Z-Drug Support Group (Lunesta, Imovane, Zimovane, Ambien, Sonata, Zopiclone)

[[Ka...]]

Hello Watercolor, welcome to the Z Team!! I like what LadyDen wrote out for you and I see you made a signature! Very nice! Let us know how it's going once you start your taper. What shape are your pills? I had 2 5mg oblong pills so cutting off pieces with a tiny jack knife has worked for me.

 

Twbd1ila!! Woahhhhh, you go! It's great to read the pain has gone, and to hear about your brain waking up ---your dreams definitely sound like synapses reactivating, if that's a thing. I have missed real dreams all these years. I've had some zaps and twinges here and there but nothing that has stayed around and hope that's true for you as well with tinnitus. I have been sensitive to light and sound for years but that has gone away now. Isn't 2.50mg a beautiful thing!!!!!

 

So tonight is my last night. It's the end of an affair, a dependency ... an escape mechanism, a crutch. I have been feeling stressed by some things in my life and grouchy. Sleep the last few nights has been crappy. Today I feel like omg am I really doing this? The very last time. How many sleepless nights will I face? I will cross that bridge when it comes.

 

My self care these last 2 days has not been good, got bumped off much of my routine and groove. But, I'm in, I'm jumping, I'm saying goodbye. Because it's time and I trust I'll rebalance. I am grateful that the commitments I do have allow me to chill at home a lot as needed. I have great emotional support from my husband and my life is very good in many ways. I have some challenges to face. But, this is it, it's the last night I'm taking a little crumb of Ambien and then I'm stopping. Tomorrow I'm not going to take it anymore.

 

I will say that due to all the pain I was in when I started and the fear of not sleeping I bought a hot tub 3 weeks in to my taper. That has helped me so much. I borrowed the money from my self!! I go in almost every evening and those nights I don't sleep I have that to try to help me relax. I also take some herbs for sleep, valerian and hops. I need to get back in a work out routine as I've slacked on big walks and that's a good help.

 

I'm rambling now. I'm nervous. I'm excited. I hope I've not taken too much of your time. I'm a bit lonely ... no one can know the relationship between Self, Pill, Sleep, Night, every day for years and years. Shame, guilt, relief, fear, dependency, drug, help, sleep . . . refills, bottles, hiding it from boyfriends who I didn't know---back in the day before I was married.

 

I vote for LOVE. I vote for healing. I will keep you posted and please keep me posted about your journey.

[[De...]]

Twbd1ila and Kachina!! Look at you both go!! Very happy for you both.

 

Kachina that was a beautiful ode to the pill.  I def know what you mean.  Every night I would prepare my ambien like a ritual.  Since I got up so high (multiple 5mg doses per night) I broke the 10mg into halves, and placed them into the concave silver cap of my night cream.  Silly, but knowing they were there when I got up to use the bathroom was so reassuring.  I gave those pills so much power and they turned on me.  I still use the same night cream, and the visual of it empty still seems odd.  I should just switch out my night cream lol. 

 

Twb you have done SO WELL!!  I too felt better the lower I got and that's why I tapered so fast.  Yes dreams start to come back and I sleep pretty darn well now in my 11th month.  For me insomnia was a transient issue the first several months with broken sleep but never that terrible.  My issues continue to be physical in nature. 

 

We are all here for you.  Welcome to your future best self (in progress for now)....

[[Tw...]]

wow Kachina, you blew me away with your words.

 

Its hard to describe the relationship with ambien, but you said it perfectly like I've not heard before "no one can know the relationship between Self, Pill, Sleep, Night, every day for years and years. Shame, guilt, relief, fear, dependency, drug, help, sleep . . . refills, bottles, hiding it..."

 

that was my life for 2 decades. I am so behind you and proud of you. Its a tough journey that a lot of people may not fully understand. But

We "Z-DRUG SUPPORT GROUP" all feel, live, and can relate to the horrors these drugs can create. That is why your story is so inspirational to me. I dont know what I would do with out this board. Its a lonely journey, but knowing you all can relate helps me not feel alone.

 

We must keep telling our story because there are other people wanting to know there is a different way of life.

 

Deaana, your are a fellow traveler on this journey.  i had my rituals with the pills as well.  I treated them like precious cargo. As we move forward, it is helpful to hear what challenges and hopes take place once off the ambien.  I go  to NA which helps me a lot. I need a higher power to believe as I march forward.

