How Many Ambien Patients Get Up At Night And Remember Nothing?

I have been taking Ambien for some time and I would find food in my bed and no memory of eating anything in the night. My husband also tells me that if take the ambien and do not go straigt to bed and I am brushing my teeth or somethiong and it hits me, I stay fixated on the task with no memory of this at all.

Im scared should I go off this medication and How?

I just heard on the radio the term "ambien zombie" so I have been researching it. I have had a few bad experiences with ambien. One night I "woke up" and drank almost a whole bottle of wine with no memory of it ,just a bad hangover the next day. I have been violent towards my husband twice. Verbally and physically. Woke up with bumps on my head and bruises on my body. Midnight food binges. My husband would ask if I remembered having sex the night before and I wouldn't.I heard it can cause a euphoric feeling similar to ectasy, which I have never taken. All this time I thought it would just help me sleep. I think not sleeping is better than walking around acting like a zombie. This is all on a 10mg (1) pill .I can't believe it has taken me this long to realize how scary ambien can be!

I have been taking ambien for over ten years due to severe insomnia, but my husband tell me of all the strange things like you are talking about and I remember none of them,I got a call from my dr tonight at 8:30PM, and she told me to come in her office she doesnt want me to take the ambien anymore This was all on (1) 10mg pill per night too

I have been on ambien for two months. I dont seem to have any of these problems. It doesnt even put me to sleep right away. Its abuot two hours and than Im out. But as far as I know I dont have any of these self proclaimed side effects

i would take an ambien, then start nodding off and without realizing it i would take more pills. like 6-8 a night. i wouldnt remember anything. my finance said it was like i was a zombie. i would walk around. i wouldnt eat but i would drink a little. i just stopped taking it. went cold turkey. i feel a lot better now.

I have been taking Ambien for three years and i also am scared to go off this medication. I just read on side effects that you should not go off cold turkey.

Stephanie wrote:

I have been taking Ambien for some time and I would find food in my bed and no memory of eating anything in the night. My husband also tells me that if take the ambien and do not go straigt to bed and I am brushing my teeth or somethiong and it hits me, I stay fixated on the task with no memory of this at all.

Im scared should I go off this medication and How?

I have been feeling really sick for about four months now, heart palpitations, and pain throughout my body. I've been trying to figure out why and just realized the only medication i have been taking regularly is Ambien. I'm wondering if that isn't the reason.

I take the 12.5 Ambien CR. I do not understand all of these reactions to the drugs that are written here. How could you take 1 pill and then not know that you reached for the bottle and took 8 more. You consciously made the decision that "hmm, I think I want to take some more." I can understand forgetting that you took 1 and then taking 1, but 6-8. I don’t think that is the drug's fault.

It's "good" to hear that others have had this sleepwalking response to ambien. I don't remember doing anything, but I found the freezer emptied on the counter one morning, and, on another, my daughter woke to pizza burning in the oven. But the night she caught me moving furniture was the end. I just thought "What if I decided to drive?", and haven't used it since.

Jennifer wrote:

I take the 12.5 Ambien CR. I do not understand all of these reactions to the drugs that are written here. How could you take 1 pill and then not know that you reached for the bottle and took 8 more. You consciously made the decision that "hmm, I think I want to take some more." I can understand forgetting that you took 1 and then taking 1, but 6-8. I don’t think that is the drug's fault.

That's the whole point, you do NOT make a conscious decision at all! You're brain has no memory of ever taking the first, or the second, etc...It's obviously not a logic-based behavior, or it wouldn't be happening in the first place, and neither would the eating, driving, sex, etc that people have reported. I have had some terrible things happen in the night and had no memory of them. I'm only now realizing that Ambien could be involved.

I've been taking Ambien 10mg on and off (mostly on) for about 4 years now, and have had some very strange things happen in the night, but had little or no memory of it. My husband tells me in the morning of them. Some are just kinda strange, like having sex and not remembering it at all, but some have been terrible, like lighting candles, being verbally abusive to my husband (NOT a normal behavior for me at all!), drinking whole bottles of wine, buying stuff on-line, and yes, eating, too, all without a shred of memory. Actually, I just had an especially bad night 2 nights ago which badly freaked out my husband. Sometimes he will tell me about it and I'll remember little bits of it, like remembering a dream, but most often it's just a blank. I have really got to get off this stuff, but people need to know what's happening. I wonder if long-term use is part of the problem.

