Living without Sleep Aids – How Ambien Rehab Can Help
Like food, air and water, the body requires sleep to function normally. Ambien, a medication prescribed to people suffering from sleep disorders, has helped many a person get the sleep they need. While effective as a sleep medication, Ambien can be highly addictive when taken longer than prescribed. For many people, the way Ambien works makes it all but impossible not to continue taking the drug, if only to get a good night’s sleep.
For some people, entering Ambien rehab is the only way to treat the addiction that forms from ongoing use of the drug. Ambien rehab programs can help wean a person off the drug and provide drug-free alternatives for treating sleep disorder problems.
Physical Dependence
Sleep disorders can take many forms. Some people may have trouble getting to sleep, while others may have problems staying asleep. Doctors prescribe Ambien on a frequent basis simply because it creates a sedating-hypnotic effect that not only helps people fall asleep, but also helps them stay asleep. According to the University of Florida, it does this by slowing brain activity to the point where sleep is possible.
In spite of Ambien’s sleep-inducing abilities, the brain gradually develops a tolerance to the drug, meaning larger doses are needed to fall asleep the longer a person takes the drug. After a while, it becomes even harder to fall asleep (and stay asleep) without the drug. Ambien rehab helps a person work through the initial sleeplessness experienced when first coming off the drug. Without Ambien rehab, it’s likely a person will keep taking the drug in order to sleep.
Psychological Dependence
As the body becomes physically dependent on Ambien, many people develop a psychological dependence on the drug as well. Psychological dependence involves a developing obsession with maintaining needed supplies of the drug. The fear of not being able to sleep drives this obsession along with the physical changes the body has gone through. Ambien rehab programs are designed to treat both the physical and psychological dependencies that result from long-term Ambien use.
Ambien rehab professionals understand a person’s concern over losing sleep and the state of mind that drives it. The psychological dependency that forms actually fuels any physical cravings a person has. Ambien rehab includes a detoxification stage that rids the body of all traces of the drug and helps ease a person through the withdrawal cravings
Ambien Rehab Benefits
While it may be possible to stop taking Ambien on your own, the underlying cause of a sleep or anxiety disorder is still present. As it takes time for the brain to resume normal function, a person is looking at several days if not weeks of sleepless nights. Under these conditions, the urge to resume Ambien use can get overwhelming without needed help and support. Ambien rehab programs offer a comprehensive solution for the addiction and for the problem that leads a person to seek out a sleep aid.
The longer a person uses Ambien the worse an addiction becomes. Fortunately, the wide range of Ambien rehab program-types can accommodate anyone wanting to break their addiction to the drug.
University of Florida – Ambien Effects
http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/spring08/DiMaggio/about/aboutambien.html