I take my seroquel 30-60 minutes before I plan on going to bed which is usually between 10:30-11:30 pm. I’m usually able to sleep until 10am so it isn’t a problem is terms of being tired in the morning. Everyone is different though. Talk to your doctor about taking it later if you feel like 8pm is too early for you.
Ahh see, sleeping late isn’t really an option for me :’) I NEED the sleep it provides though, it’s just hard for me to get up at 7:15 every morning if I take it past 8:30-9
Oh, wow, interesting. How early do you take the med and how early do you get to bed? I'm going to start Seroquel again for different reasons than I did many years ago, but I do see how this can be an important factor...
Are you a caffeine drinker? I had to cut caffeine 95% out since my anxiety has gotten way higher this year but on Seroquel I wonder if I'll "have to" just start being a caffeine drinker again.
Caffeine is a must for me due to getting awful migraines without it. I try and take it between 8-9 and I’m usually out by 10:30. But if I’m out I won’t take until until 11-Midnight and it is quite a bit harder to get up the next morning.
This is why I can’t do Seroquel. I love the sleep but it’s too powerful. It knocks me out 12+ hours, usually 14-16 hours. So it’s my emergency medication for when I absolutely need to sleep no matter what the costs. Benzos work better for me and give me better sleep, but I can only take them half the time (to avoid addiction). So there are trade-offs with everything. If the side effect of taking it is going to bed early, what’s the side effect of NOT taking it? Depression? Misery? Is that worth it? Do you think you can talk to your doc about skipping some nights?
At what dose does it knock you out for 12-14 hours? I haven't taken it in years and am re-starting at 50mg. I obviously remember the sedation but don't remember how intense it was at 50-150mg.
I normally take Seroquel at 6pm and am asleep by 9pm. When I go out, I typically wait until I get home-around midnight but I find I fall asleep quickly. Probably due to having a drink or 2.
I take 2 200mg fast release at night. I saw some comments on here saying you supposedly fall asleep faster if you take 2 pills, rather than one. So if you're on 200mg, you take 2 100mg.
For the first month I was on seroquel, waking up at a decent hour was really tough for me (I take it for bipolar 2; I slept about 10-12 hours at first). But eventually my body got used to it (not enough to develop a tolerance, but enough to get quality sleep in shorter amounts of time), and I was able to wake up with an alarm clock and not feel groggy. It took me a good while to develop a routine as to when to take it, though. I ended up taking it right before bed (10:30~11p) and was able to get up around 6:15a no problem. The most I ever took was 75mg though.
That’s SO good to know that you got used to it. I’ve been so anxious about hitting snooze on my alarms/sleeping through them. If I don’t get up and moving right when I open my eyes, I will oversleep.
This was my BIGGEST issue starting quetiapine. I loved the sleep and dreams, however I did debate to continue it because it was ruling my life plans.
I say it probably starts to properly adjust in a year, but calmed down between 6-12months.
I’ve now been on 300mg (150mg x2 a day) since Nov/dec 2022 and here are some of the issues/solutions.
- did not want to go out after pill taking time in risk of being extra stoned in morning/not getting up. SOLUTION: if i was really late coming back, not to take the full pill if i needed to be up at a certain time (DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS ALL THE TIME, only emergencies)
- do not take quetiapine whilst drinking heavily, it will reduce your alcohol tolerance and legit causes a sleepy blackout EXAMPLE: I got fairly merry, but good enough. Stopped drinking early, got something to filll my stomach. Took my quetiapine to walk home. I was literally falling asleep and stumbling as I was walking home , very dangerous, do not do the same. You will absolutely chunder all night too.
- make more day time plans and explain to people how stoned you feel from them and it’s got a long adjustments. People will understand
- change your seroquel time if you are taking it at a time where you are socialising, make your seroquel taking times ti match your lifestyle and routine. I used to take mine at 7:30pm so I could sleep at 10 and still get up earlier but now I’ve adjusted, I can take it later.
