Is Colin Powell on drugs? I'm not kidding.

[qanda]

Some of you may remember the story, back in November, about Colin Powell admitting to using Ambien. A refresher for those who don't.

Powell described his killer schedule in an interview Thursday with Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed, a reporter for a London-based Saudi newspaper.

"So do you use sleeping tablets to organize yourself?" Al-Rashed asked.

"Yes. Well, I wouldn't call them that," Powell said. "They're a wonderful medication -- not medication. How would you call it? They're called Ambien, which is very good. You don't use Ambien? Everybody here uses Ambien."

http://www.talkleft.com/archives/004892.html

Now, a look at some of the side effects for Ambien:

More common side effects may include:

Allergy, daytime drowsiness, dizziness, drugged feeling, headache, indigestion, nausea

Less common side effects may include:

Abdominal pain, abnormal dreams, abnormal vision, agitation, amnesia, anxiety, arthritis, back pain, bronchitis, burning sensation, chest pain, confusion, constipation, coughing, daytime sleeping, decreased mental alertness, depression, diarrhea, difficulty breathing, difficulty concentrating, difficulty swallowing, diminished sensitivity to touch, dizziness on standing, double vision, dry mouth, emotional instability, exaggerated feeling of well-being, eye irritation, falling, fatigue, fever, flu-like symptoms, gas, general discomfort, hallucination, hiccup, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, increased sweating...

Go here for a full listing:

http://www.ambiensleepingpills.com/ambien-side-effects.html

I wouldn't be surprised if Colin's unusual showing at yesterday's hearing is a result of his dependence on his "wonderful medication".

[Jacobin]

1. Could this have anything to do with sleepless nights?

UN envoy backs call of Shiite on Iraq vote
Edward Wong/NYT NYT Friday, February 13, 2004
BAGHDAD A United Nations envoy said Thursday that he supported a powerful Shiite cleric's call for elections to install a sovereign new government, but he did not say whether he thought the vote could be held by the American target date for turning over power.
.
After meeting with the cleric in the holy Shiite city of An Najaf south of Baghdad, the envoy, Lakhdar Brahimi, said the Shiite leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali Husseini al-Sistani, "insists on holding the elections, and we are with him on this 100 percent because elections are the best means to enable any people to set up a state that serves their interest."
.
Brahimi's statements underscored how the White House will have difficulty carrying out its original caucus-style plan and convincing the Iraqi people of the plan's legitimacy.
.
.http://www.iht.com/articles/129424.html

[xultar]

2. Didn't he just have prostate CANCER surgery? n/t

[Jacobin]

3. I think the drug use predates that

[brokensymmetry]

4. He's probably depressed.

Who can blame him?

[Paranoid_Portlander]

10. If he is depressed, Ambien may make it worse.

It's a sleeping pill. Nasty stuff.

[hatrack]

5. As I recall, BushCo V1.0 was big on Halcion

Maybe not that much has changed in the last 12 years.

[DemoTex]

6. In Powell's defense ... (What DemoTex!?)

A lot of MDs recommend some of the light sleeping pills (and I think Ambian is one) for coping with long flights over many time zones. Some sleep being better than no sleep. You gotta admit that Powell does keep a killer schedule.

[cosmicdot]

8. maybe ol'Col should check out alternatives, like melatonin

http://www.life-enhancement.com/category.asp?SID=1&id=8



Description: Sleep enhancer, prevent & relieve jet lag

before his friends in the bUsH White House bans everything or require prescriptions through Wal-Mart

[Terran]

14. Mmmm, Ambien isn't "light"

It's a Class IV controlled substance, and as such poses some risks, although not high risks, for addiction. You might call an over-the-counter sleeping pill "light," but not Ambien. It's in the same league as Valium.

For him to say, "I wouldn't call it a sleeping pill" is pretty ridiculous. It makes you sleep, that's it's purpose.

Dirk

[cosmicdot]

7. Doing bad things prolly can do a number on one's conscience

being medicated, he may say that he's not comfortable with the role ...

Dear Colin: a lot of Americans are medicated ... imagine being depressed and oppressed at the same time ... btw ... did yours cost you anything? Or do you have ample med coverage?

[Sugarbleus]

9. Oh, yeah..I remember that Halcion thing.

My hubby takes ambien for insomnia, every night. I tried it and it works but Brother does it ever leave a hangover if you're not used to it.

