Ahhhhh to sleep...

[OakLeaf]

I use melatonin occasionally.

Are you getting enough natural light during the daytime, especially early morning? Dark at night is only half of the equation of getting your body to produce enough of its own melatonin. When I worked in an office without windows, full spectrum bulbs did wonders for my sleep quality.

FWIW, Benadryl gives me an awful hangover. I do use chlorpheniramine occasionally, mostly as a bedtime antihistamine, but it really knocks me out too and wears off in four to six hours.

I'll use herbal sleep aids now and then, also. Most of them are made with some combination of valerian, hops and scullcap. I don't get any side effects from any of those (though the smell of valerian is a little hard to take).