I used to take Xanax to go to sleep for about a year. Also tried Restoril and Halcion which used to be more popular. I did not have a problem stopping these. Now I take ambien, and it works better for me. I'm glad to have something because, like you, I only got 1-2 hours of sleep without medication.

Trazadone did not work for me.

I prefer ambien and xanax because the others gave me daytime side effects of feeling groggy. Trazadone made me the groggiest and did not help me sleep at all.

Hi, I was given Lorazepam after a panic attack put me in the ER around 2005, major family stressor going on...I continued with "L" for some years taking 1/2 mg but then when a friend put me onto the word that these are linked to dementia and she got off them and so did I, then another group I'm on just sent thru an announcement on the dementia linked meds....I've posted this info on meds/treatments section here.

I do well with my sleep combo I've posted here...no groggy days and awake all day, I get my good night sleep. C

Hi pepper999

I am sorry to read about your sleeping problems - I used to have insomnia as well.

As other contributors have pointed out, it is probably a good idea to be cautious about the benzodiazepines (Lorazepam, Xanax, Klonopin, etc) - they can be addictive.

What helped me with my insomnia is sleep hygiene, which essentially means learning good habits in preparation for sleeping well.

The info here helped me with that and I hope will help you as well;

http://sleepfoundation.org/ask-the-expert/sleep-hygiene