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[DaKrazy1]

So, in a previous thread I asked around about Lunesta and experiences with the drug. Since it did nothing for me, my doc put me on Ambien.

He told me to take 10 mg the 1st night, and if that didn't work, I should take 20 mg the 2nd night, and finally if that didn't work I should take 30 mg at the most. So now I've been taking 30 mg for several days and it takes me about 5 hours to fall asleep after taking the pills. Essentially they are useless.

But from I have been reading the maximum dosage for Ambien is 10 mg and I'm taking 30. I do trust my doctor, but I am confused. I'll call him on Monday and ask if it is really safe. He told me to be patient with Ambien, but it just does not work.


I would like some suggestions from others with sleep problems that have had medications that have helped them fall asleep. So far I have taken Remeron, Lunesta, Trazodone, Seroquel (sp?). I'm on Lamictal and Klonopin.

[will]

So, in a previous thread I asked around about Lunesta and experiences with the drug. Since it did nothing for me, my doc put me on Ambien.

He told me to take 10 mg the 1st night, and if that didn't work, I should take 20 mg the 2nd night, and finally if that didn't work I should take 30 mg at the most. So now I've been taking 30 mg for several days and it takes me about 5 hours to fall asleep after taking the pills. Essentially they are useless.

But from I have been reading the maximum dosage for Ambien is 10 mg and I'm taking 30. I do trust my doctor, but I am confused. I'll call him on Monday and ask if it is really safe. He told me to be patient with Ambien, but it just does not work.


I would like some suggestions from others with sleep problems that have had medications that have helped them fall asleep. So far I have taken Remeron, Lunesta, Trazodone, Seroquel (sp?). I'm on Lamictal and Klonopin.

I take 10mg of ambien, but also 2mg of ativan a hour or so before the ambien, I've noticed the ambien by itself won't help me sleep. but last night (under doctors advice) I took 4mg of ativan and fell asleep without needing the ambien, and felt more rested. I had tried all the drugs you mentioned (except lunesta) but had side effects, and klonopin did nothing for me.
You probably know this, but the only thing with alot of the anxiety meds is over time your body can become tolerant to the dosage, I think this is ecspecially the case with the quicker shorter acting drugs like xanax and ativan, and to my knowledge all the benzos have to be tapered down, to prevent withdrawl reactions.

I'm not a doctor , just my personel experience.

will

[adorabelle]

hi dakrazy1,

i'm on ambienCR 6.25mg (now) ...and it knocks me out within 20 minutes.. it only lasts about 4-5 hrs during a good night, during a bad night it only lasts 2-3 hrs , it just depends. results are different for everybody. maybe you should talk to your doc about that it is not working for you, maybe you can ask him what you can do to get the full effect of the med...?

~adorabelle

[DaKrazy1]

Last night I took 30 mg of Ambien, along with my usual 1.5 mg of Klonopin. I was up for about 3-4 hours, and then I figured I should try to relax, so I went to bed with a good book. I feel asleep pretty fast. Later, when my husband went to bed an hour later, I actually asked him if I had fallen asleep. I guessed it worked.

I woke up at 10 this morning, so I got a good 10 hours of sleep, which was much needed. I'll try the same thing tonight, but with 20 mg's. Hopefully relaxing before bedtime is the key.

[Ocracoker16]

I am glad it finally worked as that amount would certainly knock me out for days. I think that trying 20 mgs is a good idea. Some people have reported hallucinations on 20 or more. As mentioned you may want to ask about Ambien CR. It has two layers, one to put you to sleep and another to keep you asleep. I personally am having success with 12 mgs Ambien CR.

Katie

[cinnamona666]

30mg sounds like so much..im wondering whether it could have a stimulation effect if given in too high dosages?? like i remember when i took 8 benadrylls and my entire torso was wiggling all night like it was possessed by the devil.

my mom and i cut ambien in half.. (5mg) and that works. seroquel is known to be sedating as a night med, but its sleepy effects might wear off.

im wondering whether you should get a second opinion. do you get restless leg (leg cant stop moving..the treatment for that is different).. have you ever tried homeopathic interventions? meditation? acupuncture? etc.

take care <3

[shabur]

I, too, would suggest talking to your doctor about Ambien CR. As the commercial says, the first layer puts you to sleep and the second layer keeps you asleep. I have tried regular Ambien, Klonopin, etc. The only thing that works halfway decently is the Ambien CR. However, I take 25mgs which is twice the FDA recommendation. But, this gets me about 6 hours, which is 6 hours more than I was getting.

You do have to be careful with this dosage. You can be groggy in the morning and in combination with my other meds, I have muscle jerks and brain zaps. I am willing to live with these as long as I can get some sleep. My doctor suggested getting through the winter before decreasing any of my meds.

I have found that relaxing before has helped; some guided meditation or yoga nidra (guided relaxation). I can make some suggestions if you are interested.

Sleep well.

[surgeon2006]

Great to hear the ambien in helping with the sleep, hopefully things will continue this way for you. Let us know how your getting on anyway.

Take care,
SO6

[marybon]

So, in a previous thread I asked around about Lunesta and experiences with the drug. Since it did nothing for me, my doc put me on Ambien.

He told me to take 10 mg the 1st night, and if that didn't work, I should take 20 mg the 2nd night, and finally if that didn't work I should take 30 mg at the most. So now I've been taking 30 mg for several days and it takes me about 5 hours to fall asleep after taking the pills. Essentially they are useless.

