anyone else with same problems?

[beachbum86]

hi, im very new to this posting site. ive been reading for a while now and i finally got enough courage sign up. i was diagnosed with hiv on sept. 29, 2006 after a long hard road of other misdiagnosis. i've been taking the combination of reyataz, norvir, and truvada for about a year now and i seem to have serious problems sleeping and have had really bad nerve problems for a while now. i can just blow up at any second. plus, while im sleeping i freeze then start sweating really bad then freeze again and so forth. anyone else with these same issues? just trying to get some input on how to handle these pesty effects. thanks.

[Miss Philicia]

Howdy and welcome to the forums Mr. Beachbum.  Glad to see you have made the leap from lurker to participant here and that we all get to know you more in the coming months.

Yes, sometimes I get those issues.  Sleep problems can come down to a variety of things frankly.  Depression, anxiety, stress, cheap mattress... I suppose perhaps it's a general effect of HIV infection as I see so many here complain about it, but I'm not sure there are any studies stating that.  I usually see them point to the depression bogey man.  I forget the figures so don't quote me, but I think it's something like an estimate of 70% of HIV-ers have depression issues, whether short or longer term.  Many HIV-ers also have low testosterone issues, and THAT can be the cause of the depression -- this was my particular situation, or part f it.

At any rate you probably won't find any great solution to this without talking to your doctor, and there's not way for board members to diagnosis you.  But my advice would be to initiate the discussion.  Maybe before your appointment you should keep a daily diary of your sleep each night and throw that at your doctor... hopefully it will light a fire under him more than a simple 4 second complaint at his desk.  Oh, and specifically request that he run a lab test on your testosterone levels.  If those are OK you can rule that cause out.

The nightsweats... well, I don't get them that often so I've never really been vocal about it.  Probably happens once a month though.  How often are you getting these and, if you are comfortable telling us, what are your lab numbers at present?

[beachbum86]

thanks for the info. the night sweats are pretty much every night. now my cd4 is 700 and vl is undetectable.

[Miss Philicia]

Seems odd.  Have you not discussed this with your doctor?  I'm sure that doesn't make for a good night's sleep.

[beachbum86]

yea I've talked to him and he doesn't seem to think its a major issue. i think it is. maybe ill do like you said and keep a log so he can see how important it is to me to get a good night sleep. sometimes i think that's why I'm so depressed all the time is because i cant get a good nights rest.

[Miss Philicia]

Yeah, do the log.  It will make more fuss for him.  Also insist that he make a copy and put it in your records.  At the very least all of the fuss can score you some sedatives.

[Damien]

I have the same problem with starting off FREEZING at night and then getting really hot about 2am. I am also on Reyataz, Truvada & Norvir. What has helped me to sleep better is to take a hot bath right before bed.

When I get in bed after awhile my feet and hands still get ice cold but I don't start to shiver like I used to. I also take 500mg of Motrin before bed, for some reason its been helping me sleep and not get an early am hot flash.

Let me know if it helps. My Dr. has no idea why this happens.

Yours,
-Damien

[edfu]

When I get in bed after awhile my feet and hands still get ice cold but I don't start to shiver like I used to. -Damien

I've found that wearing sweat-socks to bed helps immensely with the ice-cold feet. 

[BT65]

Sometimes when I'm up and sitting in my rocking chair, I'll put my heating pad on my feet and that helps. 

[mrtallguy]

Hey Beachbum!
Good to see that you jumped into our world here....I am continually amazed at the quality of the people on the forum here and their sincere desire to help eachother.

I am on the same meds and I have constant sleep issues.  My sleep issues started for me 7 years ago after a case of Hepatitis A and are still with me to this day.  I contracted HIV 5 years ago and that does not help the sleep issues either.  I take some sort of sedative every night....I take 8mg of Seroquel (split 25mg tablet into thirds).  If I have a tough time falling asleep I will also take 5mg of ambien or .5 mg of xanax.  I took many different sleep sedatives until I found the Seroquel...when I get up in the am I am a bit groggy but after a cup or two of java I am good to go!

I notice on nights when I don't sleep well that I get the ice cold hands.   So perhaps some sleepy meds are in order for you.  I have not had the sweats or hot flashes. (we all react differently to meds and environment)   I agree with the others... put your sleep patterns into written form and perhaps your doc will see your problem with a new sense of urgency.

Good luck with this challenge!

Craig

[pozniceguy]

I have had this problem on and off for  a few yrs......I found that by putting some warmed up " bed buddies"  at the bottom of the bed under the blanket  it keeps my feet warm and I don't get the cold and sweats...... ( bed buddies are like big socks filled with some kind of grain that you put in the microwave for a few min to warm them up..WalMart and most big box drug stores sell them )   of course if you have a "live" bed buddy you might be able to get the same effect.....

Nick.) 

[minismom]

We have a heated mattress pad.  It fits on our mattress just under the fitted sheet.  It's got duel controls so you can set it as needed (if there's 2 people in bed).  This one is neat because most of the heating coils are at the feet and get less and less the farther up.  By the time it gets to the upper shoulders and head, there's no heat.  I liked it because I don't start sweating cuz my head's overheated.  It wasn't that expensive, maybe $40 for a queen-size.  I like it much better than an electric blanket.  We turn our's on high (#5) about 30 minutes before bed and then turn it down to 2 or 3 when we go to sleep.  I'll never get into a cold bed again

You may also want to try flannel sheets.  They don't tend to be cold, like cotton sheets are, when you get into bed.  Or, for good measure, do both   Hope this helps!

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