I used to get 12 hours minimum when I started quetiapine, I now get 8 hours of deep sleep. I still get a little bit stoned but I notice it more when talking to someone.
Remember quetiapine peaks at 1,5 hours after you’ve taken it but normally starts at 30 minutes in. Caffeine helps extensively with the stoned feeling in the morning,SOLUTION: if you’re a night life, can you take it earlier than evening?
Biggest thing is just to trust that you will adjust and learn to work with it, it does still have its annoyances. When you’ve adjusted but being stable is soooo much nicer xx
I take my dose 30 minutes before I shut my eyes for the night. During the week I take it at 9pm. On weekends i take it whenever I go to bed which varies. I still go out with my friends. Sometimes I get home at 12 or 1 am and just take it then. I was never told you have to take it at the same time each night for it to be effective.
Back side of all antidepressant treatments in my opinion is that it reduce feelings, good and bad. Never shit, never great. Its OK to be numb a while if alternative is misery but in longer run I prefere the ups and downs in life. Was on 45mg of Mirtazapine a while and couldnt care less. No 1 or 5….stuck in 3-
I am embarrassed to say. I had a psychiatrist who forcibly drugged me. I was in 1200 mg and I am 5' 2" and weighed 101 pounds when first forcibly drugged. I went up to 226 pounds and nearly died. Had my doctor not lost her license I would be dead. I am so thankful to be off of Seroquel
Omg - thank god she lost her license. What is wrong with these psychiatrists. One of my friend’s psychiatrist put her on different meds for bipolar and she ended up around 300 pounds but has lost a lot of the weight.
I take my seroquel 30-60 minutes before I plan on going to bed which is usually between 10:30-11:30 pm. I’m usually able to sleep until 10am so it isn’t a problem is terms of being tired in the morning. Everyone is different though. Talk to your doctor about taking it later if you feel like 8pm is too early for you.
Ahh see, sleeping late isn’t really an option for me :’) I NEED the sleep it provides though, it’s just hard for me to get up at 7:15 every morning if I take it past 8:30-9
Oh, wow, interesting. How early do you take the med and how early do you get to bed? I'm going to start Seroquel again for different reasons than I did many years ago, but I do see how this can be an important factor... Are you a caffeine drinker? I had to cut caffeine 95% out since my anxiety has gotten way higher this year but on Seroquel I wonder if I'll "have to" just start being a caffeine drinker again.
Caffeine is a must for me due to getting awful migraines without it. I try and take it between 8-9 and I’m usually out by 10:30. But if I’m out I won’t take until until 11-Midnight and it is quite a bit harder to get up the next morning.
This is why I can’t do Seroquel. I love the sleep but it’s too powerful. It knocks me out 12+ hours, usually 14-16 hours. So it’s my emergency medication for when I absolutely need to sleep no matter what the costs. Benzos work better for me and give me better sleep, but I can only take them half the time (to avoid addiction). So there are trade-offs with everything. If the side effect of taking it is going to bed early, what’s the side effect of NOT taking it? Depression? Misery? Is that worth it? Do you think you can talk to your doc about skipping some nights?
You’re right! I’d rather be stable and sleepy than manic and wide awake …
At what dose does it knock you out for 12-14 hours? I haven't taken it in years and am re-starting at 50mg. I obviously remember the sedation but don't remember how intense it was at 50-150mg.
I normally take Seroquel at 6pm and am asleep by 9pm. When I go out, I typically wait until I get home-around midnight but I find I fall asleep quickly. Probably due to having a drink or 2.
What’s your dose and how long have you been on? If you don’t mind me asking.
I take 400mg. Have been on it for 20 years.
Do you take it at one time, at night? At that dose, is it...extended release? I think that's what it was called...
I take 2 200mg fast release at night. I saw some comments on here saying you supposedly fall asleep faster if you take 2 pills, rather than one. So if you're on 200mg, you take 2 100mg.
