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Almost two years ago, my direct supervisor had, and from all accounts still has, a severe Ambien addiction. Her addiction compelled me to leave an otherwise perfectly good job. It was mentally draining to communicate with her and very unrewarding, financially and emotionally, to pick up the slack in our department. Fortunately, I landed a promotion in a nearby state, but in many ways I would have rather stayed on board. Many of her colleagues could not understand what she was talking about when she talked shop sober, but I could with little difficulty. Her professional reputation was irrevocably damaged, but the administration would not pursue disciplinary measures. Apart from not doing her job, she would often display some bizarre behavior. There were days when she would follow me into the bathroom. One time, she asked me about my bra size and then insisted her breasts were smaller than mine. Truth be told, only pre-pubescent girls and some female athletes are flatter than me. She's been caught sleeping under her desk a-la-George Costanza. She even told me she would sometimes double her doseage. Her husband was totally complicit because her addiction afforded him the opportunity to pursue emotional, and possibly, physical affairs while she was comatose. The fact that she often binged on food during her Ambien-induced state not only contributed to her weight problem, but caused a lot of gastrointestinal distress when she was sober. I feel so sorry for her because she is very intelligent and knowledgeable in our field, but this addiction is destroying her life. She deserves so much more.
