Getting a script for Ambien
 

So i have about 25k in long haul flights coming up, all of it in Y. I am going to need some Ambian for obvious reasons. Has anyone had success being honest with their doctor as to they need Ambian or should i go in with a 'sleep problem.'

I was 100% honest with my doctor and have never had a problem. In fact, they'd much prefer your need for a pill like this is occasionally and not indicative of an underlying sleep disorder. It limits the amount of investigation they need to do into the complaint and it reduces the risk for habitual use (and dependence).

Same here, the OP should be honest about traveling frequently on long haul flights, and it shouldn't be a problem for occaisional use, Read through all of the other threads as to when to use it, and test it before hand.

No problem getting an RX for ambien when I explained to my doctor that I had LOTS of travel upcoming.
It is now offered as a generic (Zolpidem Tartrate) which I find equally as effective.

Same experience in being honest with the doc. Told him I couldn't sleep on airplanes and could he prescribe something? Came away with an Rx for Xanax which I continue to use to this day. ^

My experience was the same as the other responders. I simply said I wanted something to help me with sleeping on the plane and adjusting to jet lag. The doctor didn't blink an eye and wrote out the prescription.

I too had the honest discussion with my Dr., not only did I get an RX for Sonata, but suggestions on an herbal supplement that helps the body adjust to jet lag.

I know my doc is always happy to write a scrip...

But I'm wondering whether any of the spam I get is reliable, and could save me a trip to the Dr.? :p

If your erection has lasted over four hours somewhere over the North Atlantic, and you are wide awake, you'll know it is not reliable.

Stay away from the brand name Ambien XL. It's a time release formula, created as a way to keep some type of exclusivity once the patent expired on the regular formula.

Boy, they just make me groggy in the morning. Last time I felt like that was 15 years ago backpacking through guatemala. I had to take a 14 hour bus ride from Antigua to Tikal over unpaved road overnight. I went to the pharmacy and bought some valium over the counter (those were the days). I had no idea how much to take. I took 4 pills (40mg). Oops. 14 hours later, getting off the bus, I still couldn't walk a straight line. LOL.

If you've got this problem from a sleep aid, you might have been given Trazodone (the famous side effect is priapism). http://psy.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/...t/46/4/367.pdf

Though Trazodone is pretty effective for sleep. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trazodone

In the US it's called Ambien CR. Not a good idea for TATL flights, as it's probably still working when you get off the aircraft.

To echo some of the other commentors, I had no problem. I told my doctor that I was doing some long-distance flying and I had trouble sleeping on planes, and I had a prescription for Ambien the next day.

Traveling thru multiple time zones is a "sleep problem". Just tell your doctor that you're traveling and you'll get what you want. Making up a story could get you set up for a bunch of lab tests.

All my flights are 10 hours + should i go with the regular or the CR?

You might try Lunestra instead. Been using Ambien for the last few years (lots and lots of TPAC flights) and always felt "hungover" the day after taking Ambien. My doc suggested I try Lunestra instead and find it much much better.

Just my 2 cents

I have EWR-TLV rt and JFK-AUH-SYD. Lots of fun in the air!!!! I'll ask him about Lunesta.

I see no reason to use sleep medication just because your taking a long or uncomfortable flight.I am no way a health nut but realize that nothing comes free and if you take sleep medication or any other drug you will pay physically some other way.The short term reward does not justify the chance of potential problems

I see no reason to be uncomfortable and lose sleep because of a long flight. Short term (1 or 2 night) use for time zone shifts is pretty much the perfect application for sleep aids: no problems with tolerance or rebound insomnia. As long as you can handle a drug like Ambien (don't take it for the first time on an aircraft), use it.

It's lack of sleep that will make you pay, both physically and mentally.

BTW: I am not an MD.

Well I went to the health clinic on campus and they refused to give me a script. The guy came of as kind of stupid. I told him where I was going (Israel and Australia) and he asked me if I got all my shots. He told me he had no problem on his flight to Russia so I should be ok.

However I had to bite my lip not to laugh when he gave me this creative line of reasoning:
If there was a problem on the flight and it needed to be diverted or if there is an emergancy threa he wouldn't want me to be under the influance of sleeping aids.

