Ambien and Anxiety: What Users Say

• Chr...
• October 5, 2018

For Insomnia "After being a good sleeper, out of the blue, I began to suffer bad insomnia, taking hours to fall asleep or having repeated awakenings, which was not like me! Possibly because of neighbor issues for years causing stress, which finally started to impact my sleep, I tried over-the-counter meds with no success. Then my doctor gave me Ambien and it works so well for me at 10 mg. It does not always keep me asleep all night, but at least it knocks me out and destroys any anxiety due to insomnia. It seems those of us with insomnia find it hard to calm the brain down, and repeated sleepless nights make us more anxious, making sleep increasingly hard to come by. Medications like Ambien are effective, as they increase GABA in the brain, leading to relaxation and then making it easier to sleep. I would say this drug is safe, surely better than drinking alcohol to sleep, which has bad health impacts. Regular good sleep improves my mood, appetite, lowers anxiety and depression. Ambien does this, it's a good thing!"

• Kev...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 9, 2019

For Insomnia "Have been having insomnia for about 45 days related to some family stress. Used trazodone with some success. Then it decreased in effectiveness, and I was getting maybe 3 hours. Went to Ativan, and it worked some days and some days nothing. Back to trazodone, hoping for 3-5 hours of sleep. My NP suggested Ambien. First night last night. I was a little nervous. Took it and slept 7 hours 50 minutes without interruption. Night 1 would give it more stars if I could. The question is how long it lasts."

• Old...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 13, 2022

For Insomnia "I have been taking Ambien on and off for a few years, no more than 7-14 days and only once yearly. This time it hit me VERY hard! Although it’s magic to go to sleep, it has some VERY serious side effects! Paranoia, anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, etc. I would do stuff the night before and order things, and the next morning wouldn’t even remember! I would stay awake, go down, eat food, and do other random stuff and have NO recollection the next morning! Be VERY VERY vigilant when using this medicine and NO more than 5 days! You will have some serious problems otherwise!"

• Pet...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 15, 2018

For Insomnia "While Ambien does put me to sleep, I have found it isn't consistent, and it varies night to night how long it keeps me asleep. 10 mg can give me almost 7 hours, which is fantastic, but some nights I only sleep for 3 and a half on the same dose, which can be a bit disappointing when you roll over to check the time. Also, there are some notable side effects, such as amnesia before bedtime, next-day depression, and anxiety. And when you come off this drug, your own sleep seems worse than before you went on Ambien and is accompanied by nightmares. Of course, we are all different, but those are my experiences with this drug."

• Sou...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• December 7, 2017

For Insomnia "I began taking Ambien while hospitalized for a high-risk pregnancy. The meds I was on to stop contractions made me jittery and restless. When offered a sleeping med, I jumped for joy. This was before the side effects were known. Now, 17 years later, I have been through 8 detoxes, followed by 7 rehab stays. Now clean for over 3 years from Ambien addiction that almost cost me my life, I want to warn anyone away from this drug. At the worst of my addiction, I was taking 60 Ambien, 30 Halcyon, 30 Oxypam for panic attacks, and 90 Ativan for withdrawal seizures. I have blank spots in my memory that sometimes span weeks. I continued to use Ambien after the birth of my child to be on a “normal” schedule for her. Worst mistake of my life."

• wil...
• February 3, 2018

For Insomnia "From a child, I have had problems sleeping, as a teen, I would be awake all night laying in bed and have to go to school the next day. Well, in my twenties and thirties, I gave up working as I couldn't sleep well. Yeah, I took Sominex, over the counter, and would get a few hours of good sleep. But when I got to 40 years old, I was so stressed. No sleep was killing me, and I was so anxious, and panic attacks were getting so bad I wouldn't leave the house. So I told my doc I gotta have something, and he gave me Ambien and a small dose of Xanax. That was 13 years ago. I go in every six months for bloodwork, and all is fine, and Ambien gave me my life back again. I sleep only 5-6 hours on 10 mg, but that works for me. But yesterday he said, after he gave me a six-month script, that he doesn't know how much longer he can give it unless I go see a psychiatrist or go for a sleep study. The government is cracking down."

