For what it's worth, I had wine with my Ambien (and my friends did too) and suffered no ill effects, but I'm sure everyone is different.

dsm22- I bought an extrememly expensive neckpillow ($75.00) from Brookstone before our last long flight and wound up returning it! It felt like a tight neckbrace no matter how I positioned it. No one else in my family could get comfortable with it either.
Here is another question for all and, while I will ask my doctor, just curious if anyone has ever combined Ambien or No Jet Lag with Dramamine.

dsm22, I bought an inexpensive inflatable neck pillow a few trips ago. I pack it in my carryon and blow it up once we are on the plane, and then don't use it because it is uncomfortable. It doesn't give my head any support, which is where I need it!

As for the Ambien, my prescription is for 5 mg. The dr said to try one, and if I wasn't asleep in 20 minutes, to take another one. I plan to try one before we go. And he didn't mention anything about not drinking with it, so I am sure I will have a glass of wine with dinner. I'll let you know how it works for me, we leave on April 1.

It has been my experience that men, <u>on average</u> are better sleepers than women. So I'm not surprised to read that a scotch or two helps Patrick, but most of the other posters are women and so not surprised that most of them don't sleep well on planes.
I don't either, with or without drugs, OTC or prescription, regardless of my watch setting or what time I woke up the previous morning. If I drowse on and off for 2-3 hours on the plane I feel lucky.

Hi! I'm going overseas for the first time (Italy) in June and this thread really interested me. I just wanted to add my thoughts on Ambien. I am a pharmacist and I think it is a wonderful medication. I just want to warn about the possibilty of hallucinations on it. I've heard from 2-3 customers that after taking (they seem to have a common hallucination) the window curtains began to wave at them. A lady told me the other day that her hallway &quot;widened&quot; and she had trouble getting to her bedroom. My niece took it last year for jet lag when she went to Russia to adopt her babies and she said she had a similiar reaction with the curtains. I recently had it prescribed post-op for insomnia and the nurse also warned me of hallucinations. So I would warn never to use it at dinner or anywhere other than a place one can sleep, also I'd use the lowest dose possible at first and at home (as one poster said) to see what effects it will have on you.

I am a firm believer in not taking sleeping medications...except when flying. Many times I have sat straight up in my uncomfortable seat, unable to sleep while people around me are in blissful slumber.

Last Oct. I went to NY and took an Ambien as I was on the redeye. I was able to sleep for about 4 hours. Same thing on the way back. I'm going to Paris end of April and I am taking my Ambien as well. I will be departing LAX and landing in Detroit. When I board the plane in Detroit is when I am going to take my Ambien. Funny thing is I keep waiting for it to kick in. It seems as though I don't feel sleepy, next thing I know I'm awake and have slept for quite a few hours.

I would advise NO wine with Ambien. It's a deadly mixture.

Thanks for the replys Allisonm and MarshaL. I searched a couple of times for neck pillows today. It sounds like if I do get one I should not spend a ton of money on it since reading your testamonials. Anyone have a comfy one that worked for them??? If so where did you get it??

Ambien works wonders for me too. I don't sleep AT ALL on the plane without it and only about 3 hours with it but that's better than nothing. It's totally different from the older class of sleeping pills in that it does not make you groggy the next day. In fact the few times I've taken it at home, I seem to wake up in exactly 8 hours.

And yes, I do have a glass or 2 of wine on the plane before I take it and have not suffered any ill effects. But that's not to say you should or shouldn't.

I got a $25 neck pillow from Brookstone. It has little beads in it, and I like it. It keeps my head from rolling around on the seat back. I don't sleep very well on planes, but our last trip was to Israel from Kentucky and was so long that I did sleep some. I used the pillow, eye covers, and ear plugs, and the combination helped considerably.

My daughter has one of the blow-up pillows and likes it because of the convenience of packing it. I just carried mine in my hands, as did a lot of other people, and no one said anything about it being an &quot;extra&quot; carry on.

I've also seen neck pillows advertised at Walgreens for $10 but don't know what they are packed with or if they are comfortable.

I too would love to know about effective neck pillows for sleeping.

Unfortunately I have not had much luck with Sharper Image and Brookstone products in the past.

I am based in NYC.

Thanks in advance!

This was the first time I used a new neck pillow with little breads in it. I found it on sale for $7.99 at Christmas time and I think it's the same one at Brookstone for $25. It was definitely the most comfortable one I've ever tried.

