User Reviews of Ambien

My doctor put me on Ambien 5mg about 3 weeks ago

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:09:57 +0000

My doctor put me on Ambien 5mg about 3 weeks ago. The first night I took it, 1 1/2 hrs later, I felt slightly sleepy, no where near enough to fall asleep though. I even tried increasing it to 10mg & the first time I did it worked decently but not since. Most nights I get 3-4 hrs of sleep before I’m awake & tossing/turning the rest of the night trying to fall back asleep. Tonight I took it 1 1/2 hrs ago too…yet here I am…awake & online.

My name is Rachel and this Christmas morning my life changed forever.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:09:25 +0000

My name is Rachel and this Christmas morning my life changed forever. My mother was a beautiful, smart, loving and amazing person. She had her doctorate and was As. Dean at Barnes Jewish College of Nurse here in St. Louis. From the outside she had it good for a divorced mother 2. But only me and my sister knew what happened behind closed doors. It was just me and mom who lived in our house. She started taking Ambien when I was around 14. That was the first time I knew she abused it, cause I found her passed out in the family room. Through the years the abuse got worse and worse, and she started mixing Ambien with Xanex and alcohol. My sister and I always tried to talk to her about it. That what she was doing was bad, that her youngest daughter shouldn’t be putting her own grown mother to bed every night, and that she was smarter than that too. But she never listened. I started just to view it as a joke after so long. My friends would come over and we could hear loud crashes upstairs, and I would just say “oh mom took her pill again.” And a few hours later we would find passed out in some weird position some where. She never went to bed once she took, like you should. She would start cleaning the house, would make dinner at 1 a.m, work out but worse of all take a bath. I started finding her passed out naked in tub in the past two years. I got to the point where I would just drain the tub and leave her there. So she could wake up and see how stupid she looked. I sat her down many times and told that there would be that ONE day that ONE night I wouldn’t come home and check on her, and she would drown in the tub. She would just brush it off, because she would never do that. One night I came home and my boyfriend and I found in the tub. The bathroom was a mess everything was spilled everywhere and me and my boyfriend had to get her out. Cause I was worried she would wake up and slip. When we told her the next morning she was horrified. And the pill popping, and drinking slowed down. Then I woke up Christmas morning 2011, and saw that nothing had changed. I went to bed early cause I had just gotten surgery. Soon I woke up to my moms’ dog barking at me, I got up and saw all the lights on, the t.v was on and the radio. She took her pill again I thought. Then I saw the lights on the bathroom, I walked in and saw her pill bottle out and a glass of wine. I saw her in the tub, her head was slumped down and her body was lifeless. When I went to her I saw no movement. I picked her head up out of the water. Her lips were dark blue and blood was coming from her nose. I stared slapping her checks yelling “MOM MOM WAKE UP!” In my head I knew she was dead. I drained the tub and ran to grab the phone to dial 911. I pulled her lifeless body flat in the tub and started CPR. But it was too late. The cops and Emts came in and they tried too, but they said she had been died for a while. I went numb, I just couldn’t believe all this happened. She took her damn Ambien and had a glass of wine and drowned in the bathtub on Christmas morning. I lost my only parent I had left that day, and my last view of her was seeing her lifeless body get carried out in a body bag. All of this could have prevented. But she had a secret addiction to Ambien, because it made her forget the all bad things that had happened. On her death certified it says Drowning: due to the consumption on Ambien and Alcohol. This little pill does so much more than help you sleep. It can ruin peoples life, and the people around them. That pill led to the death of my amazing mother. And my life will never be the same ever again! RIP MOM LOVE YOU!

OMG, these stories are eerily familiar.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:08:19 +0000

OMG, these stories are eerily familiar. I have a DUI that I’m going to have to defend, thanks to Ambien. I don’t blame my Doctor, he was just trying to do the right thing by me. I’d heard about some of the side effects, but always assumed it was a drug interaction, and since none of the meds I was on had a known interaction, I was sure I was safe–wrong. I was on it for over a year, NO PROBS. Then one night it turned on me like a vicious dog. I went to sleep and woke up in the back of a cop car, with no memory of what happened. The police report sounded like another person I didn’t know. I have an attorney and am praying for a just outcome. Please pray for me, I’m praying for all of you and everyone else who has been deceived by this drug.

