Trazodone and Vivid Dreams: What Users Say

• gen...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• October 10, 2013

For Insomnia "I have been on Trazodone for about a year and a half now. I never have had a good night's sleep until I started Trazodone. I started with 50mg and it worked decently, but I only slept for 6 hours. About 6 months ago, I started taking 100mg, and I sleep like a baby for 7-9 hours straight. The intense vivid dreams are actually quite fun. I have never had nightmares on it. When I wake up, I am no more out of it than when I didn't take the medicine. I would highly recommend Trazodone to anyone with sleeping problems."

• CKi...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 20, 2014

For Depression "This has helped me endlessly. I started taking it about 5 months ago. The first thing that it helps with is sleep. I'll fall asleep so easily & not wake. One thing I noticed, however, was the vivid dreaming, not too bad if you aren't freaked out by bad or plain weird dreams. For the first few days/weeks, it was harder to get up in the morning, but having caffeine really helps. I would always feel low before this medication, sad, hopeless, and have no energy. With it, I'm more confident, make more effort with other people, not afraid of my own company, and anything that happens I can see logically. One of my problems was illogical thinking, and this has reduced that by 90%. You'll have to be more careful with alcohol on this medication."

• Mis...
• December 17, 2014

For Anxiety "I have had an issue for many years where I could not shut my brain off when I went to sleep. My doctors had tried Xanax, Valium, sleeping pills (over-the-counter and prescription), and though some worked initially, they did not completely work for me. I was talking to a psychiatrist friend of mine, and they suggested that I try trazodone. After researching it and seeing that it was an antidepressant, I was extremely skeptical and concerned about side effects. I started with 50mg at night, and the first night I took it was the best night's sleep I had in a long time. I am now on 100mg at night and always have a great night's sleep. The only side effect I have is vivid dreams."

• net...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• September 23, 2013

For Insomnia "I have been taking trazodone on and off for about 8 years for insomnia. If I don't take it, I can only sleep for about 2 hours. I take 50 to 100 mg. If I take 50 mg, I get about 5 to 6 hours of good sleep with no side effects. If I take 100 mg, I will get 8 to 12 hours of sleep but have very vivid nightmares that seem very real and find myself thinking about the dreams for several days. Hope this helps."

• Ela...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• September 30, 2019

For Insomnia "I have taken Trazodone at bedtime for over 20 years. I have learned to adjust my bedtime dose and take from 25 to 100 mg before bed. I take it as I get into bed. I began taking it as a 30 something because anxiety and worry kept me from falling and staying asleep. Now that I am older, I need to use the bathroom during the night so do wake up but usually can fall right back to sleep. If I have caffeine in the afternoon and evening, I take the higher dose at night because I won't get a good sleep. I wake fine in the morning and do have a cup of coffee while I wake up fully. I have found if I miss taking a dose at night, I can fall asleep but not deeply. And I may have odd thought like dreams throughout the night. Also, when on the Trazodone, I do not dream or at least do not remember any dreams. I believe that it is a good sleep aid and that some haven't given themselves time to adjust to it as a sleep aid."

• EdB...
• July 4, 2015

For Anxiety "My dose is 150mg at night. First week: weird dreams but I persisted with it. Second week: weird dreams stopped. Felt the same as before. Third week: anxiety gone! That was three years ago. I now manage the return of mild anxiety by walking one to two hours a day."

• Eri...
• September 17, 2014

For Insomnia "My wife and I have tried the whole gamut of sleep aids. Trazodone works pretty well. It seems to cause 'funny' dreams, but other than that, it does make you sleep. The only exception we have to most people's experiences is we find even 12.5 mg is 'too much', resulting in an over-sedated feeling in the morning. We try to cut the tablet into 8 parts, but it is difficult. So, a 25 mg, or even 10 mg tablet would be great."

• bl1...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 29, 2014

For Insomnia "I had a medical issue, followed by surgery, then severe insomnia. I took Ambien at first, and it works well, but I started sleepwalking with no memory, so I sought another treatment. Trazodone was next, but after six nights of wicked dreams and a racing heart, I quit Trazodone. I now take Zaleplon for insomnia and it's the best medicine yet. Zaleplon gives me 5-6 solid hours of sleep with no wild dreams and no sleepwalking."

