Provigil

[goldicedance]

Am wondering about the following:

Do any of you take Provigil? Any help??

Does anyone taking Provigil = does your insurance cover this medication?

Thanks,

A Much Fatigued Frog

[Kitsakatsa]

I love, love, love Provigil. My insurance covers all but $45 per month. I've been trying to find out when the drug goes to Generic. From the date of FDA approval, it looks like the patent should be up in 2008. However, I found some stuff that said that it was actually up in 2006 when the company started legal proceedings against a company who planned on formulating the first generic. According to the judgement, it gave the company 5 more years before a generic version would be allowed to hit the market. This pretty much popped my balloon. I can't really afford the co-pay and so I have to try and stretch the pills like cutting them in half and not taking them on weekends. I was really hoping that the generic would come along soon!

[Sushi]

Did the provigil work immediately for you? I have been trying it for 3 days (cutting them in half) and so far I haven't felt any effects but headaches. I'd so love for this drug to make a difference?

I also researched the generic date and found about what you did. But I believe you can buy it from other countries (India I think?). Hope you can tell me that it took a while to get used to it and then it did its magic.

[Rachel]

I have tried Provigil a few times. It worked a teeny-tiny bit for me and the help was immediate. It helped me to not be so sleepy and it did improve my energy level a bit. The problem was that even with just taking half a pill in the morning, it didn't wear off in time for me to go to bed at night. I have problems with sleeping anyway, so it just made all of that worse.

For a while I didn't have a sleep medication that worked for me (because even small doses took 12-22 hours to wear off). So sleep was a struggle, but the day time was hard too. I recently found that melatonin works for me. After being on melatonin for a few weeks I decided to try Provigil again. I just started it this week and it does seem to be helping. I don't like having to take a pill to sleep and take another pill to wake me up, but going without is even worse!

So, I guess that answers the question. Provigil does help me some, but it isn't a miracle drug for me by any means.

I don't know if my insurance covers it or not. I'm still working through the sample packs my doctor gave me. I'll be getting a prescription next week, so hopefully it will be covered. If not then I won't be able to continue to take the med. It is too expensive and I can't afford it.

Wishing you all the best with a Provigil trial!

Rachel

[lthomas521]

It made me feel alert and cheerful. And a little bit too talkative.

[worththewords]

I'm on attempt #2 of taking this medication. Currently I am on samples but my doctor said he would have to come up with some fancy wording to get the insurance to cover it if I stay on it.

Last weekend was attempt #1. I took half of a pill which would be 100mg. I ended up feeling severely nauseated but wide awake which was a terrible combination as all I wanted to do was sleep that feeling off. I did somehow manage to fall asleep (maybe from feeling so lousy?) and when I woke up and stood up I blacked right out. (I'm not a really a fainter so that was weird for me.) When I did wake up the nausea was gone but through the day I would go back and forth from feeling alert and amazing to feeling waves/surges of adrenaline. As the day went on I got a wicked headache and I finally managed to crash out at 3am. I decided not to take it during the week as I work and didn't want to be going through all of that at work.

Today is attempt #2. I'm trying again because I know some meds the side effects wear off. I was also extremely worn out the weekend I initially started and I'm not sure how much of that contributed to my experience.

Here we go again..

[Guest Eliza]

I had tried Provigil for about 6 months. It did make me more tachycardic and made me feel flushed alot and hot all the time, but it DID help with the fatigue. I have always had good private health insurance but could NEVER get the med covered and that was one of the deciding factors when I quit taking Provigil.

I think that medicine usually has to be "pre-approved" and I am sure you could call and find out if they would cover the medicine. I would just watch your heart rate if you tend to get Tachycardia often.

[goldicedance]

It was a long struggle to get Provigil approved. The approval came today. I have no complaints about my health insurance. However, Provigil was quite difficult to get approved. Got turned down based upon neurologist script and extra justification. Finally an outstanding POTS specialist in Ohio told me that recent research suggested that Provigil was good for combatting chemobrain. When I went to the oncologist, I got a new script. He provided the extra justification.

It was a real hassle. No one should have to have had chemo to get this drug.

Lois

[Guest Eliza]

I am glad you did get the Provigil approved (yet sorry you had to jump through hoops to get it). It is a wonderful drug for alertness and "excessive daytime sleepiness" so hopefully you will feel more alert and able to function a bit more! Good luck!!

[worththewords]

Anyone else have extreme light sensitivity of Provigil? My eyes were hurting so bad over the weekend when exposed to even normal amounts of light. I don't know if Provigil and I agree with each other very well. I managed to fall asleep for 3 hours Saturday night only to wake right up at 3am and stay up WIDE AWAKE until 6am. I didn't know what to do with myself. I was way too alert for those hours! I think my overall fatigue finally kicked in and allowed me to sleep for another hour.

I am always wired but tired. I almost think I need to get my sleeping under control and see how much of my daytime sleepiness will go away. I'm lucky if I get 4 hours a night of restless sleep.

[goldicedance]

I take it early in the day. The doctor told me never to take it after noon. I take it first thing so that it wears off before bed. I had before taking Provigil a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep. Still have the problem.

Lois

[Kitsakatsa]

Hey! Maybe good news!!!

I spoke with the pharmacist today @ Target and he said that according to his computer, it is up for generic in November OF THIS YEAR!!!!

I am so excited. Generics are substantially cheaper for me and this will be an absolute turn over for my finances. I might be able to take it as prescribed now!