I just want to sleep as well.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:06:34 +0000

I used to experience the same sypmtoms. I’m currently on two pills of ambien right now. 12.5 MG. I just want to sleep as well. I’m 18 years old and I already take something everyday for my blood pressure. when I lay down at first the ambein will tell me a fery realistic story before sending me off to lala land when I can dream some strange dreams, but the scary thing, the more and more I take this, the more and more I want to kill myself. I’ve thoght aabout it before this this, but this product just makes it so much worse

Reading many of these stories makes me know I’m not alone.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:02:27 +0000

Reading many of these stories makes me know I’m not alone. That being said it has come to a point in my life where living is no longer rewarding. I am about to become homeless due to being denied unemployment benefits, job searching for months has been of no use, I’m down to my last $1000 from my 401k, I am the black sheep of my family so no one will help me out…my mom died less than a year ago and I was never there for her, I live alone have no real friends and have become pretty much a recluse. My health is deteriorating, I have given up caring about anything, even the thought of my children does not deter me. Medication and therapy does nothing for me…I am at the end of my rope. I have a full vial of both Ambien and Xanax here…after a last weekend spent in NYC with my gf I plan on getting very drunk one night soon and taking both vials and just going to sleep and never waking up…I’m done. It helps me that I am not alone in thinking like this. What lies beyond this life I don’t know but I can’t carry on like this any longer.

Allen
beerluvr1@juno.com

My dearest, oldest friend died from an overdose of ambien

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:01:16 +0000

My dearest, oldest friend died from an overdose of ambien. Her husband reported that she suffered from terrible hallucinations when on it. She had sleep apnea, asthma, insomnia and a history of depression and never should have been prescribed that poison in the first place. Don’t take ambien and warn everyone you know to stay away from it! RUN from a doctor who tries to give it to you.

Tonight I am adding 100mg of trazadone.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:59:37 +0000

Lost both my patents ten days apart in 2010. Gave birth to a.beautiful baby boy Michael 2010. His father is a jerk and is very stingy on letting me see him. I take anywhere from 6 to 12 mg of … Continue reading →

Let’s legalize heroine and meth, too.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:58:31 +0000

So, the drug is perfectly safe as long as you don’t keep it anywhere near where you are sleeping, don’t mix it with ANYTHING, don’t take it every night, talk to someone if it makes you super depressed and suicidal, … Continue reading →

Makes the room spin a the pretty colours

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:57:11 +0000

Makes the room spin a the pretty colours show <3 I wish you would just stop fighting, listen to some dope tune and be happy! I love my ambien. I’m 17. Fuck off.

After reading all of these horror stories I think that it is pertinent to talk about my experiences with Ambien over the past few years

Anonymous Visitor — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 02:38:57 +0000

After reading all of these horror stories I think that it is pertinent to talk about my experiences with Ambien over the past few years. I really think that the drugs effects are strongly dependent on a patients lifestyle, mood and any other prescriptions or habits.
The first time I was put on ambien, I was also taking Klonapin and Seroquel. That ended poorly. I was very depressed and anxious and getting out of a seriously abusive relationship. Under those circumstances, I sometimes too ore than the prescribed about took it every night and experienced side effects ranging from vomiting and nausea to hallucinations, fighting with friends and memory loss. I never tried to drive or do anything especially weird in my sleep but would sometimes wake up in costumes and avant garde makeup with only vague memories of dressing up. However, after contracting swine flu I was running a high fever and ened u taking a half dozen ambien oer the course of the night, which the doctors say made me a lot sicker and unable to get medical attention until it was almost too late. I had to have my roommate call a ambulance when I woke up vomiting and running a 105 fever with a swollen heart. I stopped taking everything when I realized that the drugs were probably making my life worse and have been working hard on recovery for a few years.
Unfortunatly I have been an insomniac since I was 11. The last time I wen to the doctor about it was because I was starting a great new job and couldn’t afford to go in tired all the time. I was wary when he prescribed ambien but this time things have worked out much better. I am not taking any other drugs outside of supplements prescribed by my herbalist. I do yoga and exercise and eat obsessively well. I take 5 to 10 mg most nights and the only time I ever hallucinate or get any weird mental effects is if I dont take it for a few weeks and start back with 10 mg immediately.
This drug can be very very helpful. I am really happy with my life right now and feel like I couldn’t be doing as well without it. As I have had experiences both terrible and beneficial, I just wanted to outline how to take the drug to its maximum beneficial effects:
1. LAY DOWN after you take it. Dont stay up laying ont he computer talking on the phone or watching TV. It is supposed to help you sleep so in the words of Sammy J, go the f* to sleep!
2. Do not take it if you are drinking heavily or taking BZDS. Honestly from all of the stories that I hae read on here, it might not be okay to mix ambien with anything else!
3. Dont put the bottle by your bed. keep it somewhere away from where you sleep. MAybe even portion it out into daily pill bottles.
4. Make sure you hae at least 7 hou or so to sleep. You dont want to wake u in an ambien haze for work.
5. Dont take every night. MY doctor told me specifically to only take it when I felt like I needed it. I only take it on nights when I have to work in the morning.
6. If you are feeling deressed, go see someone. IT doesn’t have to be a professional. Everyone gets depressed sometimes. Talk to friends, call your sister, go to a site for other people experianceing the same problem and dont try to solve it with drugs. if you think its the pills call your doctor and discuss other solutions.
7. Dont take on a full stomach. Takes longer to digest i.e. longer to kick in and will stay in your system longer.
8. Take with plenty of water.
9. Give youself enough time to wake up in the AM. Oh, and set multiple alarms. A nice run or quick 10 minute cardio set will clear your head before you have to drive to work. Vitamin B12 helps me a lot too on those rough mornings.
10. Eat better.

