Well I finally swithced off Ambien since it made me quite an idiot after it hit my system. Those late nights where I hopped back on my computer and sounded like a drunk chimpanzee.
Anyways, I’m taking Lunesta now… and all it does it make me semi-tired and totally restless. So basically, it sucks. Anyone else have experience with these meds?
Oh, in case you didn’t figure it out, these are meds to help you sleep at night.
Do a couple shots of tequila before bed help at all?
I was taking Ambien every night for about 3 months. However, I never really considered hopping back on the computer or doing anything after taking it. I made sure I had 6 to 8 hours where I could get the sleep it was supposed to provide me and had few, if any, ill effects. Many things, when taken to often, will begin to lose their efficacy, so I try to take it only “as needed” now. That means when I have not slept well for a few days.
Alcohol, once it wears off, always wakes me back up after 5 or 6 hours. I read why that is somewhere or I may have imagined I read it, but personally, the more I drink the more likely I am to wake back up way too soon for my liking. In addition, alcohol leaves me with much more of a tired feeling which increases relative to the amount even if I do not get drunk. Ambien gave me a good nights sleep with very little “drug hangover” like you get with the crappy over the counter sleep aids.
I was pretty clearly instructed not to plan/do anything after taking Ambien. I was supposed to take it more or less right as I turned off the light to go to sleep.
After taking several over the counter meds to counteract a sleeping deficiency, I found that Ambien worked best if you were committed to going to sleep in less than 20 minutes. I completely understand the comment about jumping online and acting like a drunk chimpanzee, though. I know somebody who got addicted to taking the drug for recreational reasons, and in this respect (obviously) it’s very harmful. 20 mg can put you into a “wake” lucid dreaming state, and makes you incoherent and very sloppy. I suppose its good side effect is that it makes you WANT to go to sleep, even if you can force yourself to stay up (or get a phone call right after you take it and proceed to babble on like a buffoon for hours).
Haven’t tried Lunesta, because Ambien works well enough. I don’t think I’ll be taking anything else. 7-8 hours of good sleep, and you wake up feeling energized (if a little lightheaded, but very brief).
To be clear, I too took it within minutes of putting my bedtime reading down and dropped right off. The few times I was awakened by my kid, I was definitely loopy, but like the others said, you really should be sleeping that off through allotting the necessary amount of shuteye. I have no complaints.
Ambien barely had any effect on me. I neither turned into a Monty Python-esque loony nor was I knocked out, although I did find it made it a little easier to go to sleep if I was tired enough.
Oddly enough, I take Melatonin (over-the-counter 'erbal sleep aid, often used to fight jet lag) now, which works a treat. Different horses for different physical make-ups, I guess…
I looked for Melatonin just this week at our local grocery store and was surprised I couldn’t find it there. What brand do you use and where do you get it?
See now, you have to be careful of a few things when choosing a sleep aid. Melatonin is great for occasional sleep problems associated with jet lag, or a switch-up in work schedule, or the week leading up to a big test. However, jpinard’s problem is associated with his medical condition. It’s not as transitory as the other problems I listed are. Now, if jp has intermittent periods of insomnia (jp?), he can take certain kinds of melatonin-based sleep aids. I’d rather the ol’ boy stuck to something more natural, I imagine he’s on enough meds as it is. Of course, melatonin is a hormone and you don’t want to take endogenous hormones over a contiguous, extended period of time, unless you have a uterus and are taking drugs to keep the uterus from putting out its little NO VACANCY sign. If jp gets frequent, but not extended (or if his insomnia is always there without an aid, every night), he should totally bust out Somnatrol, which Consumer Health Digest recently ranked as the #1 natural sleep aid.
I mentioned how melatonin-based sleep aids are typically used for those common sleep-altering events, so that might be another strike against jp for using it. But, that could be because those are the common problems of temproary sleep disorders, and temporary sleep disorders themselves are more common. Like, jp’s in the minority, you know?
Most “natural” sleep aids contain melatonin, seratain (a melatonin/serotonin derivative), and/or yohimbe and Kava root. Those last two, some people have serious problems taking supplements with them in them. I’d avoid them if at all possible.
My pick for the EA Fan Club President is Somnulin. It came in at #3 in that same CHD list (#2 was another melatonin-based aid. Here’s the list http://consumerhealthdigest.com/sleepaids.htm, incidentally). Now, the website claims that the reason Somnalin only came in at #3 was that CHD didn’t test it for use associated with chronic sleep disorders. You know, like jp has. The makers of Somnalin say it works great for sleep disorders with cronic, unremitting causes and there is little risk associated with long-term, daily use. The only problem I see at his point is that I can’t seem to find what the Hell is in it. Here’s their site: http://keywestherbals.com. It’s got their phone number and email addy at any rate.
