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Ambien and memory loss
posted by KIM on 02 Nov 2006 at 1:39 pm
I have been on Ambien for months. I have severe short term memory loss. I take the Ambien and 10 minutes later I will remember nothing though to those around me I'm completely lucid. I don't remember important conversations, watching a movie, or even having sex. I don't know what rohibnol (sp) is like but ambien could be a good substitute.
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| Of Course! |
| posted by rob wen on 03 Nov 2006 at 10:45 am |
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Ambien is a sedative sleep medication. Of course you will have short term memory loss. What else would you expect? You are only to take it when GOING TO BED. You are one of those goofy people who are suing because they crash their cars after taking sleep medications (because they take it at work and want to go right to bed after they drive home). Ambien will not treat poor decision-making. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Thanks |
| posted by KIM on 04 Nov 2006 at 9:18 pm |
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Thanks so much for you honest and candid "opinion." And just so you know, I don't drive the car after taking ambien, operate heavy equipment, or perform brain surgery. I'm not in the process of suing anyone nor am I intending to sue. I guess I was mistaken about the purpose of this website. It's not for posting one's opinion it's for people like you to call others names. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Ambien - Strange Behavior |
| posted by LCV on 13 Nov 2006 at 4:36 pm |
My boyfriend was recently prescribed Ambien for insomnia. 2 nights ago, he took 2 at once and for the last 2 nights, he has been jumping out of bed, talking about people who aren't there and believes we are somewhere other than in our bedroom.
He is fine during the day, a little dizzy and "out of it," but generally himself. Has anyone experienced anything similar? How long do these side effects last? I am hoping last night was the last of it. Thanks for listening. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Ambien's Side Effects |
| posted by Sac on 07 Dec 2006 at 7:26 pm |
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I sought out a remedy to occasional insomnia and was subsequently prescribed Ambien. I was truly hopeful that I would finally have relief from sleepless nights. I tried Ambien only to find out that I am only half as effective during the following days as I would be if I had a terrible night's sleep. I cannot focus, I have no drive, and it is similar to being in a constant dream state. I say forget about Ambien - it is not worth it. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Check Around |
| posted by Tana on 05 Jan 2007 at 2:01 pm |
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Some stupid people do take Ambien as per your post, but the majority of people go to bed after taking Ambien, then get up and do things entirely out of character. Ambien impairs impulse control and the ability to tell right from wrong. Put Ambien problems or crime in your browser bar and you will see how many people have been affected by these things, all the while totally unaware of what they are doing | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Rude Response |
| posted by Shrink on 15 Jan 2007 at 5:16 pm |
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I have no idea, Rob, how you rationalize being rude in response to a sincere inquiry from someone taking Ambien. She is not suing anyone or doing anything immoral or involving poor judgement. Where do you get off being so rightious with her? You seem to need some professional help with your anger. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Ambien |
| posted by Ray on 15 Jan 2007 at 9:07 pm |
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I have been on Ambien for a year and they work great for me. No bad dreams, no crazy sleep walking,etc. To me they really do "work like a dream". I have tried Lunesta and the 3mg one is Ok too. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Ambien User |
| posted by Don on 16 Jan 2007 at 11:22 pm |
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I have to agree with you Rob. Kim should not be doing so many important things after using Ambien. She should go straight to bed and sleep it off. I think your 'tone' might have annoyed her. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Again, Is He Stupid? |
| posted by Are you stupid? on 23 Feb 2007 at 6:38 pm |
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The bottle says, take One! I have a hard enough time functioning on that until I fall asleep. My husband can't believe that I don't remember conversations, why take 2? | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Memory |
| posted by F on 21 Apr 2007 at 3:39 pm |
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I think I have been on ambiem for about 4 months and I am having trouble remembering things. I am going to cut back and try to get some thing else. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| It Can't Be Controlled |
| posted by heather michelle on 16 May 2007 at 9:16 am |
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I have been taking Ambien for about a year and I only take it before bed- however my BF has had to come get me and put me back in bed. Most recently I got up around 11:30 pm to go clean the dishwasher. I am not irresponsible when I take this - I go by the guidlines however once it's in your system you cannot control what happens.. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| My Experience With Ambien |
| posted by General Huffington on 04 Jun 2007 at 11:53 pm |
I was prescribed a bottle of Ambien and I did not know to expect; I struggled to get accustomed to it the first few times I took it. While on it I was aware of what I was doing and in control of my actions, but with ADD and a slight dreamlike buzz. If I kept awake during my Ambien experience my recollection of what occured would be fuzzy at best to remember basically nothing. But I mean this is what the drug does.
