What are prescription drugs for insomnia?
- Prescription drugs can help treat chronic insomnia when sleep hygiene isn’t enough.1
- The types of prescription drugs that can be prescribed to you depend on certain factors, such as your age, as well as any other medications you may be taking.2,3
What are sleep aids for insomnia?
This is when you may choose to reach out to your doctor to see if any prescription drugs for insomnia can help.1
How do prescription drugs for insomnia work?
The types of prescription drugs that can be prescribed to you depend on certain factors, such as your age, as well as any other medications you may be taking.2,3
There are lots of different types. Some are recommended for short-term sleep troubles while others are more suitable for long-term sleep problems, like chronic insomnia.4
Learn more about chronic insomnia and the different ways to manage it.
How do prescription drugs work at night and during the day?
Nighttime benefits
The most common prescription drugs for insomnia are sedative medications.1 They act on parts of your brain to make you feel drowsy and relaxed so you can fall asleep more easily.5
Not only do they make you feel sleepy, they can also help your muscles relax and may help reduce anxiety.5 Plus, there are prescription drugs available that don’t have a sedative effect which can help you to sleep.2
One of these is melatonin, an important hormone involved in regulating your sleep-wake cycle.6 You can only get high dose melatonin on prescription in some countries, where it only tends to be prescribed to people over the age of 50.3,7 In other countries, however, low dose melatonin is available over-the-counter.2
Learn more about melatonin and other types of over-the-counter sleep aids for insomnia.
Daytime effects
Although many prescription drugs can help you sleep, some may not help you to get the restorative sleep you need to feel your best during the day.5 Plus, they may be long lasting which means you can experience the following daytime symptoms (also known as hangover effects) after using them:8
- Difficulty remembering things8
- Dizziness4
- Fatigue4
- Blurred vision4
So even though some prescription drugs may leave you feeling drowsy during the day, not all of them are associated with daytime hangover effects.8,9
This is why it’s important to talk to your doctor about any symptoms you may be experiencing, as well as how long you’ve been having trouble sleeping. They can then find a way to help you, so you can not only fall asleep but also feel your best during the day.
To sum it up
If you’ve been having trouble sleeping for a long time, you may choose to talk to your doctor to see if they can help.
There’s lots of different prescription drugs for insomnia that can make you feel drowsy and relaxed so you can fall asleep.5 Some are recommended for short-term trouble sleeping while others are more suitable for long-term sleep disturbances, such as chronic insomnia.4 Plus, some may leave you feeling drowsy during the day but not all prescription drugs for insomnia are associated with daytime hangover effects.8,9
Want to find out more about chronic insomnia?
References
1. Mansfield D, et al. Aust J Gen Pract. 2019; 48(4):198–202.
2. Lie JD, et al. PT. 2015; 40(11): 759–768: 771.
3. Cardinali DP, et al. J Pineal Res. 2012; 52(4):365–75.
4. Madari S. Neurotherapeutics. 2021; 18(1): 44–52.
5. Krystal AD. World Psychiatry. 2019; 18(3): 337–352.
6. Zisapel N. Br J Pharmacol. 2018; 175(16): 3190–3199.
7. Grigg-Damberger MM and Ianakieva D. J Clin Sleep Med. 2017; 13(2): 163–165.
8. Atkin T, et al. Pharmacol Rev. 2018; 70(2):197–245.
9. Ferracioli-Oda E. PLoS One. 2013; 17;8(5):e63773.
EUC-IDS-00086 April 2025