These are just things that have helped me use this drug better this go round. I have struggled with depression before and it really can get better. Take time to wok on yourself. You really can fix your problems. After embracing the utter absurdity of existence and deconstructing first order principals I was taught defined meaning I feel better. Als not drinking to excess or doing street drugs.
Good luck. I know that you can get through it. each person has something to offer the world. Everyone matters to someone. We make the world around us. Now get some sleep and do something delightful when you get up!

Hhow many Ambien will it take for a lethal overdose?

Anonymous Visitor — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 02:37:06 +0000

The question that keeps getting asked is “how many Ambien will it take for a lethal overdose?” To answer that question, you have to know that deaths from Ambien poisoning are the result of respiratory failure. Basically, this is the fatal version of sleep apnea — the tissues in your airway go slack, making it harder and harder to breathe, until you just stop. Then your heart stops and, eventually, your brain becomes starved for oxygen and dies.

So if you’re looking to overdose, bear in mind that failure can make you brain damaged. Beyond that, it really depends on your own body’s propensity to keep breathing. A young fit person is going to be more resistant to Ambien than an older person who already has sleep apnea. Taking Ambien with other respiratory depressants will increase its effect, as will environments that cause rebreathing or hypoxia. The longer it takes for someone to find you, the longer the drugs have to work.

I can tell you for sure that 600 mg is enough to kill someone. Maybe not everyone, but I woke up on a ventilator. In retrospect, I’m glad I did wake up. One of my doctors told me that suicidal thinking is your brain’s way of telling you there’s something really wrong, just like chest pain is your body’s way of telling you you’re having a heart attack. I would never tell anyone to look on the bright side or remember God loves you or any of that crap. But I would encourage people who want to die to make one more phone call. Call 1-800-SUICIDE or 1-800-273-TALK. Probably you feel like it’s not going to make any difference, and maybe it won’t. But you don’t have anything to lose, and you can always kill yourself tomorrow.

BEWARE OF AMBIAN SIDE EFFECTS!

Anonymous Visitor — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 02:41:08 +0000

BEWARE OF AMBIAN SIDE EFFECTS!

After taking this medication as prescribed for 3 months, I was told by my Doctor that Ambian is notorious for causing sleep-walking, sleep-eating, sleep-driving, calling, texting, emailing, etc, with no memory of your actions when you awaken. This drug is also shown in studies to cause depression, & parkinson’s over long term use. Thanks a lot! This was prescribed to me as I was going thru the change of life, and simply wanted to get a good nights sleep. I exhibited apparant symptoms of the above actions while sleeping on ambian, as I woke up last week, fully dressed in bed with keys in my hand, (scary!!!)… I also woke up with dirty dishes in the sink in the morning, when I always clean the kitchen before going to bed, and was advised I called a friend of mine in the middle of the night, and just mumbled… This drug should be taken off the market!

I was told a more natural alternative… Melatonin, (which you can buy over the counter without a prescription), can be taken 5 mg to start, graduating up to 10mg every evening with dinner, or 2-3 hours before bed, & will help you sleep through the night with no side effects. I was told it slowly builds up in your system, getting good relief after 1-2 weeks.

Whatever you do, STAY AWAY FROM AMBIAN!

I have felt this dark cloud over me since i was fourteen.

Anonymous Visitor — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 19:45:06 +0000

I have felt this dark cloud over me since i was fourteen. i have been on a few meds, but to me none of them have made me feel better. I feel that i am lost and alone. I know i have all these people around me who love me and care about me, but yet i feel numb to there love. I have been struggling to be happy for years, self medicating myself with drugs and alcohol. I mean i know its not the best way to handle things but its the only thing i know. I have Ambien prescribed to me, and have thought alot about taking them all. I am scared but i feel that this is the only way i will be happy.! I don’t wanna leave all my loved ones behind but feel that it would just be better if i wasn’t here anymore.! Alot of my family wants me to go to impatient treatment but i’m scared. i don’t wanna go.

can someone help me before it’s too late.? I just need someone to talk too…. I am lost.

mclean.shanise@gmail.com

I’ve had a major depressive episode.

Anonymous Visitor — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 21:57:42 +0000

After a week adding Ambien (10mg) to my regular daily 20mg of Prozac, I’ve had a major depressive episode. Haven’t experienced anything like this since SFX from taking Effexor. I don’t care how sleep deprived I am, I won’t be taking Ambien ever again. This has been scary, although I feel like I’m starting to improve after skipping the Ambien and staying up almost all night.

