Ambien sleep driving problems

16 Responses to:

“Ambien sleep driving problems”

1. KATHY KAMER Says:
   April 25th, 2007 at 7:13 am

   I TOOK AMBIEN AND I DON’T THINK I SLEPT. I CALLED FAMILY MEMBERS ALL HOURS OF THE NIGHT AND HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH THEM THAT I DIDN’T REMEMBER AT ALL. I WOULD EAT AND THE ONLY REASON I KNEW I DID WAS THE MESS IN THE KITCHEN AND THE FOOD ON MY NIGHT CLOTHES. AND I QUIT TAKING THEM WORRYING THAT I MIGHT GET IN MY CAR AND DRIVE AND KILL MYSELF OR SOMEBODY ELSE. I TOLD MY DR NOT TO EVER GIVE THOSE TO ME ANYMORE. AT THE DR OFFICE I TOLD THEM TO NEVER GIVE ME AMBIEN AGAIN. IF I WAS UP ALL HOURS OF THE NIGHT TALKING AND EATING I SURELY WASN’T GETTING RESTFUL SLEEP. I SHOULD SUE FOR THE WEIGHT GAIN.(HA) THIS MED SURELY NEEDS MORE STUDY.

2. Josie Sherman Says:
   July 27th, 2007 at 7:48 pm

   Ambien can have wierd effects, but using it as a defense can be dangerous. The government needs to impose stricter regulations on sleeping pills such as Ambien, Lunesta etc.

3. Michael Rahenkamp Says:
   December 12th, 2007 at 11:15 am

   On Sunday afternoon, October 7, 2001, three days before my divorce, I became extremely distraught after talking with my now ex-wife. Concerned that I might do something rash I took 2 10mg tablets of Ambien. I lay down in my bed to go to sleep. But when I awoke, I found myself in the emergency room. I discovered that I had left my bed and driven to my ex-wife’s apartment to see my son. When I left her apartment I collided with a planter in the complexes drive. She said that she tried unsuccessfully to stop me from leaving. When I awoke in the ER, I had just fleeting recollections of seeing my son, but thought that these recollections were just dreams. Fortunately, no one was hurt. I have not nor will I again take this drug to sleep.

4. Joe Gold Says:
   December 15th, 2007 at 1:35 pm

   I took my prescribed ambien, “woke up” and hour earlier then I usually do to go to work, got dressed (putting shoes on without socks) and drove to work. I was at work for 2 hours (apparently acting really weird), when my coworkers said that I suddenly got up without saying anything to anyone went and got back in my car and started to drive. Where I was going was anyone guess. That was at 9am when I left work at 10:30am I woke up for real when I rear ended a moving vehicle and totaled my car. I have absolutely no memory of anything that happened after I took the ambien the previous night until I hit the car. I have had 1 other previous incident with ambien where i got up in the middle of the night an cooked a feast and then went back to bed and had no memory of it when i got up. The sleep driving incident is really scary.

5. Heidi Says:
   March 26th, 2008 at 3:01 pm

   I had been prescribed Amien to start with and then ambien CR after longterm use on ambien was no longer effective. I had been on medical leave for a little over a year being treated by both Ortho and remuntology Doctors. Both overmedicating me leading to more medical problems in lack of diagnosing and treating the initial problem. I was stuck in medical leave limbo for so long I lost my job & along with it medical benefits. I could not afford independant medical coverage, My doctors wouldn’t treat me without it, yet they continued to provide me medication via phone scripts and then one afternoon My mother took my three year old to mcdonalds to allow me to rest. My daughter had just recovered from a two week strecth of strep throat. Then I became sick assuming I had the same I felt horrible so I took my ambien cr and layed down to sleep. Or so I believed, untill I awoke in the Emergency Room of a hospital being told I was drinking and driving. I was told I was in need of a difficult sergury that could result in losing my right leg. The E.R. nurse harrased me calling me names saying I would lose my daughter and my freedom, and any hopes of finishing nursing school. She openly discussed my private medical information with anyone who inquired without my consent, Breaching my rights protected under the HIPPA law was the furtherest thing on her mind. When my tox screen came back from the lab it proved in fact that I had no alcohol in my blood at all, Negative for all but the sedative. It took me days to realize what was really happening to me. I was kept in what is called a twilight sleep. Basically it’s like a drug induced coma to keep me aleep used in outpatient surgery and simple proceedures where anesthesia could be avoided. So I don’t know looking back it’s hard to believe how many times this could have been avoided. I feel violated by the entire Medical sytem. A system I have spent eighteen years working in. Believing in, having blind faith that the medical providers I am intrusting with my life, all share the same high morals and ethics. That they each swore to uphold the day they recieved the powerfull thing they hang on their wall call a Medical Degree to treat patietnts to the best of their abliity in the, behaving within the code of ethics. I believe patients are to often treated like caltte, and office visits become a ching ching billable insurance fee. A sort of blinding ability distracting those possibly overloaded already. that is a sad crime that continues to be committed over &over unfortunetly for me it was tragically harmfull and damageing to my life and the quality of life I have to learn each day how to live with. I like to think I’ve suffered the worst. But the bitter bug always bites me at some point of the day to remind me that it could have been avoided so many times over. Never once have I even been apoligized instead the first hopital continues to bill me and damage my credit, keep in mind I worked for Emory health care and emory adventis refussed to treat me with no insurance. after four days kicked me out kindly donate a wheel chair seeing how my leg was literally crush. I’ve learned that it doesn’t matter how long or hard you worked to help others and make a difference when your down and out the system kicks you. The list is endless of those whom I feel violated me. Yet I remain permenatly hadicaped and branded with DUI of Perscription drugs. Somrthingh is seriously wrong here!!!!!!

