Pills Against Insomnia Cause Sleepwalking
Ambien and Lunest are often prescribed sleeping pills. These pills, however, cause the most strange side effects. The Food and Drug Administration reported yesterday such strange behavior as eating or driving while asleep.
These reports have provoked the F.D.E. to order the drug makers to make certain fliers for such sleeping drugs, where patients could read detailed instructions on how to use them.
The investigation of such side effects was caused by, but limited to numerous reports from the users of Ambien (the most prescribed sleeping drug). Their complaints ranged from harmless sleepwalking and hallucinations to eating while asleep, violent outbursts and driving, which is the most disturbing.
Those who suffer from night eating after taking the pill reported missing food, wrappers in bed and traces of cooking in the kitchen and they can't recall eating, cooking or anything at all.
The more disturbing group is the one of sleeping drivers. Such people say that all they could remember was taking a pill and going to bed. However they wake up in their pajamas in the middle of the road and being interrogated by a police officer. Fortunately, there were no death reports of sleep-driving.
These reports from citizens have also gained some scientific background, as there is a series of institutions, foundations and scientists to run various tests in this sphere.
Such examples of scientific proof were given by Laura J. Liddicoat in Wisconsin. She made a presentation based on six examples of driving 'under Ambien'. Other scientists, Dr. Carlos Schenck and Dr. Mark Mahowald of the University of Minnesota, investigated 30 cases of nighttime eating and also 'under Ambien'.
It should be mentioned here that some users don't remember doing anything while asleep, but the fact is that people reported to make phone calls, orders over Internet, to have sex or doing anything else and not being aware of it.
Dr. Russel Katz, director for neurology product at the F.D.A., said that the cause for all these effects could be alcohol. And even thought the manufacturers mention the danger of taking a sleeping pills while consuming alcohol, Dr. Katz thinks this mentioning should be limited to the fact that "not a drop (of alcohol) is allowed".
Thus the F.D.A. is going to claim from the drugs manufacturers additional guides for the consumers, where all the risks of mixing a certain drug with any quantity of alcohol or any other drug, which suppresses the nervous system, would be indicated. Samples of such guides should be submitted to the F.D.A. offices until May, Dr. Katz says.
Such warning notes will include a description of the side effects of the manufacturer's product, as well as some information on rare, but possible allergic reactions. For example, there have been registered swells up of air passages after using a drug called Rozerem, which is among the newest on the market.
The statistics show that Ambien was the main cause for all the dangerous side effects, but the agency concluded that such side effects could be aroused by any other sleeping drug. The explanation for Ambien causing the most of these side effects is simple: it had received the most of public attention due to a vast ad campaign, but there is no doubt there exists a possibility of other pills causing the upper mentioned side effects.
This labeling campaign was caused by a warning by the Australian authorities. In Australia Ambien is being sold under the trademark of Stilnox.
There have been 16 reports of unusual side effects of consuming sleeping pills in Australia and they were not limited to driving or eating while asleep. A woman said she woke up and discovered she had a paintbrush in her hand, while her front door was freshly painted.
Comments:
- 0 votes
//25 Oct 28, 2009 09:07 PM | posted by:
Cheryl R - My sister has been staying with us due to an illness. She too takes Ambien CR. No less than 30 min after taking the medication she is belligerent, child like and will stare at me when I am talking to her. She has a look of " lights are on nobodies home." I have found her stabbing at cans with large kitchen knives. Same with scissors. The fact that she didn't get a serious injury is a miracle. She staggers through the house often bruising herself, takes things which are not hers, and claims many things to be hers which are not. All this during the middle of the night. Will be talking with her Dr. in the am. This med is horrible!!
- 1 votes
//24 Aug 11, 2009 09:40 PM | posted by: peg e su - I have been taking ambien for about 10 years. I just found out that i was getting up in the night and eatting. Not just a snack but a whole pan of brownies, or a sack of doughnuts. I am a diebetic so this is not good for me. does anyone have any ideas for meor any other medicine I can try
- 1 votes
//23 May 03, 2009 03:16 PM | posted by: billy - I Had sex with my wife and she cant even recall what we did this could be a bad sex drug abuse if someone gave ti to you and you didnt know you would not even know what happen to you and it cause bad constipation.
