drugs ? sleep aids? alert meds?

my doctor gave me provigil a while back. Once I found out what it does (waken you up) I thought to myself, im tired because I dont sleep well, why isnt he giving me a sleeping aid?
Anyway, now that Snoredog explained, YES Snoredog and not my doctors !
He explained all about my spontaneous awakenings and the AHI.

My question: Has anyone successfully been treated with a sleep aid?
I was reading about Lunesta and they claim to be good for long term use.
I also read about a drug called Mirtazapine. A doctor in Belgium wrote a report about its success in reducing sleep disturbance.

Mirtazapine is the generic brand of Remeron which is an antidepressant. One of the side effects is drowsiness. There does not seem to be any other uses for this drug other than depression. I have objections to using drugs with a side effect of drowsiness to help people get to sleep. Antihistamines like Bnadryl are also prescribed for sleep. Somehow the thought is that it is safer to take a drug meant for something else than to take drugs specifically designed for insomnia. That makes no sense to me at all. It also is expensive, costing around $100 for a month's supply.

$100 a month is cheap compared to Provigil. (that gave me awful side effects)
I sometimes use Benadryl, infact I just took 50mg a little while ago.
I seem to get more sleep that way but its effects weaken if I take it for a few days in a row.

What do you think about Lunesta?

Lunesta is in the same drug class as Ambien which now has a cheaper generic version called zolpidem. These drugs often have quantity limits by insurance companies, ie they will only pay for 14 tablets for every 34 day period. Interesting huh? What are you supposed to do the other 20 days of the month?

Lunesta is expensive compared to zolpidem and does the same thing. Talk to your doctor about what medications would be more helpful for you and your situation. You shouldn't take those drugs without supervision. I've taken Ambien almost nightly for 5 years and it still works well.