About Ambien

Discussion forum about the side effects of Ambien. Share your experience and opinion about Ambien. What would you tell your best friend about this product? Please remember that we do not give medical advice. That is for your local health care provider, who is familiar with your medical history.

Ambien review
Date: 11/12/2003
I have used Ambien on and off for several years and love it! It really helps me get to sleep and stay alseep and best of all, I don’t feel the least bit groggy in the morning. The only unfortunate thing for me is the price. I don’t have insurance right now and Ambien is very expensive.

Patty

Effects of Ambien
Date: 1/29/2004
I have gotten prescriptions of Ambien 6 or 7 times over the last 12 months for my doctor, I find the results to be a little inconsistent. I have been using the 10mg tablets, and at times the effect is very obvious, makes you feel like you are very, very drunk, but without the feeling you have drank anything, and on top of that they make you feel very relaxed.

Other side effects I experience are double vision and have had hallucinations. So really when they work they are great, they literally knock you out and keep you sleeping till the next morning without any feeling of a hangover.

Now the problem I have with Ambien is like I mentioned above…the inconsistency, a lot of evenings ill take this drug and it will have absolutely zero effect on me at all, I have mentioned this to my doctor and he says its a common complaint with zolpidem.

Glen

I love it
Date: 2/8/2004
I have used Ambien off and on for the last few years and I love it. I have tried other sleep aids and this is by far the best. If I use it for longer than two weeks at a time I start to get used to it and it doesn’t work as well. I don’t wake up feeling tired and groggy like I have with other sleeping pills.

Tammy

wonderful sleeping product
Date: 2/13/2004
Ambien is a wonderful sleeping product, but if you take it for a long period of time it is virtually impossible to stop taking the drug. When you attempt to withdraw, you can have VIVID dreams!!! These dreams are wild nightmares. I have been taking Ambien on a daily basis now for about seven years. I have never increased my dosage, but I am not sure that I will ever be able to stop taking it. I guess this is what they call dependency. My doctor continues to prescribe it. I think he knows that it would be impossible for me to quit without hospitalization or something. But I sleep great!!!

Jean

Ambien side effects
Date: 2/26/2004
Well I’ve been taking the ambien 10mg pill for a week now and it sure does help me with my sleeping problems, but the day-time side affects are really putting a toll on my body…dizziness, diarrhea, loss of appetite, and like the other gentlemen said, gives you a drunk feeling through out the day. But other than that I am well rested and will continue to keep you guys updated.

Teddy

Like taking nothing
Date: 4/8/2004
I am very resistant to the “drowsiness side effects” on everything… For me it just does not work at all. I had complications with tonsils at age 45, so I had Percacet for pain with it… and Morphine pills RX’d for the pain that has kept me awake now for over 3 weeks, and I just wish I could get a few days of some good old fashioned seconals… The only thing 3 different Doctor’s have suggested is Ambien, and for me it’s like taking nothing! Fortunately that means also no side affects either… I get better results with Melatonin 3g tablets that you can get in most health food stores, plus it is NOT addictive. Melatonin is the natural sleep secretion in the human body.

And to anyone who is being RX’d Ambien for more than a few weeks total to get reorganized on sleep cycle, insomnia, whatever… go to another Doctor. anyone who has been on it for 7 years is definitely in “addict land.” A reputable Doctor wouldn’t prescribe this drug or most any situational assistance drug for so long…

Jenna

Something is seriously wrong
Date: 4/29/2004
I have been taking Ambien 10mg pills for about 3 years now. I am 27 years old and have had sleep problems my whole life.
I have both a problem falling asleep and staying asleep. I’ve been prescribed other sleep meds, but nothing that worked as well as Ambien.
That said, Ambien has also had a negative effect on me. I admit I am addicted to Ambien. My tolerance level has also increased to where it doesn’t work at all sometimes. In fact I’m at the habit of taking a pill and a half at a time now, which makes my situation worse because it increases my tolerance and causes me to run out faster.
I have had the memory loss problems, double visions ( mild hallucinations ) and have found my self acting and speaking strangely while on it. My wife is very concerned about it, she wants me to stop taking it, but when I do the withdrawals are terrible. Lately I’ve been having a terrible time concentrating and seem to be losing interest in a lot of things. I don’t know if it’s because of the Ambien or something else. All I know is that when a person starts pouring pills out to count them and frequently check the calendar for the next refill date… something is seriously wrong.