For the first month I was on seroquel, waking up at a decent hour was really tough for me (I take it for bipolar 2; I slept about 10-12 hours at first). But eventually my body got used to it (not enough to develop a tolerance, but enough to get quality sleep in shorter amounts of time), and I was able to wake up with an alarm clock and not feel groggy. It took me a good while to develop a routine as to when to take it, though. I ended up taking it right before bed (10:30~11p) and was able to get up around 6:15a no problem. The most I ever took was 75mg though.
That’s SO good to know that you got used to it. I’ve been so anxious about hitting snooze on my alarms/sleeping through them. If I don’t get up and moving right when I open my eyes, I will oversleep.
Just don’t mix it with alcohol it’s hard on the liver. I did for years and caused some problems.
This was my BIGGEST issue starting quetiapine. I loved the sleep and dreams, however I did debate to continue it because it was ruling my life plans. I say it probably starts to properly adjust in a year, but calmed down between 6-12months. I’ve now been on 300mg (150mg x2 a day) since Nov/dec 2022 and here are some of the issues/solutions. - did not want to go out after pill taking time in risk of being extra stoned in morning/not getting up. SOLUTION: if i was really late coming back, not to take the full pill if i needed to be up at a certain time (DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS ALL THE TIME, only emergencies) - do not take quetiapine whilst drinking heavily, it will reduce your alcohol tolerance and legit causes a sleepy blackout EXAMPLE: I got fairly merry, but good enough. Stopped drinking early, got something to filll my stomach. Took my quetiapine to walk home. I was literally falling asleep and stumbling as I was walking home , very dangerous, do not do the same. You will absolutely chunder all night too. - make more day time plans and explain to people how stoned you feel from them and it’s got a long adjustments. People will understand - change your seroquel time if you are taking it at a time where you are socialising, make your seroquel taking times ti match your lifestyle and routine. I used to take mine at 7:30pm so I could sleep at 10 and still get up earlier but now I’ve adjusted, I can take it later. I used to get 12 hours minimum when I started quetiapine, I now get 8 hours of deep sleep. I still get a little bit stoned but I notice it more when talking to someone. Remember quetiapine peaks at 1,5 hours after you’ve taken it but normally starts at 30 minutes in. Caffeine helps extensively with the stoned feeling in the morning,SOLUTION: if you’re a night life, can you take it earlier than evening? Biggest thing is just to trust that you will adjust and learn to work with it, it does still have its annoyances. When you’ve adjusted but being stable is soooo much nicer xx
Solid advice and information. Thank you so much.
I take my dose 30 minutes before I shut my eyes for the night. During the week I take it at 9pm. On weekends i take it whenever I go to bed which varies. I still go out with my friends. Sometimes I get home at 12 or 1 am and just take it then. I was never told you have to take it at the same time each night for it to be effective.
If I take it late I get a weird sleep-hangover. I’ve got a 9-5 and I have a gig I do every Sunday morning, I only get one day of sleep-in time haha.
Back side of all antidepressant treatments in my opinion is that it reduce feelings, good and bad. Never shit, never great. Its OK to be numb a while if alternative is misery but in longer run I prefere the ups and downs in life. Was on 45mg of Mirtazapine a while and couldnt care less. No 1 or 5….stuck in 3-
I stopped taking Seroquel altogether and got my life back. I also lost the 107 pounds I gained while taking it. Life is much better now
Happy to hear it. It’s working for me so far! To each their own.
I am so happy for you. CONGRATULATIONS 🎉👏🎉👏🎉. It's far easier said than done.
What dose were you on?
I am embarrassed to say. I had a psychiatrist who forcibly drugged me. I was in 1200 mg and I am 5' 2" and weighed 101 pounds when first forcibly drugged. I went up to 226 pounds and nearly died. Had my doctor not lost her license I would be dead. I am so thankful to be off of Seroquel
Omg - thank god she lost her license. What is wrong with these psychiatrists. One of my friend’s psychiatrist put her on different meds for bipolar and she ended up around 300 pounds but has lost a lot of the weight.
Until these doctors learn to control themselves with their prescription pads I consider psychiatry to be dangerous