Go Easy Into That Dark Night

The New York Times has reported some concerning news stories, like this one, about the drug Ambien. It seems that there have been increased reports of people who have used Ambien getting into more traffic accidents. And the most recent report claims that people who use Ambien are sleep-eating. People are actually unaware that they are getting out of bed to snack while under the influence of their sedative. I can understand the no driving under Ambien problem. But guerilla snacking?

I have to say that I rely on Ambien occasionally to reboot so to speak when my sleep cycles get out of whack. That little white pill gets me to sleep fast (within 15 minutes) and generally keeps me there for at least six hours. Sometimes I use it on a long flight, when I have a string of overnight shifts at the hospital, or when the music in the club was just too good to go home before, say 7am. And I'm not the only one. Recently, on a transoceanic flight from Australia, I watched a young thirtysomething man pull out a 10 mg tab, split it in two, and give one half to his girlfriend. They placed it on their tongues at the same time, toasted each other by clinking their plastic water glasses, and then sent it down the hatch. Asleep in each other's arms, my friend Billy thought they looked cute. Personally, I thought the whole event looked like a suicide pact.

I can't say that I have ever heard of anyone who used Ambien to have a problem with somnambulaic eating binges. And I wonder if the process of putting oneself into deep REM sleep doesn't actually awaken their own personal issue. That it's not really the Ambien at all that makes the person eat, but rather the Ambien that allows a person to tap into a subconscious desire for food.

Something else doesn't make sense to me - the fact that these people on Ambien are leaving their beds, walking around the house, finding and preparing snacks, and then getting back in their beds now strewn with candy bar wrappers and Frito bags. C'mon. On occasion, I have awakened from my Ambien haze a bit early, usually with the need to pee. I have to tell you, that it is somewhat difficult to navigate to the bathroom much less the kitchen without holding on to walls. And I am very cognizant the next day as to what I did and where I did it. I can't imagine how these people are managing their way to the food aisle and back unharmed. But maybe that's the point of the articles - to show the inherent risks that Ambien can pose when all you really banked on is a good night's sleep.

I imagine that the bad press will undoubtedly harm the makers of Ambien. I, for one, will stick by the little white pill's side. Though I might have to buy stock in Lunesta.