Melatonin Experience

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy Forums

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy forums - a peer support community for folks dealing (directly or indirectly) with seizure disorders. You can visit the forum page to see the list of forum nodes (categories/rooms) for topics.

Please have a look around and if you like what you see, please consider registering an account and joining the discussions. When you register an account and log in, you may enjoy additional benefits including no ads, access to members only (ie. private) forum nodes and more. Registering an account is free - you have nothing to lose!

P

PC1989

New
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
Points
0
I saw momof3boys post on melatonin and though I had a previous bad experience with it, I've been having sleep trouble (and loud neighbor trouble). I decided to try it again to see what would happen. I think I provoked a seizure. (As I post this post I am having some intense deja vu)

Took a 3mg pill and cut it in half. Took roughly 1.5mg at 8:30pm last night.

It kicked in between 9 and 9:30. I fell asleep, but woke up shaking. I fell asleep again, but then woke up feeling VERY out of it, went to the bathroom and don't remember much, had a headache, and severe myoclonic jerking / possible seizure. A motorcycle zoomed down the road and the vibration of the noise made my body feel like a church bell. My shoulders jerked rapidly and my legs were in a lot of pain. Felt like a bad drug trip.
 
Yes, melatonin can be unpredictable that way -- great for some folks, but seizure-provoking for others. If you still want to try, I recommend that you go even lower ( such as a .5 mg dose). But given it's effect on you, other sleep remedies might be more appealing. Have you tried other things like foods with tryptophan (warm milk or walnuts).

Other approaches to consider: Progressive relaxation (basically deep diaphragmatic breathing while tensing and relaxing muscles starting with the toes and ending with the head) and/or the Delta Sleep System (CDs designed to produce "good" delta brainwaves associated with sleep).
 
Thanks Nakamova, I'll look into the Delta Sleep System. I've tried warm milk but that's never really helped. My problem isn't falling asleep, it's staying asleep.

Sound seems to have a profound effect on my brain so maybe the CD would help.
 
What you just described is what I would have wrote down when I experience a seizure. Last thursday night I had the same thing happen to me. I dont recall alot of what happened, but based on what my husband said, I had alot of jerking on my right side, I was mumbling things he couldnt understand. I had a huge headache, and my body felt achy and stiff the next morning and into that day. I was tired, sluggish feeling all day long on friday.

Id be scared to even try a smaller does of the melatonin if it caused seizures when taking a 3mg tablet. Have you contacted your dr about this? I would probably contact them to let them know what happened and let them tell you whats the best thing to take. Im so sorry this happened. I hope you start to feel better soon!
 
I tried Melatonin, too. Did not work very well. I guess some of us can't even take the natural remedies. I Hate warm milk, but will try the relaxation and tapes.
I'm trying not to take any drugs for sleep because am not sure how my brain will react. I have and appt. with a new neurologist on Apr. 15 and will mention to him the insomnia.
Good Luck!
M
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom