ambien side effects

I started taking ambien about 4 months ago. At first I noticed a tightness in my chest and a lump in my throat. I also experienced sinus drainage and a horrible taste in my mouth. I figured I must have some type of sinus problem so I went to an ENT, spent about $600.00 on prescribed medicine and over-the-counter meds. I wasn't taking the ambien every night and sometimes I would cut the 10mg into halves. Last month I started taking ambien again and began to experience horrible acid reflux, hot flashes, tightness in the chest, lump in the throat and more sinus problems. I read on-line that Ambien can cause the side effects I have mentioned. I immediately stopped taking the stuff. Within 24 hours, all of the above symptoms, with the exception of the acid reflux, went away. I already take Nexium for Gerds, but now I wonder if Ambien has caused more damage to my esophagus. Is this possible?