Ambien Is Evil!

[Erinny]

When I first moved here, I woke up to every little sound and it became a habit and I couldn't sleep through the night at all. I thought it would go away when I had been here a while and got used to the place but that didn't happen so I finally made the dreaded trip to the VA and the doc put me on Ambien.
It didn't really help at first but I took it every night anyways and now it's messing me up bad. I have been sleepwalking and this morning I woke up in the rocker with the phone off the charger. Enuff's enuff!!!!
I called the VA and got hold of a nurse practitioner who said this was common and not to take it anymore and that there were natural herbs that I could get to help me sleep. I'd heard of that but was preoccupied with everything else around here so I didn't get any but I went to a friend who grows lavender and chamomile along with other herbs. She sent me home with a jar of lavender and chamomile tea and when I got home I was curious to see if it worked so I made a cup of it and drank it down, and it tasted really good.
BIIIIIIIG mistake! Don't drink that stuff unless you plan on hibernating! I had to take two naps today and I never do that unless I'm really sick.
But at least I was aware of my surroundings.
If any of you are on Ambien, please be careful with it. I looked up the side effects and people have even driven to places and not remembered it. For me, it was disastrous.
I called my friend after my second nap and told her what I did and she said, "You dummy! I told you it would work!"
Yeah, yeah. So if you have trouble sleeping, hang up the Ambien and check out a lavender and chamomile tea. I promise you you'll pass right out.

 

[Barbara L]

My sister-in-law tried Ambien. She didn't realize how quickly it would work. She took it, then planned to go to the bathroom, brush her teeth, etc., and go to bed. She fell so sound asleep on the toilet that her husband couldn't wake her up!

When I need a little help falling asleep, I sometimes take Melatonin 3. I got it at GNC. I read that when you are on the computer or watching TV late, your body thinks it is still daytime and your natural melatonin levels are thrown off, and that the melatonin pills fool your body into realizing it is nighttime.

Hot chocolate and a warm bath right before bed help me a lot as well.

Barbara

 

[PieSusan]

Yes, prescription sleep aids are not so helpful after all. Some can give you nightmares. I was too sensitive to be able to function on them, too.

 

[DramaQueen]

My friend who has has some medical problems also has insomnia. Her doctor recommended Ambien. She called a few days ago to ask me if I would drive her to the hairdresser because she broke her arm. She woke up with a lot of pain and a very swollen wrist. Apparently she fell out of bed or somewhere else in the house while asleep and never realized it til she woke up the next morning.
A few days before that her neighbor answered her door and there stood my friend looking for her husband at 2 A.M. Her husband died 8 years ago.
This stuff is bad news.

 

[smoke king]

I tried Ambien CR recently, helped me to fall asleep but didn't keep me asleep. I didn't care for it either.

 

[Barbara]

I LOVE ambien. I don't take it too often, usually when I travel over seas and need to catch up - and I always take a half.

 

[Glorie]

I work in the medical field and yes, Ambien should be used very cautiously!

 

[scoobagirl]

Ambien didn't help my husband stay asleep very well. However - he has a friend who has wrecked two vehicles while "sleep-driving" in the middle of the night. He was booked for d-u-i both times but released after passing the breathalyzer (and getting ticketed for lesser charges).

 

[Maverick2272]

Geez, I had heard about these side effects before, people sleepwalk and sleep driving, but for me it didn't work at all. Took it night after night for a month and never even snoozed for a few minutes...

 

[Uncle Bob]

A glass of Red Wine 30 minutes before lights out...Cheap and effective.

 

[jeninga75]

When I was still active Army and stationed in Colorado I was prescribed Ambien for insomnia. I held phone conversations with no memory of it among other things like coming out of bed and sitting with my roommate and watching TV with her because I "couldn't sleep". The next day she would ask me, So, what did you think about what happened on that show we watched last night? I would say, I've never seen that show in my life. I stopped taking it at that point.

I have a friend who was prescribed it and I told her what happened to me. I told her to be very careful. She had the same thing happen. She would have a good ol' time with her husband that night and have no recollection of it the next day. He would make a comment about the night before and she would tell him she didn't remember doing anything but falling asleep. She stopped taking it at that point.

I have no doubt that this drug helps some people with no side effects but boy does it make some people black out. The funny thing about me is I have an extremely high medication tolerance and this stuff kicked my butt.