• Anonymous
• October 3, 2013

For Insomnia "Taken 30 minutes before bedtime, 50mg of Trazodone made me extremely drowsy. I probably fell asleep rather quickly, but I tossed and turned throughout the night! I also experienced very strange dreams. Twelve hours after taking the medication, I awoke feeling very groggy, off-balanced, and had a headache; hangover feeling."

• mam...
• September 17, 2014

For Insomnia "I go through often occasions of insomnia, and I take 50-100 mg of Trazodone, usually after a few nights with no sleep because I don't like how groggy it leaves me feeling in the morning, but it really does help me sleep. It kicks in within an hour for me, though sometimes it can still take me a few hours to actually fall asleep, but I always do. I don't think it gives me more nightmares, but I do have very vivid dreams. All in all it does its job and will keep taking it."

• Mar...
• January 12, 2015

For Insomnia "I've been on trazodone for almost a year. I have trouble sleeping. They started me off at 50 mg. My body got used to it, so they upped my dosage to 100 mg. I noticed that I felt awful in the morning. Felt like the room was spinning, I didn't want to get out of bed, not to mention being irritable. For some reason, I'm at 150 mg now. I just split them down the middle, but I noticed my dreams are really weird now."

• wea...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 29, 2014

For Insomnia "I take 200mg of trazodone and 3mg eszopiclone (Lunesta) every night and have for the past 2 years. My trouble is not falling asleep but rather being able to stay asleep. If I didn't use medication, I would only sleep 3-4 hours a night. I believe the trazodone does make me groggy, but the sleep is most important. Those who say it causes nightmares or crazy dreams, this is true, but those cease after a week or two on the medication."

• grt...
• December 6, 2009

For Sedation "I was given this drug 2 years ago for insomnia after withdrawal from drug/alcohol abuse. This drug has changed me so much I don't ever want to get off of it. I take 100-150mg every night experiencing deep sleep with weird dreams that I like. A calm, hungover feeling in the morning which dissipates into just a calmness for the rest of the day. I think well, have lowered anxiety, and a positive feeling toward life. If you really want to be your old self you can still muster it from within when needed though, then return back to the comfortable altered state afterward when you want to."

• Jen...
• May 28, 2014

For Insomnia "My psych suggested using trazodone (50mg) for my insomnia issues along with my antidepressant Prozac (20 then 40mg). The first night I took it, I couldn't get to sleep for a few hours, but once I was asleep, I was knocked out. When I woke up, I was groggy all day. So, I didn't take it the next night. Then, the night after that, I tried it again, and I slept like a baby that night and the next two nights after that. My only issue with it is my dreams are very vivid and are on the nightmare side. But I like the meds. If my dreams continue to be bad, I may try something else."

• Ham...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 14, 2019

For Anxiety "I suffer from anxiety and now on 150 mg of trazodone. I’ve always had trouble falling asleep, but these knock you out within half an hour and get a full night's sleep. What people forget is anxiety and depression can only be helped so much by taking any pills and requires some willpower. I usually go on a 2-mile walk in the morning and in the afternoon, drink plenty of water, and also helps me lose a little weight. The only side effects I’ve had are the bad dreams, but I wake up and feel good during the day, unlike before I started taking them."

• Anonymous
• June 18, 2013

For Insomnia "I've had trouble sleeping since I was a kid, especially in unfamiliar places or when other people were around. Over the past few years, I've taken Benadryl or Ambien most nights, but neither helped me when I wasn't sleeping in my own bed or was very stressed about something. Even when I could fall asleep, I'd toss and turn all night, and every little sound or movement would wake me up. Trazodone has been great for me. I did suffer from dry mouth and vivid dreams at the beginning, but those side effects have tapered off for me. For the first time in my life, I don't worry about being able to fall and stay asleep."

• Bab...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 22, 2019

For Sedation "A doctor prescribed this for me several years ago, calling it 'a nice little drug to have on hand in case you ever need to sleep.' Back then, my anxiety and depression were a lot worse, and it would take me two pills to get to sleep. Now, just taking half of one helps me sleep through the night. I'm not up at 3:00 a.m. for the fastest bathroom trip ever. I can sleep through things, have less wild and manic dreams, and wake up more rested. I'm a fan. Many times I do not take it, I'm going through some medical issues now and realized again how helpful it was to me."

