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Share your experience: submit a drug review
Below are Ambien (Zolpidem) reviews, ratings, comments submitted by patients and caregivers. Based on a total of 25 ratings/reviews, Ambien has an overall score of 7.36. The effectiveness score is 7.92 and the side effect score is 7.28. The scores are on ten point scale: 10 - best, 1 - worst. This information is not vetted and should not be cosidered as clinical evidence. | | Ambien review by 55 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | |   |
| Effectiveness: | | Ineffective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | not sleeping |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10 mg taken 1 time per day for the period of 5 days |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | vitamins | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | there were no treatment benefits only bad side effects such as terrible nightmares, hyperventilating |
| Side effects: | | see above, terrible nightmares, hyperventilation upon waking from the nightmares |
| Comments: | | i was supposed to take the product every night in order to sleep. i stopped after 5 sleepless nights |
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| | Ambien review by 35 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | dont recall (dosage frequency: one prescription, every night until gone) for the period of approx 1 month |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | treated the insomnia effectively. |
| Side effects: | | morning residual effects, drowsiness. tendency for dependency. |
| Comments: | | take one as needed for insomnia. I took it every night. When it was gone, I discontinued use, as I felt that I was becoming dependent on this product. |
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| | Ambien review by 34 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 5 mg taken 7 nights for the period of 7 nights |
| Other conditions: | | depression |
| Other drugs taken: | | seasonale | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | I could fall asleep and was usually well rested. |
| Side effects: | | Sometimes still tired in the morning despite having slept. I think a drug hangover so to speak. |
| Comments: | | Taken as needed to sleep during a stressful situation. |
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| | Ambien review by 49 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | sleep |
| Dosage & duration: | | 1 mg taken 1 time at bedtime as needed for the period of 1.5 years |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | The drug was very effective in helping me to fall asleep, and to get a good night's sleep. |
| Side effects: | | After taking the drug for more than 2 nights in a row, I had a very difficult time sleeping without the medication on subsequent nights |
| Comments: | | Because of difficult nights without the drug after a few nights on the drug, I have sought out other sleep aid medications. |
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| | Ambien review by 40 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10MG taken nightly before bed for the period of over a year |
| Other conditions: | | Anxiety |
| Other drugs taken: | | None | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Helped to get a good nights sleep with no worry. Felt refreshed if slept a full 8 hrs. |
| Side effects: | | Vivid Dreams, sleep walking, blurred vision. |
| Comments: | | Take one tablet nightly before bed as needed and when you are sure that you will be getting at least 8hrs. sleep. Do not drive or operate machinery while taking this medication. Use care until you are familiar with effects. |
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| | Ambien review by 56 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Moderately Effective |
| Side effects: | | Moderate Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | sleeplessness |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10 mg taken 4-5x per week for the period of 4 years |
| Other conditions: | | RLS, high blood pressure, migraines |
| Other drugs taken: | | Lisinopril, fluoxetine, Relpax, elevil | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | More often than not, I was able to sleep for 3-4 hours of uninterrupted sleep. |
| Side effects: | | Restless leg syndrome may be aggravated if Ambien and elevil are taken at the same time. I stopped taking elevil for RLS on the nights I took ambien. Sometimes the RLS was still aggravated even though I did not take elevil.
Short term memory loss.
