Sleep Meds

Hi everyone,
I've noticed alot of people use Ambien. I have used Lorazepam 1 mg for over 10 years. 2 years ago my doctor added Amitriptyline 10mg. They are not sleeping pills but anti-anxiety meds and the doc says you can use them indefinitely. I have no side effects from either.
3 other things help me to go to sleep, 1-2 cocktails (absolutley no more or the opposite effect) or glass of wine 5 hours before bed, Reading 20-30 minutes till sleepy, and occassionaly listening to relaxation tapes or classical music. By the way for the first 3 years I slept with my mask , Bose sound deadening headphones over my headgear and my cd player. I couldn't tell if the cpap was on but the music lulled me to sleep. Good Luck Wen.

Ah, a topic I can speak on with long experience. (As you all say "What? Man, you sure talk a lot then on topics you DON'T have experience on!").

Elavil (aka amitriptyline) *IS* also used as a sleep medication. It's in the same family as trazadone, aka tricyclic antidepressants. I was on it as an antidepressant back before the SSRIs existed, and I was a ZOMBIE. Any time I was not working, I was asleep.

However, it also has anti-anxiety (and of course anti-depressant) effects. They just don't use it primarily for those any more, because the SSRIs are as effective without the drowsy effect.

Liam, who has more experience with anti-depressants than he'd like to admit.

They are supposed to be working on a next generation group of sleep aides, has anyone been keepin abreast of them?