They *say* that it's bad for you because you could get addicted, but I think being addicted and getting good sleep is better than dealing with the effects of never getting proper sleep!
I have trouble sleeping at night, and when I was on them, I had the best sleep of my life. I'm thinking about getting a constant script for 'em because I still have trouble sleeping.. and lately I've been miserable even with 8 hours of sleep. Tired as hell all day, etc.
I workout and stuff, too, which totally doesn't give me energy. I eat properly, etc., so who knows. Anyway.. I'd rather be on these pills
[edit]
Here's some info on it:
http://ambien.drugs.com/
I'm sure you can get more from Google, but it just says "Can be habit forming." The side effects are common with just about any other medication, so nothing unusual there. I'm not sure if you build up a tolerance to em, but if not, then what's the biggie?