6. Michael Says:
   October 26th, 2008 at 1:44 pm

   I have been seen at the VA Hospital for insomnia and depression. I was prescribed medications from the VA Hospital’s doctors for both conditions. For the insomnia, I was prescribed Ambien. I had been taking one 10 mg tablet before going to bed. I was told by Carol, Whom I live with, that sometimes I would get up and I can go into the refrigerator and eat food and sometimes take food into bed not even know that I did it. It was then I decided to try to get off of the Ambien and cut the dosage to 5mg tablets. I was having a tough time with the process of weening myself off of this medication for sleep. Some nights I was able to take 5mg, and others I would take 10mg. My doctors were aware of everything. All I was trying to do was not get addicted to the Ambien. This is when this situation happened. 9/17/2007. That evening I went to bed as usual and that’s all I remember. I took the Ambien, I remember watching a little television, and the next thing you know how is in jail. I don’t remember anything. There are certain things that I do recall, but they hazy short bleeps that don’t make any sense, at least to me. I don’t remember getting out of bed, or eating or drinking, into my car, driving, getting beaten up, or anything that had to do with the police. I sort of remember someone telling me what happened. I could barely make out who it was. He kept repeating to me that I hit the guardrail, and that I almost broke someone’s nose. I don’t really remember too much else. It all is hazy. By the time I realized where I was; I could hardly walk, or stand. I was in a lot of pain, and still hazy. I could see that there was a telephone on the wall. I made a call to Carol, who I live with, to let her know where I was and to call my boss to say that I would not be in that morning. I did not realize that I would be in jail for 4 days. All the while in jail, I was still in pain, bleeding and hazy, trying to remember what happened. My body was so beaten, that even 4 days after, I could hardly walk. The bruises scraped and cuts on my body, and don’t forget the pain, clearly show that I was mishandled. I really feel that Police Negligence is evident. And as the jury was deliberating at my trial, even they expressed their concerns of why such force was used. After getting bailed out of jail, I went to the VA Hospital to have a complete x-ray and document what happened. I then took photos of my body to show what the results of what happened 4 days earlier were. What I can tell you is that I do not remember anything. I took my Ambien as prescribed. I went to bed, as I usually do, so that I can get up and go to work, where I held a position as a Property Management Specialist, which I have lost due to this situation. Whatever happened after I went to bed, I do not remember. That is the God’s Honest Truth! I went to bed around 9ish, which means somewhere around 9pm. The DA used that against me when closing to the jury. I don’t remember anything until 7ish the next morning, and hazy at best of my recollection.

7. Devin Dove Says:
   November 6th, 2008 at 3:43 am

   AMBIENOUTRAGE.COM
   My name is Devin. After sleep driving and crashing on Ambien, I was given a DUI. I’ve started an Ambien victims database. If you’ve been injured in anyway by Ambien please contact me: devindove@yahoo.com, or go to the website http://www.ambienoutrage.com.

8. Nicole Says:
   December 18th, 2008 at 6:18 pm

   I was prescribed Ambien on 10/2/08. I filled said prescription on 10/3. I took it before bed as prescribed. I woke up, on 10/4, in jail. I had gotten up, dressed, and driven in my sleep. I hit a person walking as well as another vehicle. I am now up to my ears in lawyer bills.

9. jim Says:
   December 21st, 2008 at 9:15 pm

   at first the full nights sleep was great. then after a month i woke up started having sex with my wife on regular basis and not even knowing it until she told me later. she said it was fine. but about dec,16,2008 i woke up in the middle of the night grabbed a knife cut my thumb to the bone,yelling and cursing at my wife, cops were called and came and intervened, thank god. I have guns in the house. this drug AMBIEN and others like it scare the S… out of me. never again I never even felt the knife.

10. Gregory Says:
    December 30th, 2008 at 4:40 pm

    I was involved with Ambiren CR and sleep drove. I crashed into a mobile home in my trailer park and was charged with criminal intent
    DUI / DRUGS. I took the medicine, went to sleep, and got into my car without even knowing it. My career is in jeopardy as well as any reputation I might have had. The day after I bailed out of jail, I called my doctor. (He had prescribed it the very day of the accident… I wrecked that night) He said he didn’t want to get involved.