But from I have been reading the maximum dosage for Ambien is 10 mg and I'm taking 30. I do trust my doctor, but I am confused. I'll call him on Monday and ask if it is really safe. He told me to be patient with Ambien, but it just does not work.


I would like some suggestions from others with sleep problems that have had medications that have helped them fall asleep. So far I have taken Remeron, Lunesta, Trazodone, Seroquel (sp?). I'm on Lamictal and Klonopin.

[zombie]

I think 30mg is way too much to start out on! The max dose, like you said, is 10mg. I've been taking it for the last 18 months and never needed more than 10mg. I've known a couple of people who took 30-40mg, but that was only after years of use.

[DaKrazy1]

Well, I have decided to give Ambien a rest and tonight I'll try melatonin. Maybe I'm just focusing too much on the lack of sleep then the fact that my depression is getting much better (that you Lamictal) and so are my anxieties. The only thing with my lack of sleep is that I get aggressive. Although I would never hurt anyone, as soon as I walk out the door people irritate me and I want to yell and slap everyone. But my doc told me that could be because that lack of sleep. I just feel like giving up on trying getting a good night sleep and just live with it for now.

[surgeon2006]

It takes time to find the meds, or the med combo thats going to work beneficially for you..but when it happens you know your fight and stress has been well worth it.

Keep talking with your doc, close communication is always important during this time.

Take care,
SO6

[number1usjoe]

It takes time to find the meds, or the med combo thats going to work beneficially for you..but when it happens you know your fight and stress has been well worth it.

Keep talking with your doc, close communication is always important during this time.

Take care,
SO6

I take 10 mg and sometimes it takes an hr to fall asleep. Dont sleep with tv or lights on.

I have long time insomnia.

I have taken all the above mentioned meds and ambien is my fav.

U can build a tolerance to it so when that happens I use 2 tylenol pms.

It doesnt knock u out in 20 min some people it does but most people like me and u who have chronic insomnia it takes time. I have had some luck with melotonin. I feel 20 or 30 mg of ambien is waste I heard people use it to halucinate but I wouldnt waste my meds like that there will be night where u have none and its to early for doc to write new prescript.

I start my sleeping ritual early so that hrs pass and then I sleep I take ambien at 7pm and around 9pm lie down to really give it a try and it works most times. If you force yourself to stay up it will lose its effect.

Good luck.

[DaKrazy1]

I gave up on Ambien since 30 mg did nada for me and after reading articels about dependency. It's bad enough that I have been on Klonopin for 2.5 years, I don't need another drug like that. I have so many different sleeping pills in my cabinet, I could open up a pharmacy. Although I have insurance, I hate to pay for meds that I'm trying for the first time just to toss them in the garbage because they don't work.

I suppose another call to the doc is in the future, but now I just feel like a addict that's begging for pills and the thought of calling him AGAIN makes me anxious.

[caddon]

Hope some of this helps....

I took ambien for about 5 years, 10mg at night. I often found it had the opposite effect, so I would increase the dose all the way up to 50mg, and still no reliefe. When it DID work, i would find myself sleep walking all the time, and the nightmares were terrible. I took myself off of it, and currently do not take any sleep medication and have no plans to go back to one. I am lucky though, I work my own hours when I please and if I dont feel like working, its no big deal.

Ambien does effect people differently, and your experiences, and those posted are truthfully a good cross section of feedback. The experiences are pretty common, ambien is NOT the wonder drug everyone hoped it would be. Its really not for daily use as you can not only become dependent on it, but because a tolerance will develope and the lower doses will no longer be effective.

Have you considered takeing two bendryl tablets? They contain diphenhydramine (pardon my spelling) which is a common sleep aid in most over the counter meds, its been more effective for me to help me relax and let sleep take over, anyhow, its a thought you might want to entertain. It has minimal side effects and no morning hangover feeling too.

Anyhow, hope some of this helps, keep us posted, i am curious to see the docs next reccomendation to you.

James

[kevin081967]

So, in a previous thread I asked around about Lunesta and experiences with the drug. Since it did nothing for me, my doc put me on Ambien.

He told me to take 10 mg the 1st night, and if that didn't work, I should take 20 mg the 2nd night, and finally if that didn't work I should take 30 mg at the most. So now I've been taking 30 mg for several days and it takes me about 5 hours to fall asleep after taking the pills. Essentially they are useless.

But from I have been reading the maximum dosage for Ambien is 10 mg and I'm taking 30. I do trust my doctor, but I am confused. I'll call him on Monday and ask if it is really safe. He told me to be patient with Ambien, but it just does not work.


I would like some suggestions from others with sleep problems that have had medications that have helped them fall asleep. So far I have taken Remeron, Lunesta, Trazodone, Seroquel (sp?). I'm on Lamictal and Klonopin.

Clonidine the blood pressure med. not clonipin the benzo. helps me but I still take 20 of ambien with it sometimes. I take 3 tabs that are .01 mgs each. Not being able to sleep is really hard I live it every day so I know your pain.

[RedDragonV09]

What a lot of you may not realize is that ambien will not put to to sleep. You will stay awake in an alterd state until it either wears off or you find a position you can sleep in. It is a matter of getting comfortable in a bed and closing your eyes. Or reading a book as another person did and sugested. I take 20mg and it works fine, but I feel like im building a tolerance to it. The sleep is not full anymore and i wake up constantly but quickly go back to sleep. I can actually remember everything that is going on around me while I am on ambien. Im going to ask the doc if 30mg would be too high. If he says too high then i can deal with 20mg.