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Nuvigil to help stay alert....any experience out there?

Posted: Jul 7, 2015

As so many of us discuss on this board, I have a lot of difficulty staying alert/fully awake when sitting for so long when I'm working. I have high blood pressure and taking metoprolol-ER and Losartan/hydrochlorothiazide daily. My BP stays pretty much in the 140/80 range unless I'm worked up about something or haven't had enough really restful sleep. Oh...I also sleep apnea and use a CPAP pressure of 11.

Saw my pulmonologist yesterday for sleep apnea recheck. Was thinking he'd probably put me through another sleep study since the last one was in 2011. (I hate those sleep studies.) He said my pressure is fine because I'm the same weight I was four years ago. He recommends Nuvigil to take first thing in the morning to give me alertness and energy. I told him I'm leery because I already have hypertension and this medication can increase it. He said he has lots of hypertensive patients with sleep apnea who are on Nuvigil and they're fine. My internist does NOT want me on the Nuvigil because of my BP.

I'm hoping some of you will have experience with Nuvigil or know of someone who uses it. Does it affect BP? Any other symptoms?

Thanks very much. :)

;

Do not know about that, but ... - NarcolepticNoMore

[ In Reply To ..]
Don't know about Nuvigil, but I pretty much had full-blown narcolepsy. Never mind "alertness" issues ... it went waaay beyond that. I was falling asleep while working and even driving the car. I was afraid I would be fired.

For unrelated reasons, I started on a gluten-free and dairy-free diet in 2010. About two weeks after, the narcolepsy went away. The only time I have had a problem with alertness since then has been if I eat something containing gluten or casein. It will come back for several days.

I experienced several other nice health benefits, too, including weight loss, no more GI troubles, no more bloating, no more elevated glucose, no more itching or rashes, much less in the way of runny noses and postnasal drip, much less asthma, and so forth.

Just a thought.

Gluten-free - Rusty

[ In Reply To ..]
I too started eating gluten-free about 4 weeks ago. Lost 6 lbs right away. Then went camping and had buns with my hot dogs and buns with my burgers, and started feeling horrible. Never realized I felt much better while GF! I am now back on it and feel less achy, less bloated, less lethargic, less irritable. Try it, what have you got to lose? Except maybe some weight and adverse things. I got the Wheat Belly book by Dr. Davis, and love it and then bought the recipe book. Love it too.

I took that stuff was very bad for me - MT

[ In Reply To ..]
I could not stay awake transcribing and I was put on that stuff. It made me extremely irritable, hyper, prone to outbursts, then made me cry because I felt so high strung. Plus it was very expensive. I don to remember about the blood pressure but I am sure it was high. I was angry all the time on that stuff. I finally got off it thank goodness because my family could not stand me anymore and I could not stand myself. Plus the cost... Do try to get a second opinion because if your internist does not want you on it he knows best, and my experience was not good either. Good luck to you.

Sorry for the typo I meant - MT

[ In Reply To ..]
do not remember. I typed too fast and the keyboard did not keep up! Sorry about that.

Hee-hee! Didn't even notice the typo! - OP

[ In Reply To ..]
So in your case, the side effects outweighed the benefits. That's what I'm afraid of. My insurance covers Nuvigil, so $63 is my co-pay for a 90-day supply. I have a calm, usually pleasant demeanor and don't want this med turning me into a witchy woman.

So when you went off the Nuvigil, what did you do to counteract the narcolepsy?

Gluten-free (reply to Rusty and Narcolepsy No More) - OP

[ In Reply To ..]

I'm sure hearing a lot of positives and negatives about the gluten-free life these days. Obviously, if the person feels notably better in nearly every aspect, then that's a positive. I definitely believe wheat and carbs make me sleepy. Thank you for your insight, Rusty and Narcolepsy No More!

Good grief! What could be "negative" about it??? - NoMoreNarco

[ In Reply To ..]
Oh, wait! I forgot! It has a horrible side-effect ... it reduces the profits made by the makers of processed non-foods. You know, things like spray cheese and donuts ...

Lol

I know. You make total sense. But there are - pros and cons, I guess.

[ In Reply To ..]
I always research the good and bad of everything. The most interesting article with both points of view is this one:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/20/risks-of-gluten-free_n_928281.html

It says that we replace wheat with other forms of starch, which are carbs and not that healthy. But if you mainly eat fresh veggies and fruits and lean meats, there wouldn't be much starch. I just need to give up the carbs period.

Are you the OP? - NarcolepticNoMore

[ In Reply To ..]
No, it did not say that. You absolutely misunderstood that article. It was not saying that gluten-free diets are bad for you ... it pointed out that being stupid about gluten-free diets is bad for you.

There is nothing about a gluten-free diet that requires packaged, processed, greasy, carby, sugary, "gluten-free" cookies, bread, cheesy greasy risotto mix, or anything else like that. Yes, consumption of those unnecessary non-food products is bad for you. But that is not the fault of a gluten-free diet! It is the fault of people who are foolish and who do not educate themselves.

Gluten-free means free of gluten, wheat, barley, rye, spelt, triticale and a couple other wheat-family grains. That is all. Just don't eat them.

There is NOTHING wrong with fruit, vegetables, eggs, modest amounts of meat, fish, whole grain rice, buckwheat, quinoa, corn, and so forth.

"Giving up the carbs", incidentally, has the same problem your article noted ... replacing the eliminated food with processed junk.

It helps me - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
I don't have high BP unless I'm in pain, then it goes up. I have RA and fibro, my rheumatologist started me on Provigil years ago, it too was very expensive. Just before the patent was about to expire the company came out with Nuvigil, so I switched to that for a while as in the beginning it was cheaper. I had no problem with either of these medications. I did go back to Provigil once the generic form was able to be sold because it only costs me $10.00 now (it used to cost around 4 to 5 hundred). I can't detect any difference between the two drugs, they both work quite well for me. Perhaps you can try one or the other for a week or so, while keeping a close eye on your BP, to see if it helps you. I only take it on the days that I work, I don't think I could get through a full time shift without them, but I don't have hypertension. Talk to your internist to see if a trial period would be feasible for you.

Thank you! - OP

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm picking up the Rx tonight. It's a low dose of only 50 mg. If there's no noticeable improvement (and no side effects) doc said we can go up to 100 after a trial of 50. I like that it doesn't stay in your system and doesn't have to be taken every single day, just as needed. Maybe I'll have the motivation to clean my house!

Nuvigil - OKMT

[ In Reply To ..]
I started on Provigil many years ago and it worked well for several years, then stopped working as well. When Nuvigil came out, the cost of Provigil shot up to something like $1000+ per 30 day Rx and Nuvigil was cheaper, so of course insurance switched. Nuvigil actually did work better, but again it only worked well for a few years, then finally quit working at all. I've been diagnosed with (get this) hyperpolysomnolence syndrome. I do have sleep apnea, but its more than that and Dr. agrees. I understand about hating sleep studies, I've had at least 7, plus 2 of the all-day studies. At any rate, as far as how it makes you feel, it is nothing like speed. You just feel "normal". No jitters. Not sure this helps, but this is my experience. :-)

Thank you, OKMT - OP

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm SO glad to know that it's not like speed! Although that would come in handy when I procrastinate on housework. Hee-hee!

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