AMBIEN Reviews (ZOLPIDEM TARTRATE)Average Rating: 3.1 (1450 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare AMBIEN with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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Results are sorted by Date from oldest to newest. Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 |
More on AMBIEN: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR AMBIEN | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 3 | sleep | | 10/24/2005 | 4 | insomnia--stress related | You really have to put yourself to bed BEFORE it kicks in. Otherwise you end up laughing hysterically at the television, and being a general nutcase. I hallucinate, feel light, generally stoned. AND...Might I add crazy sexual side effects. Does this stuff have E in it or something? I get all touchy-feely, and have strange visions. Other than being disturbingly hallucinogenic, it does the trick. I wake up really refreshed in the morning. | Great for people in my situation: Married students with a two-year old. Stresses about everything while trying to fall asleep. I only take it when I need it...once a month or so. | M | 29 | 8 months | 10/26/2005 | 5 | insomnia/relaxation | Euphoria-- feeling like I could do anything. Increased sexual apetite but without recollection. Became pregnant because I had unprotected sex while on ambien. Ambien gives me a drunken feeling but without the calories, hangover and depression. | I love ambien. I am concerned about the long term effects on memory as I have invested a lot of money in schooling at Harvard, MIT and Berkeley. I am only 29, and I have been on and off it since 2002. I know I am addicted-- I would rather eat an ambien than candy or anything. When I try to stop taking the ambien, I usually sublimate by eating more, or drinking alcohol, which I hate. My family and fiancee say I am more forgetful, and that I am mean. It lowers inhibitions, but on the good side-- it often inspires really cool business ideas-- unless I take more than 10mg. I am only 130lbs, so, I can still feel a 5mg on an empty stomach. It is dangerous-- yet it is such a wonderful escape from this difficult world. | F | 29 | 4 years | 10/30/2005 | 1 | Couldn't sleep due to a broke foot | I broke my foot two weeks ago and had trouble sleeping, I asked my dr what I could do. He prescribed 10 mg of Ambien. I never took a sleeping pill before and made sure I asked both the dr and pharmacist about the side effects. They both told me that it will cause dizziness, drowsiness, to make sure I have at least 8 hours to rest and that I should start feeling something in 15 - 30 mins. I wasn’t sure what the effects would be so I decided that I’d try taking it on a full stomach first. I knew that if anything it would take or should take longer to affect me. I took one pill at 8pm, and as I was swallowing the pill I thought I'd better use the restroom before it took effect. I was in the restroom for no more than 5 mins and started feeling drunk. I said to my husband, "I am not feeling very well, I think I better go lay down". It was just a few mins later, and I was starting to feeling obscenely drunk. I turned to walk out of the room and that was the last I reme | I think it is a DANGEROUS drug, be very cautious when taking it. Make sure you read ALL the warnings. Ask your pharmacist for the drug insert that comes with the drug so you can read all side effects associated with this drug. Make sure you have a family member or friend there to watch you and make sure you are safe. They really need to explain the side effects more with the doctors/pharmacist and then they should really explain that to the patients to make them aware of what could happen. Just because most people will not have a bad experience doesn't mean that others won't and for that they should advise you of all the effects and let you decide if it's worth taking. I only took it one time and will never take it again, not even a half a dose or a quarter of a dose, nor will I try any other sleeping medications ever again. It's really frightening to think a drug could have such an affect on people as to make them black out, producing a drug induced amnesia. | F | 37 | 1 days | 11/3/2005 | 4 | trouble falling asleep | Loses potency quickly so you must constantly up the dosage. As already stated, if you take it and don't