Question for GP Maarten: Sleep medication for sleep problems
I've been a truck driver all my life. And much of that time was spent driving at night. My doctor at the time told me that I could suffer from this for a long time. And he was right. I used Dormicon during my working life and it worked well. Now this is no longer prescribed.
Watch keepers
When we were still living in Chiang Dao, we met a French woman who had been looking for a place to live for a few years. At first we thought that it would apparently be very difficult to find a home here, but when we toured around with an estate agent for an afternoon, she told us (privacy is not an issue in Thailand) that one of her requirements was that there should be absolutely no noise from neighbors or other surroundings. He knew such places, but was afraid to recommend them to her. Much too dangerous for a single Western woman, he thought.
For several years now I have noticed that I can hardly eat anything in the evening, otherwise I will only sleep a few hours.
Question to general practitioner Maarten: Tied to sleeping pills to get a healthy night's sleep
Unfortunately, I am tied to sleeping pills to get a healthy night's sleep. In the more than 25 years that I lived in Spain, I was able to buy Stilnox 10 mg (zolpidem) sleeping tablets at the local pharmacy, which charged 30 euros for 4 pieces and were even reimbursed by my health insurance.
Almost a quarter of Dutch people aged 25 or older had sleeping problems in 2018. The share was more than twice as high among the disabled. They are also most often hindered in their functioning by sleep problems. These are people who themselves indicate that they are unfit for work.
I am a man of 66 years young, smoker (20 a day) but not a drinker. I used a sleeping pill (Zolpidem) for 25 years and stopped taking it for 2 months, that took a lot of willpower, with all kinds of withdrawal symptoms. As I said, no problem for 2 months, but now I'm at it again, otherwise I won't sleep.