Ambien CR and hair loss

extreme hair loss

Significant hair loss has caused thinning around my face & entire hair line. Within weeks of taking Ambien CR... Woke up daily with headaches, mood changes, depression.....

I am a licensed NYS Cosmetologist. I know what is normal hair loss & what is not. It started with itching on my whole scalp, there was a lot of white greasy almost dandruff substance on my scalp. It didn't flake off like normal dandruff though. Then I noticed my hairline was not what it would normally be. Each time I brushed my hair the brush was filled with more hair daily... I stopped taking the Ambien CR, the itch went away almost immediately & so did the hair loss. I thought I'd give it one more try & took 1 pill one night. The next day the itch came back, so did the white greasy substance on my scalp & my hair started to fall out again.......... Went to my Dr told her what was going on & she didn't even blink, just asked if I wanted something else for sleep. I said no thank you not after this experience. Went back on Advil PM, not sleeping as well as I was, but at least my hair isn't falling out any more. Just keep hoping it will grow back in, has anyone had their hair grow back???

I am 32 years old. For years I have suffered with insomnia. I finally decided to do something about it and get a prescription because I was tired of always being tired in the daytime and not sleeping well at night. Well almost 3 weeks ago I was prescribed with Ambien CR. That 3rd week of taking Ambien I noticed significant hair loss behind my right ear. I now have a bald spot the size of 2 quarters. My hair is continuing to fall out still today and that spot is now enlarging. I made an appointment to my physician and she claimed Ambien has no side effect of hair loss. Strange thing is, I have never experienced any side effect that Ambien reads on the prescription paper from the pharmacist and the pharmacist claims hair loss isn’t a side effect found in research. My memory is well collected and usually when I would take the Ambien CR I would wake up feeling great. Now taking the Ambien allowed me to sleep well relaxed but with 4 hours max and I would wake well alert to start the day. Those 4 hours of rest did feel like an 8-hour rest. So that was the only downfall with sleep using Ambien CR is that I was sleeping enough hours like I should have been. My physician now claims I have Alopecia Aerate because significant hair loss has caused baldness on my head. Blood work was tested for various diagnoses of illnesses and my results came back clear. She referred me to a dermatologist next week to seek help if it's possible for hair growth while I still take Rogain. I find it quit amazing that with in a few weeks of taking Ambien CR that I have experienced patches of baldness. I did stop taking Ambien CR because I strongly believe this Ambien CR is the cause of my hair loses. Me losing my hair have caused me to become depressed. I am very worried and scared that I may loss more hair and that the bald spot will continue to grow larger with extensive hair loss because I took Ambien CR before. I just know that this drug is the cause of my hair loss. I pray that with dermatology help that my hair will stop falling out and grow back. I DO believe hair loss is my side effect of Ambien CR since I experienced no other side effect of this drug.

Started taking Ambien CR about 2 1/2 months ago- started at 6.25 mg, then increase to 12.5 (double the dose). I have always had thick luxurious hair and within the past 3 weeks have noticed significant hair loss, almost as if I was on Chemo. The first day I noticed I was in the shower washing my hair and I heard someone screaming, only to realize that the screams were coming from me. My hair was falling out in pelts! Thick plugs of hair were all over my tub, so much so you could have made a wig from it. Now my hair has thinned so much and continues to fill my bathroom waste basket and brushes, that I have been looking into wigs! I am a 45 yr old female and have never had this happen. My MD says it could be stress related, I told him it must be now because there isn't a morning that goes by that this isn't stressing me out and is putting me in tears constantly. Has anyone ever had this side effect before?
DRC

I was taking Ambien CR for almost a year. Until I stopped taking it I didn't realize all the side effects I was suffering. I was taking almost every night. I started getting yeast infections about a month after I started taking it. They continued every single month for the next 7 months, sometimes twice in one month. It got to the point that OTC meds were not curing it. The doctor prescribed a med for it and it still didn't help. I have been trying to figure out excatly what behavior (eg:diet, laundry soap) I had changed in the last year when it dawned on me. They started around the time I started taking Ambien CR. I started researching side effects of Ambien CR and in the very very fine print it lists Vaginitis. There it is. Somewhere I read that only .01% of women suffer this side effect, figures it would be me. I stopped taking Ambien immediately, the yeast infection that I was getting started to go away on its own. I bought an OTC med to help it go away and I feel great! Haven't had another one since.

Other side effects that I noticed after I stopped taking it were headaches, short tempered, confusion, short-term memory loss, hair loss. I haven't had a headache since the last day I took Ambien CR. I had absolutely no patience while I was taking it. I would lose my temper in a flash. I haven't felt as angry since I stopped taking it. I didn't realize how crappy I was feeling every day until I stopped taking it.

I think Ambien might be okay for occasional use but not every night like I was taking it.