Reviews for LUNESTA18 ratings: (side effects include behavior walking driving)Edit Filter | Clear FilterCompare LUNESTA with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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Results are sorted by Date added. Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) Page: 1 |
More on LUNESTA: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR LUNESTA | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 1 | Insomnia | This drug had terrible side effects for me that got worse the longer I was on it. I felt mentally impaired and extremely exhausted and depressed to a degree that terrified me until I realized that the medication was causing it. By mentally impaired I mean I had trouble walking, concentrating, and finishing even the most simple task. My limbs kept going numb and at times I disassociated. I was unable to stop crying and couldn't feel positive emotions for weeks on end. I saw my psychiatrist about my worsening mental state and she didn't mention that these could be side effects of Lunesta - so instead she prescribed me adderall and I kept taking the lunesta. The adderall helped with energy a bit but I was still feeling so mentally impaired and depressed. Eventually it clicked that my symptoms had gradually gotten worse the longer I had been on lunesta. I stopped taking lunesta 10 days ago and slowly have been getting better. Today is the first day my normal energy levels are back a | I would not recommend this drug to anyone who suffers from depression or has been through a depressive episode before - made me suicidal. | F | 32 | 4 months 3mg 1X day | 6/9/2022 | 3 | Severe insomnia during pandemic | still had some difficulty falling asleep felt queasy and nauseous within about an hour and a half after taking it. Finally fell asleep and slept till morning which is unusual for me, got up and made my coffee when I realized there was a horrible nasty awful taste in my mouth. I have had sleep walking before and all I could think was I got up and ate nasty cat litter. That's what I imagined cat litter would taste like, used cat litter. It is so awful and everything I drink or eat after that is overshadowed by this God awful taste. Guess I'm going to stop this pill because I can't stand it. It did not make me hungry, I'm still nauseous just thinking about that damn cat litter. | I am wondering how long this nasty taste in my mouth will last? And what can I do about it in the meantime? | F | 65 | 1 days 2mg | 5/2/2020 | 1 | sleep | Psychosis, visual and auditory hallucinations. I attacked a staff member while recovering from surgery and have no memory of it. Hallucinations discerned by my behavior. | A dangerous drug that should be taken off the market. | F | 35 | 1 days 1X day | 4/29/2015 | 1 | REM sleep Behavior Disorder | Caused me to involuntary fall asleep after getting up for the day. This was a minor annoyance until the morning I fell asleep while walking back to my bedroom and fell down stairs. My minor injuries could have been serious. | It was an effective sleep aid for me. It did help with RBD. In 2 years I did not become addicted. It only took two nights with moderate insomnia to stop the drug. | M | 73 | 2 years 1.5 MG 1X day | 11/7/2013 | 1 | Insomnia | I took Lunesta for the first time on a Friday night. My sleep was fitful and interrupted every 2 hours. I went from bed to couch to easy chair to bed - it was horrible! Even worse, I was aggitated and hostile. I said things to my fiance without thought or care that were insensitive at best and mean at worst. If a noise or motion woke me, I was angry and mean. I slept off and on for the entire weekend, only coming out of it by Sunday evening. I was remorseful for my behavior, and chose not to have the prescription filled. Unfortunately, my behavior was apparently so despicable, my fiance (of 3 years) packed up and moved out without warning on Monday. | I can definitely say, LUNESTA has ruined my life! | F | 52 | 2 days | 9/1/2009 | 2 | Insomnia | Sleep walking, eating, cooking, bizarre email writing and sending. Had to have husband hide the car keys and lock me out of the computer. Wasn't worth the side effects in the long run. | M | 40 | 6 months | 8/10/2009 | 1 | Sleep aid | 45 min after taking 2 mg had a headache and was still awake. Then slept two hours. Woke with dry mouth and weird metallic taste. Went outside in skimpy nightgown to watch thunderstorm. Teen son came home and found me outside in driveway. Not even close to normal behavior for me, but I do remember being outside watching storm. Slept off and on for a few more hours. Awoke with "hangover" feeling which went away after a couple hours, and metallic taste gone. | Won't take it again. | F | 52 | 1 days | 6/26/2009 | 1 | couldn't fall/stay asleep | memory loss, sleep walking and sleep driving after taking lunesta, ambien, ambiem CR and restoril. After consulting the prescribing Dr., she had me try rozerem and it is awesome. It has melatonin in it which is a natural sleep aid and I never had any weird side effects as mentioned above and my memory is getting sharper. Only problem, my new insurance company won't cover it and cash price is $168 for 30 pills. So, I went to the vitamin section of the store and bought natural melatonin for about $7 for 60 3mg pills. Pharmacist said that it may work but it won't have all the chemicals in it that rozerem has in it but thought it wouldn't hurt to try. I took two 3mg pills and had a great nights sleep and woke up feeling refreshed. I'm usually not a huge believer in natural remedies and I know it was only one night I tried it, but I'm very hopeful now. If this doesn't work and I can't get my insurance co. to cover it, I will just pay the $168 for the rozerem. I will not use medicine that pu | Another clue to those not having success with sleep aids, my Dr. told me and there is info. on each of these drugs that if you take it too close to having just eaten a fatty meal, it can screw up how it works, so try taking it at least a few hours after you eat. Good luck | F | 41 | 30 days | 4/10/2009 | 4 | insomnia | If taken exactly as prescribed it is fantastic. It gives me a wonderful night's sleep with vivid , interesting dreams. If taken with alcohol BEWARE! compulsive behaviors kick in 1. It is almost impossible to stop drinking. 