I used Ambien for 8 years! I have been off for one, unfortunately I switched to clonazepam (klonopin) when I went off Ambien.........Both have withdrawals as both are related. Either one will substitute for the other. Benzos and Z drugs.

Do a search on benzodiazepine withdrawal. Ambien is a Z drug, as are the other sleep meds. They destroy your natural ability to sleep. Now, off drugs, my body is having to learn to sleep, really sleep, on its own.

I am disgusted that doctors are handing out a lot of the meds they are.....I take responsibility for using them and asking for them, but, if I had to do it all again, I would not touch the stuff.

Every body is unique. We do best to work with nature.

We are somehow brainwashed that Pharma has all the answers. It doesn't. I think a lot of suffering is caused by these meds. That said, we seldom listen to those who tell us this. I didn't listen.

Wait til you try to get off that crap!

I was afraid I would get addicted to Lunesta, if I stayed with it, but the side effects were too much for me. I have enough trouble with my stomach, I don't need a med to cause more. Besides, it didn't help. He wanted me to take Ambien CR, but it isn't gluten free, so Lunesta was his 2nd choice. Then we tried Sonata, and it did the same thing to my stomach.

I feel much better with melatonin. Is it addictive? I don't know. I don't feel I need it, I just feel it helps so I stay with it. I have taken 6mg per night for maybe 6 months now, never increased it.

There are many meds they tell you are not addictive, yet you can't go without them...so where does addiction come in????

It's just so hard to know the best thing to do sometimes...I know that lots of pharmaceuticals are bad, but then again, some of them seem to be helpful, and some even life-saving. So I don't want to be a dupe of Big Pharma, but neither do I want to throw the baby out with the bath water.

I do value everyone's experience here and I will take all of your viewpoints into consideration.

The problem I have with not taking Ambien at least for now is that it does more than help me just sleep: it seems to calm down my P/N so that I can even tolerate the bedsheets on my feet, even when I'm awake. I wish I could just have that part of it. I think I wouldn't even need a sleeping med if I could only make the feet stop hurting.

Deb

We had this same discussion on another thread.

Physcial dependence on a drug is different than addiction. We become physically dependent on many drugs.....antihistamines for example....get dependent on those and if you don't use them you have massive stuffy nose, and rebound congestion. Most people can't stand the physical symptoms of not having a drug, or they think that their symptoms are from disease, and they feel they need to take the pill. That is physical dependence.

You can't take a psych or pain med for long before you have physical dependence.

Addiction is when you use meds other than ordered by your doc, or use them recreationally....or, use them for reasons other than prescribed.

You can be physically dependent but not addicted....that said, getting off the drugs produces the same withdrawal. The physically dependent person probably won't be attached emotionally to the drug...they feel awful and want off. The addict however, is attached to how the drug emotionally feels, so they have an additional burden, so to speak.

I think it is a fine line. I guess every one has to sort this out for themselves. You can have good reasons why you need meds, severe pain, severe autonomic symptoms, etc. however, the thing that I did not realize is how much the meds contribute to the problem, and how hard the physical withdrawal is.

I am two weeks out from using clonazepam and still sicker than a dog. Yes, I have physical illness, in addition to physical injuries, and have a good reason to use meds, however, I felt I was experiencing tolerance.

It is a personal choice. Addiction or adaptation, matters little when you have to go thru physical withdrawal. Ugh. It will take months to years, to feel half way normal, if there is such a thing for me. I am not willing to live my life on this drug.....nor to die early from it.