Once I got accustomed to these feelings and the memory loss and I was fine with taking it. I can imagine people having problems if they have no experience with anything like this, and I really don't know to combat people waking up and doing stuff they don't remember doing. Luckily I'm a deep sleeper.| previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| At Loss |
| posted by Tammy on 13 Jun 2007 at 1:22 pm |
I was also prescribed Ambien about a 1.5 years ago. I have stopped taking it now for about 7 months. I have to say that I am still suffering from short term memory loss still. My kids still look at me funny cause I can't remember one conversation to the next.
My boyfriend, thank god, understands and has been very patient with me. It fustrates me to no end though. I remember the side effects of the ambien then and just figured it was the cause of it and will go away in time, but it's still there.
Yes.. I also have waken up in the morning with chocolate smeared all over my hands still clutching piece of candy-no memory of it. And yes, why i drove and where to is a mystery but do remember hitting a street pole on the side of the road, jared me awake.
My Jetta still wears to scar of that night. I knew that i had to quit but that was quite a task in itself. I could not sleep right at all for 3 weeks and felt like a walking zombie during the day. This medication is very dangerous to some people and should know that could happen to them. As for me, well.. I keep hoping that maybe things will get better| previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Blackout |
| posted by Jill on 13 Jun 2007 at 8:42 pm |
I take Ambien occasionally. I have blacked out with it before. The only thing I remember is waking up with scrapes on my legs. I must have gotten out of bed and then tripped over something in my living room. It was weird, my doctor sent me for CAT scans, just to be sure everything was fine. People have called me before and I can't remember conversations. It is strange.
From now on I plan to take it and get in bed immediately. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Ambien CR Not Working? |
| posted by Justme on 14 Jun 2007 at 9:43 am |
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My wife was perscribed ambien cr and it seems to work for her without any funny business or anything like that, but after a week of taking it she becomes somewhat immune to it and it doesn't work. Why is this? if she stops taking it for 1 week then it works for that week after again. When it does work she has never done anything weird | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Never Knew Ambien Was Dangerous! |
| posted by susanna on 11 Sept 2007 at 2:43 am |
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I am lifelong insomnia sufferer an read all the books about how to overcome it. I in the last 3 years I gave up and started on Ambien - apparently only read the praise-part on the net. Lately, to make sure I sleep , I also take half of a small xanax. And , sure enough, I now experience impaired memory and even lessened cognitive abilities (sudoku, sudoku...) OK, so I understand I have to cut Ambien - but what take instead of it? Sleeping in a natural way is no option for me. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Memory Loss - Time Loss |
| posted by Ashley on 19 Sept 2007 at 2:33 pm |
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Like Susanna I too suffer from the Memory Loss, it has gotten awful, I thought I was having a major problem, and has really scared me. I have been on Ambien for over a year, and during the summer my memory was gone, I argued with everyone, forgot to close the gate to the horse pasture and swear I closed it, I could actually see myself doing it, but I did not, my husband started checking behind me. I argued with everyone about things that ended up being - I thought I did! or I did not do that! This was happening during the day. Just the past few months I would take the ambien and go lay down, then I would get up and do some really weird things, I could recall most of it the next afternoon but had no control at the time, and time lapse has become a real problem. My doctor is trying to wean me off, I stopped cold turkey two days ago and have not sleep. Does anyone know of anything safe to take???? If you do please email me at wifeofnewt@yahoo.com Thank You | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| 24 Hours Later |
| posted by Teresa on 24 Sept 2007 at 6:54 am |
I take ambien occasionally. About once a month, I will have a couple days when I cannot sleep. The medication was prescribed a year ago, and I've used it as needed since. I had no issues until last week. I only slept four hours a night for two days, so upon arriving home from work, I took a pill and planned to sleep until the next morning. But I still couldn't sleep. At bedtime (approximately 8 hours later), I took another pill and slept fitfully. The following morning, work as usual. That night, I apparently watched television with my husband and was perfectly fine and lucent; however I have no memory at all of the show. I couldn't tell you when the evening became a blank and when I started remembering again (I think I recall going to bed... but let's face it, each night is pretty similar, so maybe I don't).
