AMBIEN Reviews (ZOLPIDEM TARTRATE)Average Rating: 3.1 (1453 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare AMBIEN with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
|
Results are sorted by Date added. 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 | FDA Adverse Event Summary
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR AMBIEN | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 3 | Insomnia due to stress | Muscle pain, dry eyes, dehydration, mild depression | Sure helped me sleep, to the point of being habit forming. Don't expect to sleep easily without it for a night or two after taking. After sustained use of ~5 mg/night noticed severely red eyes and dehydration throughout the day. Couple that with the coffee I would have to drink to clear my head and I was turning into a prune. Also experienced delayed muscle pain. Ambien seems to cause me to tighten up just enough that I would have various aches and pains for a few days after taking. It took me 1.5 years to tie the two together, but after numerous doctor and physical therapy visits I found that my chronic muscle pain ceased about 2 weeks after stopping Ambien. When combined with recreational drugs (pot, E) can lead to some very scary memory loss and impaired judgement episodes (then again, so can the drugs themselves). A great "silver bullet" for critical nights, but you will run the risk of dependancy. At least for me the side effects of prolonged use do NOT make it worth it. | M | 37 | 2 years | 12/14/2009 | 3 | insomnia | Normally no side effects. However, the day before yesterday my daughter found me with a bloodied face and incoherent when she came home from school. | I often wake early (4:30-5:30 AM) but on Thursday I woke at 3:30 AM and couldn't go back to sleep. As I need to get up at 5:30 I didn't want to take anything but thought I would take a longer nap than usual. After delivering my wife to her job and my daughter to school I seem to have puttered around the house - I found an e-mail that I wrote at 11:40 AM that I otherwise had no recollection writing. I remembered taking half and Ambien (5mg of a 10mg tablet) and a vicodin (I have chronic pain from Rheumatoid Arthritis), setting my alarm for 1PM and going to bed to take a nap. It must have been right after my e-mail. Two days later I was able to remember waking up to the alarm and resetting it for my usual 5:30AM. But later that day all I could remember was taking a call from my daughter about the fact I was supposed to pick her up at 3PM and wasn't there. I vaguely remembered cleaning a wound on my face with q-tips and propolis. The next thing I remember is the horrified look on my daughter's face when I opened the door when she came home from school on the bus - about an hour after our phone conversation that I don't recall. I had a one inch gash across my chin - deep gash - and a swollen nose and was not making any sense. She asked me my name (I knew it) and what month it was - I was off by two months. What day of the week - I said Monday, it was Friday. She got the neighbor who took me to the hospital. Most of the day was a blank to me, with just vignettes here and there, ev | M | 67 | 2 years | 12/14/2009 | 5 | Insomnia | I take 10mg pill on an empty stomach and lay down immediately so I don't experience the side effects any longer. I usually lay in bed and it takes 15-20 minutes to work and then I fall asleep for the night. If I don't lay down as soon as I take the pill I will stay up and proceed to eat several bowls of ice cream followed by saying strange things to people and not remembering any of it the next day. | This drug is amazing if you truly suffer from insomnia on a day to day basis. Ambien works best when taken on an empty stomach. To avoid most of the side effects turn out every light and *LAY DOWN AS SOON AS YOU TAKE IT.* Do not try to stay up and watch TV or talk on the phone after taking the pill. | F | 28 | 1 years | 12/13/2009 | 1 | insomnia | I took this drug off and on for several years. I have suffered extreme memory loss. Several people have commented about suddenly not being able to spell words......it is true. I could not remember things that happened even during the day. I have stopped taking it for almost a week. Memory has not improved. Will never take again. | F | 30 | 8 years | 12/12/2009 | 4 | insomnia | excessive late night eating which has led to being overweight, sleep emailing, sleep texting, talkative | Although I'm almost positive this medicine has been the cause of my struggle with weight gain, it is a lifesaver. I get 6-7 hours of sleep a night and wake up refreshed, ready to start the day. I have struggled with sleep problems my whole life and have tried all sleep medications, this is the only one