melatonin or other nonRX sleep aids

Anyone have experience pro or con with using melatonin or some other herbal or naturopathic type sleep aid? It's been about 2 months since I got my cpap machine and am still struggling through getting the right mask, preventing rain out and other comfort issues. I'm getting closer each day though. The last 3 nights have been the best but still only kept the mask on for 2 hours each night. Taking it off is either a wholely uncoscious thing or at best a semiconscious thing that i struggle to recreatre the reason for the next day. Part of this i'm sure is due to occassional use of ambien. I started with half a 10mg tab and now am down to about 2mg because i simply bite the end off a pill. the low dose allows me to fall asleep but have at least some lucidly at the time the mask comes off. I may increase the dose again not that i have some major mask issues resolved but even the whole pill that i took during the sleep study (a horrid experience) was only semiuseful for four hours. would melatonin or something else be more useful. also is there a spcific melatonin type as well as dosage to try?
thanks,
gregg )

I give this to my wife it works as well as a script drug and is much safer. Jim
Sleep and Restless Legs!

I have found Schiff Melatonin Plus to help my wife that works as good as Ambien for her. IN fact most nights I use 1/2 dose. It's 3 mg Melatonin & 25 mg Theanine. For Restless Legs, I use Members Mark (Sam's Club) Calcium, Magnesium & Zinc, 333mg-133 mg-5mg in one tab.

I have used the 5mg of melatonin and it puts me to sleep but the next day I feel like I have a hangover all morning long. I don't like the after effects so I just use Tylenol PM.

ahhh stepbill and for me a med like tylenol pm which uses benadryl in the mix for drowsiness would cause after effects for days. maybe it's true, we are all different. ;o)
thanks for the replys all,
gregg )