Medications Used to Treat Sleep Disorders

Sometimes, your doctor might suggest you try medication to alleviate sleep problems. Here are some more commonly used drugs.

Drugs that send you to sleep:

  • Non-benzodiazepine sedative-hypnotics, include more commonly prescribed medications like zolpidem (Ambien), zaleplon (Sonata), and eszopiclone (Lunesta). These drugs are used to treat short-term insomnia. 
  • Benzodizaepine sedative-hypnotics that are FDA approved for insomnia include, estazolam (Prosom), flurazepam (Dalmane), temazepam (Restoril), triazolam (Halcion) and quazepam (Doral). Similar drugs that are sometimes used for insomnia though not approved by the FDA include lorazepam (Ativan), clonazepam (Klonopin), diazepam (Valium) and alprazolam (Xanax). These drugs may also be used to treat anxiety, some types of parasomnias and are prescribed to treat bruxism (teeth grinding). 
  • Melatonin Receptor Agonist: Ramelteon (Rozerem) is used to treat insomnia and circadian rhythm (sleep schedule) disorders.

Drugs that keep you awake:

  • Modafinil (Provigil) can be used to improve wakefulness for those who are excessively sleepy. For example, it may be prescribed to people with narcolepsy, shift workers or sleep apneics who still have tiredness despite optimal treatment with another form of treatment such as continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP).
  • Amphetamine-like agents. Several stimulants in the amphetamine class have been developed to treat sleepiness in patients with narcolepsy. These include: dextroamphetamine (Dexedrine, Adderall) and methylphenidate (Ritalin, Concerta). 
  • Sodium oxybate (Xyrem) is a drug which helps with alertness and loss of muscle control in people with narcolepsy.

Other sleep drugs:

  • Anticonvulsants, such as carbamazepine (Tegretol, Carbatrol), valproic acid (Depakene, Depakote), topiramate (Topamax) and gabapentin (Neurontin) are sometimes prescribed to treat nocturnal eating syndrome, restless legs syndrome, periodic limb movement disorder, and insomnia related to bipolar disorder. 
  • Dopaminergic drugs such ascarbidopa-levodopa (Sinemet), pramipexole (Mirapex) ropinirole (Requip), bromocriptine (Parlodel) and pergolide (Permax), and are often used to treat restless legs syndrome and periodic limb movement disorder. 
  • Opiates, such as codeine, oxycodone, methadone, dihydromorphone and propoxyphene are sometimes prescribed for restless legs syndrome.

Over-the-counter remedies:

  • Melatonin
  • Herbs like valerian root, chamomile
  • L-tryptophan in foods like turkey, milk, nuts
  • Pain medications with antihistamines

Possible problems from sleep medications:

  • Side effects. There are several side effects to sleep medications, such as next-day drowsiness, memory loss, confusion, clumsiness and dry mouth. These side effects can be severe 
  • Tolerance. As you take drugs over time, you may find you need more and more of a drug to have the same effect. 
  • Dependence. You may come to depend on a sleep drug and will not be able to sleep without it. 
  • Withdrawal symptoms. If you stop taking most sleep drugs quickly, you might suffer withdrawal symptoms like shaking, sweating, dizziness or nausea. 
  • Rebound insomnia. Taking some insomnia drugs for too long can cause the symptoms of insomnia to become even worse than before.