I don't know what Mr. Powell is up to but he sure got TICKED OFF in that committee/hearing the other day. Did everyone see it? Woooboy

I thought he was gonna duke it out with the panel memebers right there. He probably WILL be needing lots a lots of Valium very soon. }(

[smirkymonkey]

11. Ambien is a sedative hypnotic, and

while not a benzodiazapene, is still very addictive. Powell says Ambien is not medication?? - it most certainly is and judging from the side effects and withdrawal symptoms, I would guess that most of the * administration are popping them like candy.

Ambien withdrawal symptoms include but are not limited to:

Abnormal extroversion or aggressive behavior (this would account for the warmongering)
Loss of personal identity
Confusion
Strange behavior
Agitation
Hallucinations
Worsening of depression
Suicidal thoughts
Insomnia
Anxiety

Sound familiar??

[crimson333]

12. I find ambien worthless

never has worked for me really. I get better results with tylenol pm.

[mithnanthy]

13. I recently tried Ambian...

after having a hip replacement. I used it to help me get used to temporarily sleeping on my back (UGH!) and it was worthless and expensive. Tylenol PM worked better. Ambian didn't make me feel good the next morning. I tried it for 3 nights and switched. Maybe Colin is on meds from his operation and is cranky. Meds can definately do that. So can his bosses, I'm sure.

[DoYouEverWonder]

15. Here's Powell statement that is posted on the Dept of State site!

nterview by Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed of Asharq Al-Awsat

Secretary Colin L. Powell
Washington, DC
November 5, 2003

2003/1138
(4:40 p.m. EST)

SECRETARY POWELL: -- from Panama to Nicaragua, from Nicaragua to Honduras, and that's our air base in Honduras, Soto Cono.

So in a helicopter it's Tegucigalpa, then back out to the -- Tegucigalpa to Soto Cono, then Soto Cono to College Station last night, then I had to change all of my software and take out all of the Central American software and put in the Chinese software to give a speech this morning in Texas.

QUESTION: So do you use sleeping tablets to organize yourself?

SECRETARY POWELL: Yes. Well, I wouldn't call them that. They're a wonderful medication -- not medication. How would you call it? They're called ambien, which is very good. You don't use ambien? Everybody here uses ambien.

QUESTION: I use it when I go on trip and long distance travel.

SECRETARY POWELL: Yeah. I didn't need it this time because I was in the same time zone.

QUESTION: I see.

SECRETARY POWELL: It's when I go to your part of the world. I need to get my rest.




BTW: No Colin, everybody doesn't use ambien. Sounds like a perscription drug addict to me.


Note to the Mods: Posting from a government website. Copyright laws do not apply.

[dflprincess]

16. Don't the ads for Ambian

say you shouldn't use it for more than 5 (or something like that) consecutive days?

[Happy Eddie]

18. Confessions of an Ambien eater

I don't know what the ads say (must have slept through them :) ) but this sounds about right. My doctor doesn't want me to take Ambien more than 3 or 4 nights in a row, then ideally take a similar number of nights off. Ambien does help me and I rarely have hangovers from it. Like a lot of these things, it'll help some people, not do much for others, and be dangerous for some.

I don't know why Powell denied it's a medication, but from what I know of it, if it was a problem he'd be acting more erratic than he seems to be doing.

[newyawker99]

22. Hi Happy Eddie!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[amazona]

17. yes he's on drugs

And like all druggies he has surrounded himself w/ other substance abusers and so thinks it's normal. "Everybody takes Ambien" indeed!

Unfortunately, the suggested replacement for Ambien -- melatonin -- is quite worthless. When it does make you fall asleep, you awake a short while later -- a very short while later, often as little as 30 minutes and then can't go to sleep again. When I was involved in some graveyard shift activities and used melatonin to try to adjust my body clock, I came close to hallucinations after a few day's without sleep, as did the person with me. Sort of a double hallucination. Very educational and entertaining to see what the mind can do...but we were not trying to run a country or prosecute a war. We threw away the melatonin and did future projects of the nature on pure nerve and caffeine. I'm confident had we been using Ambien or the Bush favorite Halcion that we'd have been in even worse shape!

[qanda]

19. Kind of scary to think that druggies are running our country.

Or should that be ruining our country?

[Dr Fate]

20. Ibogaine...

...obviously an ibogaine addict...

[Paranoid_Portlander]

21. Did Powell get the pills from his friend, Rush Limbaugh?

Just asking. I really don't know.