Is it just that you don’t want to go to the doctor? If all you need is sleep, try an ambien.
As for oxycotin as a sleep med? If you are asking if taking one will knock you out , probably will do the trick. But you can’t make a habit of it, or you will become addicted.
I would also say that if you have pain, use it, but don’t use it just to sleep.
And by all means, get your butt to a doctor so they know what you are doing.
You’re going to have to go to the doctor for the Ambien as well. And it also causes immunity if taken for a while.
I go with simple Benadryl, and Advil if in pain.
And imagine your shock when the DEA SWAT team kicks in your door just seconds after you swallow the tablet!
True enough. But an ambien isn’t a narcotic. But my advice was pretty weak if he’s trying to avoid the docs.
It’s a Schedule IV drug under the Federal Controlled Substances Act, and one common definition of a narcotic is “any drug that’s scheduled” under that act.
Habituation to opioids occurs early and often. So any somnolence induced by it would not reliably recur with anything like regular use. Many folks report being awake and ‘stoned’ on it after a while.
There really are no good drugs to induce anything like normal sleep, especially for regular use.
YMMV, but when I take oxycontin for my back, I get really, really vivid dreams - sometimes nightmares.
Of course, OTC sleep aids knock me out like a nightstick, so maybe my experience is unusual.
Regards,
Shodan
Hey, I think my character in Fallout 3 would appreciate some OxyContin right about now.
I’ve experienced something similar, for whatever it’s worth.
Oh, I wish I was on OxyCotton,
Bad times then would be forgotten,
look away, look away, Straight Dopers.
What OTC products work for you?
In my experience, no big deal. That said it seems a waste of a good oxy. Have you tried Tylenol PM and Sleepy Time tea?
I also have a similar issue to both Shodan and Clayton - I was given Oxy as a “last-ditch” treatment in the case of severe migraine. It didn’t help the migraine, made me extra dizzy and screwed up my sleep with nightmares and audio hallucinations.
So, I think it’s safe to say I won’t get addicted to that drug anytime soon 
Whenever I have surgery I always endure the pain and hoard the meds for when I really want it (I’m weird that way). It’s no good for a sleep aid. It does make you a bit drowsy, but something about the euphoria keeps sleep out of reach… as if your brain is saying “why sleep when we feel this good?” And if you take more than a couple, there’s the infernal itchiness that lasts for hours and hours.
However, as relief from a severe cold or sinus infection… in my personal experience and opinion, this is why God gave us opiates. Yes, they can be addictive, and people are right to counsel prudence, but what do you have, a bottle of 40 tablets? I suggest strict rationing, but even if you do binge, when they’re gone they’re gone. It’s not as if you’re going to be giving blowjobs behind a dumpster to get another bottle.
I’ve done the same thing over the years, but when I have actual pain I’ll take one of two (well within expiration dates) and I’m stunned at how ineffective they are. They dull the pain but I’d hardly call it real relief. Having said this most of my serious pain was sciatic nerve and pulled back muscle related and I’m given to understand opiates are not all that effective for sciatic nerve pain.
I have delayed sleep phase disorder and can’t sleep well at all on a normal schedule. Luckily, I work evening shift now so I sleep very well on my own, but when I worked day shift, I often needed something to help me sleep. I’ll go through what I’ve tried and how well it worked.
I tried hydrocodone (an opioid, obviously similar to oxycodone) on a couple of occasions. I think it actually made it harder to sleep - I just experienced somnolence most of the night - but the sleep was a lot more effective. I’d get up the next morning energetic and ready to get stuff done. Unfortunately, that only lasted a few hours and then I felt exhausted. Overall, I’d say it wasn’t a very good hypnotic for me. Also, as some have said, opioids can be very addictive to some people. If you find them highly euphoric, it’s best to avoid them. (I get no euphoria at all.)
Clonazopam, a benzodiazepine, calmed the thoughts in my head and made it much easier to fall asleep. Unfortunately, you slowly develop a very strong physical dependence to benzos after using them for an extended period of time and the withdrawals can be fatal unlike with opioids. Also, one night I remembered going to sleep after taking some but apparently I then had a 30 minute phone conversation with someone and possibly did other things I don’t remember. I might use them temporarily in low dosages to avoid the blackouts, but don’t use them regularly.
Ambien worked quite well for knocking me out. They’re not very addictive either, but you do develop a tolerance to them after a while. Also, the last time I took one (after using them many times before) while waiting for it to kick in, I started hallucinating and then vomited. I really don’t know what that was all about.
Doxylamine (in some OTC sleep aids) does a good job of putting me to sleep and I sleep well, but I develop a tolerance to it very quickly. By this, I mean I can maybe use it one or two nights and then its useless. Good for infrequent use.
Diphenhydramine (in most other OTC sleep aids) helps me sleep, but it makes me feel pretty groggy when I wake up. I try to avoid this one.
Melatonin is a natural hormone that induces sleepiness in your brain. For me, it just gives me a slight aid in falling asleep, which is often all I need. It is helpful for setting a sleeping rhythm for many people. It is pretty much without side effects and is pretty safe to combine with other drugs. This was one of my favorites.
And don’t forget alcohol. You don’t want to get drunk every night, but having one or two drinks can help calm the mind and actually has many health benefits including reducing the chance of heart disease. I have one or two beers most nights simply because I don’t want to find out what it’s like to have a heart attack. You can also mix it with melatonin, but it’s not safe with any of the other drugs I’ve mentioned. Light alcohol consumption is my biggest suggestion unless you’re an alcoholic.
Thanks for the comprehensive rundown! As a side note unfortunately it seems the “wine = heart healthy” hypothesis was based on faked research.
I think that’s all prescription pain meds are really supposed to do. Any medication strong enough to totally cancel out severe pain, you’re not going home with a 10-day supply to self-administer according to your whim.
Alcohol itself is good for your heart and other organs when taken in moderate doses whether it’s red wine, beer, or a shot of whiskey.Here is a Wikipedia article about it. Unfortunately the only thing it mentions about sleep is that chronic alcohol abusers can suffer insomnia when they don’t drink but my experience is this doesn’t apply to those who only have one or two drinks per night.
Melatonin, or Advil PM. The active ingredient in Advil PM is diphenhydramine.
I don’t take them every night, or even every other night. But when I need one or the other, wham. Seven hours of oblivion.
Regards,
Shodan
YMMV when it comes to Diphenhydramine as a sleep aid. It makes me very tired, but also jittery as hell. A horrible combination.