Has anyone else experienced memory loss a full 24 hours later?
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| Ambien |
| posted by Dea Ann Leonard on 27 Sept 2007 at 5:28 am |
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I have been on Ambien for over a year also. In the beginning, if I went to bed but didn't immediately fall asleep, I would occasionally hallucinate. I learned I needed to control remembering what I was doing while on it and have been better ever since. I consciously and methodically pay strict attention to what is going on if I take it and something happens where I don't fall asleep immediately and that works for me. I am sorry to those who wake up and do things, I have never experienced that. However, I have recently started noticing increased memory loss. I too, am a person who has had chronic insomnia my whole life, I have no idea what I am going to do. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Memory Is Going |
| posted by Linda on 03 Oct 2007 at 9:19 am |
I too am a long time Ambien user. I have experienced to a small extent a little bit of everything that has been mentioned. (Aside from driving my car) To my knowledge I have never left my house.
I have been taking it for 3+ years. It works great in terms of getting you to sleep, but my memory is going going , , ,gon...
Wish there was an alternative have tried many others with no relief. The one lesson I have learned is take it and go to bed. . .shut your phone off guaranteed you will not remember your conversation and wind up feeling like an idiot the next day when your friend tells you everything you talked about.
By the way I have taken it later than my usual bed time and not remembered an entire day of work the following day. Be careful. Take it early and directly to bed !!!| previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| How Dangerous In Higher Doses? |
| posted by NotsureaboutAmbien on 28 Oct 2007 at 7:57 pm |
My wife is struggling through abuse issues as a young girl and has been taking Ambien for about 3 months. Recently she took two and then grabbed a third one. She started acting worse than anyone I'v seen drunk.
I'm thinking she is getting suicidal tendencies, or they are more manifest when she has lost her inhibitions. Does anyone know if 3 ambiens would be consdered a lethal dose? I've hidden her drugs and will not give them to her unattended until she gets more councelling help.
Thanks for your help.| previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| All |
| posted by notsoeasytosleep on 02 Nov 2007 at 8:20 pm |
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Wow I have needed to look up memory loss for a while. I have tryed everthing and have been on ambien for a year. It is nice but also scary to see others have seen the other side of ambien. I have 3 young kids and have had a hard time with sleep problems for years. I tryed to get off ambien because I seen I cant go one night without or I can stay up for up to 5 days. I dont use drugs and ambien is the only thing I take . I tried tyenol pm and I would hear every noise in the house all night long. Dose anyone have really great hearing from this. sounds wierd but I hear things so loud it hurts my head? anyways i have a list thanks. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| I Love Ambien |
| posted by Kelly on 08 Nov 2007 at 3:39 pm |
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I was looking on the web to see how long of a period that you can take Ambien and ran across this site. I see that some people have been taking it for years, so that makes me feel good. I have always had problems with sleeping and do all the things they say to do - no caffeine, go to bed and get up at the same time everyday....... My doctor prescribed Ambien and I was scared to death to take it. I heard so many horror stories. My huband - God love him, stayed up for 4 hours the first night I took it to make sure I didn't do anything CRAZY. I have to say that I love Ambien and that it has been a miracle drug for me. I have been taking it for about a month now. I take it right before I get in bed at the same time every night. I fall asleep within a half hour and I usually sleep about 7 hours before waking. Even if I do happen to wake in the middle of the night, I fall right back to sleep where before, I would be awake for hours. The only adverse reaction I have had is headache the next day, but that was only for the first few days of taking it. I don't have any memory loss that I know of and I don't feel sleepy the next day. I know everyone has different reactions, but to put some people who may be reading this at ease - Ambien has been a great thing for me so far! | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| Alternative To Ambien |
| posted by Libertyslegacy on 09 Nov 2007 at 10:15 am |
"Wish there was an alternative have tried many others with no relief."
I also had a short run with Ambien with similar negative results. I asked my doctor to switch me to Trazodone and have had no problems.
Good luck to everyone.| previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |
| AMBIEN For Sleep |
| posted by Deb on 20 Nov 2007 at 10:54 pm |
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I've been on Ambien for about six months - no problems!! It does exactly what it is supposed to do - put me to sleep. You all know that medications work differently for different people!! Some people can't take certain drugs because their bodies react different than others! Some people tolerate Ambien, it works for them, and they get a fantastic night of sleep. | previous page | post followup | alert a moderator | |