I have been taking Ambien for 7 years and have had only MINOR side affects. This drug has given me my life back.I'm a chronic insomniac and went on 4 hours of sleep a night for years until I was properly medicated with Ambien.I feel GREAT now!!!!!!!!!!

Saint Paul, MN

I know this drug has worked for many people but for me it has been a nightmare. I have gained 35 pounds sleep eating/cooking at night and I have even sleep walked out the house and went to a neighbors house. I am afraid of what is to come.

When they put me on Ambien, everything was fine, until the night my friend called me and woke me. Weird things started happening and I didn't remember all of them. Its a blur. But from what my friend told me, I had multi-personality. One minute there was a "master" and the next there was a "servant" She said that they all had different voices and acted really violent. She came over because I tried to kill myself. But that was a mistake, because she tried to stop me and I tried to kill her. Came close to it too. She also said I rapped her. Lets just say I ended up in the hospital.

I have taken Ambien several times before with no problems.
This week I had insomnia two nights so on the third I hit the sack at 7pm and took and Ambien Extended Release. I woke up 16 hours later feeling pretty rough.
My wife and kids told me that I was a walking zombie. I cooked up a storm, emptied a 1/4 bottle of vodka before trashing the bedroom. They tried to wake me but couldn't. I had no recollection of anything. This is dangerous stuff

I am so glad that I found everyone's postings so that I could show my mom! She too has been having severe amnesia and zombielike occurances! She doesn't know otherwise...only that she loves the drug. However, she forgot to put the emergency brake on my sister's SUV the other day and ended up smashing the back end into a tree! My dad says that she walks around the house like a zombie and yesterday when I was talking to her on the phone, it was like talking to someone with alzheimers! I am worried about her safety. I hope that she doesn't end up with brain damage! I see a law suit coming out of this drug! These pharmacuetical companies are the biggest drug pushers of all!

I have been taking Ambien for a little less than 10 years. Early on I used it only on the nights when I had to get up early for work. I tuffed out my insomnia on the other nights. At some point in time, I decided that I felt better sleeping well every night. I first got the prescription from my internist who was treating me for depression. As the depression continued I got it through a psychiatrist. The depression is seasonal and is exacerbated by unusually stressful circumstances. I know to get help when I need it. I have never abused the Ambien. I mostly take 5mg and rarely take 10 mg. On some occasions I would feel the urge to eat right as the Ambien was kicking in. Mostly I was aware what I was doing but felt compelled to do it anyway. This has been the one and only unpleasant side effect I have had from taking it for 10 years!
For me this medication has been a huge help. I know I need to get seven or eight hours of sleep. Oftentimes, this means I have to be in bed no later than 8 pm. This requires discipline, but helps me to feel completely awake when I have to be. I have to use it with care as with any other medication I might be prescribed. If you have ill effects from it you SHOULD get off of it immediately. The few times I have gone without it, I had disturbing dreams. Over the years, I have tried using Benadryl, but even 25mg makes me feel hungover the next morning and I also get bad dreams when I take it.

Jennifer wrote:

I take the 12.5 Ambien CR. I do not understand all of these reactions to the drugs that are written here. How could you take 1 pill and then not know that you reached for the bottle and took 8 more. You consciously made the decision that "hmm, I think I want to take some more." I can understand forgetting that you took 1 and then taking 1, but 6-8. I don’t think that is the drug's fault.

You can read my other posts on the other subtopics. Even if taken exactly as directed Ambien can have some pretty scarey side effects. You dont need to abuse the drug to experience them. Im happy that some seem to use it with immunity, but I would be really cautious of long term use and seek other ways to get sleep as well. Also, I would ask people around you to tell you if you do anything odd in your sleep. Try going one night without if you think you are not addicted. If you can, more power to you, but it is pretty clear that for many people, it is a dangerous drug, although it does have some good medical uses for short term problems.

Stephanie wrote:

I have been taking Ambien for some time and I would find food in my bed and no memory of eating anything in the night. My husband also tells me that if take the ambien and do not go straigt to bed and I am brushing my teeth or somethiong and it hits me, I stay fixated on the task with no memory of this at all.
Im scared should I go off this medication and How?

Be quiet you bunch of whiners. If you don't like Ambien, don't take it.

You should use marijuana instead. It's the best!