go right to bed, you will do strange things and you will NOT remember what happened. I have had hour long conversations and only been told about them the next day. It has made me sleepwalk as well. Careful! | But, if taken properly, Ambien can be a very effective sleep aid. | M | 24 | 2 weeks | 11/9/2005 | 1 | Lifelong Insomnia | I am going to stop taking this Schedule IV controlled substance which is addictive even when you think it is not. Read my comments. Withdrawal symptoms occur even if you think they are not going to and are similar to all of the regular side effects with more not listed. Friends have reported outrageous withdrawl symptoms to me since they found out I was taking it. 5 mg dose did not put me to sleep as expected even 2 hours later while in bed, no TV, no noise. I am NOT going to increase dose due to side effects. Read them. Next day after taking 5 mg: had Amnesia,Spaciness,Dullness,and Muscle twitches. AND THIS IS WITH ONLY A 5 MG DOSE taken for a few nights. I can't imagine what a 10 mg or higher dose would do to me. READ THE SIDE EFFECTS IN MY COMMENTS. Check out this website: http://www.rxlist.com/cgi/generic/zolpid_ad.htm; Ambien's generic name is Zolpidem tartrate. | Why would anyone take this drug after reading all of the comments made by patients here. BELOW is a list of side effects covering just the CENTRAL & PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM and there are many others for every other part of the body. It's obvious that even though many of these are identified as "infrequent" and "rare", they are much, much more common than doctors tell us, probably because they do not know themselves. FREQUENT: An inability to coordinate muscular movements that is symptomatic of some nervous disorders;confusion; euhoria; insomnia; Sense of spinning or feeling of disequilibrium; INFREQUENT: agitation; decline in ability to think, reason, and remember; detached; difficulty concentrating; difficulty in forming words or speaking; may laugh or cry uncontrollably; hallucination; Partial loss of sensation; illusion; leg cramps; migraine; skin sensation such as burning, prickling, itching, or tingling, with no apparent physical cause; speech disord | F | 58 | 2 weeks | 11/13/2005 | 1 | Lifelong Insomnia | CONTINUATION OF EARLIER RESPONSE -- WAS CUT OFF. I WANTED TO BE SURE YOU GOT A CHANCE TO READ ALL. RARE SIDE EFFECTS (MAY NOT BE AS RARE AS YOU MIGHT THINK)-- abnormal gait; abnormal thinking; aggressive reaction; apathy; appetite increased; decreased libido; delusion; dementia; depersonalization (A state in which the normal sense of personal identity and reality is lost); dysphasia (Impairment of speech and verbal comprehension); Abnormally decreased motor function or activity; hypotonic (low muscle tone -- floppy or weak muscles); hysteria; intoxicated feeling; manic reaction (excitement of psychotic nature manifested by mental and physical hyperactivity, disorganization of behavior and extreme elevation of mood); neuralgia (a sharp, shooting pain along a nerve pathway); neuritis (Inflammation of a nerve); neuropathy (symptoms range from a tingling sensation or numbness in the toes and fingers to paralysis); neurosis (mental or psychiatric disorder characterized primarily by | I am already experiencing MANY of the side effects as noted in the previous rating I just submitted. Have been taking 5 mg at night for 2 weeks. Will STOP TAKING this LEVEL IV CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE immediately as in addition to the present side effects, friends of mine are now telling me that they are experiencing horrible withdrawal symptoms. It's easy to believe people are exaggerating until it happens to YOU. | F | 58 | 2 weeks | 11/13/2005 | 4 | insomnia | uncontrollable crying, little hallucinations, horrible nightmares | it works really well if i go to bed right away like im supposed to | M | 15 | 1 days | 11/22/2005 | 3 | INSOMIA | I HAVE INSOMIA BUT I DISCOVERED THAT IF YOU TAKE AMBIEN ON A EMPTY STOMACH AFTER 10 MINUTES IF YOU DO NOT GO TO BED . YOU WILL FEEL LIKE EVERYTHING IS MOVING YOU SEE PEOPLE MEMORY LOSS, NEED SEX WELL DO STRANGE THINGS LIKE THINGS YOU WANTED TO DO YOURE WHOLE LIFE BUT YOU DID NOT DARE TO DO. SO BEFORE YOU TAKE THE MED "AMBIEN" EAT 1 HOUR BEFORE AN DGO TO BED EVEN IF YOU DON`T FEEL SLEEPY. " DO NOT DRIVE" YOU CAN ALSO