However, here's a video telling us about the actual medication, without the fancy visuals:
The points that I missed during the first commercial, obviously distracted by the clever use of the rooster, I managed to pick up during the more scientific second video: Ambien is addictive, it is a hallucinogen, it can be fatal (albeit in rare cases), and may cause the taker to eat or drive without having any recollection of having done so. These points are not hammered home by the commercial: the calming voice tells us that even though it will have adverse side effects, we shouldn't mind because it puts us to sleep.
This leads me to ask the following question: Should insomniacs have to choose between taking a drug that sedates them to the point of hallucinations and may have a long-term effect on their brain, or staying relatively healthy but not being able to sleep?
Another important point to note is that Ambien can only be used over a short period of time without causing permanent damage to the body. Therefore, actual insomniacs will have to revert to not being able to sleep (as they cannot continue taking sleep aides after a certain amount of time). This negates the purpose of the medication for people who actually need it. It also encourages its use by people who only can't fall asleep sometimes, thereby ensuring that they turn to medication instead of something simpler (and better for them) such as a cup of hot tea.
These were just some thoughts to supplement our discussion on the rising use of medication to accomplish tasks that aren't necessarily impossible.
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