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Ambien Addiction?
Dr. Junig,
You've addressed benzo withdrawals and opiate withdrawals. Many people on the addiction forum have been popping up lately with questions about Ambien. Like Tramadol, it seems as though some in the medical community are fairly naive about the addiction potential of this drug. Besides the tried and true "taper" program, do you have any thoughts on the best way to detox off of this drug? Some have posted that doctors have placed them on benzos for a short term detox. Is this wise? What would be your suggestions on someone wanting to go cold turkey from this medicine? Thanks again for taking the time from your day to answer our questions.
You've addressed benzo withdrawals and opiate withdrawals. Many people on the addiction forum have been popping up lately with questions about Ambien. Like Tramadol, it seems as though some in the medical community are fairly naive about the addiction potential of this drug. Besides the tried and true "taper" program, do you have any thoughts on the best way to detox off of this drug? Some have posted that doctors have placed them on benzos for a short term detox. Is this wise? What would be your suggestions on someone wanting to go cold turkey from this medicine? Thanks again for taking the time from your day to answer our questions.
When I changed to another med, I had trouble sleeoing, like I was adjusting off the ambien. I think that a doc's guidance is always needed, as Amph says. My psych said it is not addictive. Sorry if I was wrong. I worry because I love it so. Psych said just don't abuse it and I will be fine. No chance. O need it for sleeping. I do hallucinate on it. Osych said to go to bed right away..
Makes me visually hallucinate even more because of damaged eyesight in one eye.
Makes me visually hallucinate even more because of damaged eyesight in one eye.
I do know better than to drink on ambien..once i did and had a converstaion with absolutely no recall! i take it when i am on my way to the bed..i have been taking ambien for sleep for 12 years...i never take more than 5 mgs and my tolerence has never gone up...i think on some nights i would have a problem sleeping if i didnt take it..some nights i do not need it..i have it to help me sleep as pain makes me uncomfortable during the night..i do know it can be a drug of abuse tho for some...and i also think that anything people use for sleep can be very psychologically addicting..even benadryl as i had a friend who was up to 6 per night! we are all different and have different side effects from drugs..i do notice that people with benzo histories get little effect from ambien
Funny, how everybody is so different. I've never experienced those side effects everyone talks abou, amnesia, hallucinating. It does change your perseption which is what makes me unafraid to close my eyes and go to sleep. And for me it stops my night terrors and nightmares. It doesn't even make me tired, never has. It's just those things it does for me that makes my quality of life alot better.
I fool you not when I say I have nightmares every night and night terrors at least 2 or 3 thimes a week. But my abuse happened at night. So nights are a huge deal for me. I've trained myself very well for 20 years to not go to sleep and not go all the way into a deep sleep so that I can hear whats going on around me so I won't be vulnerable.
I anyone ever took away the ambien I'd be in big trouble phycologically and pounded by memories of teh abuse nightly...not a nice way to live as you know dear anna:)
But my old psychdocs never worried about me on the ambien. KIt was never an issues for five years. When my sister hung herself they told me to take one and a half because I would have these images of her...well it's too grafic and disturbing for an open forum.
Still, no amnesia..no hallucinations.
But my body has always been atypical when it comes to meds. They used to give me klonopin too and it never did anythng and now they give me xanax and I do use it when I have an attack or flashback..but to tell you the truth it's useless also. After I had that huge panic attack last night...I sobbed for five hours and the xanax did nothing to help.
That's why I usually decline benzos.
But for some reason although the ambien isn't a benzo but in the family, it does more for me tthan I think any amount of an actual bezo would.
But I do wonder when people say hallucinations...what do you see?
I've rarely gone straight to bed because I have to wait until I feel safe to go to sleep. But I've never done anything starnge..like get in my car and drive...make dinner or any of that stuff.
But then again I pushed through anestesia to wake up and talk for a second so I'm not really the typical person whos's able to be sedated very easily.
Amazing how you can train your body, especially after twenty years!
I fool you not when I say I have nightmares every night and night terrors at least 2 or 3 thimes a week. But my abuse happened at night. So nights are a huge deal for me. I've trained myself very well for 20 years to not go to sleep and not go all the way into a deep sleep so that I can hear whats going on around me so I won't be vulnerable.
I anyone ever took away the ambien I'd be in big trouble phycologically and pounded by memories of teh abuse nightly...not a nice way to live as you know dear anna:)
But my old psychdocs never worried about me on the ambien. KIt was never an issues for five years. When my sister hung herself they told me to take one and a half because I would have these images of her...well it's too grafic and disturbing for an open forum.
Still, no amnesia..no hallucinations.
But my body has always been atypical when it comes to meds. They used to give me klonopin too and it never did anythng and now they give me xanax and I do use it when I have an attack or flashback..but to tell you the truth it's useless also. After I had that huge panic attack last night...I sobbed for five hours and the xanax did nothing to help.