I have 44 ambien at 10 mg each, I have 53 seroquel at 100 mg each

Anonymous Visitor — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 21:56:30 +0000

I have 44 ambien at 10 mg each, I have 53 seroquel at 100 mg each, I have at least 200 xanax at 1 mg. I have been unemployed for 18 months, everything I do is wrong, I cannot find a descent job, we used to have a life. We were married at age 15/17–first child at 18/20 second at 23/25. Married 33 years. Both kids out of house before we were 40! We planned it that way to have a life afterwards-now, my being unemployed causes fights every single day. I don’t know what to do-I made 50k a year…now IF I can find a job, it will be @9,000. My husband is very critical of me-what I do, what I buy, where I go, he hasn’t had anything to do with me in months. We both have health problems, although people care about his–mine is never mentioned, we cannot afford them. I do have a life insurance policy of a few hundred thousand. I am so tired of everyday being a disappointment to myself and my husband. I have no friends, I hate my relatives, I am so very alone. I was in therapy but stopped b/c I wasn’t getting any ‘tools’ to help, yet going once a week and spending money. I cancel dr. appt because we can’t afford them and afterall–it’s HIS coverage. I can think of no other way–the ONLY concerns I have are:
A. I DO have an implanted ICD device-which is a three lead pacemaker plus defibrillator surgically implanted in the chest wall-just this past June. I Hate IT!! plus I have adhd-taking 60 mg a day of adderall along with the xanax, lisinopril, seroquel and spironalate (sp?)
B. Do I have enough medication to end this once and for all, I don’t want to be a vegetable and I don’t want my implant to ‘save me’ Please just give me the facts, I have am looking for the usual–please don’t, there is always an answer…I am tired of hearing it, waiting for it and just want it over. Thank you in advance, I appreciate your comments.

bobbieminard@gmail.com

I am a 56 year old transgender female.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 16:29:41 +0000

I am a 56 year old transgender female. I grew up in a time when being transgender was treated as a mental disorder. I grew up in a very large catholic family I was the middle child of nine. My father was emotionally unavailable to his crazy son. At age 15 he drove me to a state mental hospital and dropped me off and never came to visit. In fact he tried to have the state declare me an encouragable child in order to have me taken away.
He never touched me unless he was beating me with a belt. An older brother love to get his amusement by sitting on my chest with his knees on my hands and holding a pillow over my head till I passed out. I soon became terrified to be alnone with him.

During the months at the state mental hospital I endured days locked in a room alone with only my own thoughts, misuse by those charged with my care, forced injections of some sort of medications and threats of Electro shock therapy. I lived in hell and survived barely. Afterwards I learned to hide who I was inside and learned to appear as macho as I could possibly appear.

I eventually married and fathered two children, all as part of the persona of protection I had built around me. My children grew up with a dad who was always sad and depressed. Who though he did love them could never ever fully connect with them. I was in and out of mental wards for a long time. In the mid 80′s I attempted suicide a full bottle of an anti-dpressant (Trazodone) 500 mg tabs. I spent a few weeks in ICU afterwards was tranfered to a mental hospital and was there several months and suffered several severe grand mal siezures. A temporary after effect from the suicide attempt.

A year and a half ago I finally found the courage to announce to my children and my family my intention to transition. This was the last time and communication with any of them occurred. Though this greatly saddened me I continued along and have been living successfully as a female ever since.

That is of course till recently. The memories of the past have come back with a vengence. The pain and confusion, the hurt and terror of those times have become as fresh as they were then. I am trapped here, with no one who cares. My life has been one long nightmare. It’s time to stop it now. I have 24 vicodin 5/500mg and 20 ambien 10mg along with a 90 day supply of metformin 500mg.

I just want someone to know the pain I intend to leave behind.

Downward Spiral
by: Priscilla Millano 01/06/2012

On a downward spiral my life has been;
With this pain and despair I’m trapped here within.
To not be the one you are deep inside
And, to know from all others you must always hide.
This daily game of hide and seek
Soon one’s hope of tomorrow becomes so, so bleak.

I’ve fought so hard to gain control of my life,
Yet, I’m left trapped here with this pain and misery and even strife.
All those around me say, “Its forward, forward you must go!”
But, in this direction I just can’t go.
I’m tired of acting, and no longer want to pretend,
I want this pain and misery just to come to an end.

Yet if I go by the plan I’ve contrived,
What will happen to the one who hides here inside?
See she’s never experienced the true joy of life
It’s her existence that’s caused everyone’s strife
They hate her, despise her and wish she was gone.
And wish she would see not another dawn.