Aaron

No memory
Date: 5/20/2004
I had a major problem. At 10:30pm I took 1 ambien 10 mg and went to bed. Apparently I slept at least 1 hour before getting up and driving off in my car. I was arrested at 01:59 and placed in jail for DUI at about 07:50am. I awoke to find I was in jail I have no memory of getting out of bed and dressing and driving off in my car. Fortunitly all charges were dropped. I will never use the RX, ever again.

JW

AskDocWeb: Ambien is one of many drugs that causes memory loss.

Caution
Date: 5/23/2004
I have been taking Ambien for approx. 3 years now. I have had sleeping problems for 15 years plus. Ambien does work for me, but I must admit, I long for good old fashioned natural sleep. I have tried all of the remedies that you have all read about, and none of them have worked. In the past, when I have finally broken the non-sleeping, or non-med induced sleep, I generally continue the pattern for a while.

Back to the Ambien. I think it is a great med to have for short term situations, but please don’t take this day after day like me. It is my experience that it begins to effect your quality of life. In other words, the med that you took to help you sleep becomes the problem…not necessarily the sleep anymore.

Terry

Good and bad
Date: 6/4/2004
I’ve experience both good and bad on Ambien, which I’ve been on for one year now. I have problems falling asleep and staying asleep and I’ve also experienced what they call sleep paralysis. All of these I have had for years the sleep paralysis since I was 13 or younger and now I’m 30. With Ambien I was able to fall asleep fast when I first started taking it but it has become harder to fall asleep. I’ve taken it and fell and hit my head while talking on the phone and not remembered it. I’ve said things or started talking about things that the person I was talking too had NO clue about what I was saying or why. I have to turn my ringer off at night because I’ve picked up the phone and said weird or strange things and not remembered who I spoke to. A lot of things have happened while taking Ambien. Things like seeing people dancing or colors moving or talking and no one was there. I want to stop taking it and I’ve tried all kinds of natural pills that don’t work. Any ideas from people who have chronic insomnia?

Aneki

Ambien alternative
Date: 6/7/2004
I usually take 5mg before bed (I’ll try to fall asleep un-aided first) then another 5mg when I wake up during the night. I have been using ambien for about 3 years off and on. When I started using the product I would sleep through the night. If I fall asleep naturally and then wake up (say at 3 or 4),
I prefer sonata as it has fewer side effects. But sonata only works for 3-4 hours tops.

Allen

Ambien warning
Date: 6/7/2004
I have been prescribed Ambien a couple of different times for insomnia. After the second time I realized that the drug has a very strange effect on me. While it did make me sleepy, I acted like a totally different person while I was on it. There were a couple of different times when I took it and didn’t go straight to bed- I sat up and talked to my friend a little while beforehand instead. She said when she looked in my eyes, it was as if I wasn’t in there. I am a very normal person (really), but I did and said very weird things after taking Ambien. Oh, and I only know what I have been told, because I remember nothing- total memory loss. This was just at 10mg dosage. While I’m sure the drug works well for some, I will never take it again. Also, the package insert says to not take it while travelling- HEED THAT WARNING!