Binge eating at night. |
| Comments: | | Ambien, the brand name product seemed to work better than the generics. I only take the generic, zolpidem once in a while. I have asked my doctor to prescribe Ambien CR to see if it will be more effective. |
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| | Ambien review by 52 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | stress/insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 5mg taken a few times a month for the period of 6 months |
| Other conditions: | | pre-menopausal |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | sleep well |
| Side effects: | | a little groggy the next day---not much----just the first couple of times . |
| Comments: | | take once a night as needed for sleep. |
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| | Ambien review by 55 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | No Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10 mg taken 1 tablet at bedtime as needed for the period of 30 tablets lasted 1 year |
| Other conditions: | | arthritis + recovering from knee surgery |
| Other drugs taken: | | Tylenol | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | I had two arthroscopic surgeries to my right knee with little relief or benefit from the surgery. I was prescribed Ambien 10mg at bedtime as needed to help me sleep. On the nights I didn't take the medicine, I woke up all through the night. With the medicine, I slept well and soundly. |
| Side effects: | | The only side effect I recall, which was very minor, was a sluggish feeling, only if I didn't sleep for a minimum of 7 hours. This was only on one occassion. |
| Comments: | | Post surgery to my right knee I was in considerable pain, and suffered insomnia because of it. Ambien 10mg was prescribed as needed at bedtime. I took it nightly for the first 3 nights post surgery. On the 4th night, I didn't take it, and woke up all through the night. All in all I took the Ambien a total of 7 out of the first 10 days following the surgery. It helped me to sleep very soundly and the pain didn't interupt my sleep. I had no ill effects from it at all. I still have the remaining 20 tablets that were prescribed one year ago. |
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| | Ambien review by 46 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10mg taken once per night for the period of couple of weeks |
| Other conditions: | | anxiety |
| Other drugs taken: | | zoloft 100mg | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | helped me to fall asleep quickly |
| Side effects: | | sort of sleep walk issue. I was getting up in the middle of the night and eating. Not realizing this until the next morning when I saw the mess I made in the kitchen |
| Comments: | | I was taking 100mg ambien each night for approximatley 2 weeks. this was because I could not fall asleep. the Ambien was very effective |
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| | Ambien review by 43 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | No Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | restless sleep |
| Dosage & duration: | | 5mg taken every night for the period of 3 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Is very helpful with insomnia. Was able to put racing thoughts that run threw my mind at rest. Was able to get into a deep sleep. |
| Side effects: | | Could still wake up in middle of the night and not be able to fall back asleep. I would sometimes fell groggy in the morning, especially at the begaining stage. It seems as if the effectivness starts to wear off with continued use. |
| Comments: | | I take 1 pill everynight before bed as needed. Sometimes I could quit taking it when my sleep cycle was normal. |
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| | Ambien review by 45 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | No Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10mg. taken nightly for the period of 30 days |
| Other conditions: | | High blood pressure |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Fast- acting, works in 15-20 mins. |
| Side effects: | | No side effects! |
| Comments: | | I've had insomnia since I was a kid--couldn't shut the old mind down. I used Tylenol PM for years but it stopped working for me. Ambien has been great. It usually puts me to sleep within thirty minutes though I have had trouble getting to sleep after eating too much before bedtime. I have very active dreams, but always have had. If I try to fight it and stay up, I do hallucinate and have said and done things I don't remember. My sons tell me funny stories. I feel great the next day and don't feel drugged at all. |
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| | Ambien review by 45 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10mg taken nightly for the period of 30 days |
| Other conditions: | | Dermatitis |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Sleeping 7-8 hours without hangover |
| Side effects: | | Memory loss |
| Comments: | | It is a GODSEND. Fully rested in the am and feel like a new person. I am convinced it has kept me from sliding into a full depression. It works on 3 levels for me: 1. My body gets rest so I can 'fight' for another day. 2. My brain heals. 3. I can endure a difficult day knowing I can take the pill and go to sleep. I consider it a miracle cure for preventing a full blown depression. Wish I had it available to me years ago...could have changed my life. I would recommend to anyone in for a good experience while getting to sleep!
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| | Ambien review by 39 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Ineffective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | sleeplessness |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10 (dosage frequency: every nght) for the period of past few month |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | cipralex | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | helped me sleep better but it si short acting for hours, Have to take another in the middle of the night. Helped reduce pack pain |
| Side effects: | | loss of memory of things done while on it
Short acting so had to get up and take some more |
| Comments: | | I was having trouble falling asleep and woke up tired to a nasal obstruction, Had surgery recently that has improved breathing and sleep.