TAKE HELBAL TEAS BEFORE GOING TO BED IT HELPS ALOT. GOOD LUCK AMBIEN YOU ONLY BE TAKEN EVERY 4 DAYS | IS GOOD IF YOU FOLLOW DIRECTIONS. DONT USED IT AS A HABBIT ONLY EVERY OTHER DAY YOU REALLY NEEDIT. DONT DEPEND ON IT | F | 23 | 1 years | 11/22/2005 | 1 | couldnt sleep becaus eof depression | i tok this medicine months ago it was prescribed to me while i was at a psychiatry hospital and i have never been the same since. the first night of taking the drug i had extreme hallucinations and i was completely unaware about what was happening to me because i wasnt told about the side effects. the walls twisted and turned and i saw tracers(tracers are things that follow a moving object kind like an echo of it. about 7 months later i am still seeing the tracers and i have no idea why that i can still see them | i wouldnt take the drug | F | 13 | 7 days | 11/25/2005 | 3 | I started taking Ambien while I was deployed in Iraq to help with my insomnia. At first it was great and I'm worried now that it keeps me in this sleepy sort of state throughtout the next day. I am withdrawn from everything and I always feel so tired. It is almost having this reverse sort of effect on me now... | F | 23 | 1 years | 11/26/2005 | 1 | incomnia | Amnesia, daytime drowsiness, dizziness, back pain, decreased mental alertness, difficulty concentrating, fatigue, lethargy, light-headedness, speech difficulties, vertigo, decreased sex drive, constipation, daytime sleeping,, irregular heartbeat, mental deterioration, thinking abnormalities | Most of the posts here talk about the memory loss and hallucinations people experience immediately after taking Ambien. I want to alert people to the long-term effects I've experienced. I've taken Ambien every night for 5 years. Started out with 5 mg, then went up to 10 mg, now back to 5 mg. For several years I've noticed deteriorating cognitive skills - memory loss, attention deficit, concentration, mental alertness, processing information. This has concerned me, but I have continued to take Ambien because it does put me to sleep. For the last 2 months I have experienced light-headedness and fogginess on an almost constant basis. It makes it very difficult to function day-to-day. I've had a number of tests done because I thought it was ear-related. Not so. Doctors now believe it is Ambien abuse, and are alarmed to hear that I've taken it for so long. Now I've started to cut way back, and hopefully can rid myself of this drug completely, but it sounds like most people have experienced | M | 53 | 5 years | 12/1/2005 | 4 | insomnia due to meds/back pain | Immediate tiredness and loss of memory if I didn't go to sleep right away. when i combined it with wellbutrin (to quit smoking) it added to depression and memory loss during daytime. without taking wellbutrin, it worked fine | definately helped me sleep. i never had a problem sleeping before but am now on percoset and kadian for back problems, which kept me awake at night (along with the back pain). the doc started me with one 10mg a night, but i was waking up at 3am. the doc then said to take one 10mg at night and another 10mg at 3am (20mg in all) and it seemed to work fine. I never felt groggy in the morning and got my 8 hours of sleep. my insurance company would not pay for a refill (limit of 60 10mgs in 90 days) so i stopped taking it and there was no withdrawl symptoms besides back to not sleeping very well. I then started taking ambien cr 12.5 mg. and it was great. no immediate loss of memory and i sleep all night. | M | 46 | 90 days | 12/3/2005 | 1 | Insomnia | VERY DANGEROUS DRUG WHEN TAKEN LONGER THAN 7-10 DAYS!!!! SHOULD BE PULLED FROM THE MARKET. ALTHOUGH NOT CLASSIFIED AS SUCH, IT WORKS JUST LIKE A "BENZO" DRUG (VALIUM, KLONOPIN,ETC.) AND IS VERY ADDICTIVE!!!! | I used this drug off and on for 2 years. When I finally stopped cold-turkey using Ambien I could barely sleep at all for over 2 months. I had other horrible withdrawl symptoms which among them were: the shakes, moaning, horrible anxiety, depression and constant ear-ringing. I could barely leave my house for several months. While I took the drug I was a whole different person-very mean and angry. Sonata and Lunesta work in a similar way. Please think twice before using Ambien. There are many natural alternatives to prescription sleep meds. (Although they won't work well