Sleep Medicine

Prescription Medicine

Sometimes doctors prescribe sleep medicine. It can make you fall asleep faster, wake up less at night, and increase your overall sleep time. It’s a good idea to use these types of medicine at the lowest possible dose and with other sleep strategies.

Sleeping pills may help at first, but they might cause poor quality sleep. Most sleeping pills increase light sleep and decrease deep sleep. Because of this, you might sleep longer, but you might also feel tired or unrefreshed the next day. Sleeping pills are usually recommended for 7 days or less. In some cases, your doctor might want you to take them longer.

A low dose of an antidepressant medicine called amitriptyline is often prescribed for people who have migraines and sleep problems. It’s taken at night and can help improve both sleep and headaches.

Over-the-Counter Medicine

Some types of over-the-counter sleep products contain other types of medicine (e.g., antihistamines or pain medicine). This medicine might improve sleep a little, but can cause side effects like:

• daytime sleepiness
• feeling dizzy
• problems thinking and making decisions
• blurred vision

Herbal Supplements

Many people say that herbal supplements help with sleep. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine says research hasn’t proven they work and recommends that people only take supplements if their doctor tells them to.

One of the most common sleep supplements is melatonin. There is limited research to prove that melatonin works, and higher doses have been linked to insomnia, nightmares, and severe headaches. Some headache studies have found that people with migraines have low melatonin levels. In a recent study, people with migraines were given melatonin to see what might happen to their headaches. The study found that taking melatonin didn't change the number of headache attacks.

Medicine and Insomnia

These types of medicine might cause insomnia:

• some antihistamines/decongestants
• beta blockers
• thyroid medicine
• birth control medicine
• asthma medicine
• high blood pressure medicine
• pain medicine with caffeine (e.g., Excedrin^®, Tylenol #1^®, Tylenol 2^®, and Tylenol 3^®)

Before you take any medicine or supplements, talk to your doctor or pharmacist.​​​​