So does anyone here actually take them..... or just believe the scaremongering news rags and sensationalist ACA or TT "reports" on Stilnox?
I'm a shift worker, and do a lot of looooong hours and odd shifts: my last week was this: Mon- 6am->2pm; tues- 6am->930pm; wed- 4am->2pm; thurs- 4am->2pm; fri- 4am->12pm; sun- 1230am->130pm; mon/tues/wed- 2pm-> 11pm. Next week will be back on early starts...
This is a relatively normal week for me and the crew I work with, and unless you've done rotating shifts and extended hours you'll never understand how damn hard it is to get your body clock sorted out.
Sleep is nigh impossible at times and no matter how tired you are sometimes you simply will_not_sleep. You can't switch off, you get irritable and wound up. Stilnox (and Valium, and codeine, and alcohol, and anything else you can think of) become vital in helping turn your body clock around to suit whatever hours you happen to be working. I have a rather high tolerance for any chemicals however, and nowadays one stilnox won't cut it: sometimes 2 or 3 will help but not always unfortunately.
As opposed to some other sleeping tabs stilnox don't leave me feeling wooly in the morning and that's why I prefer them... Valium are much the same but a little addictive at the same time so care must be taken.
To cut along story short stilnox are excellent if used correctly, but are easily abused and dangerous (like most OTC drugs) if mixed with alcohol or eaten like M&Ms.
Also, I need a new job!