Insomnia Support Group

Insomnia is a symptom, rather than a disease, and is characterized by inadequate quantity or quality of sleep. People with insomnia complain of difficulty falling or staying asleep, which results in significant impairment of daytime functioning. Insomnia is categorized as transient (shorter than one week), short-term (one to three weeks) or chronic (longer than three...

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Ambien & Her Side Effects

mspoeticjm
mspoeticjm
I have been taking Ambien on & off for several years now. I have gotten to a point where I can suddenly stop taking it for a few days when I don't have the money to get the refills, and I sleep sporadically. Because I take Zanaflex, it helps with sleep, so I get some sleep with it alone. Last night, I finally got my prescription refilled, and I took my combo which is the Zanaflex (muscle relaxer) & my Ambien, and I couldn't get out of bed this morning. I was sucked in, but at the same time, I went to bed like at 4am. I was entertaining my guy friend & time slipped by. We're thinking about something more serious, but in the meantime, this Ambien which seems to be the only medication that helps with my insomnia, really causes me to lose memories. I can't remember bits & pieces of last night & I have to ask him what happened. I'm tired of this happening, but I have to calm my brain, because my brain is constantly on & constantly thinking a million miles a minute every single day. I have a very stressful life, so it's very important to me that I rest my brain every day. Once, I've gone 48 hours without sleep, and the repercussions were tragic. I was hallucinating. I had a horrible migraine to the point I could hear the birds chirping so loudly, it was making me angry & crazy at the same time. All of my senses were impacted by the lack of sleep & I finally went to the doctor & my blood pressure was through the roof. That is when I was diagnosed with hypertension. So insomnia is a serious medical condition. Things can get out of control so quickly from NO SLEEP!
curiousmountain
curiousmountain
I'm not sure I fully understand your post. However, if you take Ambien, be prepared to sleep. Don't engage in any other activities, including sex. Go to bed right away. If you are sleep walking, it might be best to consult your doc. Ambien can cause lots of problems if you sleep walk. I apologize if I misunderstood your post.
awake2014
awake2014
I completely understand what you are going through. I have been taking Ambien for about 6 months now. There are times when I can go without taking it but others when I am super tired and my head will not stop thinking. Hours later, I am still awake. I have taken my Ambien and still not go to sleep sometimes. I was given a new medication by my doctor to try. I'll share if it works better. This new medication is a lot more expensive than my Ambien but something has to work for me to sleep and feel rested. Ambien is not doing it.....
bluesun
bluesun
When I was taking ambien it was supposed to be taken right before sleep. And not do other activities while on it. Ambien is a hypnotic drug. If you take it and then do other stuff before sleeping you won't remember what you did because it's the same thing as being hypnotized.
That being said, one of the side effects I didn't know was from ambien that was effecting me was that I was having memory problems even during the day. I was losing chucks of time, forgetting people, events, where I was, what I did, who I saw, where I parked my car, etc etc. It was scary. Another scary side effect was I found out that I was doing things in my sleep. Moving furniture around, trying to book tickets to Italy, sending garbled emails to people, walking around, etc. I was wondering why I kept waking up with like 20 bruises on my arms and legs. So the doc took me off the med.