 

I celebrate all of us on this "Z-DRUG SUPPORT GROUP" BB.

 

 

[[Tw...]]

Watercolor, thanks for being here.

 

as you feel comfortable, please share more about your story.

 

hope the experience, strength, and hope on this board helps you. 

[[Ka...]]

Thank you Twbd!ila and Deanna! Thank you so very much, and to LadyDen and all buddies. It's good to have other ambien users to talk to.

 

Ahhh, the little dish on my bedstand where the pill awaited me as I settled in for the night. I saw it today and thought about it being empty starting now! It's very lovely and pretty. Empty is good.

 

So last night was my last night and didn't sleep great. Made myself get up at 6am to be in the sunlight and got some good exercise in ... very tired and sleepy so hope that will help me tonight as I begin this new journey.

 

Happy Solstice Friends

 

 

[[La...]]

Hugs to Team Z! Today is my 1 year milestone. Wow what a year! I went from completely bedridden to now able to walk around, do small chores, sit up to watch movies and ride in a car a short distance. Speaking of car ride... I'm hoping to celebrate my 1 year that I can ride for 10-15 minutes to my new place today. I tried a few days ago without success. Prayers for me please!

May you all have a Happy Father's Day!

Twd I'm proud of you! Wow 2.5mg means you're well on your way to be off that med. I applaud your bravery!

Kachina way to go! You also have shown bravery in your tapering. I'm happy you are jumping! Stay strong and know that I'm here for you.

Deanna I'm grateful for you being on here always encouraging everyone. Sharing your journey, giving great advice and support. I can't wait to help you celebrate your 1 year too. What is your exact date?

Jerry I'm so glad to hear from you. I like hearing about your life and things you've doing to distract. Thanks for being a good buddy. Big hugs to you. I know you have just your dad so I'm wishing you and him a beautiful day.

Watercolor we all have been in your shoes. Please don't feel bad. Focus on your plan and don't waiver from it. I know you can do this. We all did it! We made a plan and got to going. We know you're scared maybe nervous and doubting. But don't believe those fears or thoughts. They're lies....it's the pills. If you don't believe me then ask yourself this question. How many of us on here are dead? We survived, right? Oh we felt like death and still do sometimes LOL you got this!!! We're here for you.

Shay, if you're reading this. We miss you so much! Please drop in to say hello. We especially miss your sense of humor and kick butt attitude. I pray you're doing a smooth acute since you've jumped. I'm thinking of you often. You're a true Aussie bad ass! I'm so proud of you!

My love to all of you.

[[De...]]

Happy 1 year off LadyDen!!!!!  So good to hear about your progress!  I hope you make it to your new place today as you want to do.  I am right behind you, my anniversary date is July 31st.  I can remember like yesterday when we first connected on BB.  Thank goodness for this forum and its support.  I will be glad to say goodbye to this year.  I feel in my bones that our second year is the ticket to ride 

[[Tw...]]

 

Congratulations LadyDen on the milestone moment.

 

Our growth is sometime curvy, sometimes difficult, sometime every now and then easy; Keep on stepping one day and night at time.

 

you are a miricle.

[[Ka...]]

CONGRATULATIONS LADYDEN!!!! You made it, may Deaana be spot on:  Year two is your ticket to ride!!!!! So glad both of you have been here along my journey! Lady I know you'll get to your new place very very soon!!!!!

 

 

[[Tw...]]

Kachina/Deanna/others who have successfully tapered or at the end of your taper.

 

When you went down to 2 or 1 mg; did you experience increased anxiety, increased nervousness/irritability?

 

At 2.5 mg, the first few nights were manageable.

The last 3 nights, I've been experiencing these symptoms. 

 

Not sure if its W/D or just getting old 

As I have tapered down, the w/d symptoms decreased until I reach 2.5 mg. For some reason at 2.5, the w/d feel more intense. Of course my mind is saying ..... see you need the ambien .... and on/on/on.

 

My thoughts are racing more  as well.  These may be what I've heard as being waves.

 

When you have some time, Please share your experiences of coming off the last 1 or 2 mg.  Thought this would be the easiest part.

 

 

 

 

[[De...]]

