Is it possible to od on ambien

The starting dose for sleeping tablets, including Ambien, is usually around mg. For some drugs doses of around 70mg can start to cause brain or body damage but with Ambien, it takes much larger amounts for damage to occur.

With Ambien, an overdose will occur at around mg, with a lethal dose estimated to be around 2,mg. The way sleeping pills work is by relaxing muscles and slowing down bodily functions. The body then drifts off to sleep. Pills like Ambien are usually only prescribed for very short periods so getting enough of it to overdose is often difficult. If a sleeping medication is so potent they can easily cause an overdose they tend to be restricted to hospital settings.

However, it is possible to obtain such medications illegally or to take medication prescribed for someone else. It is dangerous to mix any sleeping pills with alcohol because both substances act as depressants. When combined they increase the risk that normal functions like breathing will slow down too much resulting in low oxygen levels and a build-up of carbon dioxide in the blood.

This can lead to brain damage and death. If Ambien is taking with alcohol it has been known to cause hallucinations as well as having an extreme tranquilizing effect. Combining these substances increases the way each one works within the body and can be deadly and can also lead to risky behaviors like driving while under the influence. An overdose of Ambien, like other sleeping pills, would start to shut down the body. This includes all the essential functions such as the respiratory, cardiovascular and central nervous systems.

Action must be taken at this stage or it is highly likely that the person will fall into a coma leading either to serious brain damage or death. If a person takes an overdose of any sleeping pill, including Ambien, they will need professional medical treatment. There is an antidote Flumazenil which can be given to reverse the sedative effect. It may be that the individual will still need to have their stomach pumped to remove any pills before they can be further absorbed.

Call now to be connected with one of our compassionate treatment specialists. As with many other drugs, it is possible to overdose on Ambien. Overdose is more likely when a person takes a large amount of Ambien in a short period of time or when the drug is mixed with other substances like alcohol. Both intentional and accidental Ambien overdoses have been reported. The typical dose range for an Ambien prescription is between five and 10 milligrams. Taken in this dosage, Ambien is generally very safe and will not put individuals at risk for overdose.

However, exceeding this amount can dramatically increase the potential for negative side effects and overdose. Individuals can begin experiencing dangerous side effects of Ambien at doses starting at 70 milligrams.

Higher doses than this can result in an overdose. The more Ambien a person takes, the more at risk he or she is of overdosing. Additionally, taking Ambien in ways other than what is prescribed — such as snorting or injecting it — can also greatly increase the risk of overdose.

Ambien overdose symptoms tend to be fairly easy to identify and often come on quickly after the drug is ingested. Due to the fast-acting sedative nature of the drug, a person can quickly fall unconscious and potentially go into a coma.

An Ambien overdose is often survivable if treatment is sought immediately. However, there have been fatalities reported as a result of an Ambien overdose. Toxicological analyses of the urine showed the presence of zolpidem and carbamazepine and metabolite. Zolpidem concentrations were as follows: blood iliac , 1.

The zolpidem blood concentrations of these cases are consistent with those of the previously published fatalities. These ratios, along with the sampling times of blood and vitreous humor for both cases, are not conclusive to indicate a definitive presence or absence of postmortem drug redistribution of zolpidem.

The cause of death for both cases was determined to be acute zolpidem overdose, and manner of death was suicide. Abstract This report describes two cases of acute zolpidem overdose.