I am her and she is me
Why, oh why can they not see?
I am invisible the one without form
Yes of my existence there just is no norm!
So many things that I have done,
to get the attention of even one.

But they do not see me that I am here
And never acknowledge my behavior severe.
I’ve run out of options, to find my life
And now I’m trapped here in pain, misery and strife.
So what happens next I do not know
But, from this place, I must surely go.

My friend died yesterday morning.

Anonymous Visitor — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 20:25:57 +0000

My friend died yesterday morning. She had been on Ambien for several years and I had discussed with her the problems she was having, but because she couldn’t remember them happening, she didn’t take me seriously. She was driving without lights the wrong way on a one-way street and had a head-on with a much bigger vehicle. Slight injuries to the other people; very dead friend. I consider the pharmaceutical companies, that continue to make this product, murderers.

I just started taking Ambien 2 months ago.

Anonymous Visitor — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 20:25:28 +0000

I just started taking Ambien 2 months ago. In that time I have experienced debillitating depression, anxiety, heart palpitations, memory loss and general fuzziness or brain fog. I quit one of my jobs because I couldn’t socially interact with my clients because I was so “raw” emotionally. I started going to therapy because I couldn’t figure out what happened, why I was so untethered. Thought maybe it was early onset of menopause. Just this week realized that it coincided with taking the Ambien. Will be stopping right away to see how my mood/mental function/depression changes. Would rather not sleep than feel this way. Good luck to you all.

I have been taking ambien on and off since February 2011

Anonymous Visitor — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 20:25:02 +0000

I have been taking ambien on and off since February 2011 after having a hysterectomy. I began to notice and finally made mention of not being able to sleep to my gynecologist. He 1st prescribe ambein 5 mg and it did nothing. Then he prescribed 10 mg and it allows me to sleep pretty well however, I have noticed a change of some things. I have a lot of nightmares, I have gained about 30lbs, my lobito is low,I sweat whent I sleep (not sure if that’s due to my hysterctomy) and my bones ache. I am not sure that my bone ache because of the extra weight I have to carry or because of some type of deterioration going on with my bones. I do know that before taking the ambien I was not experiencing these things. I have gained too much weight. I am 48 yrs old and have never been so heavy, even when I was pregnant. I do, however carry it well (not flabby weight gain)I have always been pretty active. I understand that as we grow older our bone do the same, but the daily pain I experience is hard to beleive that it’s from aging. I hurt when I stand, walk, type..my back, knees, hands and wrist, etc.. FYI– Only if I take 2 pills (that’s when I really can’t sleep) do I experience amneisia. I am trying to lose weight but I hurt when I exercise and that’s why I decided to really start doing some research on ambeim which is what led me to this page. I have an appointment with an orthopedic specialist and and will update you guys on the results of my eximination. If anyone is experiecing the anything similar with you bones please let me know.

I had taken Ambien in the past because I worked the night shift.

Anonymous Visitor — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 18:09:49 +0000

I had taken Ambien in the past because I worked the night shift. I haven’t taken it in about 8 months due to my change in shift. I recently had my 3rd miscarriage (I’m 41 and have no children, so this was devastating) and the day of my D&C I called my primary doctor to refill my Rx because I wasn’t able to sleep for 4 nights since I was told. I took 10mg every night. I was very sensitive to it since I hadn’t been on it for a while. I was sluggish and down, which I believed to be a normal response to my situation. A week later, I got worse news. That next week I went from being down to being depressed. Staying in bed until the afternoon, impatient (I’m the most patient person in the world), short tempered (I’m a people-pleaser), anxious, tearful, hopeless, I didn’t care if something bad were to happen to me, I was overwhelmed, everything was a big deal. My voice was different (slow, down) and I lost my smile. I was ready to go to counseling and then I stopped taking Ambien because my husband was leaving town and I had to get used to a normal schedule for work in another week. All of a sudden my mood changed, daily getting better. My best friend noticed the quick transformation and asked what changed. I thought that maybe my hormones were getting back to normal and maybe it was a normal phase that I was going through. I later realized that I started feeling less depressed and more to my positive, hopeful self after I had stopped taking Ambien. Though I didn’t sleep much, I had more energy and motivation. Was it the Ambien? hormones? the miscarriage? maybe bad combination of them all. Would I have handled everything differently if I hadn’t taken the Ambien? All I know is that I was able to manage and function better when I stopped it.

I am seventeen,I suffer from seasonal depression

Anonymous Visitor — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 16:50:31 +0000

I am seventeen,I suffer from seasonal depression,but it’s a getting used to it thing.I began taking Ambien this summer,and I still take it every now and then,I’m on it right now.I’m unsure if I want to die,but I enjoy the … Continue reading →

I feel the same way sometimes. I lost my husband three years ago.

