Is Lunesta A Controlled Substance? A Complete Guide For Insomnia Patients

Feeling more awake for days when others are in deep sleep, or trying to guess the hour after waking up faintly groggy at midnight, is no longer limited to normal situations. Sleeplessness has turned out to be a cruel physical & mental disruption. The more the sufferers think about being asleep, the less they can sleep. This is when they look for sleeping pills desperately. Among the many sleep pills available on the market, experts and patients often turn to Lunesta for sleep. If you got prescribed Lunesta, or if you want to try Lunesta for insomnia, it must have very obviously made you think, ‘’Is Lunesta a controlled substance?’’ Read today’s blog, as this one will tell you whether Lunesta is a controlled substance or not, how it works, and so on.

What Is Lunesta?

Lunesta, known worldwide for its effectiveness in treating poor sleep. It is not a part of the benzodiazepine family of drugs. It is thought that this substance does its work by building up the reaction of GABA in the human brain. Being a CNS depressant, it decreases the nervous system. This medication primarily prevents poor sleep and nighttime awakenings. This drug can be used for a short period of time only. Aside from sleeplessness, it is also used for Restless Leg Syndrome. It has a prolonged half-life, which left consumer thinking how long Lunesta stays in the system.

What is a Controlled Substance?

Before jumping into the cure whether the sleeping pill, Lunesta, is a controlled substance or not, first know what a controlled substance is. So, a controlled substance is any medication or chemical that comes under the US Controlled Substances Act. It exists to address the over-abusive, extremely potent, and most likely to be addictive drugs. This has five classes, like Schedule I, for the most potent ones without any medical uses. The others are classified as Schedule II, III, IV & V.

Is Lunesta Considered a Controlled Substance

Lunesta is a trusted sleeping pill that comes as the generic name Eszopiclone. It is a controlled substance, which means it has its own potency level, risk of abuse, and half-life. One more important thing to remember is that you will not find this medicine without a medical specialist’s prescription.

Why Is Lunesta A Controlled Substance?

Lunesta, the insomnia reliever, comes under the Schedule IV classification, which means it has lower potency but is still weighty. You must be wondering why it was marked as a controlled substance. Well, its controlling nature came as the previous marketing and clinical data show a clear picture that Eszopiclone can be misused. And it also got to know that mixing it with other central nervous depressants can result in a huge impact on the patient’s body. Its habit-forming nature can cause dependency in cases of long term uses. It can also show a withdrawal reaction if one stops consuming the drug out of the blue. The DEA puts one drug in the schedule depending on its unmedical uses, harm, scientific proof of addiction, etc.

Side Effects Of Lunesta

Since Lunesta is a potent sleeping pill, acknowledge its adverse effects before going for it. Just like every other medication, this one can also make one face some negative effects. Lunesta is good for your short-term sleeplessness, but try to avoid this one in the long run. Knowing them is important.

• Losing memory
• Can cause anxiety
• Disbalance in thoughts & behaviour
• Clod
• Unusual taste in the mouth
• Dizziness
• Experiencing hangover type of feeling in the daytime
• Headache
• Not feeling like getting up from the bed
• Hallucinating
• Not feeling connected with reality

Withdrawal Of Lunesta

Coming as a sedative-hypnotic drug, Lunesta carries a risk of showing withdrawal syndrome if the consumer stops having their Lunesta dose abruptly. This can only end up as one new problem, nothing else. Now that might make you think ‘’what are the withdrawal symptoms of Lunesta’’. The symptoms of Lunesta withdrawal are as follows.

• Agitation
• Anxiety
• Fearfulness
• Feeling uneasy
• Vomiting
• Craving the drug
• Weird dreams
• Nausea
• Stomach bug

Who Should Not Take Lunesta

People with a history of alcohol or drug abuse should not go for Lunesta for their insomnia. It might enhance the probability of Lunesta dependence. However, a normal consumer of this drug can also develop dependence; the Lunesta addiction treatment is out there to help one out. One who does any particular activities like sleepwalking, sleep-driving while not being fully awaken should not go for this medication. Finally, always tell your full medical history to your medical expert before taking a sleeping pill.

FAQs

Is Lunesta a benzodiazepine?

Your sleep pill, Lunesta, is not a benzodiazepine, but to be particular, it is a sedative-hypnotic medication.

How to make Lunesta work better?

To speed up Lunesta’s work process, one can try taking it in empty stomach before going to bed. It will assure 7 to 8 hours of good sleep.

Is Lunesta stronger than Ambien?

Comparatively, we should say Lunesta has a longer half-life than the other sleeping pill, Ambien. However, you can read about it more in our Ambien vs Lunesta blog.

Closing Note

As we are about to finish today’s blog, we must say that as a sleep medication, Lunesta is powerful indeed. If you have gotten it in your prescription, try to use it carefully, and inform your healthcare expert if you feel any issues regarding your sleeping pill.