At this point am still taking 10mg Ambien but hope to get off it soon |
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| | Ambien review by 38 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | No Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | dont recall (dosage frequency: nightly) for the period of six months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | fell asleep fast, woke up withouut significant fatique. Mild grogginess for a short time subsided within one hour of waking. |
| Side effects: | | I encountered no physical side effects, however I did have trouble with insomnia after I discontinued the treatment. It was more difficult to fall asleep after discontinuation than before treatment began. I consider this to be a mark of addiction. |
| Comments: | | dosage taken at bedtime caused extreme tiredness. slept through the night, woke in the morning without unusual grogginess, but the treatment was somewhat addictive, I thought. |
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| | Ambien review by 38 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | dont recall (dosage frequency: daily) for the period of six months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | For the treatment of insomnia, this drug induced sleepiness immediately after ingestion which was a tempory and necessary goal of the drug. |
| Side effects: | | minimal side effects included mild grogginess upon waking. |
| Comments: | | Although this medication was immediately effective in treating insomnia, it was also temporary. More dosage was required after a few weeks, and addiction was possible. Off the medication, insomnia returned and was more severe than prior to taking this drug. |
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| | Ambien review by 21 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Moderately Effective |
| Side effects: | | No Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | sleep |
| Dosage & duration: | | 1 (dosage frequency: a few hours before bed) for the period of 3 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | to get restful sleep |
| Side effects: | | sleepiness, drowiness, etc |
| Comments: | | swallow the pill with water before bed. I was also using ambient because I was waking up in the middle of the nights and couldn’t fall asleep again. I got this drug prescribed for 10 days only. He told me I shouldn’t be taking it longer.
I hear that ambient is addictive. Six years do sound too long.
I am on Seroquel now. It treats both my depression and sleeping problems. You can also get it only by prescription. |
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| | Ambien review by 54 year old male patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Moderately Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10 mg taken once per day, at night for the period of two weeks |
| Other conditions: | | fatigue, tiredness |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | regulate sleep |
| Side effects: | | short psychotic episodes, sleep-walking. |
| Comments: | | In an effort to regulate sleep, during an extended period of insomnia; patient was prescribed Ambien. The medication induced sleep as often as it induced short periods of psychotic behavior and patient was difficult to control by family. Patient would sleep-walk with no memory of it afterwards. Patient was beligerent with family members and appeared severly intoxicated. |
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| | Ambien review by 45 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | No Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10 mg taken one to two times a week for the period of ongoing |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Occasionally I have a difficult time falling asleep and sleeping through the night. When I take this medicine I fall asleep within 15 or so minutes and am able to sleep 7 or 8 hours. My sleep seems undisturbed and uneventful. When I wake up in the morning I awake completely alert and energized. |
| Side effects: | | I did not experience any treatment side effects. |
| Comments: | | I have been taking this medication for occasional insomnia for over one year now.
I will continue to take this medication to treat my insomnia for as long as my physician prescribes it for me. |
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| | Ambien review by 51 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | difficulty sleeping |
| Dosage & duration: | | 5 to 10 mg taken most nights for the period of 3 years; continuing to take it |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Most nights I am able to fall asleep within about 20 minutes, sleep through the night, and wake feeling refreshed. I do not feel any residual tiredness or sluggishness during the day. |
| Side effects: | | If I take 10mg I occasionally experience a mild headache the next day, so I usually take about 7.5mg. Other than that, no side effects except that I have said and done things that I don't remember. This is not a problem is I just go to bed after taking it. |
| Comments: | | I take about 3/4 of a 10mg tablet about 20 to 30 minutes before I go to bed. It is best if I then just go to bed, but I often stay up until it "kicks in." |
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| | Ambien review by 33 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Moderately Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10 (dosage frequency: everyday) for the period of 2 months |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | insomnia |
| Side effects: | | you must take the drug at the same time to establish a new sleep pattern. The doctor never informed me of this and I would take it at different times. |
