im so sleepy at times

DA · 07-18-2004, 10:06 AM

my doctor is trying a stronger approach to stop my spasms. she added a drug diaz-- something something for a week to see if it works. one of the side effects is drowsiness. well it has helped the spasms, however at tim e during the day i am so sleepy. im fighting to to stay awake. anything i can take for this? sweet candy sometimes work.

SCI-Nurse · 07-18-2004, 10:10 AM

DA, diazepam is Valium, a sedative often used for spasticity. Of all the spasticity drugs, it is the most sedating. Have you already tried other spasticity drugs (either alone or in combination)??? Generally the sedation caused by Zanaflex or Baclofen gets better with time. This is not often the case with Valium.

In addition, Valium can make depression worse, and causes physical dependence. We generally look at it as a last resort spasticity drug.

(KLD)

DA · 07-18-2004, 12:10 PM

ok...and solution to being drowsy. like i said sugar helps but i dont want to get diabetes.

jimnms · 07-18-2004, 06:06 PM

I take diazepam also, but I can't tolerate much of it either. I take 10mg of it with 80mg of baclofen per day. The diazepam is the only thing that seems to have an impact on my spasms.

I still get a little drowsy at times, and I've stoped taking it once. As soon as I stoped, the spasms got real bad. I'm thinking now of stopping the baclofen to see if it's just the diazepam, because every time we increased the baclofen it never seemed to do anything.

_____
Learn from the mistakes of others, you won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.

07-18-2004, 10:06 AM	#1
DA Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: beaumont tx usa Posts: 32,390	im so sleepy at times my doctor is trying a stronger approach to stop my spasms. she added a drug diaz-- something something for a week to see if it works. one of the side effects is drowsiness. well it has helped the spasms, however at tim e during the day i am so sleepy. im fighting to to stay awake. anything i can take for this? sweet candy sometimes work.

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07-18-2004, 10:10 AM	#2
SCI-Nurse Moderator Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: USA Posts: 41,336	DA, diazepam is Valium, a sedative often used for spasticity. Of all the spasticity drugs, it is the most sedating. Have you already tried other spasticity drugs (either alone or in combination)??? Generally the sedation caused by Zanaflex or Baclofen gets better with time. This is not often the case with Valium. In addition, Valium can make depression worse, and causes physical dependence. We generally look at it as a last resort spasticity drug. (KLD)

07-18-2004, 12:10 PM	#3
DA Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: beaumont tx usa Posts: 32,390	ok...and solution to being drowsy. like i said sugar helps but i dont want to get diabetes.

07-18-2004, 06:06 PM	#4
jimnms Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Mississippi Posts: 2,673	I take diazepam also, but I can't tolerate much of it either. I take 10mg of it with 80mg of baclofen per day. The diazepam is the only thing that seems to have an impact on my spasms. I still get a little drowsy at times, and I've stoped taking it once. As soon as I stoped, the spasms got real bad. I'm thinking now of stopping the baclofen to see if it's just the diazepam, because every time we increased the baclofen it never seemed to do anything. _____ Learn from the mistakes of others, you won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.