Because of a couple tragedies that ocurred in my life, I was unab...

I too began taking ambien because I could not sleep. It had actually been a matter of years since I had any more than three hours of sleep. When taking the ambien, I would wake feeling fully rested. The side effects have changed my life forever. One morning I woke up to get ready for work only to see the person in the mirror looked like she had a nose job! My eyes were black and blue, my nose was so swollen. I had no idea how it occurred. I have many times of memory loss. It saddens me that I can not recall many precious times in life with my children. I have been driving for 20+ years with absolutely no tickets, no violations on my record. I now have a DWI. I had gotten up, dressed for work, taken my two boys to school, and headed to my own destination. The next thing I knew it was late at night and I was in jail. I only know what was told to me. Scary. It is really scary to know that a drug manufacturer can make this and sell this knowing what the possible side effects are. I think ambien needs to be pulled from the shelves never to be replaced. My life will never be the same. I can not drive until January 2010. Then I will only be able to drive if I have paid the Texas Surcharge. approx. $6,000. plus. I had hoped that my driving record would have helped but it didn't even matter. All I wanted was a little sleep. What I got is a nightmare that I relive every day. Trying to piece together the blanks in my memory, relying on my 19yrold to drive me around and feeling sorry for my husband, at the same time praying he never gets tired of "taking care of me" and my problems.

I drove, too, once, and my doctor got very upset. I also have eaten at times after i have taken my meds and made phone calls, etexted people and have generally just been out of it. I also take rozeram, lexapro, and remeron to help me sleep. I take this every night. People have to be very careful with ambien, it can really cause problems. My one worry is that I did something I DON'T remember while taking it and though i don't think so, it is a little frightening.