At home I have one stuffed with the hulls of some kind of seeds--oats maybe. I like it, except that dog fur keeps clinging to the cover, which is made of a thin polartec-like fabric. For travel I have an inflatable one. It's not as comfortable, but it is very easy to carry--hardly weighs anything and packs flat. I don't remember what it cost, but I'm sure it was under $10. The one with the oat hulls was more expensive, but I'm pretty sure I've seen them for under $15. It would be bulky to pack.

Thanks so much Postal and Carolyn. I need to do something might as well try that out as nothing has ever worked for me.

My best friend's husband and I flew to England to meet her after her business trip. The three of us were going to explore for a couple of weeks. He and I saw this couple on the plane that had pulled up the middle arm and took off their shoes and and sort of contourted themslves around eachother in those tiny seats, a jumble of limbs. The flight attendants were rolling thier eyes everytime they passed by. My friend and I were sooo tired and we looked at eachother at the same time and I said, right now, If I thought we could get some sleep I would try it. He laughed and said while he was sure that his wife would not mind, my butt was too big and it wouldn't work.

I must have been tired because I laughed and laughed. I am pretty sure I would have found that insulting any other time.

Getting up really early and working did not work either. I was up at 4 am that morning to head to Newark after having worked 14 days in a row to get enough vacation days to go. Even after our Vegas convention and being up for 42 hrs straight I could not sleep on the red eye. I died when I got home. I literally was hallucinating I was so tired.

I found a neck pillow made by Bucky for $25-30. It has been wonderful. I tried the inflatable kind but they don't conform to the awkward sleeping conditions on the plane. The Bucky pillow is filled with buckwheat hulls. I use it in the car, on planes and even at home at night because it supports my neck better than a pillow.

As far as sleeping, Tylenol PM works great. But better yet is Benedryl. That always puts me to sleep and I feel fine the next day.

fairoaksjim: Where can we buy the Bucky's neck pillow? (I'm in NYC.)

Thanks!

HI bettyo70--I have found that virtually *anything* you are looking for can be found by typing it into Google!! My Trader Joe's stopped carrying Balance Bars, outdoor variety, so I typed what I was looking for into Google and found them. Within 2 days I had boxes of them delivered to my house for as low a price as Trader Joe was charging. Google is always the first place to look!!

OK folks, the scoop on Ambien from an RN who's worked her share of night shifts :/
It's a benzodiazepine, like Valium or Ativan, but a new type that is shorter acting with more complete clearance.

It takes effect fairly quickly, so be sure you have made a trip to the loo, and are ready to go to sleep BEFORE you take it. Use an eye mask to block out light as well; light really interferes with attempts to sleep.

You should not drink alcohol when taking Ambien. Be sure that you will be able to sleep uninterrupted for 6 hours or so. People can be difficult to completely arouse before the medication has fully worn off. There are reports of people being partially awakened, doing or saying things, then having amnesia of the events when they &quot;wake up.&quot;

Ambien comes in 5mg and 10mg tablets. Ask your doc for the 10mg and cut them in half, way cheaper, the pills cost about the same. The pharmacy can cut them for you. Try taking it at home a couple of times. Start with 5 mg., if you can't fall asleep in 30 min take the other 5 mg. Don't take more than that.

Ambien wears off completely after about 6 hours and will not leave you feeling groggy like other sleep medications.

We use it all the time in the hospital. You wouldn't believe how fast people fall asleep and how well they sleep for 4-5 hours. They often don't even wake up when I take their vitals.

Be sure if you take a sleeping medication of any kind that you will be in a safe place to sleep for the duration of the medication's effect.

I took Ambien with me to Europe and it helped me sleep on the plane, on the train, and one night in a noisy hotel. It was great. I woke up really refreshed and ready to go. Our trip would have been a lot tougher without it

mowmow, it sounds like people would be in a bit of a pickle if they took this drug and then there was a need to follow emergency procedures partway through the flight.

I took half an ambien after a trip to Vegas. My head hit the tray table right after take off and didn't move till the flight attendant lifted it off, looked me in the eye and demanded that I return my table to it's locked position. I somehow got home and slept for 16 hours afterwards, then felt groggy for 2 days. I would definitely do a test run before you try it on a trip!

lcthecat: That's funny!