, SSNRI, or MAOI class of medications.
Physicians also use a class of medications known as hypnotics or sedatives to treat sleep problems, such as insomnia. Some hypnotics commonly used to treat sleeping difficulties include: Rozerm, Ambien, Lunesta, and Restoril.
Finally, if you experience a lot of panic or anxiety before sleep, your doctor may consider prescribing you an anti-anxiety medication. However, because some of these medications are addictive, anti-depressants and hypnotics are typically tried either separately or in combination first. Ativan, Xanax, and Klonopin are among the anti-anxiety medications some individuals take to help them reduce their anxiety symptoms and get to sleep at night.
Of course, any course of treatment with medication must be discussed by you and your doctor. Different medications work for different individuals, so what may work for your mother’s sleeping problem may not work for your own.
Although there is some trial and error in finding a good treatment for sleep difficulties, ensuring you get your sleeping problem treated is an important step to take for your physical and mental health.
If you feel you may benefit from treatment with medication for your sleeping problem, please talk to your doctor about it. He or she can help you if medication is right for you.
Wishing you a worry-free day!