- 1 votes
//21 Mar 12, 2009 09:02 PM | posted by: Elizabeth - My husband and I started noticing stange things happening in our condo and suspected someone who knew when we were both gone and picking the lock to come in. Lotion and liquid soap were watered down, neatly arranged towels in the guest bath real out of order, a safety pin opened and propped up on a container, internet sites visited and several other weird happenings. I will never take it again after reading all of these things.
- 3 votes
//20 Jan 20, 2009 02:13 PM | posted by: M. Gale - I have been taking Ambien for a couple of years. I have woken up to bottles of Xanax (which I also take) being opened up a scattered in my bathroom. I have found streams of toilet paper rolled out in my bedroom. I have no recollection of this when I get up in the morning. I do not know how much Xanax I take during the night. I finally mentioned this to my doctor and she said it is a side effect of the Ambian (who knew). She switched me to Ambian CR and I was OK for a while, but now I am finding evidence of sleepwalking again. This is scary.
- 1 votes
//19 Jan 16, 2009 08:36 PM | posted by: melissa - i took an ambien last night. when i woke up this morning at 5 am and went downstairs, i thought someone had been in my house! there were blankets thrown about the living room, in the bathroom EVERYTHING was off the counters and on the floor, food all over the kitchen AND wine (which i dont drink) was poured in bowls. i have bruises all over my entire body. i have no memory of what happened and i am very scared. i just dont know and i am a control freak. i never get out of control. after reading all this posts, i am crediting this experience to ambien. this is worse than an lsd trip. and i have no idea what happened. any thoughts?
- 2 votes
//18 Dec 23, 2008 10:08 PM | posted by: Ann - I've been taking Ambien on and off for a few months. I recently had a very stressful time at work and have been working a lot. I took an Ambien around 10 p.m. I don't remember anything else. When I woke up the next morning, slowly I began to see that I had been doing things in my sleep or half asleep, or I just don't know. I sent several emails, made phone calls, left my house and walked down the street, made several internet purchases and I don't know what else. From the pieces that I can gather, it doesn't appear that anything really bad happened even though I woke up with a gash on my knee and my pants were torn at the knee. I have been terrified about "what if" all day and could have done something harmful to myself or been hurt by someone. When I called my doctor, I THEN was told that there have been similiar reports. I was just so thankful to sleep, I never questioned it. I can't believe this stuff is on the market. And, I don't know if I have had memory loss previously and nothing happened or I have no evidence of it.
- 1 votes
//17 Nov 07, 2008 11:05 PM | posted by: shawnna - i had cps called on me because i bit my 6 yr old son on the arm so hard that i left a huge bruise on his little arm! I was so horrified that i couldnt remember what i had done or why! i was seeing cats climbing up the wall and calling my ex and the next day he called me accusing me of being on drugs because I didnt remember talking to him for 2 hrs and trying to set him up with a friend that doesnt exist! people keep telling me stuff i dont remember and i thought they were all out to get me very scary. I remember thinking my allignment was off in my car and its new. i went shopping and started to walk out the door without paying for my groceris at 11;30 at night and i had my son with me!
- 1 votes
//16 Oct 31, 2008 06:17 PM | posted by: renee m. - I took Ambian CR about 6 mths. ago for 2 nights ONLY.I feel asleep or what felt like a half-reality state.I was able to see my bedroom all night,while my husband can atest that i was asleep,(because i snore).I heard voices and felt the presence of very evil entities.I was scared,but was unable to wake up out of it.I saw a small black figure darting down the hall at my daughters door,and i tried to call her name several times,but made no sound.When my husband woke very early for work,3:45 i saw him morph into a strange figure that moved in waves.Furniture and curtains had movement.I got up,and had a this extra-sensory feeling of entites around my house all day.iI was f-ing scared.That night i took a pill and was up during the night sleep-eating ,like every 2 hours.My experience felt REAL not like sleep,i was very surprised and shocked that the Ambien did that to me.Felt like a bad trip........This medicine seemed to have opened the spiritual world to me,i did not like it.?????????????
