Ambien is hardly addictive. According to the DEA, it is a Schedule IV controlled substance. Compared to I, II, and III, this is not addictive at all. However, there is a danger to using it for a long time. Zolpidem was only designed to treat a patient with common insomnia for only 14 days. If you exceed that and use it longer, addiction is a possibility. This article will discuss Ambien Addiction and Recovery.
Related: Ambien- A General Description
Ambien Addiction- How does it Start?
If a patient follows his/her doctor’s advice, no matter what, the treatment should stop and the doctor needs to reevaluate his/her patient before continuing with the treatment. There are also cases where the doctor will advise only to take Ambien when the patient can’t sleep.
If there are nights when the patient can sleep on his/her own, there’s no need to take sleeping pills. Therefore, addiction can be avoided. However, things are not always as they appear.
Some find Ambien to be pleasurable. After taking the medication, there is a nice and light feeling. Eyes become heavy and the patient goes to sleep easily and happily. It’s that happiness that may cause addiction.
Most patients who find Ambien pleasurable have the tendency to seek it even when they don’t need it. Additionally, if you can overcome the initial sleepiness and manage to stay awake for a while, you will feel high.
Furthermore, the internet has made it easy to buy Ambien online without prescriptions. A seeker may find it easy just to order it online. And when you have an unlimited supply, why stop? This is how Ambien Addiction starts.
Related: Ambien Side Effects
How do you know you are addicted to Ambien?
There are several signs.
- You are looking to buy Ambien online even if you don’t have a prescription.
- You get anxious, have an anxiety attack, or panic attacks when your supply is low.
- You don’t tell anyone in the family and you hide the medications.
- You can sleep without it but you take it anyway.
- You feel some uncomfortable physical symptoms when you try to stop using.
Those are the tell-tale signs that you are addicted to Ambien.
What to do next?
First of all, there is no shame in addiction. As a matter of fact, we are a strong proponent for addicted people to come forward. The biggest problem is actually created by society that criminalizes addiction.
That’s probably the reason why people suffering from addiction to different substances don’t open up and don’t get the help they need. Hiding your addiction is the worst possible thing you can do.
The Recovery Process for Ambien Addiction
We shall discuss the steps of the recovery process, but they don’t have to be followed step by step. You can find the one you can start with right now and start. It’s really important to start somewhere right now.
- Seek Help:Don’t be shy. You are okay and not a criminal. It’s perfectly alright to get addicted. It’s just not okay to continue. Treat addiction just like any other medical issue like diabetes. You can start by letting a few key people you know and trust- family members and close friends.
- Join Support Groups: Support groups help immensely. These are people with experiences similar to yours and they can help guide you through these difficult times. In turn, you can also help the newcomers through your experience.
- Rehabilitation:A rehab is where the process is supervised by medical professionals. A rehab has medical facilities to chemically flush out the substance you are addicted to. It also has personal counseling and group support sessions.
- Chemical Flush: Carefully administered by a medical professional, a chemical flush is a process where the substance and its residue are flushed out of the system. It’s only necessary if the patient is severely addicted and has strong withdrawal symptoms.
- Placebos:Placebo is the wonder of the mind. If the mind believes it, the medication works. In this system, the patient is not immediately taken off the substance he/she is addicted to. They are administered on a regular basis and suddenly substituted with nothing but sugar pills or water. The patient is let know later that he/she is no longer addicted.
CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy): This can be done before, during, and after addiction. As a matter of fact, CBT should be a part of the treatment when any addictive medication is used to treat anything. So if you are being treated for Insomnia with Ambien, CBT should start as well so that you don’t get addicted, to begin with.
The Takeaways
Now that you have learned the steps to recover from Ambien addiction, you should start with whichever is available to you first. Take any of the steps above now before things get serious. Happy recovering.
Related: Where to buy Ambien online