All you need to know about prescription sleeping pills

Sleeping pills can help you fall asleep, especially if you face sleep disruption due to travel, stress, or any illness. While these tablets are suitable for achieving rest, you should not depend on them as a long term solution.

You should meet with your healthcare provider and discuss the possible treatment plans if you continually have issues related to the quality or quantity of sleep that you are getting. Usually, the treatment for a sleep disorder depends on the causes behind the condition. Often an underlying cause like a medical problem can cause the issue.

For people with chronic sleeping problems, a doctor might recommend cognitive behavioral therapy and regular exercise. Following a sleep schedule and avoiding caffeine and things that might cause stress, can significantly help improve sleeping problems.

There are plenty of prescription sleeping medications available in the market for people who don’t have chronic insomnia and want to get a good night’s sleep.

The different types of sleeping pills

The three categories of prescription pills are:

• Medicines that help you fall asleep quickly
• Pills that keep you sleeping for longer
• Tablets that can do both

Doctors usually go though various things to determine which one will work best for your condition. Some of the things that might help them decide include:

• Ask you about your sleeping habits to get a better picture of the sleeping patterns.
• Order tests to figure out any underlying issue responsible for causing sleep problems.
• Prescribe a sleeping medicine for a short period to analyze its benefits and side effects on your body.
• Discuss how often and when you should take medication and which form of the drug will be right for you.
• Make you try different prescription drugs if the first one doesn’t have the desired effects after the full treatment period.
• Help you figure out whether a generic version of the drug is available, which is usually less expensive than the brand name variant.

You should also check if your insurance provider covers the specific medicine you want to use before starting the treatment. Many insurance providers put restrictions on which sleeping pills they include in the plan, and they might also ask you to try alternatives to combat insomnia symptoms.

Side effects of sleeping tablets

Try taking to your doctor about the possible adverse effects of the specific sleeping pills they are prescribing before starting the treatment. The following are common side effects that sleeping medications might have on your body.

• Headache
• Daytime memory problems
• Decline in performance
• Severe allergic reaction
• Dizziness
• Lightheadedness
• Chronic drowsiness
• Gastrointestinal problems
• Nausea
• Diarrhea

Antidepressants with a sedating effect

Some drugs approved by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) for easing depression can also help treat insomnia symptoms if used in lower doses. While it is not an ideal way to treat sleeping problems, it can be helpful when your sleeping disorder results from underlying conditions like depression or anxiety. These pills will work on both the issues at the same time and provide you lasting relief.
Antidepressants with sedating effects include:

• Trazodone
• Amitriptyline
• Mirtazapine (Remeron)

Side effects of antidepressants with sedating effects:

You can expect to see the following adverse effects if you use antidepressants with sedating effects to combat your sleeping problems.

• Dry mouth
• Constipation
• Headache
• Nausea
• Irregular heartbeat
• Dizziness
• Lightheadedness
• Memory and performance problems
• Weight gain
• Extreme drowsiness

What to know before taking sleeping pills?

If all other attempts fail, sleeping pills might be your only option to get a sufficient and good night’s sleep. We listed some instructions that you might find helpful if you have insomnia (sleeping disorder) and plan to use sleeping medication.

Get a medical evaluation:

Visit a doctor for a thorough medical examination before you start taking these drugs. Usually, the doctors can find the causes behind your sleeping problem and provide a better solution. You should also talk about the medications you are using with your doctor if the insomnia is persistent after taking the drugs for more than a couple of weeks.

Read the medication guide:

Reading the prescription label will help you understand how to consume sleeping pills. If you follow the medication guide carefully, you will also avoid the adverse effects of the drug. Consult a doctor if you have trouble understanding any part of the drug guide. 

Take it immediately before going to bed:

Sleeping pills work best if you consume them when you are about to go to bed. Taking these drugs before bedtime will unnecessarily increase your risk of hurting yourself by decreasing your awareness of what you are doing. Try to complete all the tasks before consuming sleeping pills. 

Use it only when you have ample time to rest:

Only take your prescription sleeping pill if you have adequate time to sleep. Usually, the effects of these medicines last for 7-8 hours. If you don’t get the required sleep, you might end up feeling tired and unable to perform the following day.

Some medicines help manage the middle of the night awakenings and only require you rest for 4-5 hours. You can take these drugs if you don’t have 7-8 hours to rest. 

Safety consideration to keep in mind while using sleeping pills

All the sleeping pills available in the market, whether prescription or over the counter, are FDA approved and are safe to use, but it doesn’t mean that these drugs can cause no harm. Several sleep medications and antidepressants can cause problems if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or old. These medicines might increase the risk of falls and injury in older people. Doctors generally prescribe lower doses of these drugs for older people to minimize the risk of adverse effects.

You might also find yourself short of options while looking for sleeping pills if you have medical conditions, namely – kidney disease, low blood pressure, seizures, heart problems, etc. These problems might change how your body will respond to sleep medicines and increase the risk of harmful effects.

Various prescription and over the counter drugs can also interact with sleep medications, so you should take proper precautions while using these medicines to decrease the chances of facing adverse effects.