- 2 votes
//15 Oct 27, 2008 04:40 AM | posted by: Unknown - AMBIEN MUST BE OUTLAWED SINCE IT IS VERY DANGEROUS!!! IT SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN PUT ON THE MARKET!
- 1 votes
//14 Oct 20, 2008 05:31 PM | posted by: A-BENI - I've been taking sleeping pills on and off for a few years and i really was not aware of the negative side effects until i suddenly was making phone calls to people at 3 am that i hade no memory of making seeing strange things around the house feeling increasingly drowsy the day after once i recalling swearing to see someone in my hotel when no one was there and actually running into the parking lot at 3 am when friends hade to come get me and help me back into my room sleeping pills seem to cause much more harm then help
- 1 votes
//13 Oct 13, 2008 12:35 PM | posted by:
summer_rain [InfoSLAVE]
- Pills against insomnia not only cause side-effects, they also cause physical and psychological dependence after a certain period of usage, since the majority of them are narcotic substances. Sure, the degree of dependence is different according to the type of the narcotic substance contained...
- 1 votes
//12 Oct 07, 2008 07:40 AM | posted by:
sharaeff [InfoBIG]
- I've never done anything like that while asleep, but i'll think twice before taking a pill in case I get insomnia. Scientists should test better new medicines, I suppose, or the consequences of their experiements may set a stone rolling. It can become dangerous not only for people who take such pills but also for those who surround them.
- 1 votes
//11 Aug 26, 2008 03:04 PM | posted by: Cornfields - Should I be disturbed that John McCain is also a regular user (as ABC reports)
...
It seems that most of the side effects occur when your sleep is disturbed or interrupted (something likely to occur when you are president) - 1 votes
//10 Aug 14, 2008 09:42 PM | posted by: Unknown - I was so relieved to find this website. My friend called me tonight freaking out because when he woke up his toe was bleeding and his room was a disaster. He takes Ambien daily for sleep. He has no recollection of anything. All he remembers is taking the pill and going to bed. Felt it my duty to put another testimony out for the adverse affects of Ambien.
- 2 votes
//9 Jul 13, 2008 05:56 PM | posted by: Day of doom - I just experienced 8 hours of living hell after my husand took an Ambien CR. It was non stop antics of hallucinations, obsessive talking that made no sense, carrying on crazy conversations including bursting out in laughter with persons that weren't there, dangerous activities including running down the hall with an open hunting knife, outbursts, and an attempt to drive!!! I had dozed off in exhaustion and next thing I know I hear the front door slam and his vehicle being started. I ran out the door yelling his name (of course the neighbor was outside) and caught him two houses down. I was terrified and out of breathe and had to coax him back into the driveway. I'm surprised the neighbor didn't call the police, but I'm sure she thinks we are insane now! What in the world is this drug doing on the market?!?! This day could have had a tragic ending. Can't something be done for heaven's sake?
- 1 votes
//8 Jul 05, 2008 12:47 AM | posted by: Jared - I think i took too many. 12mg, is that alot? i took 8. id that bad?
- 2 votes
//7 Jul 01, 2008 11:40 AM | posted by: TE - Last night I tool 2x12.5mg Ambien CR. When I woke up this morning my fridge was completly destroyed. Food was everywhere, and I have absolutely no recollection of this happening. Kinda reminded me of that Simpson's episode where Homer took 'Nappien'... If you havn't seen it, probably one of the funniest episodes ever. ...
- 1 votes
//6 Jun 30, 2008 05:28 PM | posted by: Peggy S. - Last night I took 10 mg of Ambien to get some sleep after a very emotional day. I knew my husband was coming home from work around 11:30 p.m. I went to bed at 10:30 and never heard him come in. This morning he told me that I got up when he came home and talked with him for about an hour, changed from my clothes into p.j.'s, and was very coherent during all this. I told him I didn't remember a thing, and as far as I was concerned, I fell asleep and slept all night. He is certain I was awake and quite livid. Strange. Total amnesia about it all.