11. JGS Says:
    February 14th, 2009 at 4:30 pm

    My daughter-in-law’s best friend’s brother died this week. Here is what I know. Laura, who is pregnant and whose husband was out of town on business, had her brother spending the night at her house. Her brother was on Ambien as a sleep aide. Well, Monday night/Tuesday morning, Laura heard her brother walking around the house. It was around 2:00 AM. She heard a door close and then she heard her car start. She looked out the window and saw her brother, Billy, driving her car as it left the driveway. Laura called her husband and asked him what should she do. Should she call the police and report her car missing/stolen or what? Billy has never done anything like that before. Laura’s husband told her she was overreacting and not to worry. Billy probably went out for something. As time passed, Laura’s anxiety grew. Long story short, three hours after Billy left the house, there was a knock on the door – it was the police. Laura was told that her car had been in an accident. She informed the police that her brother had taken her car – they told her that he didn’t make it. She asked where was he – her mind was not comprehending that Billy was dead. He was in his pajamas and was not wearing his seatbelt. He hit a neighbor’s mailbox as he drove down the road. I believe the car flipped over. He was 39 yrs. old. He was not married. Who’s to say he didn’t sleep drive before but living alone and with no memory of it, who would know. He probably never knew. This drug should be taken off the market. I believe that drug is what killed him.

12. kenneth Says:
    April 5th, 2009 at 8:58 am

    On March 27, 2009 my brother Johnny was killed in a head on crash, while sleep driving on Ambien. According to my Mom, he had gone to bed early, but she heard him in the kitchen later that night. She went back to sleep, and didn’t hear him get in his van and leave. An hour later he and a 15 year old girl in the other car, were dead, along with 2 others seriously injured. Mom says he’d been taking Ambien to sleep for about 2 years, and this was not the first time he had gotten behind the wheel while “asleep”. My wife is an RN, and she says it should be taken off the market.

13. John Says:
    June 29th, 2009 at 8:55 pm

    i was taking ambien after i got diagnosed with ptsd after a tour of combat in fallujiah. I one day was i guess sleep driving or was blackout becuse i stole from a store on base and i have no recolection of doin it. I know am facing a court marshall and am goin to lose all my benefits and retirement for my injuries sustained while over sees.

14. CAROLE Says:
    July 12th, 2009 at 11:53 pm

    AMBIEAN CR DESTROYED MY LIFE

15. Jim W Says:
    July 26th, 2009 at 4:43 pm

    I, too, have recently had two very worrisome “sleep-acting” events that have led me to decide to never, ever again take Ambien. I will preface my statement here with the following: I am bipolar and after many years of therapy with mental-health professionals that were not a good fit for me, I now have a wonderfully skilled, caring, and compassionate Psychiatrist who has been treating me for a little over one year and I have no intention suing her. I have reported the following two incidents to my Psychiatrist and as mentioned, I have stopped taking Ambien and will never again take Ambien.

    I do however feel it’s important that I add my honest experiences to this discussion as I’m now finding that there are so many out there who have suffered a great deal from this horrid drug. In fact, in reading the other folks comments here and on other similar sites I see that many have suffered far more than I have. If adding my experience in any way helps, then I am compelled to add to the collective effort.

    I had, for a little over 6 months, been taking 1-10mg Ambien each night to help me get to sleep, and also to help me stay asleep throughout the night. Everything was fine until about 1 month ago, when I had two different “sleep acting” events that, when I finally realized what was happening, really disturbed me. I have almost no recollection of either event, which really worries me. One morning I awoke to find marinara sauce and cooked rigatoni in my bed. I bolted out of bed and looked in the sink (I live in a small studio apt) and saw a pile of dirty dishes, as well as more marinara sauce and cooked rigatoni.

    As I also drink Vodka most every night (and I know one should not drink alcohol with Ambien and most every other prescription drug), I wrote-off the “rigatoni event” as a drunken late night food binge. However, I could not write-off the second, Ambien-induced sleep driving event. I have only the faintest recollection of this event in that I seem to recall thinking or saying to myself in my dreams that night “I shouldn’t be driving”. Other than that, I recall nothing of that night. The next day I got in my car and as I was starting my car I had an odd feeling that something was wrong. Then when I started to pull out of the parking space I was in I realized that something indeed was wrong — I had totally destroyed the steel rim and shredded the tire on the front passenger side of my car. There is no other damage to the car other than the tire and rim, so I’m both thankful that and praying so that I did not injure anyone. As I found a trail of tire-bits on the street leading to my car, I’m thinking that I hit a curb, blew the tire, and then drove in x-amount of distance to my home, which I parked right behind.

    I will tell you that I am recoiling in great angst and significant embarrassment as I describe these events here. I strongly fee that Ambien is a very, very dangerous drug and it should be pulled off the market immediately.

16. Otie Says:
    October 27th, 2009 at 2:01 pm

    Last april I took an ambien and the next thing I can recall is waking up in an Atlana area jail. Appearantly I had gotten in my car, crashed into 2 innocent peoples vehicles, hit an iron gate, crossed 4 lanes of traffic and drove off down the sidewalk, at some point I ended up in a median,stopped and asleep remembering absolutely nothing….. I am not one for evading responsibility, but at no point did ‘i cognitavely choose to violate the law, fortunately my attorney was able to get the hit and run and DUI drugs dropped to a wreckless driving……iI post this to warn anyone who is researching prior to taking ambien, to run like hell, if not you risk it all.

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