However I had to bite my lip not to laugh when he gave me this creative line of reasoning:
If there was a problem on the flight and it needed to be diverted or if there is an emergancy threa he wouldn't want me to be under the influance of sleeping aids.[/QUOTE]

He does make a good point.

If you want to use this line of reasoning, you shouldn't drink on your flight. Also what if i was taking ambian at home and their was a fire or something?

What you do at home is your own business.:)

for 13 hours 17C will be my home.

Great logic. Maybe all doctors should use it? "My lungs are fine, you must be imagining your cancer." "Tylenol works for my headaches, therefore it must get rid of your migraines."

You can never be too careful when you visit those Aussies, what with all their diseases.

"What if there was a fire or crazy masked gunman in the hospital during your surgery? That's why you're not getting anesthesia." (A little extreme, but the same logic).

I love that stuff.

For 10+ hour flights, it's the only thing that knocks me out hard enough, and it's free of a lot of the side effects of the hypnotics (no risk of amnesia nor of addiction, although the sleep-inducing side effect does wear off with regular use.) Trazodone is a cheap generic, too, unlike the name-brand hypnotics.

That said, I think the original joke was on the prevalence of online-sale-of-Viagra spams.

Be careful with trazadone. I took it once on a long flight and didn't fall asleep but was under its influence. I had to go to the lav, and on the way back, pretty much collapsed face first into my seat (fortunately it was an old cushy UA 747 F seat. I never really did sleep on that flight, but felt miserable.

Benadryl works better than Ambien for me and the former does not require a prescription.

Ouch. I guess it's best to try out how you respond to these at home before traveling.

It's worked great for for me, but response to drugs is always an individual matter. As always one's own health care professional (physician or nurse practitioner) is the best source of guidance.

Let's hope that your seat companions in 17A and 17B do not have weak bladders or a case of the "trots".

Someone else's two cents...Ambian knocks me out RIGHT AWAY! YAY. BUT...I've found, and others I have spoken to say the same thing. They (we) go to sleep right away, but the effects aren't a full night of sleep. In most cases, 3-4 hours! Which defeats your purpose. I've tried valium, which works sometimes if you're sleepy. Otherwise it just relaxes you a good bit.

The thing I've found to work the best, with no side effects nor "drunk" feeling when you wake up? A cheap OTC Sominex. Works wonders for me.

Generic Ambien will do you fine. It does a great job getting you to sleep.

No problem getting a script from my doc for Ambien for jet lag. However, I did have one problem on my last trip: I left my little vial of Ambien on the plane and couldn't get a replacement for the rest of the trip. In China and HK, it didn't exist; in Manila it did but needed a prescription from a local doctor (not worth bothering getting); and I didn't even TRY in Tokyo!

In China they sold me something called "Zopiclone" cheaply (Lunesta is "eszopiclone"), but when I looked it up online, the side effects listing scared me away from trying it.

Which one?

Eszopiclone is the active stereoisomer of zopiclone. It exists as a separate drug from zopiclone because of patent reasons; there's no motivation to go through the FDA approval process for an off-patent drug.

AFAIK the side effect profile of the two is the same.

I understood the reference; 'twas just a good way to bring up trazodone (brand name Desyrel, but most docs would probably have no clue what the brand name is).

Since trazodone is not scheduled (i.e. the DEA doesn't think it's addictive or fun), prescriptions flow more freely. It's also one of the $4 generics at WalMart, SamsClub, etc.

BTW: It was originally approved as an antidepressant, but it does not get much use as one anymore.

Cool, does that mean the 7.5mg zopiclone they sold me are each the equivalent of one Lunesta? In that case, I'll try them.

Which for me is mild "hangover" and severe metal mouth for most of the entire next day. I can't drink water the next day until the evening.

I'm not the one who originally said that, but melatonin is the classic dietary supplement for that purpose - it works well for some people, and does nothing for others.

I've seen some recommendations for valerian root, as well, but haven't tried it.

You should see if you can get a sample for both and trying them out at home. I've noticed that it takes about an extra hour for me to fall asleep with CR than with regular Ambien (reg. Ambien knocks me out). Then again, I'm one who has a much harder time sleeping than most (can't fall asleep on planes).