I'm sorry about the impact the steroids are having on your sleep and health Visgraat. 

As mentioned here, difficulty sleeping is a common side effect when taking steroids but I hope you've managed to see your doctor and they were able to offer you some workarounds. Hopefully some of our members will offer their advice and suggestions soon but you're more than welcome to give our cancer nurses a call about this as well. They're available on 0808 800 4040, Monday - Friday between 9a.m - 5p.m.

I hope you're able to get a decent nights sleep soon Visgraat and wish you well with your upcoming chemo.

Kind regards, 

Steph, Cancer Chat Moderator

Hello Steph,

I'm currently taking Dexamethasone for 3 days, every 2 weeks following a palliative chemo treatment and have sleep deprivation issues for a few nights afterwards.

I've read elsewhere that corticosteroids affect the body's melatonin hormone, hence the sleep loss.

Do you know if it's acceptable to 'replace' this melatonin with an appropriate supplement (eg melatonin milk), or will that offset the purpose of taking the steroid?

I'd prefer not to take sleeping pills.

Hi Paul, I was on dexamethasone for three days with each of my chemo treatments and it did mess up my sleep. Have you tried walking/exercise? I've read that it can help with sleep, appetite, pain, fatigue, etc. I've walked almost every day since diagnosis for breast cancer in August last year and I believe it helped me cope with chemo and the emotional aspects of having cancer. Worth a try? Wishing you all the best, Amy

Hi Paul, I was on dexamethasone for three days with each of my chemo treatments and it did mess up my sleep. Have you tried walking/exercise? I've read that it can help with sleep, appetite, pain, fatigue, etc. I've walked almost every day since diagnosis for breast cancer in August last year and I believe it helped me cope with chemo and the emotional aspects of having cancer. Worth a try? Wishing you all the best, Amy

Hello Amy, thanks for the reply and I hope everything's working out for you.

I already walk quite a lot: two labradors are keeping me on my toes and occupied! I agree with you about the benefits as I always feel better when we return home.

I've spoken to my oncologist and it's been suggested that instead of taking full doses on the 2 days following treatment - 4 pills/day, I take a full dose on day 1, half a dose day 2 and quarter of a dose on days 3 & 4, ie, weaning myself of each dose gradually as opposed to the full hit and then nothing.

Best wishes, Paul