I have been suffering from insomnia for decades now and I have tried almost all sleep medications to no avail. Recently, my doctor started me on Rozerem. I have been on it for a month but the best sleep I got so far is 4 hours. I am starting to get more depressed from lack of sleep that I resorted to taking Rozerem with Ambien. I am currently on therapy but it’s the sleep loss that’s bothering me. Are there any other med options out there?


You mentioned you’ve been through different sleep medications for your insomnia but apparently, they are not working they way you wanted them to. So, most probably, your response to the next sleep medication would still be the same. Nothing.

Insomnia is a condition wherein there is a difficulty trying to initiate sleep and/or maintain it. This condition may be caused by poor lifestyle and sleeping habits. This is also called transient insomnia. One way of dealing with it would be avoiding alcoholic drinks, smoking, and caffeine-containing foods and drinks, i.e. chocolates, teas, colas, coffee. Practicing good sleep hygiene may also prove to be helpful.

However, if you have tried the above-mentioned measures without positive results, then the insomnia may be caused by factors other than lifestyle. Insomnia may also be brought about by an underlying medical condition such as ADHD, hyperthyroidism, sleep apnea, pain issues, etc. Visiting a physician and having yourself checked for such disorders and dealing with it would take care of the sleeplessness. Mental and emotional issues can also trigger insomnia but you mentioned you are on therapy so, we are ruling that out for the meantime.

Being on medications does not always mean relief from symptoms. Sometimes they just mask the symptoms making you think you’re cured and a few more days or weeks of taking them, the symptoms come right back. In your case, they simply won’t work. So, something else must be the problem.

I am sure you are aware that sleeping aids has unpleasant side effects and can be addicting, so my suggestion would be to keep that to a minimum, if not discontinue it altogether. But make sure your doctor knows about it, too. Discontinuing sleeping medications should also be done the right way, gradually. And taking two sleeping medications at the same time can be dangerous. Similar medications, when taken together, will increase the effect of the other which can lead to an overdose. Ask your doctor first about it before starting any medication.

It all boils down to one thing, get yourself seen and assessed by a specialist because it is only through proper screening and diagnostic testing, as in sleep studies, that we can determine what is causing your sleeplessness so that an appropriate treatment regimen will be initiated. And do not self-medicate, much more have medicine cocktails. Going to the root of the problem and addressing it from there is often the safest and best way to go.