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Yes, it's not hard to become addicted to ambien if you're an alcoholic. The patient information you receive with Ambien is very clear on that - you shouldn't take it if you also drink regularly, because it acts as a two-punch against the mechanism in your brain that makes you addicted to things.
Alcohol and sedatives, including benzos and Ambien, are the most physically dangerous drugs to go cold turkey off of. The combo certainly isn't good. But probably enticing for many. The whole idea of sedatives is to slow brain activity, whether it be to sleep or come out of an anxiety attack or whatever. I can see where someone who relies on sedatives would like to get a head start in the slow-down of their brain activity by drinking in the evening, and then putting the cap on it to fall asleep with ease. After going on like that for years, they might need a medical detox.
Playing semantics isn't helpful. Ambien is a hypnotic sedative and therefore addictive like it's benzo cousin, which is also a hypnotic sedative. They both work on GABA, though in somewhat different ways, the object is the same. To slow brain activity.
As with all drugs, the brain stops producing as much of it's own GABA, or serotonin, or dopamine, whatever the drug is doing for it, and becomes dependent on the drug to keep doing it. Efforts to go off create rebound effects which results in the person feeling assured there is no way to get the chemicals w/o the drug. The addiction is born.
Unisom has the same active sleep ingredients as any number of the OTC pain reliever/sleep combination meds, ie, Tyelenol PM, AlevePM, and so on. It's 50mg diphenylhydramine, the same ingredient in Benedryl, it's also used as an antihistamine.
I know people that take these often for sleep can become dependent on them, or something, but over time if used too often they lose their effectiveness, leaving the patient increasing the dose for sleep or looking for other sleep aids. I've used these OTC diphenylhydramine/pain reliever products occasionally for the aches and pains of old age ( mostly joint pain) or when I have had a medical procedure, and find them effective for both pain relief and sleep. But I use them, at most, maybe twice a month. I also don't like the mild hangover I seem to get in the AM when I use these products.
I'm one of those fortunate souls that doesn't need help getting to sleep, or getting back to sleep if I wake up at night. At least most of the time.
It's a similar action to what I posted above about sedatives. Pharma companies like to say things like 'non-habit forming', but then there is a warning about not using for long term. Because they are habit-forming. They lie, or hide behind precise definitions for habit forming. Or it's the truth IF one only uses occasionally or for a very short time. They don't spell out that if you do use them often/for a long time it WILL become habit forming. I hate Big Pharma.
Xanax and Valium were the greatest creations on earth. Then they were the devil. But no worries! We have a new set of sedatives that are BETTER. Less Likely to be addictive. And a new class of addictions forms. I am sure there will be a warning about Ambien and the like soon enough. And yet another class of supposedly better sedatives. With shiny new patents that don't allow generic pricing.
They do not care about our health AT ALL. They love addictions. They keep the money rolling in..........
I've been on Ambien for 3 years. It's now at the point I can't fall asleep without it. It's actually to the point I take MORE sleeping pills (i.e. Unisom) on top of Ambien because it's not enough to put me to sleep. Even with all of that, I still wake up in the middle of the night.
I am so extremely tired throughout the day, but I can't even fall asleep without taking the dang drug. I've expressed concern to my psych doctor about it, but she wants me to get over some major life stressors within the next month or so before switching up my meds. Um...I want it changed now.
I feel like a sleep study would be wasting my money. I had one a few years ago when fatigue was an issue, not insomnia, and nothing came back unusual. Also, I've tried Lyrica and it was like candy; it did nothing for me.
Ask mental care for seroquel or quetiapine is generic name. Start at 50 mg. Cut pill into pieces to get quick results...Can be expensive depending on which insurance you have but psych doc will usually let you have it from samples cabinet. May be able to use this without the ambien for a while...Can use it with ambien. Have to experiment to find right combination so you fall asleep but don't feel like a zombie in morning. If given a huge dosage, just use about 50 -100 mg and pills will go farther. Is simple to cut it up with kitchen knife and hand setting flat over knife.
The 10 mg ambien is almost not enough dosage for anyone female and over weight; some men can get 15 mg ambien. Losing some weight will greatly help...Seroquel can cause a lot of weight retention if you hit 400 mg. South Beach diet gets good results while on psych meds plus lots of walking, better if you have access to weight machines at gym too so you will build muscle and therefore burn more calories. South Beach uses regular foods is just low on pasta, potatoes and rice eating mostly brown carbs.
Can ask psych doc for trazadone too. It works nicely for some and $4 at Walmart pharmacy.
Can ask doctor for trazadone too. It works nicely for some and $4 at Walmart pharmacy.
yes, Trazadone is similar to Amitriptyline - they are both older anti-depressants which are now prescribed for insomnia because they make one fall asleep by taking an hour before bedtime. (they are no longer prescribed for depression, but prescribed for insomnia instead)
Amitriptyline works really nicely for insomnia.
You can just ask your primary care physician for a prescription. No need to ask a psychiatrist.
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Ambien
