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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 5 of 5. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Dona on February 1, 2002, at 17:03:59
I have taken ambien for years and gradually increase the dose to 30 mg a night or more. There are days when I just take it all day long and sleep the day away, but sometimes I do things I forget--and twice almost crashed my car. I take prozac for depression. I do not want to go into a treatment center. I need something at night for sleep because of pain from osteoarthritis and fibromylagia. I confessed myproblem to my husband and gave him my ambien and he is going to just give me one a night. I hope that works. Is ambien physically addicted or am I just psychologically addicted. I just love days when I can space out and not worry about things. I know I should confess to my pdoc but I want to try to handle this on my own. Help!!! And thanks
Posted by Greg on February 1, 2002, at 17:54:40
In reply to Major addiction to ambien---heLp!!!, posted by Dona on February 1, 2002, at 17:03:59
Hi Dona,
I'm am an insomniac and like you have taken Ambien for years. I can share with you only my personal experience and what I've been told about it. I try to shy away from the technical info on my meds as it only serves to confuse me and makes me worry about potential side effects.
I've had several doctors and my psychologist tell me that the potential for physical addiction to Ambien is extremely low. They say this is because is disapates from your system so quickly (4 hours or so I've been told). I rarely take more than 10 mg (very occasionally 20) at bedtime. But there have been times when I've gone three or four days without taking it, usually when I've forgotten to call in my rx and my psych is out of town or it's over a weekend. I've never felt a physical withdrawal from it, but I certainly have had psychological ones. Psychological withdrawal can be as powerful as physical ones in my experience. I wouldn't be surprised if this is what you're going thru especially with doses you've been taking. Ambien is also notorious for causing short term memory loss, if you're going to take it during the day, stay home! Getting behind the wheel of a car is a very bad idea.....I understand the attraction of liking to space out during the day, but when you put your life in danger it's just not worth it.
Dona, it's your decision to make, but I would definitely talk to your pdoc about this and I wouldn't waste any time in doing it. It's always best to have a doctor's guidance in these matters.
I hope this helps you some, but remember it's just my experience, your best answers are going to come from your doctor.
Good luck,
Greg> I have taken ambien for years and gradually increase the dose to 30 mg a night or more. There are days when I just take it all day long and sleep the day away, but sometimes I do things I forget--and twice almost crashed my car. I take prozac for depression. I do not want to go into a treatment center. I need something at night for sleep because of pain from osteoarthritis and fibromylagia. I confessed myproblem to my husband and gave him my ambien and he is going to just give me one a night. I hope that works. Is ambien physically addicted or am I just psychologically addicted. I just love days when I can space out and not worry about things. I know I should confess to my pdoc but I want to try to handle this on my own. Help!!! And thanks
Posted by fachad on February 1, 2002, at 19:58:10
In reply to Major addiction to ambien---heLp!!!, posted by Dona on February 1, 2002, at 17:03:59
I take Ambien 10 mg per night. If I do not take my Ambien, I will not fall asleep easily.
What I do sometimes, and it it almost sure to work for you, is to take DOXEPIN, 2 - 4 hours before you want to go to sleep.
Depending on how sensitive you are to Doxepin, you may need as little as 10 mg or as much as 150 mg a few hours before bed.
Doxepin is not a controlled substance, it has no potential for abuse, and it will definately make you go to sleep and stay asleep. It is also very cheap. It does not work as fast as Ambien, so you will need to take it longer before you go to bed. It does work longer than Ambien, so you will stay asleep all night.
I have also heard, but have not tried REMERON for sleep. It is also reported to always cause long sleep.
These meds would allow your body to get used to going to sleep without Ambien. Also, they are not abusable, so you do not have to worry about trading one problem for another.
> I have taken ambien for years and gradually increase the dose to 30 mg a night or more. There are days when I just take it all day long and sleep the day away, but sometimes I do things I forget--and twice almost crashed my car. I take prozac for depression. I do not want to go into a treatment center. I need something at night for sleep because of pain from osteoarthritis and fibromylagia. I confessed myproblem to my husband and gave him my ambien and he is going to just give me one a night. I hope that works. Is ambien physically addicted or am I just psychologically addicted. I just love days when I can space out and not worry about things. I know I should confess to my pdoc but I want to try to handle this on my own. Help!!! And thanks
Posted by Elizabeth on February 2, 2002, at 13:33:25
In reply to Major addiction to ambien---heLp!!!, posted by Dona on February 1, 2002, at 17:03:59
> I have taken ambien for years and gradually increase the dose to 30 mg a night or more. There are days when I just take it all day long and sleep the day away, but sometimes I do things I forget--and twice almost crashed my car.