 

[licia]

I've used just about every type of prescribed sleep aids and none of them have worked more than just a couple of weeks. I never had the problems that are mentioned here, but after a short while I would still wake up and not be able to go back to sleep only to feel very drowsy the next day. I now try to read for a while before bedtime and that has helped more than anything.

 

[kadesma]

We all look forward to a good nights sleep, then bink it's all over and we walk the floor. I'm an expert, they even put me on a med to stop restless leg and it sure did...But it made me so neauseated I was in misery and went without eating 2 weeks..not worth it bye bye med...I also find I can fight sleep meds so they are worthless on me...So, I just relax each night, if sleep comes great if not, I watch movies or read or come here...I know how hard it can be if you work or have small children. Try all types of things like, a warm bath,hot decaf tea or cocoa, read til your eyes get droopy, Do things that make you happy...No med is actually EVIL, but it can be horrid for you so read up on it, ask questions and have someone with you the first time you take it. That way they can wake you or help if you run into trouble. I tell you I"m so glad my husband is a pharmacist and I can pick his brain about meds and get his advice..Find someone like that for yourself and sleep well
kadesma

 

[Angie]

Oh...I have a large history with Ambien CR. I do take it every night, I need it to sleep but I have also abused it severly...to the point of where I was taken by ambulance to the emergency room just a few weeks ago. Ambien...I do need it for my insomnia..but it can cause major problems. I have never had the sleep walk problems though. I wake up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and I do remember going. Every person is different.

 

[jpmcgrew]

I'm a total Melatonin fan I take the kind you put under your tongue and only bite a sliver of it now.

 

[texasgirl]

When I first moved here, I woke up to every little sound and it became a habit and I couldn't sleep through the night at all. I thought it would go away when I had been here a while and got used to the place but that didn't happen so I finally made the dreaded trip to the VA and the doc put me on Ambien.
It didn't really help at first but I took it every night anyways and now it's messing me up bad. I have been sleepwalking and this morning I woke up in the rocker with the phone off the charger. Enuff's enuff!!!!
I called the VA and got hold of a nurse practitioner who said this was common and not to take it anymore and that there were natural herbs that I could get to help me sleep. I'd heard of that but was preoccupied with everything else around here so I didn't get any but I went to a friend who grows lavender and chamomile along with other herbs. She sent me home with a jar of lavender and chamomile tea and when I got home I was curious to see if it worked so I made a cup of it and drank it down, and it tasted really good.
BIIIIIIIG mistake! Don't drink that stuff unless you plan on hibernating! I had to take two naps today and I never do that unless I'm really sick.
But at least I was aware of my surroundings.
If any of you are on Ambien, please be careful with it. I looked up the side effects and people have even driven to places and not remembered it. For me, it was disastrous.
I called my friend after my second nap and told her what I did and she said, "You dummy! I told you it would work!"
Yeah, yeah. So if you have trouble sleeping, hang up the Ambien and check out a lavender and chamomile tea. I promise you you'll pass right out.

what does the tea taste like? how did you make it? dh has insomnia and take benedryl every night, but, he sleeps about 2 hours and wakes up. I think if he could sleep, a LOT of his problems would be better!! Stupid doctors wont listen to us, so, I am VERY interested in this tea.

 

[callie]

No one has mentioned taking Tylenol PM or Advil PM...I went through months of not being able to sleep and found taking half of either of those did the trick. I'm with kadesma at this point...if I can sleep, great - if not, I watch just "rest" and think pleasant, happy thoughts!

 

[Maverick2272]

None of em work for me, over the counter or prescription, I kinda built up an 'immunity' to them...
So, I do the same thing, if I can't sleep I just watch TV or movies, listen to music on my bluetooth headsets over the computer, stream Netflix. Or I might do some prep work for tomorrows meals, fix things around the house, etc.

 

[PieSusan]

Instead I found Belleruth Naparstek's Sleep Meditation CD. I pop it on and usually that does the trick.

 

[expatgirl]

I love the herbal medications for various problems but be very careful if you have allergies........chamomile is wonderful for so many things (PMS for one and inducing relaxation) but if you have allergies to weeds you might experience what I did and that was the allegic closing off of my windpipe...........scary experience and luckily I had benadryl on hand to counteract it........I don't sleep well and have not found anything to really help it along---I'm too scared to take Ambien.......the droning of a tv sports game in the background with a dark hand-towel over my eyes really does it for me, however