Anonymous Visitor — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 16:50:02 +0000

I feel the same way sometimes. I lost my husband three years ago. He was the love of my life, and my very best friend. I waited a year before allowing myself to meet someone new… I even spoke with him over the phone for more than 2 months before choosing to meet him. When we met, he idolized me, then slowly , but surely he wittled away at my self confidence and self respect. He is a drunk… He refuses to admit it, because he drinks only beer… But he drinks an 18-30 pack a day. I was initially brought up on a pedestal, then slowly, the “eveil twin” introduced himself to me, by throwing me across the table, twisting my ankle ~ almost to the point of breaking, then my wrist, to my neck & to having bruises all over my body… Yes, he beat me up, twisted my leg, grabbed my neck, & got within inches of slamming my face in the door, because I said the wrong thing while he was drinking. I hate myself for allowing myself to fall in love with Craig, and simply want the bad stuff to go away. I want it to be over, & stop feeling this way. My Mom needed me, and I let her down, because this man was at the edge of his rope, and wanted to give up… But I know now I cannot help him, and in trying, he broke me down. I am sorry, but the pain of giving one’s heart to another, while letting go of the goals I had to help my mother, is all to much for me. I failed my Mom who needed me, just to try to heal the pain of someone who no longer knows how to love. I am so tired, and lost, and feel so guilty for thee choices I made, it is simply time to go.

My best friend had a few back operations over the last 5 years

Anonymous Visitor — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 16:49:28 +0000

My best friend had a few back operations over the last 5 years. He was having problems sleeping and was prescribed Ambien. We lived in different towns and kept in touch with weekly telephone conversations and twice yearly visits. On October 13, 2011 he had out of town friends stay with him and they went to a Jacksonville Jaguar game. At about 3:00 AM he went into his den loaded his gun and committed suicide. His story sounds the same as a lot of them on this website. There are too many related stories for there not to be an issue with Ambien.

As a former Ambien user of 11 years, I understand the hell of insomnia

Anonymous Visitor — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 16:49:03 +0000

As a former Ambien user of 11 years, I understand the hell of insomnia…I have been a flight attendant for the better part of 20 years and successfully killed my circadian rhythm (wake up in CA…go to sleep in NYC…land in Paris, Rome, Hong Kong, Lagos…NOT GLAMOUROUS, I assure you)…while I am still struggling to find sleep, there are people on this earth that would suffer unenduring pain if you were to depart this realm…there is hope, I struggle with it everyday, but find strength in those who love you…I too feel at the end of my rope (especially at this time of the year), but you are loved and needed…and cannot be missed…you are not alone

I am at the end of a two year experience with sleep medication, benzo’s and anti-depressants

Anonymous Visitor — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 16:48:32 +0000

I am at the end of a two year experience with sleep medication, benzo’s and anti-depressants. I came through hell and today I feel awesome. Whoever reads this and might be thinking of suicide or feels like this will never get better… it will get better.
In the fall of 2009 I started taking OTC sleeping pills. Pretty much every night for 3 or 4 months. I am a teacher and I usually have some sleeping issues when school starts up. So I didn’t think it was a big deal. I woke up one day mildly depressed in Dec of 2009. I didn’t relate it to the sleeping pills. Over Christmas break I went to the doctor and he prescribed Lunesta. I told him I was depressed….he didn’t think it would hurt. Within 3 days I was extremely depressed. I finally started to see that the sleeping meds were making everything worse. But when you have a bad sleeping problem you are willing to do just about anything to get sleep… including taking more sleep meds. So I went back to the doctor. He even prescribed Ambien, as well as anything else I wanted to try, I actually tried a couple of them. I would get maybe 2-3 hours of sleep with the meds. I went back to my doctor. He said, “now we will try the big dogs.” He gave me a script for Ativan. Loved the stuff at first…. slept like a baby, and it didnt seem to make me depressed. In fact I felt better the day after taking it. This made me scared of it. I didnt want to get hooked. So I developed a plan to only take it once a week or so. Eventually it didn’t do the job anymore anyway. I knew that Heath Ledger and Michael Jackson were on some or all of this stuff at some point – you naturally build a tolerance to it and need more and more of it to sleep. This really scared me so I refused to up the dosage of any of it – even though Im sure my doctor would have been fine with it. Oh, I also had started on Lexapro in January of 2010. I thought often of taking my own life, I missed a week or two of school but somehow dragged myself back to school. I would sit there at my desk… the clock never moving. I would spend hours on the computer searching for answers to my misery. My episodes seem to take about 6 months to clear up. I found the website “The Road Back.” This program helped me taper off of Lexapro and probably everything else. Slowly over the course of Feb-June of 2010 I felt better and better and began sleeping. I stopped taking all meds as I tapered off of Lexapro. The final stage of my education occurred in May of 2011. I had been off of everything for months and felt great. I got a bad sinus infection and took Nyquil for a week or so in late April early May of 2011. That was stupid. I didnt sleep much for two nights after this…. I freaked out, added a good dose of worry to it and was in the midst of another battle of depression and anxiety. This was horrendous. I diagnosed myself with generalized anxiety disorder and believed that I would suffer forever. It was horrible. I was taking lots of lunesta, back on lexapro. One night I took trazadone (cause I asked for it) and benadryl. Very strange reaction. I can’t even describe the horror that I was feeling. For the month of May and most of June I would have the most horrible bouts of tension – agony. All I could do was pace and writhe in agony on the floor. I contacted a lawyer about disability because I thought I would never work again. I thought about suicide everyday. This was the summer of 2011. I finally stopped taking all sleep meds during the summer of 2011. By August I was able to feel like I could work, and feel a little like myself again. Its January 2012 and I feel great. I have absolutely no depression, tension or anxiety. I have tapered down to 5 mgs of Lexapro and will be off of it in the next month. Now I know that I can never ever take any form of sleep medication… something happens when I take it and it takes 6 months to recover from it. I take some supplements now that I think helped me heal, and keeps me healthy. I would suggest reading everything on The Road Back website. Medication, drugs, alcohol, etc all harm our nervous system and our neuro transmitters. My doctor admittedly didnt know what to do for me, and the psych I saw was not much better. He prescribed more anti depressants on top of lexapro after I told him I felt fine. (I didnt fill that script) While I cant deny that Lexapro may have helped me, I do get off of it as soon as I think I feel fine. I try to eat healthy and take supplements. I did gain a lot of weight both times I took Lexapro but that could have been from me not caring about what I was eating because I was just trying to keep from killing myself.
Don’t give in to ending it…. life is awesome…. learn from your struggles, pray your brains out, cry out to God for help and answers – don’t make things worse with drugs or alcohol. Your body and brain need to find a balance. Just keep searching.