that's worked for me. It is so important to take this medicine as directed...when in bed and do not drive or take alcohol with it, simple as that. I love being able to know I can always have a good nights sleep. It's one stress I know I will never have again. | F | 31 | 4 years | 12/11/2009 | 2 | Insomnia | None, I didn't even experience drowsiness. | My Dr. prescribed it to me when I told him I wasn't sleeping well, due to some stress in my life. The first night I took it, I got in bed, popped a pill and laid awake until 4:30ish with my mind racing. Assuming it was just new RX jitters and I took it the next night and same thing happened. In my opinion its useless. It wound me up rather than relax me. My OCD kicked in and I cleaned my house from top to bottom early into the morning. No loss of memory, no night time desires, no hallucinations....worst of all no sleep. | F | 24 | 2 days | 12/11/2009 | 1 | N/A | I have never taken ambien. I am an RN and would not recommend this medication to anyone or ever take it myself. I have been a nurse working the night shift in hospitals for 12 years and literally cringe when a physician writes an order for ambien, particularly for elderly patients. I have more than a few times had to chase patients wandering down the halls. I have witnessed pts having hallucinations and aggressive behavior on this medication without any memory of the events the next morning. In my opinion, this is a dangerous drug. | F | 35 | | 12/11/2009 | 1 | chronic insomnia | loss of memeory, stubling, eating excessively.... | I posted here back on the 4th of December. It has been 9 days (nights) without Ambien and there have been some rough points, but over-all, I'm just glad I got off it when I did. The problems that stuck out were that I sure as heck couldn't sleep. My heart pounded so loud I swear I could hear it. A little bit white-knuckle. Dreams also got REALLY weird when I actually COULD sleep... and I could feel my body (and mind) actually desiring to take Ambien again. I also keep thinking I see something out of the corner of my eye, then there is nothing. Not comfortable and it is disconcerting. But it IS endurable. Over-all. Totally worth giving it up. It is getting better since I stopped and I am starting to sleep. Seriously, please beware you could do something so horrible when you take this stuff - and not remember ANYTHING. Nada. Not even an inkling of memory. I'll post in a few weeks and give you an update. I told my doctor the problem I had and he told me there was an older anti-depressant that tested very well for helping you go to sleep and not have fatigue the next day and it is only prescribed for sleep now. THIS DRUG IS NOT SUPPOSED TO HAVE ANY AMBIEN OR LUNESTA SIDE-EFFECTS. I can't remember the name, but I will call and find out, then post it. Good luck. Happy sleeping. If you become addicted or have crazy symptoms, please get help to stop if you can't do it on your own. God bless. | M | 46 | 1 years | 12/10/2009 | 3 | Lack of Sleep | I started taking Ambien because I had a hard time falling asleep. This drug will knock you out the first couple times you take it. I mean DO NOT plan on doing anything with in 1 minute of swallowing the pill! No lie! After I would take it, I would have deep deep conversations with my girlfriend just before falling to sleep. When I wake in the morning I couldn't remember ANYTHING I said. SCARY!!!! Also, it would only keep me sleeping for about 4 - 5 hrs, then I would wide awake! | I never thought I would ever be able to look into a closet and see EVERY shirt in the closet move up and down, until I took this drug. SCARY!!! | M | 33 | 7 days | 12/9/2009 | 2 | Increase urgency and frequency of my urination in the morning. | It help my sleep quite well | M | 69 | 5 years | 12/9/2009 | 1 | insomnia | I took Ambien 10mg for 7 years. I would have rated it a 5 for the time I took it. I felt refreshed every morning. Then suddenly it became ineffective. Even though Ambien quit working for me I still had to taper off the med. I believe I was HOOKED. I was moody, unreasonable, and could not think straight as well as having NO attention span. I have been off Ambien for 4 years and note that I have the residual side affects from being on Ambien for that amount of time. I will never, ever take another sleep aid. I have a recurrence of insomnia and I swear my memory has been strongly affected. It is as though I have mild amnesia and intermittent fogginess. Seven years is a looong time and it was very easy to obtain a prescription. I do not know if I will ever recover. | F | 54 | 7 years | 12/8/2009 | 5 | lack of sleep due to hot flashes | sometimes groggy a bit after waking up | In 15-20 minutes I am out like a light.. wake up 6-8 hrs later. Started