Ambien is a common sleep aid prescribed to individuals who either have difficulty falling asleep at night, wake up many times during the night, or wake up extremely early in the morning and cannot get back to sleep. Ambien is among a class of medications known as hypnotics or sedatives, which comprises most of the commonly used sleep aids doctors prescribe today.
I took Ambien for the duration of three months for my ongoing sleeping difficulties, and I will detail both the side effects I experienced as well as all of the side effects individuals may experience while taking this medication for sleeping difficulties.
When I took Ambien, I experienced amnesia; after I took the medication at night, I would wake up in the morning and my fiancé at the time would tell me the things we talked about early that morning of which I had no recollection. Additionally, one night I had taken Ambien and went to bed fully clothed. The next morning, I woke up without clothes on, and I had no idea what had happened. To this day, I still don’t know what happened for certain.
I also have a friend who took Ambien for a much longer period of time than I did, and this friend tells me she had entire conversations with people before she went to sleep and could not remember them the next morning.
Another Ambien side effect I experience while taking the medication was drowsiness. It was certainly true that Ambien helped me fall asleep and stay asleep throughout the night. However, the medication was a little too effective in making me sleep. In the morning, I had a very difficult time waking up and I also remained drowsy throughout the entire day.
I also experienced very bad headaches while I took this medication. In order to cope with this side-effect, I often had to set aside time to lie down after taking some over-the-counter headache relief medication, such as Advil liquid gel capsules.
In addition to amnesia, drowsiness, and headaches, other Ambien side-effects include abnormal and/or vivid dreams, clumsiness, nausea, dizziness, constipation, diarrhea, vomiting, muscle pain, and/or depression.
There are things that you can do to cope with Ambien side-effects. For instance, eat bread or saltine crackers to cope with nausea. Take Pepto-Bismol for nausea or diarrhea. If depression becomes a problem for you, you may want to talk with your doctor about taking an anti-depressant.
It is important to note that if you develop hives or experience swelling of the tongue, throat, or face that you need to seek immediate medical attention, as these are severe allergic reactions.
It is also significant to note that Ambien affects different people in different ways. Not everyone who takes Ambien will experience the same side-effects. If you are concerned about the severity of the Ambien side-effects you are experiencing, please talk with your doctor about them.