Hi Twbd1ila,

 

I did a relatively rapid taper over about 5 weeks.  I went from 10mg to 5mg to 4mg to 3mg to 2.5mg and then jumped from 2.5mg.  Like you I noticed a decrease most symptoms like panic attacks and anxiety through my taper.  Since I jumped from 2.5mg my situation isn't exactly like yours.  When I jumped I went right into acute withdrawal, and I experienced new symptoms like hives and itching.  After a few days I started feeling very ill, what they call the benzo flu.  The anxiety started coming at specific instances like shopping in a store, or having a video-conference with family. 

 

You are likely noticing that your inter-dose withdrawal symptoms have gotten better, but now you'll be dealing with acute wd.  Just know these weird and strange symptoms are all going to pass in time.  My best advice for you is to minimize any stress in your life, eat a very healthy diet (no sugar, caffeine, alcohol, etc).  You can do this!

 

 

[[Ka...]]

Hello Twbd1ila,

 

Sorry you're struggling, I know you're fortifying your life/sleep/thoughts from many directions, YOU GOT THIS. Ride it out and it WILL get better. Take your foot off the gas maybe? Vent, like I did, the big feelings about getting close to the final severance of dependence, but Take It Easy, right?!?! Do not push yourself.

 

I have noticed anxiety on and off and now that I think about it it could be more in the recent weeks getting down low. I remember in the Winter I held a taper for maybe almost 4 weeks due to feeling very uneasy and anxious but it was some stress that I felt impacted by that I thought was the cause. I do tend toward anxiety and try to use CBT or get support from a loving listener or journal or read about how human we all are and how challenging that can be, being human!

 

Today is 2 nights on no ambien and at one point I wondered if some negative thoughts I was having were related. I DO NOT want to have severe w/d symptoms, don't feel I could cope to be honest, which is the reason I've done this so long and slow.

 

I hear that you are not liking what you're feeling and it's pretty intense. Look at what just happened, down 5 mg in less than 4 weeks!!! I've taken over 20 weeks to drop that amount, as much as to avoid severe symptoms as to have success with each baby step. You may want to get really comfortable on 2.50mg before you go down more. I'm sure you and Deanna have a different approach because it is what feels right to you and I celebrate that with you!! I just want to see your system calm down and be ready for the next jump. 2.50mg is not a lot of med especially from the stabilized 15mg you started at 20 weeks ago!!!

 

I did have some severe stomach pain on and off and took a lot of probiotics. They are supposed to be good for anxiety too due to the receptors in our gut. Or something like that.

 

And about irritability, I felt that come up pretty strong right before I jumped, like that person in me who does not want to give this up, pretty irritable!

 

Hang in there, keep going, one night at a time.

 

So, my first night was awful. I couldn't go to sleep at all and took a benadryl at 4;30am. Then last night I had bad allergies so justified taking benadryl on my second night with no ambien. That's just the truth. I hate that it is, but it is. I feel ready to not take anything tonight but I have a huge milestone Thursday that I have to be in full capacity for---sleepless nights could really cost me on this. So it wasn't the best time to jump in that light. Yet I DID jump and it counts even if I jumped to benadryl. I am not going to take that longterm.

 

[[Jo...]]

Hello All,

 

Jumping on this thread as I believe I’m suffering from interdose withdrawals from Zolpidem. As you can see from my signature, I managed to get off all meds in August of last year. A high stress job and lack of sleep led me stupidly into taking Zolpidem again in November of 2020. I really didn’t think it would be as harmful as the powerful Brotizolam that I used for nine years with no real issues. It began to take Zolpidem more and more to work and at times I was taking as much as 30 mgs. With things getting rough, I took six weeks of leave from my job with the hope of sorting this out. Last night I “only” took 20 mgs. and hope to reduce to 15 next week. My progression to higher doses has been relatively recent over the past 3 to 4 months. I doubt I will be able to get to zero in five more weeks and need to get back to work. I now this is a thread has a lot of history. I’m considering crossing over to Valium and do a slow taper so I can function at work until I can retire in four more years. Or maybe one year if I can’t take it. Any advice on crossovers and how they were tolerated (or not)? I’m not feeling too well right now and can’t imagine returning to work in my current state.

[[De...]]

Hey John, welcome to the thread.  Yes many of us got trapped with Ambien as a sleep cure.  When you say you feel awful during the day what are your specific symptoms? And how were you feeling when you had been off all the drugs before you started taking the zolpidem again?  Do you currently take the 20mg in one dose or divided doses throughout the night?

 

We'll help you get through this!

[[Ka...]]