until Ambien is totally out of your system which can take MANY months). Hospital emergency rooms see many Ambien-addicted people. It is being sold as a street drug and people are crushing and snorting it. The only positive thing I can say about Ambien is that it must have done something to rev up my metabolism because I lost and kept off 20 pounds easily when using it. | F | 40 | 2 years | 12/6/2005 | 4 | Insomnia | 30 minutes after taking it, I become very social and start posting on websites, calling people etc. Then somehow I make it to bed after an hour or two. You are in a altered state of conciousness while the drug is in effect. Any memory while on the drug will be lost in your mind. Doesn't make me tired at all, just somehow makes falling asleep easy. | Only works for me if I take about 40mg. I have taken up to 60mg, but found it to be just as effective as 40mg. I'm on the drug for 2 weeks, off for two weeks. | M | 27 | 3 years | 12/10/2005 | 3 | Insomnia | For the past month I have been taking ativan-anti-anxiety drug, then I started zoloft( got very sick from it, was out of work all week) now I am taking ambien( half a pill 5mg) and I can sort of sleep thru the night but feel nervous in the morning. | I have had such problems sleeping and thought that ativan would help but I found out that it can cause insomnia. I am tapering off of ativan( only half of the pill) and I am taking half an ambien(5mg) at night. I do wake up about every 4 hours. I am afraid to take a whole ambien because I am still on ativan. Has anyone every taken what I have taken with the ambien, please let me know.. | F | 31 | 3 days | 12/10/2005 | 5 | Help sleep good. | My wife also takes it and she experiences the side effects, which I would classify as bonuses for me. She was given a prescription for Ambien after having her third child. It helped somewhat when she took 1 to 1 1/2 on an empty stomach. Well one night when she took two, when I got into bed with her, I thought I was with someone else. She was very horny, very nasty, and extremely hot. She did things she normally doesn't care to do. She then began asking about all the people in the room. Well, I thought it was humerous, so I told her they were here to watch, and did she want to give them a show. She said she did, but she wanted other partners also. Trust me--not normal. So we both did some fantasizing, and we had an incredible experience, about which unfortunately, she remembered nothing in the morning. | I still get good sleep with ambien, but we still, about once a month, or more if she's trying to bribe me or reward me, we'll have an "ambien" date. It's different, and we enjoy it. But I can see how this could be used as a date-rape drug. I can do pretty much whatever I want to with her on ambien. And she thoroughly enjoys it as well. | M | 43 | 3 days | 12/13/2005 | 4 | Insomnia | None | It is sad that such an informative web site is turning into a spam chat room with nonsense. Like some other intelligent people have said, take as directed, if you do not need it, don't take it. It seems like people feel like they HAVE to take a pill every night. If you don't, then don't. I have used it for many years, insomnia, chronic pain issues, etc. Some of us would like to know what other people are experiencing, not reading nonsense from people who sit at the computer and find web sites to infiltrate for this twisted pleasure. My experience with ambien is a good one, it does what it is supposed to do provided it is used correctly. If used correctly, you will sleep-enough said | M | 39 | 7 years | 12/13/2005 | 4 | Insomnia | Geometric dreams; balance problems when I have to get up to go to the bathroom. | Reduced effictiveness over time. | M | 70 | 5 years | 12/20/2005 | 5 | To help sleep | I take it a few minutes before bed and sleep very well. Take it on and off for few years....mostly off. | I'm a litte confused as to all these other posts. The people who are taking it seem to be either really dumb, or drug addicts. This is a pill you take to help you sleep...not so you can do things you never would do, basically "rape" your wife, etc. Stop being immuture morans and take it right before going to sleep. You are the reasons people complain about this drug! It makes me sick to read how everyone is not folling the directions correctly. | F | 31 | | 12/26/2005 |