Reporting to you LIVE - first night on Ambien...

[Livian82]

or Stilnox as it's referred to here. After complaining about broken sleep (even with temazpam) and refusing going back on zyprexa, seroquel and even resperidone, we decided on stilnox. My only hesitation is, since I've been dreaming about work incessantly that my dreams now will be completely whacked out but still work related.

Thinking I might try music before I got sleep. I was aiming for a 9pm dose however poor judgement got the better of me and I went for it at 8.40. So far eyes little blurry. and we're on about 9.04. Like to see how long I can stay awake, like those swimmers did in London. I really don't know if I'll have any remarkably halucenagenic dreams. I kind of want to go to work tomorrow legitimately hung over. Take a very Dude approach to the day.

... cut to next morning - ok so it wasn't the whacky mindblowing experience I thought it would be. Very gentle way to get to sleep but I still woke initially around 3.15 probably from taking it so early in the evening. managed to sleep again til 5.30. Not excessively tired either, no more than I have been on benzos. Dreams weren't particularly bizarre either. Kind of disappointed. Even tried listening to music as I was falling asleep, mostly the vocalists sounded weird but that was all.

Worth a try. It is only intended for short term use however my doc said he's had patients on it for years without major side effects.

[ether667]

Ambien for me is a wonderful thing, if even just for a short period of time. My sister has been on it for a long time and I've taken it in the past, though now my sleep patterns are pretty regular so I don't need it. Hope it goes well!

[Harold]

(I just wanted to say I got that Big Lebowski reference, if that's what it was - The Duderino is truly a great role model for anyone dealing with anxiety).

[talkthedog]

I can't bring myself to take it since the time I called a friend who took it. I called her and we had a nice long conversation while she made the bed. The next day she started to tell me the same story. I stopped her and informed her,"you told me all this last night." Her reply? "I did?! (Laughing) I had taken an ambien and don't remember any of it!"

[Nevina]

Ambien can be crazy crazy crazy. My psych said one of his patients had taken one and then got up in the middle of the night and rearranged all the furniture in her livingroom. When she woke up she called the police because she thought someone must have broken in.

I am constantly finding evidence of emails or IMs or posts I made while under its influence, that I have no memory of. Sometimes just a spark of memory will come back when I'm reminded - very much like dreams that you don't remember until something reminds you, and then you can only recall a little bit of it. I have a rule that I will never post on FB or check my work email while I'm on it. I also always remember to set my alarm clocks and routine things like that while I'm on it, but it can mess with my judgement otherwise.

One time I discovered a folder of videos I'd made of myself making faces at my laptop's camera. I have the vaguest memory of finding the video program, and then putting a piece of tape over the camera afterward because I wasn't sure how to turn it off. I do not remember making the videos, but there were a lot of them! Quite funny, actually.

One time my boyfriend took one and he was stumbling around the livingroom like he was drunk, and I told him to go to bed, and he said "Ok" and then proceeded to open the front door and start to go outside - naked. I had to jump up and guide him to bed.

Just last week I found a napkin with blood smears in my purse, and it triggered a single vague image of finding blood on my hands and being unable to determine where it came from. I still don't know. I couldn't find any injuries on myself or cats. I guess it *could* have been pizza sauce, but it seemed much too thin for that. Creepy.

So why would I keep taking it? Partly I am self-medicating my anxiety, aside from it helping me sleep. But before I was taking this, I was downing many many beers each night and sleeping horribly and waking up hungover 5-7 days a week...so I'm currently searching for an outlet to feed my addictive nature with something healthy, but in the meantime I'd rather take an Ambien a few days a week than get drunk. Feels healthier.

[talkthedog]

Have to admit, kind of want to see the videos of you making the faces. Lol

[Nevina]

Have to admit, kind of want to see the videos of you making the faces. Lol

Ha! I'll actually consider putting some of them up somewhere. Must ponder.

[camdendayton]

Another warning about Ambien, if you ever take it and still don't sleep call your doctor before you take it again. I had that happen twice and the 2nd time I got real nutty, and it lasted more than 8 hours.

Before that happened, I had taken it 6-8 times and the craziest thing I did was come in the living room and ask my partner if there was a cat in our house that I thought I had heard (and fyi, if there had been a cat in the house I would have heard my dog going crazy, not the cat.) The first time I took it I hadn't slept in 3 or 4 nights and I was in a psych hospital (I checked myself in b/c my support system had done all they could to help) sitting in a common room trying to decide if the tables and chairs were really floating. Luckily I still had enough sense to know it was time for bed.

[camdendayton]

Have to admit, kind of want to see the videos of you making the faces. Lol

Ha! I'll actually consider putting some of them up somewhere. Must ponder.

Just read this more carefully, and I did the same thing with my phone when I was whacked out on it and no sleep!