Welcome John,

I can relate to needing sleep to cope with work stress ... and thinking I couldn't make it without the ambien or a med to help sleep... I was lucky enough to stop working for a couple of years and doing my ambien taper over the last 9 months at 0.50mg about every 2 weeks while not working.  I had severe physical pain that I had no idea was related to ambien and withdrawal but was way worse in the evening. I had other symptoms too.

 

But I am still adverse to sleepless nights. However I have been able to sleep most nights of my taper! I've gotten through the ones where I couldn't sleep and then it's like a see saw-- either the next night or two nights later I sleep well and get reset.

 

I believe that some behavioral changes are what helped me the most. I get too over stimulated in the evenings when I interact with people, the internet, activity, etc. So I have been stopping, unplugging, at 8 or 9pm and having some rituals like a hot bath, singing, stretching to calm me down. I do all the sleep hygiene stuff as well. I cannot exercise later in the day. But I get up at 6am and get exercise in the morning so that is a part of my sleep routine also. I quit coffee in the beginning but am having it now .

 

I eventually found that I often slept BETTER during my taper--and others have said the same thing.

 

So, for you---you have 5 weeks. I feel I'm too new here, after 9 months, to advise, but I'll share some thoughts that occur to me.

*Can you set up a routine of a bedtime and getting up early and exercising starting today?

*Are there any dietary changes that would help you not be overstimulated? Whole Foods do heal and too much delicious refined carbs do mess up our blood sugar which interferes with sleep.

*Behavioral changes that would help you calm down in the evenings?

*Do you have blue light blocker glasses to wear over your glasses in the evening when on screens?

*Support, do you have someone to talk to, perhaps professional counseling to cope with the stresses? I think the meds and symptoms related to them make us less able to cope with stress. For me I think the whole syndrome made life much harder when it came to handling stress.

*Are you able to go without sleep during a fast taper, how did your fast taper last August go? How was that successful?

*Whatever you do now has to be able to blend in with you returning to work in 5 weeks, so how can you set it up for success?

 

What worked when you got off ambien last year? Were you sleeping? Then the stress of work just amped you up?

 

Lastly, I think of coming here like taking a daily med ... I like to check in and let people know my process and hear about theirs. I stopped all other meds after finding this site because I do not want more injury.

 

Glad you're here!

Kachina

 

[[La...]]

Happy 1 year off LadyDen!!!!!  So good to hear about your progress!  I hope you make it to your new place today as you want to do.  I am right behind you, my anniversary date is July 31st.  I can remember like yesterday when we first connected on BB.  Thank goodness for this forum and its support.  I will be glad to say goodbye to this year.  I feel in my bones that our second year is the ticket to ride 

Yes thanks Deanna. You were a wonderful buddie to me too when we first started a year ago. I've been cheering you on and I'll continue to support you. Right now I'm not doing well. I've gone backwards with rapid symptoms and my boatiness and magnet pulling sensation is back. I refer to those two as jack sparrow and Davy Jones. Me and Shay started that joke of naming our symptoms LOL those bloody pirates are ruthless sacks of bull butter!!!! Can't say what I really want but you get the idea. I have to believe this is just a setback and this upcoming year ( hope it won't be that long) will be my total healing and the same for you and everyone. I'm also appreciative for this forum or I wouldn't have met all of you when I really needed support. No way anybody should tackle this alone! Girl I pray none of you get the lovely gift of rapid cycling. It's crazy!!!! One hour you're having muscle cramps. They go away and replaced by goosebumps or something else. Some days I have groups of symptoms taking turns popping in and out over a day. I'm like ohhh please brain just pick one cuz I can deal with that LOL they're not as intense as acute but the ones that was gone for a long time pop back in. Weird! On top of my pulling boatiness. Sounds so fun. Right? Lol

I'm waiting on July 31 to celebrate with you Deanna. Love you girl . 

[[La...]]

 

Congratulations LadyDen on the milestone moment.

 

Our growth is sometime curvy, sometimes difficult, sometime every now and then easy; Keep on stepping one day and night at time.

 

you are a miricle.

How sweet of you TWD! I appreciate that message. You're so right. This can only be achieved by taking one day and night at a time. Sometimes you have to take just an hour or 5 minutes. But I've got to keep going. I want to pave the way for all coming behind me. I'm one of the worst cases I've seen on here. Completely bedridden as a baby for a long time. I got out of that bed with time, positivity, refusing to give in, meditation, CBTI, BB friends, distracting myself and most importantly GOD! I truly believe that you'll get there too. Keep moving forward. Resist the benzo lies that whisper doom. Bring out the boxing gloves. 