Stanford University Sleep Clinic

Anonymous Visitor — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 19:22:16 +0000

My wife has had chronic insomnia for 3 1/2 years. Currently she is going to the Stanford University Sleep Clinic. They have her shorten her time in bed to force her to only sleep during those hours. She was told to go to bed at 11pm and get up at 5am. They wanted her to go to bed at midnight but she said she couldn’t do that. So she started at 11. She had her cell phone set on vibrate alarm for 5am which seemed to work OK. She’s been getting off of Zyprexa too which made the insomnia worse. Now she’s going to quit the Ambien and hoping she can do that. Her doctor made it sound like she could just quit taking it. We’ll see.

To the lady who just lost her 34 year old husband.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 17:52:09 +0000

To the lady who just lost her 34 year old husband. I lost my wife when we were 40 and I can tell you that you can and will get over this. You really do not even have to try, it will happen, it does for everyone, really. There is not one shred of evidence that you could meet your former husband in an afterlife, or that there is an afterlife. Your children are your purpose in life, your job is to prepare them to live as adults. You cannot leave them. You can research this, but Freud discovered that children of suicide parents lose there innate fear of suicide. If you killed yourself, you would be opening a naturally closed door on your children killing themselves. Hang in there, it will get better and some day, your kids will thank you and you will thank yourself that you did not choose a temporary solution to a temporary problem. If you are hell bent on suicide, set a date to do it 10 years from now, the fact is, you will not want to do it.
Don’t you want to meet your grandchildren? What would your previous husband have wanted you to do? Orphan your kids? I highly doubt it.

I have taken ambien on and off over the years.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 05:25:04 +0000

I have taken ambien on and off over the years. I have really been struggling with sleep. I have taken it for 6 weeks straight and I am having severe anxiety, depression and heart palpitations, which is REALLY extremely unusually for me. Even when I went through a job loss and divorce, I never have experienced this cascade of symptoms before. I am will no longer take this and I want to let people know.

Ambien is a dangerous drug, it nearly ruined my life.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 00:26:37 +0000

Ambien is a dangerous drug, it nearly ruined my life. Note that the FDA advisory panel last year recommended to the FDA comissioner that Ambien be reclassified as a schedule 2 drug, right up there with OxyContin. This was refused, and Ambien remains a schedule 4 drug. My personal story is a long one, a person does not realize he is addicted until it is too late. I took Ambien for at least 13 years, the withdrawal symptoms became horrible, very physically as well as mentally. This was with the help of a friendly pharmacist, and soon I was spending $400 a week and taking 200mg per night. This would easily kill a first time user. I have never used any kind of drugs whatsoever, but I was having withdrawal symptoms twice a day, similar to what I have heard heroin addicts experience.