- 2 votes
//5 Jun 22, 2008 03:36 PM | posted by: Robbie R. - On Sunday, June 15, about 7:00 pm, I went to bed. I had not slept well in a couple of nights due to a bad headache. I took an ambien cr and went to bed. The next morning, my husband, daughter and son all asked how I was feeling. We were all getting ready to go to work and I told them I was fine. They just looked at me funny and called to check on me during the day. Monday evening when we all got home, they sat me down and told me what all I had done Sunday night. They were not aware I had taken any medicine and were so afraid it was something to do with the headache I had been having. Apparently in less than an hour after I went to bed, I staggered into the kitchen and cooked myself a bean burrito (which I am not a fan of???). The plate was hot, so my husband took it and I turned around and walked back to the bedroom. He said I was awake and talking. I sat on the bed and ate the burrito. A little while later, my daughter came in to tell me something and found me face down on the floor next to my bed. When she finally got me to respond, I told her I had spilled my water. She found a glass on the floor next to me. She said I was able to get up with her help and got back in bed. Later my son came in to check on me and I was not in the bed. He looked on both sides of the bed, thinking I had fallen out again. He then heard me in the bathroom. I was sitting on the floor and vomiting in the toilet. He helped me back to bed. I have NO recollection of any of this. And, NO...I had not had a drop of alcohol nor taken any other medicine that day!!! This was the 4th pill I had taken out of this bottle that had been prescribed to me about 8 months ago. I had not had any type reaction like this (to my knowledge) with the other doses...unless, I just didn't have a witness to it.
This is VERY scary. PLEASE...if you take this medicine, let someone know when you are taking it and if possible, make sure someone is in the home with you to watch out for you. - 1 votes
//4 May 23, 2008 11:39 AM | posted by: rhonda duncan - My sister took two Ambien cr to sleep. She had a "bad dream" where she kept falling down and hurting herself. When she woke up she was vomiting on herself. She got to the bathroom and discovered she had two black eyes, two large bruises on the top of her head, painful ribs and breast, a cut on her face with dried blood everywhere, her left cheek is a mass of bruises, her knees and elbows are black and blue. Her glasses were gone, her clothes and 700. dollars in cash.
Her house was completely locked up, no signs of forced entry. My sister never drinks so much as a drop of alcohol. I think its unfortunate that the drug companies are passing the buck on this one. It seems fairly obvious to me as a layperson that Ambien cr is a very dangerous drug indeed. I personally plan to get the word out here in Spokane, Wa about this drug. If I have to picket individual stores one by one I will do so. Remember people, there is strength in numbers and I am tired of being trampled over by these huge drug corporations. - 1 votes
//3 Nov 06, 2007 05:16 PM | posted by: christian - I thik is a good idea to publish things like this. thak u
- 2 votes
//2 Aug 04, 2007 07:36 AM | posted by: Sandy - Last night, after several nights of not being able to sleep, I had eatem a light supper and 1/2 bottle of Michelob before I went to bed. I took 1 ambien and went to bed; my husband and I were having sex and then all I remember is seeing different colored lights around the room and big white fluffy objects. When I awoke this morning, feeling rested but light headed, I asked my husband if I was dreaming. He said that after we started having sex, I started telling him that there were people in the room and I was hearing rain and seeing lights. He told me that the rain was only the fan and noone was there but it went on until I went to sleep. I've taken Ambien before, off and on, and never had this happen before! Do you think it was the Ambien/beer combination or should I see a doctor for halluncinations?
- 2 votes
//1 May 11, 2007 05:58 PM | posted by: Wendy P - A few hours after taking Ambien CR my husband who works at a firehouse and sleeps over nights reports several phone calls I made one night as well has my children reported finding me outside cleaning up the yard at 11:00 pm on the same night....I had absolutely no recollection of any of this happening.....pretty scary but I feel refreshed in the morning, better than I have in years.