• Anonymous
• February 28, 2012

For Insomnia "I have been taking Ambien for about 3 years. I have an anxiety disorder and have had trouble getting to sleep as long as I remember. I worked night shifts because it was easier. After I had kids, I had to become a day person! I had terrible nights of falling asleep at 3-4 a.m. after tossing and turning. I used Benadryl for several years, and one night it turned on me, I had anxiety attacks, muscle spasms, and rigidity. My doctor gave me Lexapro because I had depression at that time as well. I hated it and how numb I always felt. Then he prescribed Ambien. I cut the pill in half. It doesn't knock me out, it just turns my brain to slow and sleepy. I sleep like a baby. I wake very happy and alert. No more depression either."

• Tri...
• February 21, 2020

"This drug should come with more specific warnings. When given, it can create displacement and utter confusion. This happened to both my father and now my husband. It takes a long time to leave your system, unlike Xanax, and does anything but create sleep. Both my father and husband ended up paranoid, confused, and beyond comfort. I am very unhappy about this drug."

• Anonymous
• September 11, 2009

For Insomnia "I took only a small amount, like 1/4 of a pill, and within 15 minutes, I was asleep. I did this for 3 nights, well, this morning I woke up feeling fine. After a while, I felt dizzy and was dizzy all day, felt horrible, my chest was tight, and I have asthma. So if you have asthma, be careful, it also gave me anxiety. My husband takes this, and he does fine."

• sir...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 5, 2018

For Insomnia "I took this medicine for only 3 months. At first, I was amazed by its effectiveness, but I only slept for 4 hours and was having some anxiety attacks the day after. I was calling this drug: the chemical lobotomy. Highly addictive because you don't want to stop this magical effect of falling asleep after 10 minutes of taking it. It took me a few attempts to be able to stop it. When it did stop working after 3 months and I was needing 2 pills to fall asleep, I simply stopped and replaced it with Xanax. Too expensive also. Harmful for the gums and teeth. There is a type of sugar in it, and because it melts under the tongue, the sugar residue stays there for the night, your teeth and gums will degrade. Try to find something else. Also, I had to drive my kid to school the morning after, and I was not really straight, I didn't like to drive the morning after. Dangerous."

• Poi...
• May 2, 2021

For Insomnia "I am a 58-year-old and have chronic insomnia. I have been taking 10 mg of Ambien for 2-3 months, and the pill is a double-edged sword. It makes me very anxious at the end of the day. I have to take hot showers or Epsom salt baths to calm down. Some nights I can sleep, but others are unsuccessful. It also irritates the nerves in my neck and is acting up my sciatica. I wish I never started taking this stuff because now it’s very difficult to get off it. The withdrawals are so intense. It’s basically ruined the quality of my life. The drug company misleads you by saying it’s non-habit-forming. Now I cannot fall asleep naturally. I’m trying to get some professional help, but all the doctors want to do is give you either Trazodone, Gabapentin, Benzos, or some other antidepressant medicine. I strongly recommend not taking this pill and finding an alternate solution."

• Pet...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 7, 2018

For Insomnia "Careful with this drug. I would not recommend using it for more than a couple of weeks. I took it for just over a month and ran into problems after the third week. There's a good reason most doctors are unwilling to prescribe it long term because it is pretty bad to withdraw from, and you can start to crave the high that it gives. If you stay up, just one night of doing that was enough, as I got addicted. I found myself not remembering that I took more than one... Some nights I took 3 and even 4 one night. The next day, I was severely drowsy, was also experiencing withdrawal sweats, muscle twitches, and severe anxiety. Personally, I find Doxylamine to be actually more effective than Ambien, and it's not addictive."

• rar...
• December 22, 2010

For Insomnia "Worked well for the most part. I found that, on average, once every 7-10 days, I become somewhat anxious and agitated (making it hard to sleep) after taking the Ambien. I don't know why it only happened occasionally, but it was more common when I took 5 mg rather than 10 mg. In the end, I switched to Restoril (temazepam) 30 mg. Dose 5-10 mg at night. Age 21. For primary insomnia."

• zpi...
• February 2, 2009

For Insomnia "Doesn't work for real insomnia at all. At best 4 hours of restless sleep with high anxiety, disorientation, and muscle fatigue."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 8, 2018

For Insomnia "Ambien is the only thing that has worked for me to sleep. The only problem is I get withdrawals and anxiety during the day."