2. If you avoid that pitfall then stay in bed and do NOT go to the kitchen. I have experienced sleep cooking and eating or just the compulsive need to eat. I cannot always remember what I ate until I see the dirty dishes in the sink. 3. Please do not go online. I also experienced compulsive online shopping and bought things I normally would not. | Despite the very odd side effects it gives me a wonderful night's sleep. I cannot use over the counter sleep aids and I'm allergic to many prescription pills. I am learning to control the negative effects but don't ever go to Las Vegas while on this stuff. You would wipe out your money. | F | 59 | 2 years | 11/19/2008 | 2 | chronic insomnia | First night i took it I was so exhausted from lack of sleep that i drifted off pretty quickly and felt refreshed the next day. I decided to take half of the 3mg pill the following night and did not sleep at all, but didn't feel weird or anything the next day, just tired. Stopped taking it for a few weeks, then after another string of sleepless nights i took it and although it put me to sleep quickly, i felt like a walking zombie the ENTIRE next day. very unrefreshed, like something was squeezing my brain, foggy, disengaged, out of it. Next night, same feeling afterwards. | All in all it did what it was supposed to do for 1 night only. | F | 23 | | 10/11/2008 | 1 | Sleep aid. | Overwhelming anxiety, depression, hopelessness and thoughts of committing suicide. Terrifying dreams. Loss of memory. Lingering feelings of dread. My Story - I am a husband of twenty seven years and father of four. I have always had a lust for life and a lot of reasons to be happy and thankful. After the first time I took Lunesta, the next day I seriously contemplated driving my car off a bridge or driving as fast as I could and smashing into something. The next day I told off my boss, never having had words with him before. I can't believe he didn't fire me on the spot. That night I told a friend that I didn't want to live anymore and that life isn't worth the struggle. The only thing that gave me a feeling of comfort was the thought of committing suicide. I made a plan that the next day I would act sick and stay home from work. I would then write my wife and kids a letter explaining how I am better off now and how they are better off without me. I would also call the co | and the next morning I decided to think about other ways of doing myself in. I went to work late and told my boss that I was not happy with my job and I might look for other opportunities. He turned white and the confusion on his face was painful. I felt a little better that night and decided to put off the suicidal plans for now. Again I didn't take my pill before bed and the next day I felt a little better still although I was very spooked by the previous two days. I apologized to my boss and told him I think it might have been the Lunesta, although I had never heard of such deadly side effects. I searched the internet that day and found that I was far from alone. In fact, others had seen it through and actually killed themselves. One was a twelve year old boy who had never shown any signs of depression prior to taking Lunesta. I wish I could scream out to the world NEVER TAKE LUNESTA!!!! It is not worth ruining or losing your life. Drink warm milk or something! These new | M | 47 | 3 days | 10/6/2008 | 5 | Chronic Insomnia | None. No odd taste. I walk a bit drunken if I am up longer than 30 minutes after taking the med. No weird dreams. No sleep walking. No sleep eating. | No other sleep med works for me. I have been diagnosed only with chronic insomnia at sleep clinic and am not depressed. Am Ultra Type A (super in control) personality that does not relax well (runs in family) so this is necessary as I have gotten older. I still have a shallow sleep pattern and must create the perfect sleep environment to make all of this function through the night. No caffeine, soothing bath, no light, perfect temp, perfect bed, no noise, etc which I generally can create. I can still wake up at 3 to 4 am and be extremely aware of surroundings and have to meditate on going back to sleep and not start troubleshooting the upcoming week. Honestly, I hate grogginess and that is what Rozeram does to me, and Ambien/CR doesnt even help me sleep. I count Lunesta as a blessing as I have been taking it for over a year or two. If I cardio exercise each day for 30 minutes or more, I sleep much heavier with Lunesta so that is really my edge---and healthier for me too. The best s | F | 46 | 1.5 years | 1/2/2008 | 1 | waking up early | I had a sleepwalking experience. About a half hour after taking it, my wife received a phone call for me. She found me in our pantry, looking for food, and handed me the phone. I proceeded to have a conversation with a work associate, and handed the phone back to to my wife. The next