Insomnia
 

I can't sleep anymore. It is taking me forever to fall asleep and then I can't stay asleep.
What do you all recommend to fall asleep?
Anyone taking / tried Ambien or Lunesta?

I've been taking Ambien since last year and it helps me a lot. However, I can only take half because if I take a whole pill, I usually wake up really groggy in the morning, cotton-mouthed and all.

I tend to fall asleep less than one hour after taking it.

I've tried both...neither really works on me. I go into this half awake half asleep thing where I hear stuff (not hallucinations, but like the traffic outside my house, the tv, my dog, neighbors, stuff like that) but I'm not awake and can't respond to it. It really freaks me out, because I imagine thats what it might be like in a coma, so I can't take it anymore.

Talk to your doctor to try and figure out why you really can't sleep. My true sleeplessness tends to occur when I have high anxiety, so I take a larger dose of xanax, which relaxes me and helps me fall asleep.

If I'm not anxious and I just can't sleep, I get some sleepy time tea. I can't remember who makes it, but its got a bear on it. I think Celestial Seasonings? Its the best option supermarket wise. There was a teacher this summer who got some great relaxing tea from Hong Kong when she was there before the session. I wish I remembered what kind of herb that was. I'm thinking about going making an appt with an herbalist to get some tea made for me.

I used to take Tylenol PM but its addicting, and before I knew it I couldn't sleep without it!

Instead of trying to self-medicate to sleep I solved the real issue, which is usually related to stress. Maybe you could identify whats keeping you awake & try to fix that instead?

You could try melatonin.
Beware of trazadone if you go the prescription route. It's actually a hallucinogenic but you'll fall asleep before that starts so instead you get trippy dreams.
I use benedryl, big fan of that.

I agree that Sleepy Time tea is wonderful and can be really calming before bed!
During the day, try to exercise(but not less than two hours before bed) and minimize your caffeine intake.
Sleeping with an eye mask helps keep out light and distractions. You could also consider ear plugs if there is noise in your neighborhood.
I also have this lavender-scented mist for my sheets. Lavender is supposed to be a calming scent that helps you fall asleep.
I've taken Lunesta before for short periods of time and found that it really works well for me.
I hope this helps!