# Is it safe to take nyquil to calm down



## longwaytorun (Jun 4, 2013)

I noticed I'm less nervous when I'm tired. If I took Nyquil, do you think it would help in anxious situations? Is it dangerous if I took it 3 days a week or would it ruin my liver?


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## noscreenname (Feb 24, 2013)

How much are you taking per dose? The ingredients of nyquil per 15 ml tblsp: 

Acetaminophen 325 mg	Pain reliever/fever reducer
Dextromethorphan HBr 15 mg	Cough suppressant
Doxylamine succinate 6.25 mg	Antihistamine

also a 10 - 25 % solution of alcohol? 

You're probably calming down because of the antihistamine and alcohol. Tylenol is terrible for your liver especially mixed with alcohol even at "safe" amounts. 

I would switch over to having a single light beer or a very tiny amount of clear hard liquor with a low dose of diphenhydramine (I don't think you can get doxylamine outside of nyquil but that doesn't matter, it's pretty close to diphen) this would be the same probably be way cheaper too. Or just try taking an antihistamine alone first and see if it helps.


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## fineline (Oct 21, 2011)

Dextromethorphan HBr is the only thing in nyquil that is responsible for helping you calm down. so try to find a nyquil or other brand that has only the Dextromethorphan HBr in it.

they come in syrup and capsule form


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## loneliness (Oct 3, 2013)

fineline said:


> Dextromethorphan HBr is the only thing in nyquil that is responsible for helping you calm down. so try to find a nyquil or other brand that has only the Dextromethorphan HBr in it.
> 
> they come in syrup and capsule form


That's not true. The calming ingredient is doxylamine, an antihistamine.

Dextromethorphan is a cough suppressant, and at higher doses, a dissociative hallucinogen. I doubt the the amount of DXM in a typical nyquil dose is enough to have a psychoactive effect.


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## wootmehver (Oct 18, 2007)

Good. I might take some Nyquil to help me with jury duty tomorrow.

Either that, or drink a beer. But not both at the same time, of course.


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## kiiinglouie (Jan 12, 2015)

nyquil is fine i have taken it when i didnt have any benzos 
dont take it everyday and a large dose unless you wanna go night night 
not recommended for day time use but will calm you down if you are having trouble sleeping 
you can also take benadryl if you dont have any prescribed benzos it will also calm you down


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## UltraShy (Nov 8, 2003)

kiiinglouie said:


> nyquil is fine i have taken it when i didnt have any benzos
> dont take it everyday and a large dose unless you wanna go night night
> not recommended for day time use but will calm you down if you are having trouble sleeping
> you can also take benadryl if you dont have any prescribed benzos it will also calm you down


I would advise against Nyquil due to the liver-toxic Tylenol in it. You can get DXM in unadulterated form I believe. You can also get generic doxylamine if you simply want antihistamine sedation. Doxylamine is supposedly even more sedating than Benadryl, though I can't personally confirm this as I've never found any dose of either to be sedating. They're both used as sleep aids, though neither are of any use to me. I'm not sure what's the highest dose I've tried, but it's certainly quite a few times the norm and still nothing. Anyone who knows me, knows I'm quite aggressive in med trials and largely ignore recommended doses as vague suggestions.


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## kiiinglouie (Jan 12, 2015)

nyquil is fine at maybe once a week not every day i took it a few times while waiting to get a script for my ativan not the best route to take but it does work if thats all you have hell i have even taken zyrtec 1 tablespoon would give me a mild relax feeling and 2 would either couch lock me or put me to sleep 
as stated many time we are not all the same my tolerance is super low to certain meds


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