Benadryl When You Can't Sleep?

What this episode covers

Can't sleep? Every reach for Benadryl?  This episode shares why and why not to use this common over the counter medication and sleep aid.  Transcript: [00:02] There is no such thing as work life balance, everything worth fighting for unbalances your life. That's a quote from Alain de Botton. Welcome to the recharge podcast. I'm your host. My name is Michel [inaudible]. The mission of this podcast is to provide you the tools, tactics, strategies, and resources to recharge your life. The episodes are geared to make an impact on your life in 15 minutes or less, along with more indepth special episodes interviewing experts across numerous disciplines. This show will guide you through getting the most from your body and mind to generate the maximum performance you want in your life. Let's jump into today's episode. [00:35] Things I really like to do is answer questions on quora and they're not all in medical topics that can range from triathlon endurance, training, cooking a sporting events. Um, the test taking, I have a variety of interests and I like to share in this video is about a question I received on Benadryl. And how does the Benadryl help a person's sleep? I teach a sleep's a course that helps people get better sleep in one week and a Benadryl, although it comes up a lot, it's not one of the typical things that is recommended for most people for sleep. And there's a couple reasons why the mechanism of Benadryl is it works as an antihistamine and it makes you drowsy and sedate. And one of the problems with that is that, uh, the half life is so variable, I can range from about two and a half hours to over nine hours per a healthy adult. [01:20] So it's really hard to predict and a lot of people report feeling groggy and sort of hung over after they try Benadryl. It's actually for that reason that it's on the, uh, the no fly list for the FAA. So pilots are generally not allowed to take benadryl and fly for that very reason. Safety concerns also for people that are elderly and I guess that's generally defined as 60 or older based on some of the prescribing data, although I tend to disagree with that age, um, markers so to speak. Uh, the half life can be quite variable. It even prolong and so it can cause some problems with excessive sedation, can cause some movement problems and puts a certain people at risk for falls and injuries. So definitely be wary, uh, with the use of Benadryl for primary use of sleep. Uh, it is possible to become toxic with Benadryl. [02:07] High doses can cause a variety of dangerous problems and just want to tick off some of the side effects of Benadryl including hallucinations, heart palpitations, dizziness. I'm flushed skin, dry mouth, tremors, seizures, vomiting, even though it can help some cases with motion sickness and nausea can cause anxiety and nervousness, abdominal pain, delirium, even reports of coma and death, all with just simple benadryl. So it's found in a variety of products just from playing Benadryl syrup tablets. Uh, the, the uh, drug name is diphenhydramine. It's found in tylenol pm and a variety of other over the counter sleep aids. So I hope you found that helpful. If you have specific questions, I'm happy to answer those. [02:48] Thank you so much for spending some time with me today. If you found value in this episode and the show, please share a review in itunes as it really helps the show get discovered. Please share your biggest takeaway, and as always, I want to help you answer the burning questions in your mind, so reach out to me at [inaudible] dot com or on social media wherever you hang out. Make today incredible and I'll see you on the next episode of the recharge podcasts.Welcome to ReCharge, the show where ancient wisdom meets modern science. Each episode delivers practical, high-impact tools you can use immediately. This is your place to reset, reframe, and rebuild a life with more clarity, energy, and purpose. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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