with 10mg (whole tablet) found using 1/2 tablet same results. Ambien has been a lifesaver for me. Shuts my "brain chatter" off. OTC sleep-aids never worked for me.I don't recommend this for some individuals...if you experience some of the comments I am reading...STOP TAKING IT!! | F | 52 | 7 weeks | 12/7/2009 | 5 | Insomnia | I was talking to my boyfriend and told him that I saw people walking through walls, I don't remember any of the converstaion. Other than that, I've been able to go to sleep and stay asleep for 8 hours and feel better in the morning than I use to. | F | 19 | 2 weeks | 12/4/2009 | 1 | for sleep | I hadn't taken ambien for months. I needed some sleep and decided to take one. 9 hours after taking it, I got up, showered and got ready for work. I remember driving the first 9 miles. After that I remember nothing. I drove another 15 miles, apparently darting all over the road with people calling the police reporting a drunk driver. I ended up crashing into and tearing down 11 guardrails (which kept me from going over a steep embankment) on the opposite of the road, totalling my SUV. I am incredibly grateful that I did not hurt or kill someone else and I was not hurt either. I was in and out of sleep the entire day after the accident going from lucidness to acting like I was drunk. I remember very little of the events. It is very terrifying to think of what could have happened. | This drug should be taken off the market before someone is killed as a direct result of someone having taken it. DO NOT TAKE AMBIEN. Write your congressmen. | F | 62 | | 12/4/2009 | 1 | On and off for 1 year | amnesia, stumbling, hallucinations | The Devil's Drug and possibly a portal to hell. I have had chronic insomnia for years and started taking Ambien with great success at first. I would fall asleep right away and wake up rested. I guess my body built up a tolerance and I wrote emails, talked to people on the phone (losing several important relationships and getting fired from my job because of the irrational behavior I didn't remember). I became addicted. After putting my marriage in danger 3 days ago (I won't go into why, but it was an "Ambien Incident"), my husband and I stood together and flushed them down the toilet. Never again. Never. I have had high anxiety and hardly slept in the past several nights, but I don't care. I'll live through that and get over it - I would not get over losing all the good in my life. I am determined to get my life back. I'm glad it works for some, but please know it is dispensed like candy and with little warning of danger. It almost ruined my life - don't let it ruin yours. Seek alternatives! God bless. | F | 46 | 1 years | 12/4/2009 | 3 | Insomnia due to anxiety | some tiredness durrig the day. | I have had insomnia for years. It comes and goes due to what stresses I have going on in my life. Most recently its really taken a toll on me, my family and my work. Sleeping for only 2-3 hrs each night, and that was broken sleep. Waking several times wide eyed and alert but completely exhausted. I crashed at work one day and just lost it. Had a full blown anxiety attack brought on by stress and lack of sleep. My dr prescribed me Ambien and he told me some of the side effects but didn't go into detail. I will be talking to my kids to alert them to the possibility of some of the things I have read on here. I took my first dose, 10mg, last night and for the first time in months I actually got some sleep.... 7 hours! I did wake up once to use the bathroom and then went right back to sleep. I do feel a bit tired right now, but not like before. As for now I am just happy to finally have something to help me sleep. I have rated this drug a 3 because I have only taken it for one night so far, if anything strange happens, or if my rating changes I will update my post. | F | 34 | 1 days | 12/3/2009 | 1 | chronic insomnia | first I must admit that I'm probably the biggest hypocrite to ever comment on this site. the first time I entered this site was a couple years ago. I was doing s little homework on my new script, so when I read some of the posts I actually laughed and had my wife read some of them. it's ironic how things can change in only a couple years. | last month I almost killed my wife and the absolute most terrifying part is that I don't remember one second of it. I don't know if I was dreaming or hallucinating. I just don't know what happened but I know what she told me. you may be reading this and laughing at me. well I understand that as well as anyone but like so many others on this site, I'm here to warn you. it may only be 1 in 10,000 or 1 in 1000 but what people lose site of is this; that 1 is just like the rest of us. you reading this right now, you could be that