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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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How Can Sleeplessness Be Managed In A Person With Memory Loss After Discontinuing Ativan?

I have been taking Ativan 2 mg for sleep for several years. I am 69 years old and in good health other than elevated cholesterol (180) ,and problems with indigestion/reflux. in august I had an episode of sudden memory loss for about 6 hours . no loss of consciousness and have no memory of those 6 hours . my husband took to ER. tests were done including mri and cat scan of brain. all tests were normal and my personal physician gave a diagnosis of TIA. long story short, since then have been concerned about this drug. I do have anemia (no cause found) ,have concerns about memory. do I need to stop this medication. if so what can I take for sleep because i am unable to sleep without it . Thank you
Tue, 25 Sep 2018
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General & Family Physician 's  Response
Dear Madam,

Thank you for using HCM for your questions!

I read carefully your post. I think that insomnia problem is a big concern for the individual, since a good sleep is invaluable for the well being of individuals.
The thing is that using sleep inducing drugs (lorazepam, etc.) only work perfectly in the beginning, and then the body develops tolerance towards them, meaning that the same dose that worked at the beginning does not work now and you have to increase the dose of the drug continually, and this poses many health problems. No matter what drug you use, the tolerance will develop after some time!
Therefore, I want to propose you the following in order for you to be able to sleep. I have to admit that I also suffer from insomnia and have found relief in this procedure: lay in bed, do not take any sleep drugs, just turn on your TV to a station that is really interesting to you. The TV station should broadcast in your native language so you will understand what it is said and it should be loud enough for your to hear it without difficulty. For instance, now when I go to bed, i turn on my TV to a station broadcasting documentaries about science or historic events. Usually, I turn the TV to Discovery Science or Nat Geo History or other channels. I set the TV to switch off after 15-30 minutes. Then, while on bed, I close my eyes and hear the story being told in TV. After 5 minutes or so I am falling asleep just like that! And this works every time! It is important that nobody disturbs you during the "trying to sleep time", because this disrupts the procedure and takes it longer to fall asleep.
I strongly suggest you to try this solution.
I am pretty confident that it will work!
I wish you success and in case it works please do find a way to inform me!
Thanks!
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How Can Sleeplessness Be Managed In A Person With Memory Loss After Discontinuing Ativan?

Dear Madam, Thank you for using HCM for your questions! I read carefully your post. I think that insomnia problem is a big concern for the individual, since a good sleep is invaluable for the well being of individuals. The thing is that using sleep inducing drugs (lorazepam, etc.) only work perfectly in the beginning, and then the body develops tolerance towards them, meaning that the same dose that worked at the beginning does not work now and you have to increase the dose of the drug continually, and this poses many health problems. No matter what drug you use, the tolerance will develop after some time! Therefore, I want to propose you the following in order for you to be able to sleep. I have to admit that I also suffer from insomnia and have found relief in this procedure: lay in bed, do not take any sleep drugs, just turn on your TV to a station that is really interesting to you. The TV station should broadcast in your native language so you will understand what it is said and it should be loud enough for your to hear it without difficulty. For instance, now when I go to bed, i turn on my TV to a station broadcasting documentaries about science or historic events. Usually, I turn the TV to Discovery Science or Nat Geo History or other channels. I set the TV to switch off after 15-30 minutes. Then, while on bed, I close my eyes and hear the story being told in TV. After 5 minutes or so I am falling asleep just like that! And this works every time! It is important that nobody disturbs you during the trying to sleep time , because this disrupts the procedure and takes it longer to fall asleep. I strongly suggest you to try this solution. I am pretty confident that it will work! I wish you success and in case it works please do find a way to inform me! Thanks!