Ambien Side Effects

Ambien Side Effects, Information and Ambien Tidbits

What is Ambien?

Ambien is a fast-acting medication used for the short-term treatment of insomnia and some brain disorders. It is a sedative, which can also be called a hypnotic that effects chemicals in the brain that may cause sleep problems. Ambien takes about 15 minutes to take effect, and also is available in an extended release form that helps patients stay asleep.

Ambien can also be used as an anticonvulsant and a muscle relaxer, however, it's beneficial effect doesn't emerge until about 10 to 20 times the dosage used for sedation. It has never been approved for use for either of these because of the prevalence of negative side effects when this dosage is administered.

Recent studies have shown that Ambien may improve brain function and have other positive effects for patients in a persistent vegetative state or patients immobilized by other serious brain injury. On multiple occasions Ambien has brought people out of minimally conscious coma states to a fully conscious state in which they were able to interact and communicate for the first time in years.

Potential for Abuse?

Ambien is a drug with high potential for abuse. While abuse is more prevalent in people with a history of drug abuse, dependence and abuse of this drug still can occur in people with no drug abuse history. Abuse of this drug is becoming more common, recreational users of the drug typically fight the effects of the drug, trying to stay awake. This induces vivid visuals, a body high, and sometimes a mild state of euphoria. People that use Ambien regularly at a high dosage are at high risk to develop a severe physical dependence. Serious withdrawal symptoms have been reported such as epileptic seizure as part of the withdrawal syndrome. Ambien is frequently detected in cases of people driving under the influence of drugs. As with many other sedatives, Ambien is used by stimulant users to "come down" off of a high of such stimulates as methamphetamines, cocaine, and Ecstasy. Ambien does alter chemicals in the brain related to sleep disorders, so it should not be used if no sleep disorders are being experienced, as it has been known to cause insomnia and in some cases amnesia in some abusers of the drug.

Call your doctor immediately if you have an allergic reaction such as hives, difficulty breathing, swelling in your face, tongue, lips or closing of your throat.

Serious Ambien side effects:

depression
thoughts of suicide
decreased inhibitions
anxiety
aggression
confusion
hallucinations

Less serious Ambien side effects:

dizziness
weakness
forgetfulness
abnormal dreams
nausea
constipation
stuffy nose
sore throat
headache
muscle pain
blurred vision

This is not a complete list of Ambien side effects. Consult your doctor for a full list.

Interesting Ambien Tidbits

Here are some interesting tidbits on Ambien

Ambien is referenced a few times in the 2008 film Role Models; in it Sean William Scott uses Ambien and tries unsuccessfully to stay awake, and ends up passing out naked in the middle of a campground.
The U.S. Air Force uses Ambien to help pilots sleep after missions.

Share your Ambien experience

Female / 38 05/10/2010 Rating: 2 Time Taken: 90 Times

I would have conversations with people that I had utterly no recollection of.
I went so far as to remove the landline telephone from my bedroom & put in the closet of another bedroom and took the battery of my cell phone. I would still retrieve the phones and make calls & receive calls. I had some rather 'embarrassing' conversations & left voice mails that ruined several friendships. (Left vm for a male friend who was engaged - his fiancee heard the message. I invited a man over to my home that I had dated briefly several years before. (There was NO interest in revisiting him 'romantically' at all...) Thankfully, he called on the way over a few hours later to see if he needed to bring condoms... I told him he was on crack. I only knew of some of these incidents because friends called me later joking about it, then I would scroll through caller ID and see calls I made/received and the length of the calls. I was told I sounded 'a little slow' but was very chatty. I have NO recollection of these calls.I give a 2 because I didn't die from it - but the side-effects of this are SCARY. It didn't happen every time, but after the incident with the engaged guy, I stick to Benedryl if I need to sleep

Female / 38 03/25/2009 Rating: 1 Time Taken: 1 Years

Amnesia
I have recently had a full 26 hours of amnesia, where I didn't know who I was or anything that pertained to my life. I forgot my husband of 12 years, the fact that I was in school, all my friends, where I lived and all of my health info. This can be a very scary drug to use.

Male / 31 03/19/2009 Rating: 1 Time Taken: 1 Years