I
thought the fact that I awoke last night at 3 AM and wolfed down a handful of fresh Hungarian pork rinds while reading
my e-mail was bad. At least I remember my late-night fatfest. The New York Times reports that some users of the popular sleeping pill Ambien experience nocturnal cravings for food that cause them to sleepwalk into their kitchens and scarf down so much food that one woman gained 100 pounds before she was properly diagnosed.
My twisted sensibilities tempt to me compare this phenomenon to The Honeymooners episode where Norton eats a banana while sleepwalking, but it's really no laughing matter. Not only is this side effect scary from a weight-gain standpoint, several people have risked injury by cooking for themselves while sleepwalking.
A fraking amazing Battlestar Galactica cake
Iced Tea 101
Pierogies + cheese + onions + kraut = Parmageddon!
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-15-2006 @ 9:32AM
Crosius said...
This sounds like a bad horror movie:
Megacorporation launches a pill to improve your quality of life...check
Pill becomes immensely popular...check
Pill has side effects...check
...that make you shamble around in a daze and feed your insatiable hunger...check
...for human flesh.
No check on that last one, Phew.
Reply
3-15-2006 @ 9:48AM
T. Allen said...
As with any Sleep AID!!! Ambien is meant to be used on a temporary basis. As in, not LONG-TERM. Many Dr's RX meds and allow patients to become dependent on the drugs, rather than trying to find an underlying cause. Such is the case with Ambien. It is not meant to be used as a long term medication. Sleeplessness is not a disease. It is a symptom of other problems, and many dr's are just too lazy to care about their patients welfare, and use drugs as the easy way out. Obviously, that will be changing in the case of Ambien. About time.
P.S. I used Ambien, briefly, without any adverse side effects. Note the word BRIEFLY.
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3-15-2006 @ 2:07PM
Tina said...
While on Ambian, my best friend made and entire lasagna and didn't know it until the next morning when she walked into the kitchen and found the dirty dishes all over the place, and the lasagna in the fridge. (AND IT WAS GOOD!)
Reply
3-16-2006 @ 4:34PM
Rachel said...
While I agree with T. Allen. I don't agree that all sleeping disorders, as manifestations of other conditions, are easily solved. Some people have conditions (such as borderline personality disorder) or other mental conditions that have been diagnosed and are being treated but the treatment can sometimes take years. Sure it is easier to take a pill but these people are extremely distraught and have many other issues to deal with. Therefore, I don't think that ALL doctors who prescribe sleep aids on a longer term basis are "lazy" and "don't care about the patient's welfare". Furthermore, ambien is a short term sleep aid because in most people it tends to lose its effectiveness after a period of time. Therefore, its therapeutic effects are no longer therapeutic. There are other medications that can be used longer term but in the case the ambien continues to work without having to increase the dose, then it can be used longer.
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