During this terrible experience I had three car accidents, in one I was asleep until I rear-ended another car. I ended up in the insurance high risk pool, and the premiums almost broke me. I also had several occasions where I went out with friends for breakfast and remembered nothing about it. Quitting took several years, I gradually substituted Temazapin (Restoril) which was much milder and did not have the addiction/withdrawal cycle. I now am not dependent on any sleeping medication and it feels wonderful to lay down at night and go directly to sleep. Sixteen years is a long time. Of course there is a lot more to my story, but you get the general idea. I did look into a sleep clinic, but my insurance wouldn’t cover it and the initial evaluation cost $3000. To conclude, I unfortunately can’t advise how to shake this dependency, it would do no good to advise not to start, if you are reading this it is too late for that kind of advice anyway. This cycle can be broken, but it will take patience and perhaps months or even longer.

Eating Disorder Treatment in Scottsdale / Phoenix

Anonymous Visitor — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 23:34:53 +0000

A new yoga / wellness studio has opened its doors in the Scottsdale / Phoenix / Arcadia area. They work with teenagers and young adults to help overcome a variety of eating disorders using conventional therapy, nutrition, and yoga.

Two nights ago, I took 16 10mg ambien

Anonymous Visitor — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 22:51:58 +0000

Two nights ago, I took 16 10mg ambien. I do have a history of depression, but I could never take my own life. I couldn’t do that to my family. The last thing I remember from that night is laying in bed. I woke up to my mom prying car keys out of my hands. It’s like I wasn’t actually there. The scariest thing is that I didn’t even know I had taken that many. Once I realized what had happened, all the depression came flooding back to me. I had several panic attacks within a period of 6 hours. I’m 20 years old, I have a good job, amazing family and the best friends I could ask for. I would NEVER want them to feel as helpless as I do right now, so I’m getting help.

I started taking Ambien 10mg on and off about for about 10 years

Anonymous Visitor — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 22:51:08 +0000

I started taking Ambien 10mg on and off about for about 10 years. However I have noticed over the last few years , my short term and long term memory has been greatly affected. Long term-I can hardly remember significant events that occurred in my daughters lives as they were growing up; those memories are gone forever!! I’ll never get them back. Also, short term memory loss makes it extremely difficult to focus and work. I am contantly struggling to remember how to perform the most simplest task and its effecting my performance. So dealing with all this has caused depression and anxiety and self doubt. Before Ambien I was at the top of my game and when I started taking this medication, it slowly started going downhill. It is a struggle every day just to perform adaquetly at my job. I lost so much in trying to find a quick fix for my insomnia. I stopped taking Ambien about a year ago, but there has been no improvent in my long term and short term memory and sadly I don’t think there ever will be

I started taking Ambien 10mg on and off about for about 10 years

Anonymous Visitor — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 19:55:13 +0000

I started taking Ambien 10mg on and off about for about 10 years. However I have noticed over the last few years , my short term and long term memory has been greatly affected. Long term-I can hardly remember significant events that occured in my daughters lives as they were growing up; those memories are gone forever!! I’ll never get them back. Also, short term memory loss makes it extremely difficult to focus and work. I am contantly struggling to remember how to perform the most simplest task and its effecting my performance. So dealing with all this has caused depression and anxiety and self doubt. Before Ambien I was at the top of my game and when I started taking this medication, it slowly started going downhill. It is a struggle every day just to perform adaquetly at my job. I lost so much in trying to find a quick fix for my insomnia. I stopped taking Ambien about a year ago, but there has been no improvent in my long term and short term memory and sadly I don’t think there ever will be

Ambien killed him.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 17:30:00 +0000

My husband, the most intelligent, loving, kind, generous person I ever knew, shot himself in the chest. He had been on ambien for many years and the day he killed himself he was supposed to go to the doctor and was going to get a stronger dose because the ambien wasn’t working. My husband would not have ever, ever considered suicide. He never showed any signs of depression. Everyone was shocked and we believe it was a result of the ambien. I know he wasn’t planning this, it happened spur of the moment. We had things planned for the holidays, things planned for the week he died. Ambien killed him.

My finance, bestfriend, lover and future died Tuesday suddenly.

Anonymous Visitor — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 05:00:00 +0000

My finance, bestfriend, lover anf future died Tuesday suddenly. He was only 34 and they think he had a heartattack. He was in the best shape and no medical problems. Since the news I have not been able to eat, sleep or function. I cant stop crying and its killing me. I just want to take a pill and not wake up. The only thing that stops me is my kids. I don’t want them to feel the pain I feel right now. But honestly is it harder everyday tht this pain is not subsiding. I went on your website to see if the medication I was prescribed zolpidem and lorazepa combined or taken can cause me to overdose. I guess looking for a way out painless. I have already taken 4 of the recommened 2 lorazepa. I have a lot of support from family and friends but doesn’t seem to help me. I just need to have him back. If he cant come to me I wanna join him. He was a great guy and should not be alone. I love him more then myself and cant see myself enjoying life without him