Ambian no longer working HELP!!

[MoniqueU]

Is there something better then ambian out there? I have tried ristoril, didn't even get me to sleep. I have tried every over the counter med known to man. With the ambian I am not falling asleep for hours and then only sleeping 3 or 4 hours at a stretch. Drinking doesn't help me much I wake up with sugar shock. Is there something stronger or different? I can't cope like this.

 

[dcentity2000]

Ambien is of a type of hypnotic drug family that stops working after a short amount of time; any effect thereafter is usually placæbo.

The generic name for the drug is Zolpidem.

From my site, I quote:

Zolpidem

Brand names: Ambien®, Hypnogen®, Myslee®, Nimadorm®, Nitrest®, Sanval®, Stilnoct®, Stilnox®, Zoldem®, Zolfresh®, Zolt®
Formula: C19H21N3O
Half life: ~ 2 - 2.6 hours
Single unit dose: Unknown
Recommended outpatient dose: 10mg [Verified]
Maximum outpatient dose: 10mg [Verified]

Prescribed to fight insomnia in the short term only, prolonged use can cause tolerance to build up, causing the effectiveness of the drug to decline. It works very quickly (usually within 10 to 20 minutes) and has a short half life. Interestingly, the USA army prescribed the drug to pilots to aid their sleep between missions, allowing them to recoup their lost energy. Off-label, Zolpidem is used to combat restless legs syndrome and there is anecdotal evidence that it can help in cases of persistent vegetative states. At ten times the normal dose Zolpidem acts as a anticonvulsant and at twenty times the normal dose it acts as a muscle relaxant; these two uses are never applied, due to the manifestation of side effects at such high doses, such as hallucinations. Side effects may include anterograde amnesia, hallucinations, delusions, ataxia, euphoria or dysphoria, increased appetite, decreased libido and impaired judgement/reasoning; upon cessation of treatment, patients my be subject to rebound insomnia. Be warned: this drug has been shown to cause cancer in some patients.

For a more long term sleep aid, you could try medications such as Dothiepin. Dothiepin is a TCA antideepressant which, in low doses (25mg - 50mg) acts purely as a sleep aid. You can use it indefinitely.

For the record, there are a lot of psychiatric drugs out there that are stronger than Ambien - Quetiapine, for example, is savage - nothing could wake you up short of a rocket up your behind!

Another idea is to eat a green salad before bed - it's sedative (herbal sleeping tablets are nothing but crushed leaves). Chocolate is also good - it's an antidepressant which will help you relax.



Rich::

 

[themarquis]

You will laugh, but benadryl (there are a ton of name brands and generic brands out there, either sold as allergy relief or sleep aid -- same ingredient).

I have used a number of prescription sleep meds and I always go back to benadryl. It's safe, reliable, and inexpensively available over the counter -- what more can you want?

Even my sleep doc totally endorses using it rather than ambien and those other drugs. (there is some evidence that ambien mostly provides a placebo effect -- it changes your mental status slightly so that you basically don't REMEMBER lying awake even if you actually did! End result -- you think you slept better but actually you're just as sleep deprived as usual ).

 

[thelittlemermaid83]

I feel your pain, i take this med for my sleep problem.

Have you tried Zolpiclone?

 

[Chuck S]

Have you tried any of the old herbal sleep inducers, like Valerian Root capsules?

 

[thelittlemermaid83]

Ok just read the post where it says that Zolpidem can cause cancer....I'm never taking it again I'd rather die from sleep deprivation.

 

[C.Ann]

Non medication: A couple of oatmeal cookies with a glass of milk.. Or a bowl of oatmeal.. There's something in oatmeal that is a natural sleep aid..

Hot bath before bed.. No watching television in bed! If you "must" do something, read - but make sure it's not a book that is so interesting you find yourself staying awake to "see what happens next" - LOL..

If you still can't fall asleep, get out of bed - go to another room in the house - and find something extremely boring to do (working on crossword puzzles; needlepoint; etc.) to do until you start to feel tired.. Then - and only then - go back into your bedroom and try again..

Medication: Lunesta.. I have a script for it, but won't take it because of the possible memory (amnesia) issues.. Right now I'm already having memory issues (due to depression and medications), so I take valium - only to sleep.. I've been using it since 2005 - have not had to increase the dose - and it still works quite well for me.. (There was a time when I tried Rozerem -$125 for 30 pills - and it was absolutely useless..)

Hope you find something that works soon.. Sleep deprivation can be a serious threat to your physical health..

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

Ambien, Sonata, Lunesta...none of them work for me....in fact they keep me up.

Benydryl also keeps me up & can be dangerous like any drug. In seniors it often keeps them up & makes them very restless.

 

[daisax]

Ok just read the post where it says that Zolpidem can cause cancer

I'm no fan of ambien, but EVERYTHING can cause cancer.

 

[WDWBarb]

Have you tried any of the old herbal sleep inducers, like Valerium Root capsules?

This worked very well for me.

 

[Feralpeg]

Ambien is of a type of hypnotic drug family that stops working after a short amount of time; any effect thereafter is usually placæbo.

The generic name for the drug is Zolpidem.