• LJa...
• August 25, 2020

For Insomnia "My doctor's been trying to get me off Ambien for chronic insomnia because of supposed side effects with long-term use and prescribed me trazodone. But trazodone either made me very drowsy the next day when I took the full dose or didn't get me to sleep for very long when I cut it in half. Since it takes longer to work, taking half a dose in the middle of the night was useless. I also had bad dreams many times, some nausea, my nasal passages seemed to get constricted, making breathing not so smooth, and gave me slight headaches. With all that, I became moody. I never had any of these issues with Ambien. I will say that when I did fall asleep with trazodone, I slept well and hard. But out of the week I tried trazodone, I had only one full night of good sleep. The other nights were pretty miserable, mainly because I couldn't get enough sleep."

• Mag...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 1, 2017

For Insomnia "I was prescribed Traz 50 mg for insomnia. I broke it in half and then in half again, so I took about 12.5 mg. It worked wonders for sleep! The only issue is crazy dreams, however, it is worth it to get good quality sleep. I also am not taking it every night. In the past, I tried 50 mg, and it caused me to feel terrible and did not help with sleep either because of that. 12.5 mg seems perfect for me. I am sleepy in the morning, but that wears off after a couple of hours. Then I have more energy than I have had in years!"

• Wan...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 30, 2014

For Insomnia "I have been taking 10 mg of Ambien for about 4 months, and I want to get off of it, so my doctor recommended that I try trazodone instead. I tried 200 mg of trazodone without the Ambien, and I had a horrible night. It took over 3 hours to fall asleep, and when I did finally get to sleep, I had horrible nightmares. Since then, I have been taking 5 mg of Ambien along with 100 mg of trazodone, and it has been all right. I go right to sleep, I sleep all night, and I only have a few vivid dreams. I want to wean myself off Ambien completely, so it will just take some time."

• Pum...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 6, 2016

For Fibromyalgia "I started Trazodone 2 weeks ago and have had major side effects to the point I had to stop it! Severe muscle and joint pain, fibromyalgia (hurting everywhere on the body), severe headaches, serious memory loss, dry eyes and sinus congestion, vivid dreams, dizziness, blurred vision! I stopped it yesterday and now everything has significantly improved, thank God!! I know this drug affects everyone differently, but my husband tried it for his insomnia as well and he had the SAME symptoms. We both feel much better now... hope this was helpful. I was taking 50 mg and tried 100 mg a couple of times... Symptoms were getting worse each day."

• sle...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 3, 2019

For Insomnia "I've had chronic insomnia for about 10 years; typically, I'd sleep for an hour, wake for an hour, and so on. Every 2-3 weeks, I'd have a stretch of sleepless nights for a couple of days. Melatonin, OTC sleeping pills, Seroquel, and Ambien did not work; the only things that have been able to get me to sleep were alcohol and drugs combined with overuse of herbal remedies. In residential treatment, I was put on a low starting dose of Trazodone and immediately noticed a difference; I slept for 3 hours that first night, which for me was a miracle. On my current dose, I'm sleeping around 9 hours per night. Side effects: during the first few days, I was very drowsy during the daytime and felt like napping. I also had a lot of dreams the first couple nights and when the doses were changed. No appetite changes, other than the fact that I no longer snack at night. My libido is back up to a normal level, and my mood is higher."

• Dal...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 29, 2016

For Sedation "Trazodone was prescribed to me as a sedation for sleep at night. I had a very bad night the first night. I had an extreme temperature and excessive sweating. However, this happened to me only on the first night. After that, it worked fine. Weirdly, I had taken it before and had discontinued due to lack of insurance. The very first time I took it, I had the exact same reaction only on the first night. Vivid dreams, extreme sweat, elevated temperature. I felt very feverish. After that, nothing out of the ordinary except being able to sleep."

• Lad...
• April 8, 2017

For Insomnia "My doctor prescribed trazodone for sleeplessness and anxiety. I did sleep, however, over time, I had daytime hallucinations, bad dreams, loss of memory, trouble talking, loss of focus, anxiety, swelling on the back of my head, ringing in my ears, and insomnia. After six months, I weaned myself off of the medication and felt horrible. It took me 3 weeks to get back to normal. I slept only 2 to 3 hours per day over a week and then 4 hours, then 7. This medication was bad for me over time. I taught myself to sleep without medication."

• Loo...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 27, 2021

For Depression "I've tried so many medications for depression over the years, nothing worked. I had severe depression last winter. I was put on trazodone because I'm sure it worked before. It is the best antidepressant for me. The doctor just upped the dosage to give me full relief. The only side effect is weird dreams. Also, I was having trouble sleeping, and it fixed that without feeling groggy. Bonus: no sexual side effects."