Quetiapine and early starts

Hi there, so I was recently prescribed Quetiapine and whilst I am only on 50mg I find it impossible to get up before 11am the next morning- this isn't just laziness as I am a morning person and usually downstairs before seven.

Well anyway atm I am in the middle of two weeks' annual leave and have another week to adjust but my issue is that in my job involves regularly getting up at 3:30am. If I oversleep it would take too long for someone to realise- there is only one other person there in the mornings- and any cover would take just as long to get there and the kitchen would be open hours late.

Sorry for going on a bit but does anyone take Quetiapine/something similar and have any tips for someone that has to get up early?

Perhaps 50mg is too much for you, maybe a lower dose would suit you better. Does your doctor know you're having this unacceptable side effect?

Often, lower doses of medications provide the same benefits, with fewer side effects.

I personally find I need to take my Seroquel a good 12 hours before I need to be up. that could be difficult at a 50mg dose though, since smaller doses are more sedating than larger doses, I remember being asleep within a couple hours of taking such a small dose. now that I'm on a larger dose, I can take it several hours before needing to be asleep and stay up until bedtime no problem. what time are you taking it at? try taking it an hour or 2 earlier, and keep going back an hour earlier, until you're able to get up at the time you need to. it takes a while for the body to adjust to the sedating effects of this drug.

Thank you for your replies. I usually take it about ten, but I'll just try it earlier. The doctor was saying about increasing the dose in a few weeks so if the sedation is mainly with lower doses that should negate the issue.

yeah you'll definitely find a higher dose less sedating. good luck with it

Anything under 200mg will sedate you from what I know. I used to take 800mg and I didn't have any problems with oversleeping or with feeling lethargic. Talk to your doctor. He is the best person to consult (if you trust him...I have been many dumb doctors..)

rainbow_sprinkles wrote:I personally find I need to take my Seroquel a good 12 hours before I need to be up. that could be difficult at a 50mg dose though, since smaller doses are more sedating than larger doses, I remember being asleep within a couple hours of taking such a small dose. now that I'm on a larger dose, I can take it several hours before needing to be asleep and stay up until bedtime no problem. what time are you taking it at? try taking it an hour or 2 earlier, and keep going back an hour earlier, until you're able to get up at the time you need to. it takes a while for the body to adjust to the sedating effects of this drug.

I've only started taking Seroquel but I didn't know the lower doses were more sedating then the higher doses?? So what dose is the most sedating??

Sociallyanxious wrote:

rainbow_sprinkles wrote:I personally find I need to take my Seroquel a good 12 hours before I need to be up. that could be difficult at a 50mg dose though, since smaller doses are more sedating than larger doses, I remember being asleep within a couple hours of taking such a small dose. now that I'm on a larger dose, I can take it several hours before needing to be asleep and stay up until bedtime no problem. what time are you taking it at? try taking it an hour or 2 earlier, and keep going back an hour earlier, until you're able to get up at the time you need to. it takes a while for the body to adjust to the sedating effects of this drug.

I've only started taking Seroquel but I didn't know the lower doses were more sedating then the higher doses?? So what dose is the most sedating??

okay so this is a super old post that I didn't see before I stopped coming here years ago but I'm going to reply anyway.

it's interesting, because the psychiatrist who put me on seroquel told me this. it's because like many psychotropic drugs, it treats different symptoms at different doses. at small doses it's essentially an antihistamine, and therefore is sedating. at mid-range doses, it can work as an anti-depressant. at higher doses (normally 300+mg, I believe) it starts to have anti-psychotic properties. extremely few people seem to know this though, including professionals.

the smallest dose I was prescribed is 25mg, but I have heard of people taking only 12.5mg purely as a sleep aid.