From my site, I quote:



For a more long term sleep aid, you could try medications such as Dothiepin. Dothiepin is a TCA antideepressant which, in low doses (25mg - 50mg) acts purely as a sleep aid. You can use it indefinitely.

For the record, there are a lot of psychiatric drugs out there that are stronger than Ambien - Quetiapine, for example, is savage - nothing could wake you up short of a rocket up your behind!

Another idea is to eat a green salad before bed - it's sedative (herbal sleeping tablets are nothing but crushed leaves). Chocolate is also good - it's an antidepressant which will help you relax.



Rich::

Thank you, Rich! Finally, I have something to justify my consumption of chocolate1!

 

[MoniqueU]

Ambien is of a type of hypnotic drug family that stops working after a short amount of time; any effect thereafter is usually placæbo.

The generic name for the drug is Zolpidem.

From my site, I quote:



For a more long term sleep aid, you could try medications such as Dothiepin. Dothiepin is a TCA antideepressant which, in low doses (25mg - 50mg) acts purely as a sleep aid. You can use it indefinitely.

For the record, there are a lot of psychiatric drugs out there that are stronger than Ambien - Quetiapine, for example, is savage - nothing could wake you up short of a rocket up your behind!

Another idea is to eat a green salad before bed - it's sedative (herbal sleeping tablets are nothing but crushed leaves). Chocolate is also good - it's an antidepressant which will help you relax.



Rich::

Thank you, that was just the info I was looking for.
I have tried benadryl and it works for a couple of hours just like the ambien and then poof I am awake. The herbal stuff never worked on me I tried it when I was younger. I also have to be careful about what and when I eat or I wake up sick in the middle of the night but thats another thread.

I just looked up the regular name for the second one and yes I have tried seroquel. Initially it helped just fine but spiked my weight and my triglycerides and then I tried it again and it didn't work. I will ask about the first one. I can get 4 hours of sleep, walk through disney all day long and still not sleep at night, it is aggravating. Thank goodness the Dis is open 24/7.

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

For all of you suffering with nights of "sleeplessness" my heart breaks for you.
I never had this problem until I had a radical hysterectomy. I went from a cycle every month to nothing & have gone 3 nights without sleep due to insomnia & night sweats.
Hope you all find the solution that works for you

 

[Feralpeg]

For all of you suffering with nights of "sleeplessness" my heart breaks for you.
I never had this problem until I had a radical hysterectomy. I went from a cycle every month to nothing & have gone 3 nights without sleep due to insomnia & night sweats.
Hope you all find the solution that works for you

That's pretty much my story as well. I've gotten used to going a very little sleep.

 

[Tinijocaro]

Have you tried a daily cardio workout? I have had horrible insomnia, and finally found that excercise really does help.

 

[TheDisneyGirl02]

I actually take Seroquel to help me sleep. I had a car accident several years ago and I still have problems sleeping because of it. Although Seroquel is actually for bipolar disorder and other illnesses, I take it for sleeping purposes only. It really helps me. When I had my ACL reconstruction in January, the doctor prescribed Ambian for me to help me sleep...it actually kept me awake!

Good luck finding something to help you sleep!

 

[dismom2]

Were you taking regular Ambiem, or Ambiem CR? Regular Ambiem is notorious for only working 3-4 hours in many people. I was told it was suppose to be good at helping you fall asleep, but not good at keeping you asleep---and that's pretty much how it was with me. The "CR" version is time released and suppose to help you sleep longer---I have not tried that one. I used to take Lunesta (which has a lot fewer side effects for me---but it gave me the munchies bad) but my body got too used to it and it was losing it's effectiveness on me. I tried Roseram (sp), which was very expensive, and it did absolutely nothing to help me sleep. And it made me really tired the next day. I still have Ambiem and Lunesta here and I will take half of one when I want a little help. I have other issues like FM pain, and I can't take a lot of medication, and a lot of things that make other people tired actually keep me awake for some reason, so it's hard for me. Have you tried cutting out all caffeine (which is hard when you don't get much sleep and are tired the next day, but it should help). Also, if you take a break from your sleeping pills they will might start working again later on for you. You might get rebound insomnia when you stop taking them, which is no fun at all, but maybe your doctor can prescribe something different for you to take for now. I would definately talk to him or her. Some people do find with herbal supplements, but they don't work on me. Everyone is different. Good luck! I hope you can get some sleep

 

[rparmfamily]

Melatonin worked pretty good for me on nights I needed something to help settle me into sleep.

 

[suzimar57]

i take ambien CR once a week or so - problem is it will work for that night, but the following 2 nights are again sleepless, along with bad headaches - have had insomnia for about a year, along with hot flashes (had hysterectomy 10 years ago - i'm 51 now) - not sleeping is awful.

 

[Feralpeg]

I know this won't work for many. I have had a lot of problems sleeping since my hysterectomy. I found that I finally sleep and sleep well in the early morning hours. I don't know why. I adjusted my hours. I normally don't go to bed before midnight. It still takes me a couple of hours to get to sleep, but I do sleep best between 2am and 9am. As I said, it probably won't work for those with early jobs.