[[La...]]

CONGRATULATIONS LADYDEN!!!! You made it, may Deaana be spot on:  Year two is your ticket to ride!!!!! So glad both of you have been here along my journey! Lady I know you'll get to your new place very very soon!!!!!

Much love to be ou Kachina. Thanks so much. I'm happy to have met you too. Wow look how long that's been! I'm glad I was able to lend you a hand when you first arrived. You also gave me one. That's what this forum is for. Nobody understands this unless they've experienced it. So we develop special bonds. We can't expect our family and friends to get it because they have nothing to even get an idea. It's like explaining to a man about having a baby. LOL At best they can grasp it from an understanding English standpoint but will never understand how it feels. Even explaining it to other women who's never had a baby.... They only get an idea. But oh boy when they have one then they KNOW!

Thanks for your encouragement. I'm hoping I get a small window soon so I can get to my new place. As soon as I can stand a car ride. I'm proud of you sweetie. You did it. You're on to healing now. This time next year you'll have a one year too. 

[[La...]]

Kachina/Deanna/others who have successfully tapered or at the end of your taper.

 

When you went down to 2 or 1 mg; did you experience increased anxiety, increased nervousness/irritability?

 

At 2.5 mg, the first few nights were manageable.

The last 3 nights, I've been experiencing these symptoms. 

 

Not sure if its W/D or just getting old 

As I have tapered down, the w/d symptoms decreased until I reach 2.5 mg. For some reason at 2.5, the w/d feel more intense. Of course my mind is saying ..... see you need the ambien .... and on/on/on.

 

My thoughts are racing more  as well.  These may be what I've heard as being waves.

 

When you have some time, Please share your experiences of coming off the last 1 or 2 mg.  Thought this would be the easiest part.

Yes TWD this is normal. It's the reductions catching up. They're trying to make you change your mind. Make you think you need to updose or quit. Don't listen to it. This happened to me too. It's part of the end of the tapering. Accept it. Expect it. Embrace it. Your brain is realizing that you're giving it less. It will react. I know it doesn't feel good but keep going. You can always pause another day or two before dropping again if it's time to reduce. I had to do that a couple of times. You're doing well. You will be ok. You got this! You're almost off!

[[La...]]

Hello All,

 

Jumping on this thread as I believe I’m suffering from interdose withdrawals from Zolpidem. As you can see from my signature, I managed to get off all meds in August of last year. A high stress job and lack of sleep led me stupidly into taking Zolpidem again in November of 2020. I really didn’t think it would be as harmful as the powerful Brotizolam that I used for nine years with no real issues. It began to take Zolpidem more and more to work and at times I was taking as much as 30 mgs. With things getting rough, I took six weeks of leave from my job with the hope of sorting this out. Last night I “only” took 20 mgs. and hope to reduce to 15 next week. My progression to higher doses has been relatively recent over the past 3 to 4 months. I doubt I will be able to get to zero in five more weeks and need to get back to work. I now this is a thread has a lot of history. I’m considering crossing over to Valium and do a slow taper so I can function at work until I can retire in four more years. Or maybe one year if I can’t take it. Any advice on crossovers and how they were tolerated (or not)? I’m not feeling too well right now and can’t imagine returning to work in my current state.

Hey John welcome to Team Z thread! Wow you're having a rough time. I know you feel bad. I see you plan to drop 5 mg in a week. That's not a good idea. It's too big of a drop. The idea is to gently come off. I would hate to see you induce seizure. Especially if you've taken this more than 6 months. You're on a hefty dose so shocking the brain is not a good idea. Start with reducing by 1/2 mg every 10 days. This will take awhile but it's the safest way in my opinion. I think switching to Valium will cause more problems down the road because then you'd have to taper that hefty dose of it. To cross over you'd have to do equivalent of Ambien. Stabilize then start reducing Valium. If you're not on Valium I'd suggest you not crossover and do a dry taper of Ambien ( zolipem). But it's your choice. Our buddy Shay crossed over to Valium. It wasn't fun! I wish you the best. We're here to support you. If you want help dry tapering zolpidem id be glad to help you.