| Comments: | | Take the drug to fall asleep. However it should not be taken for more than several weeks due to possible dependency. |
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| | Ambien review by 60 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | SLEEP |
| Dosage & duration: | | 1 10MG AT BEDTIME taken every night for the period of 1 YEAR |
| Other conditions: | | BACK,NECK |
| Other drugs taken: | | SEROQUEL | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | AMBIEN HAS ALLOWED ME TO HAVE A full night of sleep and wake up feeling like a new person and ready for the day. |
| Side effects: | | At first feeling a little groogy in the morning.But that goes away and yoiu wake up refreshed.in the morning,but that went away , |
| Comments: | | After taking Ambien it slowly begins to relax and calm down the busy brain |
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| | Ambien review by 39 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | sleeplessness |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10 mg taken 1/2 to 1 tab per night for the period of 6 weeks |
| Other conditions: | | none |
| Other drugs taken: | | none | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | ability to sleep at night and through the night was substantially increased |
| Side effects: | | patient was often dizzy the following day and had considerable difficulty concentrating or remembering small details and facts. Patient often felt extremely anxious when driving or doing other activities which required concentration, since patient often felt a little dopey or unable to concentrate. |
| Comments: | | Patient took the drug to combat sleeplessness, but after experiencing these side effects decided to switch to less habit-forming alternatives, such as small doses of benadryl or melatonin before nighttime. After being off ambien for 36 hours patient noticed an immediate improvement in mental facility and ability to concentrate. |
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| | Ambien review by 36 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 5-15mg taken daily for the period of several years |
| Other conditions: | | depression |
| Other drugs taken: | | zoloft | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Helps to get patient to sleep more quickly than any other sleep aid; no morning "grogginess" as with some other medications. |
| Side effects: | | Sleep-eating, and night-time snacking. Definitely stimulates appetite shortly (w/in 30 mins) after taking. I do not have this side-effect with other sleep preparations. |
| Comments: | | Take Ambien in various dosages (up and down) for primary long-standing (over 25 years) insomnia. Have tried various drugs over the years. Better results compared with temazepam, lunesta, melatonin, lorazepam, trazadone, but stimulates appetite and ingestion of (yes, I started counting!) 300-400 extra calories at bedtime and shortly thereafter. About 10# weight gain. Often have had best results when dosage is high enough to induce sleep rapidly, "skipping" the chance to get hungry. |
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| | Ambien review by 20 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Highly Effective |
| Side effects: | | Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10mg taken when needed for the period of 3 months |
| Other conditions: | | Heart Failure, coronary artery disease. |
| Other drugs taken: | | Many | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Definitely made me fall asleep. Very fast acting, about 10 minutes after taking it, I feel groggy. |
| Side effects: | | MEMORY LOSS. If you don't go to sleep immediately after feeling groggy, you will continue on with your life unbeknownest to you! I called people I never call, ate lots of food, watched movies, and had conversations, all of which I haven't the slightest recollection of.
It is my belief that the long term memory effects must parallel the short term.
Also I experienced vivid nightmares and hallucinations.
Habit forming despite denial of drug company. |
| Comments: | | Recreational drug. Not worth the side effects for the benefit. Try something natural, tylenol PM, or any other sleep aid but this one! |
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| | Ambien review by 21 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | | |
| Effectiveness: | | Moderately Effective |
| Side effects: | | Mild Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | Insomnia |
| Dosage & duration: | | 10 mg and 12.5 mg CR taken every night for the period of Three weeks, still taking it. |
| Other conditions: | | Bipolar disorder |
| Other drugs taken: | | Zyprexa, Lithium 300 mg | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | Made me sleepy enough to shut down and go to bed, although it typically still took me hours to get to sleep. The sleep that I got from this medication was deep and refreshing. |
| Side effects: | | Extreme drowsiness the next morning/afternoon, dependence, slight headache. |
| Comments: | | I have had insomnia for as long as I can remember, as it is a symptom of my illness. I usually go to bed around 7 AM if at all, and I don't mind it usually, except when I have responsibilities the next day and I am unable to fulfill obligations due to exhaustion. The first few times I tried Ambien, my doctor prescribed me Ambien CR which is extended-release.. I was taking the 12.5 milligrams. This medication gave me extremely bad headaches and didn't really affect my sleeping pattern. I went back and asked her to prescribe me another dosage, and she gave me the lower 10 mg dosage, not extended release. This dosage makes me feel very groggy at night, and a little drugged out. I have noticed dependency issues developing with it, even in my short time taking it. |
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