If naturals fail you jp, I’m sad to say that there really is no better prescription sleep aid than Ambien.
Thanks Bill! That’s some really useful info.
I didn’t mean to come across as recommending Melatonin unconditionally, but I can see how that might appear to be the case. As is, I got mine at GNC, and only use it when necessary - my issue is a combo of intermittent Insomnia and “active” REM sleep, where I have vivid, disturbing dreams and wake up feeling completely exhausted, which the Melatonin seems to help with - but I’d recommend that anyone taking a medication (or suffering from a serious illness) talk to their doctor before adding anything - even a natural - to their intake. Oh, and I’d avoid Kava Root like the plague if possible…it didn’t work on me as a sleep aid, in fact, it appeard to make the dream stuff worse.
That said, since I’m medication free now, I think I’ll have to check out Somnulin - most sleep aids don’t work for me, but I’m always willing to give something else a shot.
Seroquel! That one I could sleep 8 hours and be groggy for 2+ when I woke up.
Thank you everyone for some excellent information, that I’m totally going to work from.
What has happened (and does everytime I get sick) is I went inot the hospital in April, was on heavy duty pain medicine and anti-nausea meds (I.V. Dilaudid and I.V. Phenergan), and therefore for those weeks I get pure medication induced sleep. Actually I’m more like a zombie in the hospital. So, after that it is really hard for my body to go to sleep on its own.
Though my doctors are wonderful - in the realm of sleep help they just kinda prescribe whatevers new and say, “see if it works”.
Ambien was a real strange med. Sometimes it could literally put me to sleep at my keyboard… and other times I’d be laying there for hours thinking, “When am I going to get tired?”
And Bill, thanks for keeping me from going into Menopause hehe. Last thing I need is to remove what little manliness I have :lol:
This is honest to God the number one reason I wish pot was legal. I’m a serious insomniac and nothing ever helped me doze off as well as half a bowl at bedtime.
These days it’s just not worth it. Fucking social conservatives.
But did you find it addicitve at all? Or did it stink up your room/house? Does it hurt your breathing capacity? I can’t nor would I smoke anyting medicine or not since I can barely breathe as it is, but I’m curious about your results Nick.
But did you find it addicitve at all? Or did it stink up your room/house? Does it hurt your breathing capacity? I can’t nor would I smoke anyting medicine or not since I can barely breathe as it is, but I’m curious about your results Nick.[/quote]
Make an tea like infusion with it, or munch on it in brownies or the like. It will be a heavier hit too. Whilst i get through a shedload of skunk on a regular basis I still wouldnt advocate starting smoking in order to get stoned.
This thread reads like a report from my POPFile spam bucket.
What do you guys think about g3ner1c C1Ali5 ?
Hey jp, like Bill said, I have talked to a lot of folks and they all concur that Ambien is the best. I don’t know if you have read about or tried any relax-therapy/meditation type solution. I have had people suggest that, but I have a hell of a time focusing on something that is relaxing long enough to become peaceful. My brain quickly yanks me by the collar back to the concerns of the day.
That said, I should mention that I rarely have had the problem of getting to sleep. It is the waking up at the wee hours and I immediately begin to think about the tasks ahead and cannot bed back down.
But did you find it addicitve at all? Or did it stink up your room/house? Does it hurt your breathing capacity? I can’t nor would I smoke anyting medicine or not since I can barely breathe as it is, but I’m curious about your results Nick.
Can’t really comment on the breathing capacity as I’m a smoker anyway and the odd spliff here and there doesn’t make much of a difference. I wouldn’t recommend smoking a lot of solid resin which I find really screws your lungs up especially if you dont “cut” it with tobacco, but skunk/weed/grass whatever you want to call it never gives me any jip.
As for addictiveness, it has never bothered me in the slightest, I went from heavy cannabis user to not touching it for a year with no ill effects and occasionally indulge in a spliff for the hell of it because I enjoy it a lot more than I do alcohol (make canabis legal tomorrow and I’d never touch alcohol again but I need something to purge the demons ;)). Out of all the “drugs” I indulge in, Cannabis is easily the most enjoyable and easy to control. Smoking is a pain to try and stop and the line between happily merry and roaring drunk on alcohol is a fine one. The worst side effect I can think of is that I definitely noticed a drop over time in my general motivation.
Smell wise, it dissapears a lot quicker than tobacco odour but if you smoke a lot of it anyone walking into your living room will know about it, especially with weed rather than resin.
Whether smoked or eaten I certainly wouldn’t recommend trying it if you are already on a boatload of other medication.
Nope, not going to. But I always find it interesting to ask people about the addictiveness, cause my only feedback on drugs comes from the “Chappelle Show”. So one of his skits is immidiately what I was thinking, thus the questions. :lol: :lol:
Weed is not chemically addictive like heroin, but anything can be habit forming, especially things that make you feel good.