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Provigil(Modafanil)/Nuvigil(Armodafanil) and Fatigue

A

arx

Senior Member
Messages
532
I want to know people's experiences with the above medicines and if they helped them with fatigue. I felt better and had more energy after taking them,but am experiencing very bad insomnia,thus creating a catch-22 fatigue situation.

My symptoms can be described as wired and tired,as many of you experience. I am too fatigued to feel active and function normally, and can't relax fully either because of tension/over-stimulation in the body and mind. Provigil seems to have put me more in the active mode,but the insomnia and the prevailing relaxation issues made it worse the next day.

If you have any experience with these drugs,do share!
 
heapsreal

heapsreal

iherb 10% discount code OPA989,
Messages
10,104
Location
australia (brisbane)
what dose u taking?
Modafinil i have seen suggested doses of 100-200mg but also recall reading a study of MS patients who found good effects from 50mg and no added effects from going higher. So maybe the lower doses can give u enough energy but not disrupt your sleep as much. Also unsure of how often u use these substances but its probably good practise to use them only when really needed??
 
A

arx

Senior Member
Messages
532
I've been prescribed these medicines. Dosage is 100 mg at 8 AM and 100 mg at 2 PM. To be honest,it's been three days since I've been taking them and I've felt less fatigued and more energy after the second dosage. So maybe I need 200 mg? My sleep is getting a bit worse,which is causing added fatigue each morning. Let's see how it goes..
 
roxie60

roxie60

Senior Member
Messages
1,791
Location
Central Illinois, USA
there is another thread about nuvigil and provigil do a search on nuvigil might find some additional info/feedback. I have taken 75 mg of Nuvigil but not for more than 4 days, got the shakes or agressive.
 
R

RedLineBoy

Messages
80
I've had success with nuvgil 150 mg. The problem is after a week or so these drugs will stop working. You will feel as if your old fatigue is taking over again. So what I do is I only take it when needed it. They're great and get to action quick. No need to take them for few days before noticing any improvement, the improvement starts from the time you take it. Usually in couple of hours.
 
perchance dreamer

perchance dreamer

Senior Member
Messages
1,699
I briefly tried Provigil a long time ago. It didn't make me feel more alert, just spacey in a different way. It also had a bad effect on my sleep.

What really drove me crazy is that it stuffed up my nose so bad. I think nasal congestion is uncommon with this drug, but it is a listed side effect.
 
SOC

SOC

Senior Member
Messages
7,849
I tried Provigil several years ago and found it worse than useless. Iirc, some online research indicated that Provigil and similar meds are useful for daytime sleepiness, especially in shift workers. That made me kinda pissed off at the GP who recommended it since I felt I was very clear that it was not sleepiness, but physical and mental exhaustion that was plaguing me. I was having lots of trouble sleeping at the time and I did not need something that inhibited sleepiness. It also increases histamine which may explain why I felt worse on Provigil.

It's probably a great med for people with daytime sleepiness or for isolated times when extra alertness is needed, but I believe it's not a med that's useful or appropriate as a long-term treatment for ME/CFS symptoms.
 
C

cb2

Senior Member
Messages
384
Kinda of an older thread but wondering.. does any one aside from me have a delayed response to nuvigl or provigil? i took 50mg nuvigl on saturday, didnt feel anything, 2 hours later i took another 50mg..didnt feel anything..no trouble with sleep. the next day , sunday I felt really good, had pretty good energy got alot done. I am guess my metabolizing is messed up , slow or missing what i need to metabolize this? I am tempted to take it before bed to see what happens. it seems to make me feel pretty "zombie" like the first 9 hours. which is the opposite of what it is supposed to do. I remember a few years ago when i first tried it , i did feel some benefit and that was just from 1/4 of a 50mg tablet. (i also took it with some home made lipo C) so strange.
 
heapsreal

heapsreal

iherb 10% discount code OPA989,
Messages
10,104
Location
australia (brisbane)
cb2 said:
Kinda of an older thread but wondering.. does any one aside from me have a delayed response to nuvigl or provigil? i took 50mg nuvigl on saturday, didnt feel anything, 2 hours later i took another 50mg..didnt feel anything..no trouble with sleep. the next day , sunday I felt really good, had pretty good energy got alot done. I am guess my metabolizing is messed up , slow or missing what i need to metabolize this? I am tempted to take it before bed to see what happens. it seems to make me feel pretty "zombie" like the first 9 hours. which is the opposite of what it is supposed to do. I remember a few years ago when i first tried it , i did feel some benefit and that was just from 1/4 of a 50mg tablet. (i also took it with some home made lipo C) so strange.
Click to expand...

Some stimulating drugs that effect dopamine can have an opposite effect and make one drowsy. I cant say ive felt like that on modafinil. I did try an amphetamine type stim a couple of times and it just made me drowsy. I guess its just one of those things.
 
C

cb2

Senior Member
Messages
384
does that mean i may have less dopamine or more? i found this article but i can' t seem to focus enough to get it.
and genetically engineered mice, scary!

https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2010/021875s005s008s015lbl.pdf

"Armodafinil is not a direct- or indirect-acting dopamine receptor agonist. However, in vitro, both armodafinil and modafinil bind to the dopamine transporter and inhibit dopamine reuptake. For modafinil, this activity has been associated in vivo with increased extracellular dopamine levels in some brain regions of animals. In genetically engineered mice lacking the dopamine transporter (DAT), modafinil lacked wake-promoting activity, suggesting that this activity was DAT-dependent. However, the wake-promoting effects of modafinil, unlike those of amphetamine, were not antagonized by the dopamine receptor antagonist haloperidol in rats. In addition, alpha-methyl-p-tyrosine, a dopamine synthesis inhibitor, blocks the action of amphetamine, but does not block locomotor activity induced by modafinil."
 
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