That's why I usually decline benzos.
But for some reason although the ambien isn't a benzo but in the family, it does more for me tthan I think any amount of an actual bezo would.
But I do wonder when people say hallucinations...what do you see?
I've rarely gone straight to bed because I have to wait until I feel safe to go to sleep. But I've never done anything starnge..like get in my car and drive...make dinner or any of that stuff.
But then again I pushed through anestesia to wake up and talk for a second so I'm not really the typical person whos's able to be sedated very easily.
Amazing how you can train your body, especially after twenty years!
Well there you go, straight from a doc. Though I wish if that is the case that the other professionals would also follow suite in being more educated on the up to date ambien issue.
I guess many people do get addicted, though you can be addicted to anything even certain AD's that cause a feeling of euphoria especially in large doses.
I guess many people do get addicted, though you can be addicted to anything even certain AD's that cause a feeling of euphoria especially in large doses.
Ambien is not addictive.
I was on ambien for five years and then again just started taking them a few months ago. Th ething baout ambien is that although it's not an actual benzo it plugs into the benzo receptors.
But unlike benzos a detox off of ambien is not as dangerous. Infact many professionals will tell you there are no physiical wiithdrawls from ambien.
Though if you look at the info it does say that after being on ambien for a long period of time can cause seizures if stopped cold turkey, but it seems that may be less common as professionals don;t seemed worried when ambien is stopped.
When I took it for five years nightly (for abuse issues as I was abused at night and petrefied to sleep or even close my eyes) and got physically ill and my pain doctor wanted me to stop ny psych scripts I stopped ambien cold turkey and felt no physical withdrawls at all.
But I was taking percocer for pain at the time and although they are completely different medsthat don't work on the same receptors, the percocet mat have helped with any anxiety I may have had but didn''t notice.
But as for anything like vomitting, seizures, hot/cold sweats, tremors, I had none.
But every body is different and although most professionals will tell you there are no physical withdrawls when stopping ambien, since it can be cut in half there's no harm in taking extra causion to make sure your safe.
But i would think that the seizure warning is either new, or maybe for ambien CR because when I was taking them in the past there was no such warning. So perhaps someone had a seizure while going off.
But also keep in mind that any adverse side effects that are reported are taken into serious consideration and incorperated into the information.
But as I said, since ambien is in the bezo family bit not an actual bezo and does plug into those receptors whenever your going off any medication no matter the drug info you should always use causion and it's always better to be safe than sorry.
I'll be interested in what the doc says as most psychiatrists and doctors have told me no worries about physical withdrawls and for me that happened to be true. But ya never know.
Amph
But unlike benzos a detox off of ambien is not as dangerous. Infact many professionals will tell you there are no physiical wiithdrawls from ambien.
Though if you look at the info it does say that after being on ambien for a long period of time can cause seizures if stopped cold turkey, but it seems that may be less common as professionals don;t seemed worried when ambien is stopped.
When I took it for five years nightly (for abuse issues as I was abused at night and petrefied to sleep or even close my eyes) and got physically ill and my pain doctor wanted me to stop ny psych scripts I stopped ambien cold turkey and felt no physical withdrawls at all.
But I was taking percocer for pain at the time and although they are completely different medsthat don't work on the same receptors, the percocet mat have helped with any anxiety I may have had but didn''t notice.
But as for anything like vomitting, seizures, hot/cold sweats, tremors, I had none.
But every body is different and although most professionals will tell you there are no physical withdrawls when stopping ambien, since it can be cut in half there's no harm in taking extra causion to make sure your safe.
But i would think that the seizure warning is either new, or maybe for ambien CR because when I was taking them in the past there was no such warning. So perhaps someone had a seizure while going off.
But also keep in mind that any adverse side effects that are reported are taken into serious consideration and incorperated into the information.
But as I said, since ambien is in the bezo family bit not an actual bezo and does plug into those receptors whenever your going off any medication no matter the drug info you should always use causion and it's always better to be safe than sorry.
I'll be interested in what the doc says as most psychiatrists and doctors have told me no worries about physical withdrawls and for me that happened to be true. But ya never know.
Amph
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I have had a couple patients addicted to large amounts of Ambien. There isn't a great amount of guidance out there for handling detox from Ambien; Ambien binds to a subunit of the GABA receptor, similar to benzodiazepines, so I think that a benzo taper would be reasonable. I would prefer using phenobarbital, which binds to a different subunit of the same receptor complex, just because phenobarb has less addictive potential and I would be a little less concerned that the person would run off with the detox medication and have a party. Phenobarb also has known drug levels to prevent seizures, which is probably the most dangerous part of ambien withdrawal.
The danger with ambien comes from the very short half-life; meds with short half-lives tend to have 'vigorous' withdrawal.
The danger with ambien comes from the very short half-life; meds with short half-lives tend to have 'vigorous' withdrawal.
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