Also are you taking the CR( extended release) or regular? This is important because it's strongly advised NOT to cut the controlled release or extended release. You first have to switch to regular zolpidem. Keep us posted on your decision. Once again. Welcome!

[[De...]]

Happy 1 year off LadyDen!!!!!  So good to hear about your progress!  I hope you make it to your new place today as you want to do.  I am right behind you, my anniversary date is July 31st.  I can remember like yesterday when we first connected on BB.  Thank goodness for this forum and its support.  I will be glad to say goodbye to this year.  I feel in my bones that our second year is the ticket to ride 

Yes thanks Deanna. You were a wonderful buddie to me too when we first started a year ago. I've been cheering you on and I'll continue to support you. Right now I'm not doing well. I've gone backwards with rapid symptoms and my boatiness and magnet pulling sensation is back. I refer to those two as jack sparrow and Davy Jones. Me and Shay started that joke of naming our symptoms LOL those bloody pirates are ruthless sacks of bull butter!!!! Can't say what I really want but you get the idea. I have to believe this is just a setback and this upcoming year ( hope it won't be that long) will be my total healing and the same for you and everyone. I'm also appreciative for this forum or I wouldn't have met all of you when I really needed support. No way anybody should tackle this alone! Girl I pray none of you get the lovely gift of rapid cycling. It's crazy!!!! One hour you're having muscle cramps. They go away and replaced by goosebumps or something else. Some days I have groups of symptoms taking turns popping in and out over a day. I'm like ohhh please brain just pick one cuz I can deal with that LOL they're not as intense as acute but the ones that was gone for a long time pop back in. Weird! On top of my pulling boatiness. Sounds so fun. Right? Lol

I'm waiting on July 31 to celebrate with you Deanna. Love you girl . 

 

Oh I'm so sorry LadyDen!!  But I have heard that rapid cycling is a sign of the later stages near full healing.  I'm sure your stresses are instigating all of this, and I hope it all settles for you soon!!!

[[Tw...]]

thanks deanna,  your knowledge and experience is helpful in my preparation. 

 

It sounds like the acute w/d was different than the interdose w/d.

 

 

Kachina, hope your most recent step is going well.

 

[[Jo...]]

Thank you Lady Den. Your advice is sound and seems the best approach if full time employment wasn’t required. A question. Do I need to wait to evening to take my daily dose? Can I take a portion in the day as the interdose withdrawals are what are kicking my tail. If I divide them, which dose to reduce first, evening or daytime? Thanks again!

[[Tw...]]

john,

I could really relate to the "My progression to higher doses has been relatively recent over the past 3 to 4 months"

Just before I started my taper, I was doing between 15 to 40 mg in a night.  I never heard of interdose w/d until I got on this bb.

 

For years, I had a extreme buring in my lower back and leg; extreme anxiety at night, and a body aching until I took my ambien where everything melted away. I never connected the two.  I thought ambien was this magic drug that took my pain away and helped me sleep. I used ambien for 20 + years with 5+ years of severe interdose w/d. I'm now down 2.5 and the burning in my back/leg are almost totally gone. The physical pain is almost gone, its hard to believe. Its a process. I did not think I could taper at first, then just started taking very small steps and building on them.

One night at time.  Good to have another person that took ambien. you are not alone..

[[La...]]

Thank you Lady Den. Your advice is sound and seems the best approach if full time employment wasn’t required. A question. Do I need to wait to evening to take my daily dose? Can I take a portion in the day as the interdose withdrawals are what are kicking my tail. If I divide them, which dose to reduce first, evening or daytime? Thanks again!

Yes trust me. You don't want to switch to Valium unless absolutely have to! You still can work while reducing. To answer your question, if you're not already dividing doses then don't start. It's best to take one single night dose subtily. Slow and steady wins the race. The Valium crossover would be robbing Peter to pay Paul.

If you divide your dose ( which I don't advise) then start reducing your daytime dose. I'm sorry you're having interdose withdrawal. It's not fun. Sounds like to me you're also having tolerance WD. I had both of those as well. The best thing I did for that is to put distractions in place to pass my time quicker. Funny how binge watching a series eat up time.  also if you're having pain take a Tylenol about 2 hours after your dose. I'm thinking if you divide your dose, won't you be too sleepy to work? Z drugs have short half lives. Zolipem ( Ambien) is very short. So I'm thinking you could get a jump on your pain after your dose.