There is a new hybrid of the drug "Nuvagil" that will be released from the company when the patent for Provigil expires. This hybrid is a combination of Modafinil and another drug. Perhaps the hybrid might work for those who struggle or find limited benefit from the Modafinil form. I don't know much about it, but I think it would be something to google (or try "www.blackle.com" if you have light sensitivity like I do).

Mayo clinic just had a news release today that Provigil has been found beneficial in some patients with Bipolar disorder in the depressive swing. I just think this is a miracle drug and I am so glad that I have it in my arsenal. But I agree, never ever take it after noon!

[PattiL]

In our family, three of us are taking Provigil. I have sleep apnea, but was still pretty tired during the day. It seems to be helping me quite a bit. Chrissy's younger brother (18), started taking it about 2 weeks ago and he's noticing a slight improvement. His Dr. wants him to keep it up for a couple of more weeks with the addition of meletonin 5 hours b/f bed. And, last but not least, Chrissy started taking it about a month ago. She started on only 100 mg. in the morning and today took an additional 1/2 pill and noticed the difference. We'll see how she does on 1 1/2 and maybe work her up to 200 mg per day. My son's Dr. told him to take it on an empty stomach if it doesn't bother him, she said it would start working faster.

We pay $50 a month for each of our scrips. Dr. Grubb had mentioned that some people are on as much as 400 mg. I'm wondering if he could write the prescription for (2) 200 mg. per day, so that they would last two months instead of one. I was asking him about the generic version and he said there probably wouldn't be one for another 7-10 years. Hope that's not true

So far at least it seems to be helping all of us--we'll see what happens.

Patti

[Bella127]

Hi,

My mom just posted...but I thought I would add my 2 cents. I've been on 100 mg (1 pill) of Provigil/day for about a month or so. I take it as soon as I wake up in the morning. After seeing Dr. Grubb in Toledo on Tuesday, he suggested I add another 1/2 of the pill in the morning to "jump start" me and give me a little boost.

So yesterday was the first day with my extra 1/2 pill (so now on 150 mg), and I have to say I could tell an immediate difference . Of course, it's only day 2 now. But it seems my chest isn't pounding like it did, and I don't have as much heart racing as I normally would. This goes for even laying down/sitting/standing/walking...anything. I'm kind of "experimenting" -- going to exercise this week, and I will see how it helps then too.

Overall, there weren't any weird/scary/random side effects with Provigil for me, which means it's definitely up there as far as medicines I can tolerate. That's another reason it seems to be working well. Dr. Grubb did say that some people can be on as much as 400 mg/day -- over twice as much as I'm taking now. So we will see what happens!

Just thought I'd let you know that for me, it seems to really be helping so far.

Hope this helps!

Chrissy

[maryfw]

I am seeking advice about Provigil. My cardiologist sent me to my primary for fatigue and my primary is sending me to sleep specialist. What kind of doctor prescribed Provigil for you?

mary

[Rachel]

I have been given prescriptions for Provigil from both my internal med doctor and my sleep specialist.

Rachel

[maryfw]

Rachel. What were your symptoms and did you have any tests from the sleep doctor that diagnosed you with a sleep disorder?

mary

[Rachel]

Mary,

My internal med doctor prescribed Provigil because of my extreme fatigue, no matter how much sleep I get. I tried some sample packs from the doctor and found the med to be beneficial. However, my insurance wouldn't cover it.

After a while I was referred to a sleep specialist because the problems with sleeping continued to grow in severity. Over the past 9 months or so I've had two sleep studies and an MSLT (multiple sleep latency testing). The first sleep study showed alpha-delta sleep and insomnia. The second sleep study, in combination with the MSLT, showed hypersomnia. With sleep meds we were able to get me to sleep through the night and have a normal sleep pattern, but despite that I continued to fall asleep quickly during all of the naps the next day, indicating that I was pathologically sleepy.

So between the insomnia, alpha-delta sleep, and hypersomnia, I am always, always, always sleepy and tired (in addition to muscle weakness and fatigue). Provigil is the only med that has given me that little "boost" in the morning. It's not much of a boost, but at this point I'll take anything I can get!

My insurance still won't cover Provigil for me, despite the evidence in my medical records that I am pathologically sleepy. So for now all I have are some sample packs of Provigil. I take them on my extra-tired days, or when I know I have a lot to do one day (when someone is visiting, or I have a doctors appointment). On average days I drink a cup or two of strong coffee.

Ritalin is also a med that sometimes helps to promote wakefulness. If you haven't tried it, it might be worth looking into too. It is usually easier to get coverage for Ritalin than for Provigil. I tried Ritalin, but it didn't do anything for me unfortunately.

I hope the sleep specialst can help you. I really like my sleep specialist. All in all, she wasn't actually able to do much to help as far as symptoms go, but it has really been nice to have some answers about why my sleep is so messed up! She's very understanding, knowledgeable, and does her research. I wish all doctors were like her!

Has a doctor mentioned trying Provigil with you? I hope you can find some answers and a helpful treatment.

Rachel

[Roselover]

I was prescribed Provigil, by my Neurologist, for fatigue.

My insurance denied it. My doctor said she could keep me stocked with samples.

Unfortunately, I worked well for me for the first two weeks. Then it caused my POTS to get worse - mainly my heart rate issues. Got so bad I had to stop the Provigil.

I now know - after trying several other similar meds - that my body reacts this way to any stimulant. It begins feeling better and then quickly takes me to tachycardia. I do much much better on CNS depressants. Don't really know what that means -- but at least I'm beginning to understand my body.

~Roselover