one. if you've already started then stop and if your thinking about it then don't. I will continue to read this periodically but if you read this and then something bad happens later, please come back and try to make others aware. my posting this may have just convinced you not to take it. and you may have been that one. good luck and god bless | M | 34 | 18 months | 12/2/2009 | 1 | insmnia | I had been taking Ambien for about 2 months. I have Fibro Myalgia, and sleeplessness comes with the disease. Taking 10mg every night, my family had told me several times that I had done/said random things. The worst has to have been sleep driving and the events that happened after I wrecked the car.Luckily I did not total my van, only minor damage. I do remember getting out of the van but from that point on it is a blur. | I remember being in a dream, trying to get to someplace very important. But no matter how hard I tried, I could not get there, each step I took, I would fall. I remember hitting my face on the floor, which I later learned was actually the railroad tracks. From then, I have no recollection of anything until around 5:30 when I awoke in the ER with my husband and mother by my side, and in terrible pain. Evidently, when I had gotten out of the van I took a long walk on the tracks. The falling that I thought was a dream was not. Based on my body temp when a local Sheriff responded to the call I had been out there for over four hours 3-7am. Covered in blood from may falls, and a busted nose, my husband was the first to arrive on the scene. He said the only audible words I said "where the f%#k am I?" the rest was gibberish. My body temp was down to 92 degrees, hypothermia sets in at 94.I was not aware of any of this! I still cannot recall what had happened, but was out cold in the hospital until after 5 pm that day. After coming to, I was very disoriented and in a great deal of pain. No broken bones thank goodness, plenty of bruises!but enough to make sure that I will never take any more! I was later told that I had fallen asleep on the train tracks. The officer who found me could see a train coming, and had to literally drag me off the tracks before it made it to me. Each time I hear the whistle I cringe, thinking that could have been the train that would have killed me. | F | 34 | 2 months | 12/1/2009 | 4 | insomnia/ptsd | shortly after i take it i get the drunk feeling, but im not always tired. usually remember very little and very lovey and express my feelings, which is quite odd for me. | i started taking ambien while in afghanistan becaues i was staying up for days in a combat zone without sleep. bad nightmares after death of friends, and major irrability. i have always had sleep problems though the docs there would only give me 10 at a time so i used the sparingly, once i got back home my doctor prescribed 4 months worth to me. i have had sex on ambien and do remember it, my wife says i go a little too long for her....haha. i dont take it if i know im not going to get at least 6 hours of sleep, but on those nights i notice that i dont sleep well and my nightmares return. wife often asks me the next day if i remember doing this or saying that and its usually no. i would say its helped a lot but i think there will be some withdrawl when my prescription runs out. drinking 1 beer with this drug increases its effect 10 fold!! tread carefully when taking this drug. | M | 30 | 10 months | 11/30/2009 | 1 | Insomnia | I became hyper-aggressive sexually. Shortly after taking it, I would start touching my wife's body. We have a great sex life, so normally that wouldn't be a problem. But this was different, this was, as my wife put it, "not me". She said that it was like I was asleep with my eyes open. The last time it happened she told me to stop but I continued. I woke up the next morning to find a note explaining what had happened and that she had went to her mom's to stay. It took me almost three weeks to completly stop taking it and another month to finally sleep through the night without it. | Before these things started to happen, I had experienced a few other strange effects but they weren't anything like this. Once I took the dog out and a few times I got up and ate, without being able to recall either but this was much different. To see my wife of six years in tears, telling me that it was me but it "wasn't me" scared me beyond words. If you are reading this and considering taking this medication, I would say to do your research. I have read page after page on this site, some bad and some good but the bad can be very bad. And the possibility of doing something that could effect you for the rest of your life, I honestly believe is not worth the risk. Scott | M | 29 | 3 years | 11/30/2009 |