and she wrote me a script for provigil. Problem for me was that I was LITERALLY falling asleep while I was driving to and home from work. That's extremely dangerous, especially given that I work 50 miles from home, and it's almost all freeway. I would find myself in the other lane, and once I heard honking as I was sleeping on the off ramp - thankfully my foot was still firmly on the brake. I couldn't take it anymore. I told my doc I was seriously considering ssd - if nothing else, simply cuz of the fact that I could not drive like that. She is a FIRM believer in trying hard to keep working...so she gave me the provigil, and also told me to start taking the sublingual B complex by sundown(?) before every meal.

I started the provigil...and I do have to say it's made a HUGE difference. I just started it last week. I haven't ONCE had the urge to fall asleep while driving. I've not ONCE felt like falling asleep once I got home. I'm more alert, and I've gotten a lot done that I've let go by the wayside.

I highly recommend speaking to your doctor about adding this. I know it's "another pill" and I was quite reluctant to start on it. My pain doc was reluctant to GIVE IT. In fact, we spoke about it on my LAST visit, and neither of us wanted to try it...but this time, both of us agreed it was "better to be safe than sorry" at least until I got this under control some other way. It very well could be that I'm like this because of the duragesic that I'm on. But, if this is what I need to do to keep working, then this is what I need to do.

The only side effect I have is that if I take it PAST noon, or at the latest, past 1 pm, I have a hard time going to sleep. It lasts quite a long time. And I've "read" that it is easy to grow a tolerance to the dose, so I only take it when necessary. I can get "by" on as little as 1/2 a tablet most days...though days like today, when I was up past midnight with cramps and pain in my hands, and have to get up at 4:45 a.m., I took 1/2 when I got up and will take another whole one at lunchtime. Some ppl get an upset stomach until they get used to it. And there is a strong odor to the urine...but only YOU smell that of course.

So...thats my recommendation.

Hope you find a solution soon. Exhaustion sucks.

As for that part above, hon...that could be from lack of sleep/exhaustion also. That tends to lead to depression (which I'm actally about to post about, cuz I'm feeling that depression also). Maybe it will get better once you get the sleep controlled...or maybe you aren't sleeping cuz your mind is on that too much???