morning, my work associate mentioned our phone conversation; I had absolutely no recollection of it, and called my wife, who told me what had happened; she did not realize I was asleep! Needless to say, I quit taking Lunesta, and have gone back to taking 2 benadryl tablets before bed, which seems to be working OK. | M | 55 | 21 days | 11/26/2007 | 3 | insomnia | Horrible metallic taste- especially if you split the pills. Occasional mild headaches, Memory problems and the feeling of not thinking clearly, caused me to panic while driving etc. I am trying to get off this drug as it is addicting, and the long-term side effects are not worth it. My doctor told me if I keep taking this I will have Alzheimer's by the time I am 50. | It was wonderful for sleep for the first few months. After a year on it, it does not work as well and I take a much smaller dose along with ativan to help me fall asleep. It does not help me to stay asleep for 8 hours the way it initially did. | F | 31 | 1.5 years | 11/24/2007 | 1 | Insomnia | Mood swings, aggressive and hostile thoughts and behavior, severe anxiety, depression, flash thoughts of suicide | At first, I thought this drug was amazing. I could actually fall and stay asleep for 7 to 8 hours in the beginning. After about 4 or 5 months, the range is now more like 5 to 6 hours and then that's it - I'm awake. But It's only after I started reading the postings here that I realized the psychological effects. For the past couple of months, I don't feel like "myself". I feel sad most of the time, with no desire to start or finish anything. I often experience a feeling of being in a haze (not in a good way) and weird thoughts with my mind racing. My Doc was sympathetic to my sleep problems and prescribed this without much diagnosis. I would advise folks not to take this med without some thorough research - especially if you're already anxious or even slightly depressed. | M | 46 | 5 months | 7/14/2007 | 1 | Insomnia | Suicidal depression!!!! Anxiety. Nervousness. Confusion. Shaking. Aggressive behavior! I cried non-stop all day for the last 2 weeks I took it. I'm Bipolar. The doctor thought my symptoms were from that, and kept giving me other psych medicines to help with the depression and anxiety. Nothing worked. Finally, a lightbulb went on in my head, and I said, "Could it be the Lunesta?" I got on the Internet and started looking up side effects. I was shocked. Other people have been going through what I've been going through. I have been a complete wreck, contemplating suicide every day. I can't wait to get this drug out of my system and get back to being myself. | M | 53 | 2 months | 6/22/2006 | 2 | Insomnia | This doesn't just leave you with a bad case of morning breath and dry mouth all day. IT IS ADDICTIVE!! I was so tired of being tired, and possibly missing work due to lack of sleep, that I resorted to the so called non-addictive sleep aid. Well then my life began to revolve around this stupid pill. My anxiety seemed to be enhanced, and Lunesta was like steeping into to TKO every night. At first this was just what the doctor ordered. Finally, I could get a good night sleep. While, it was not long before that little blue joy began to run the show. I felt like it was storing up in my body, and making me a living zombie. People I know, and love could visually see a difference in my behavior. I became distant, and very depressed. I don't think it's the right answer. | This is just another profitable pharmaceutical ploy. Advertising to their potential buyers that this is a non-narcotic is just a crime. These are just corporate drug lords, and the reps are their dealers. They are not in the business of temporary. Beware!! Try exercise, Sleepy Time tea, eye covers, and ear plugs. Good luck fellow insomniacs!! | F | 29 | 3 months | 5/9/2006 | 1 | life-long insomnia | Severe mood swings, aggressive and hostile behavior, anxiety, depression, flash thoughts of suicide | When I first started taking Lunesta, I was in heaven. Within 20 minutes of taking it, I'd be out cold, and I'd sleep through the night. I've always had problems with falling and staying asleep. If I was woken up too soon, though, like with one of the kids coming in the room in the middle of the night, I wasn't able to help them because I was too heavily sedated. Otherwise, it was great, until I started having violent mood swings, where I'd be absolutely furious at the slightest dumb thing the kids did. The night I took a baseball bat to one of their old bikes and told my husband I didn't want to be a parent anymore (I am a stepparent), I finally realized something was REALLY wrong and started researching the side effects more deeply. Through sites like this, I found out that Lunesta can trigger this behavior (I am normally a little anxious, but reasonable!), especially over time. I had also had two separate flashes of suicidal thoughts, and am NOT the type at all to think of that. I im | F | 36 | 2.5 months | 12/30/2005 |
LUNESTA (ESZOPICLONE): This medication is used to treat a certain sleep problem (insomnia). It may help you fall asleep faster, stay asleep longer, and lessen how often you wake up during the night, so you can get a better night's rest. Eszopiclone belongs to a class of drugs called sedative-hypnotics. It acts on your brain to produce a calming effect. Use of this medication is usually limited to short treatment periods of 1 to 2 weeks or less. If your insomnia continues for a longer time, talk to your doctor to see if you need other treatment. FDA Approval Date: 2004-12-15 (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)