Can you talk to us some more about why you've been taking Ambien during the daytime?
I think the idea of letting your husband hold onto it is a good one, and I hope it works. It may be as simple as breaking a bad habit, but I think you need to deal with the feelings that make you want to "space out" during the daytime. Opening up about those feelings might be a good start.
> Is ambien physically addicted or am I just psychologically addicted.
Ambien rarely (but sometimes) causes physical dependence (which is not addiction, although it often occurs along with addiction). Taking a higher dose may increase the risk of dependence. Withdrawal is unlikely to be dangerous, though, although it may be unpleasant. Ambien isn't an anticonvulsant like the benzodiazepines are, so you're not going to get withdrawal seizures, which are the main serious risk of benzo withdrawal. Rebound insomnia and perhaps anxiety seem like the most likely withdrawal symptoms. Continuing to take 10 mg under your husband's supervision should minimize the withdrawal symptoms, if any.
I wouldn't say that you're "just" [psychologically] addicted, though -- it's relatively simple to deal with physical dependence (just taper off the drug gradually), but true addiction is often a very difficult hole to dig yourself out of.
I can understand not wanting to go to a rehab center -- from what I've heard, they can be very oppressive. I think it's worthwhile to try other things first, but I hope you recognize the seriousness of the situation -- taking a hypnotic dose of Ambien during the daytime is not safe, and driving on Ambien puts your life *and the lives of other people* at risk. Do you think there might be a self-destructive component to this behavior?
I don't know your doctor personally, but I think it's likely that if you tell your doctor the full story, s/he will want you to go to a treatment center. So I understand wanting to deal with it on your own if you can. Still, I think it would be a good idea to try to switch to a different sleeping pill -- come up with some reason to ask your doctor for something different (e.g., tolerance to Ambien, Ambien doesn't last long enough, etc.). Doxepin and Remeron, which fachad mentioned, are two options. (Remeron is most sedating in lower doses like 7.5-15 mg/night. If that's too sedating you could try 22.5 or 30 mg.) Another antidepressant that's used as a sleeping pill is trazodone (actually, it's used for insomnia more than for depression!). All of these drugs are sedating because they are pretty strong antihistamines as well as antidepressants. There are also plain antihistamines -- the "drowsy" ones such as Benadryl, promethazine, and hydroxyzine -- that can help. So you have a lot of options. You wouldn't even need to get a prescription for Benadryl. There are other OTC antihistamines, such as ClorTrimeton (chlorpheniramine) and Tavist (clemastine -- plain Tavist, *not* Tavist-D), but they tend to be less sedating (although I found Tavist to be very sedating, myself).
Is this the first drug problem you've had? What other medications are you taking (psychiatric and otherwise)? Have you been diagnosed with anything other than depression, osteoarthritis, and fibromyalgia?
Your husband must be very understanding and supportive, to help you try to deal with this problem. I encourage you to take advantage of all the supports you have available to you, like family, close friends, and support groups. I hope that we -- people on this board, that is -- can help you too.
best of luck to you,
-elizabeth
Posted by Racquel on May 22, 2002, at 3:48:18
In reply to Re: Ambien abuse » Dona, posted by Elizabeth on February 2, 2002, at 13:33:25
Dona,
I have been taking Ambien for about a year now. I've had insomnia on and off for about five years (since my last severe depressive episode), and I've tried Remeron (terrible results for me, Restoril (with absolutely no results) and Sonata (again, with minimal results). Ambien has been BY FAR the best one, and I love the fact that it leaves no "hang-over" feeling. My daytime schedule is extremely busy, so if I don't sleep at night, I can't function during the day. I take about 10 mg nightly (4-5 times a week).
I don't feel I'm addicted. I have insomnia, I take Ambien, it helps me sleep. Isn't that what meds are for? I also take Wellbutrin SR every single day for my depression. In my opinion, they complement each other to help me function in a healthy and efficient way.
What bothered me about your post is you mentioned you take Ambien during the day. Do you require sleep during the day? If not, why are you taking it during the day???? It sounds like you are taking medication for reasons other than what it's prescribed for, and this is a red flag.
My advice would be to talk to your psychiatrist about it. Your doctor is there to help you, but if you don't tell him what the problem is, how can he help you? It sounds far-fetched that he would just throw you into a rehab center without trying all possible alternatives. Good luck! Racquel
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