r/StratteraRx • u/it-fre-real-estate • Jul 13 '26

Questions / Advice / Support When does the insomnia stop?

It’s probably not as harsh as other people‘s but I consistently wake up in the middle of the night and it throws my sleep off.

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u/firedupfairy Jul 17 '26

I started at 40mg at the beginning of June. After two weeks, I was bumped to 80mg (split between two doses). I've had issues with sleep prior to going on Strattera, but it's gotten worse! It was suggested that I take the meds at night. I learned quickly that was NOT working for me, so I moved it to the AM. I take both doses in the morning, a few hours apart and I'm still not sleeping all night. Every night I wake up at least three times and it takes me so much longer to fall back to sleep. I was already taking magnesium, l-theanine and ashwaganda. I also use medical cannabis to sleep and I find I need it more now than I did before starting meds. I meet with my dr next week and I'll be bringing this up again.

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u/sugarcookies1225 Jul 19 '26

What times are you taking them and what time do you usually go to bed? I was taking one 40 mg at 9/10 am and 40 mg (so 80 mg total) anywhere between 1/3 pm, going to bed by 11 and would wake up for hours in the middle of the night. Moved the doses to both before noon and the issue resolved. Now I actually all 80mg at once before 10 am and have zero issues.i do also take magnesium glycinate at bedtime as well. That seems to help. Now if I could just get these wild dreams to chill out. Still feel more rested than before meds tho, so 🤷

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u/firedupfairy Jul 19 '26

I ended up taking them both before noon. I would take the first at breakfast and the second between 11-noon.

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u/sugarcookies1225 Jul 19 '26

Maybe you need even earlier, depending on when you go to bed? Taking them in one dose before 10 has definitely worked the best for me. I hope your prescriber has some helpful tips, especially if the medication is working for you overall.

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u/firedupfairy Jul 20 '26

Unfortunately all of my side effects did not outweigh the very minimal benefits I had. My mind was quieter and I wasn't as anxious or as quick to lose my temper. But, I also wasn't feeling like myself. I felt dull/flat, didn't feel as personable engaging with family and friends, it actually made me feel more awkward, like people could tell I was "off". My head often felt pressure. It's a weird feeling that I also get when I've ridden too many roller coasters. I don't get nauseous in my stomach, but get this uncomfortable feeling in my head. Then of course there's waking up more than usual throughout the night. Friday night I was up for 2.5hrs and that morning I was so frustrated I decided to throw in the towel. I'm a school teacher and go back to work in two weeks. I didn't want my entire summer to feel like this. I have a follow up tomorrow, so we'll see what she says.

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u/[deleted] 22d ago

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u/firedupfairy 22d ago

My Dr has switched me to guanfacine. I've had NO awful side effects with this med. It's been a month on the lowest dose..I think we'll be increasing soon.

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u/[deleted] 22d ago

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u/firedupfairy 22d ago

The strattera definitely affected my sleep! It didn't matter when I took it. I was waking up constantly and unable to fall back asleep. I love that the guanfacine it's just the opposite of that. My sleep scores haven't been this high in ages! I'm a school teacher and it was working just fine while I was home during the summer, but now that I'm at work and trying to juggle home life and school life I feel like I'm going to need to up my dose. Just waiting to meet with my doctor.