Weird experience with Ambien (minimal poker content)

In the wee hours of Thursday night/Friday morning, I realized I was in for another of my occasional bouts of insomnia, so I got out of bed, took an Ambien (10 mg), and, a short time later, decided to start filling out my predictions for the NBC heads-up tournament while I waited for the effect to kick in.

I have taken Ambien, oh, maybe five or six times before. On previous occasions, it worked perfectly, making me sleepy without feeling drugged, inducing a full night of consolidated sleep, with minimal hangover effect. I couldn't design a medication to work more perfectly than it had. However, on each of those occasions, I had had a snack before going to bed, as is my habit. Thursday night I did not, and I suspect that that caused more rapid absorption of the drug than before. It hit me really fast and hard.

I only mention this because I left behind hard--and rather amusing--evidence of the effects. Below you can see my first attempt at the brackets.




I first spelled "Wasicka" wrong. Trust me--I know how it's spelled, even without having it printed right in front of me. Then you can see my handwriting deteriorate literally name by name as I went down the list. I misspelled "Hershiser," again despite knowing better when I'm in full possession of my faculties. "Matusow" came out scrawled.

Then I started on the next round of the same bracket, and again messed up "Wasicka." I'm not sure how to account for that random line stemming out from "Ivey"--I think I actually fell asleep for a couple of seconds and the pen slipped. But then, rousing, I tried writing "Wasicka" for a third time, and the result was barely recognizable. That's how fast my fine-motor skills were being sapped. At that point I realized that I couldn't focus, gave it up, and went to bed.

The other strange aspect is that the next day I found a half-empty can of Coke in my refrigerator. I live alone, so unless I have a sweettooth poltergeist, at some point after ingesting the Ambien I opened a Coke, drank half of it, and put the rest away--but I have absolutely no memory of this.

In short, I was sleep-drinking and sleep-writing. Well, sort of. Of course, it's all better than if I were out driving while impaired, which at almost exactly the same time Layne Flack either was or was not doing, depending on what you choose to believe.

There's not really much reason to tell you about this, other than that I find it interesting and kind of funny, and I tend to report here about everything that happens in my life. I've never been drunk in my life, but for the first time have a hint of what chemical impairment and memory blackouts feel like.

Too bad I didn't log on and try playing a HORSE sit-and-go while in that state. It might have been, um, interesting. LOL drugaments!

Ambien--ask for it by name!