Kim

A world of difference
Date: 6/11/2004
Hi. I, too, have had sleep problems my entire life and ambien has made a world of difference. Other herbal remedies that have also helped some are valerium and passion flower. However, I have to take so much of the herbal aids for them to work, that I become quite groggy the next day. The ambien does not cause grogginess. I have been taking it now for a couple of months and I try to just take a half a 10mg per night. But, often take the full pill. However, over the last few weeks I have noticed some pretty significant memory problems which is a bummer. I am hoping that the ambien will just help to get me on a regular sleep schedule and then maybe I can stop it. . .we shall see.

Laura

AskDocWeb: Drinking more liquids may help with those memory problems. Please note that there are some herbs that interact with medication.

Mixed results
Date: 6/15/2004
I have taken Ambien off and on for about 6 months. I concur with others that it has mixed results. When it works – it works well. However, it doesn’t always work. I have pretty bad hallucinations with a 10 mg. dose and thus I use half a pill when I think I can get away with it. I took a pill and a half on a recent red-eye trip which was a big mistake. I don’t remember anything about a 3 hour layover at an airport. Like most people I’d rather not be on medication but don’t have any other solutions. Sonata was not as effective and only lasted 4 hours.

Norm

Disgusted with Ambien
Date: 6/25/2004
I took ambien for appx 2 years. Now I have vision loss, memory problems, muscle problems, enlarged heart, seizure like movements i.e. jerking. I am seeing doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital and I still believe ambien caused this. I do not think the doctors know what this drug can do and still continue to prescribe it. I have tired to turn this in to FDA but got no where. One day when it really kills enough people it will be stopped. Ambien is for short-term use only I now know but doctors keep on prescribing it. How much money would the company make if people only took it short term. I am very disgusted about being fooled by this drug and how doctors all over the country are not educated about this drug.

Kevin

Not recommended
Date: 7/15/2004
About 8 months ago I had a hysterectomy and since then I have had a difficult time falling and staying asleep, so I went to the doctors and got a prescription for ambien. I have been trying for the last 6 months to stop taking them. Tonight is the 2nd night of several attempts of trying to stop them and my sleeping problem is far worse than before I started. At least before I could get in a couple hours of sleep. I have been up for 2 days straight now even though I am totally exhausted. I would highly recommend finding another non-addictive sleep remedy. I wish someone would have warned me before I started taking them. I would have never started taking ambien if I knew how addictive they are and how hard it is to stop. I would not recommend this sleeping pill to anyone.

Patty

Bad hallucinations
Date: 7/23/2004
I notice the hallucinations bad one day only because my girlfriend said I was saying some really weird things, and I take Wellbutrin, and zanax on occasion. Personally, zanax does the same thing without as much side affects. I do notice grogginess but nothing compared to zanax and since the Wellbutrin keeps you up late is worth it, but noticed lately that will wake up 3 hrs later and have take another to get me back to sleep. But I know I have more disturbed sleeping disorder than most people do.

Eric

Ambien long-term
Date: 7/29/2004
My doctor gives me 28 of these per month, although they don’t have the brand name Ambien here in the UK, they are just labeled as Zolpidem. I’ve been taking this drug for the last 2 years now. When the drug works I have the double vision. I tend to think and act strangely and more recently I keep hearing voices when I’m trying to get to sleep. The problem with Ambien is you can build up a resistance to it pretty quickly…what people don’t know is that the trick to making Ambien work every time is make sure you don’t eat anything say at least 6 hours before you take the drug. If I eat anything within 6 hours of taking the drug, then it has no effect on me at all. If you have been taking this drug for a long time and found it to be inconsistent or its effects aren’t as pronounced as they used to be…try taking it on an empty stomach.

Glen

Past 9 months
Date: 8/1/2004
I too have used ambien for the past 9 months. I was started on it in a trauma ward. I have horrible anxiety and unable to sleep. When I don’t take the ambien, I just don’t sleep. All stay up for days. I was in a MVA in Sept 2003, almost a year. I struggle with this. It is additive and that bothers me, I take it daily. I have high levels of anxiety, and also control that with lorazapam. This too is needed.

Tiffany

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