Sleeping Pills Misuse and Addiction

Dangers of Sleeping Pill Misuse and Addiction

Using any medication outside its prescription guidelines can come with dangers, but they can be especially prevalent for sleeping medications due to their sedative effects.

Physical Dangers

Since sleeping pills sedate people, taking too many at once can dangerously enhance those effects. You may sleep much longer than intended, find it extremely difficult to wake up, or in extreme cases, die from your central nervous system slowing too much. Overdosing can lead to a coma and heart failure or stopped breathing.

If you think you or someone else has taken too many sleeping pills, call 911 for emergency medical care or contact Poison Control.

Emotional Dangers

Becoming reliant on anything, sleeping pills included, can lead to anxiety and an overall worsening of mental health conditions. If you can’t take the pills, you may become too anxious to sleep, leading to a cycle of use even if you want to stop. Tapering can help with this.

Depending on which kind of sleeping pill you take, like an antidepressant versus a hypnotic, you could also experience new or worsening mental health conditions as a side effect of the medication.

Harm to Relationships

Addiction can alter priorities, making substance use more important than spending time with loved ones and maintaining relationships, personal and professional. This can damage those relationships over time.

Can You Overdose on Sleeping Pills?

Yes, you can overdose on sleeping pills. You can take too many of almost any pill, but the effects of a sleeping pill overdose can be especially pronounced due to their sedative nature. The more potent they are, the more easy an overdose becomes—which is why following prescription guidelines is so important.

Sleeping pills can react to other substances, like alcohol, and have a much stronger effect. For example, alcohol is also a central nervous system depressant, so having alcohol and sleeping pills can create a dangerous double-strength effect⁴ even at your usual dose. Be sure to read the warnings on your prescription bottle and ask your doctor about potential drug interactions.

If you think you or someone else has overdosed on sleeping pills, call 911 or your local emergency number. 

Signs of Sleeping Pill Addiction

Someone who’s developed an addiction to sleeping pills typically will show a few key signs that you and other loved ones can look out for—or you might recognize these signs in yourself. In any scenario, identifying the need for help is the first big step in getting it.

Taking More Than The Prescribed Dose

For example, someone may have a prescribed dose of 10mg but take 50mg daily. Or, they might take 10mg throughout the day, multiple times daily. 

For a stronger effect some people may crush up their sleeping pills and snort the powder, dilute it in water and inject it, or dissolve it into a drink for a quicker impact.

Negative Consequences, But an Inability to Stop

Someone who’s unable to stop taking sleeping pills despite clear negative consequences has likely developed an addiction. These consequences could include job loss, damage to relationships, negative health effects, and stress.

Frequently Under The Influence

Overusing sleeping pills can mean someone often seems under their influence—sleeping or sleepy, disoriented, woozy, and disconnected from reality. They may go about daily life in this state or isolate themselves to hide symptoms.

New Habits and Friend Groups

As procuring and taking sleeping pills becomes more imperative due to an addiction, people’s habits and friend groups can change in turn. For example, they may adopt new habits to hide or excuse their drug use, like taking walks at night that could actually be private time to take substances unseen or meet dealers. 

New friend groups might include others in active addiction who can supply substances or connect people to more. At the least, these new friends may not discourage substance use, which can make them appealing substitutes for concerned friends and family.

Treatment Options for Misuse and Addiction

An addiction or dependence on sleeping pills can be treated, often with a tailored combination of behavioral therapies and medical care.

Behavioral Therapies

Therapy aims to reach the root of an addiction and pluck it. You’ll learn the purpose addiction serves in your life and how to address the issues and emotions that led to it, all in a safe and therapeutic space.

Common therapies for addiction include

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
• Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT)
• Contingency management, which offers rewards and incentives for sobriety
• Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) 

Therapy occurs 1:1 with a therapist or in group settings. Many rehabs and outpatient addiction programs offer a structured daily routine of therapy and skill-building to address core issues and build relapse prevention skills.

Medical Interventions

Medical care can help people detox from substances like sleeping pills, safely removing them from their body. Detoxing without medical care can be dangerous and even fatal, so be sure to get your doctor’s advice on the level of care you need for your symptoms. You can ask questions like

• “What treatments will make my recovery as safe and comfortable as possible?”
• “How can I improve my sleep without sleeping pills?”
• “Do I need medical detox? If so, what are my next steps for that?”
• “What lifestyle changes can I make to improve my physical and mental health as I recover?”

Support Groups

“Connection is the opposite of addiction”⁵ has been touted and found true in many instances. One of the best ways to find connection is through peer support groups like Pills Anonymous (12-Step-based) or SMART Recovery groups (non-12-Step). These groups occur worldwide, in-person or virtually. You can also find connection and support through religious organizations, your workplace, and other community settings (like sports and craft communities). 

Find Help for Sleeping Pills Misuse and Addiction

With medical, therapeutic, and emotional support you can stop using sleeping pills, or cut down to a dose you and your doctor feel comfortable with. Your doctor can be your first point of care, guiding you to your various options and offering treatment.
You can also go to a rehab that treats sleeping pill addiction. Use Recovery.com to find sleeping pill rehabs by what insurance you have, your location, desired amenities and more.