Hi @cherawgirl , I really feel for you. Sometimes there is no alternative to medication. But if someone had told me decades ago about the long term effects I would have tried to wean myself off them long ago. So now I'm paying the price of long-term use and I try to use sleep aid as little as possible. I'm generally tired during the day and a good day for me is one in which I can function at a reasonable level. For a while I used CPAP but when that didn't help enough a sleep "specialist" prescribed a sedative and when that wasn't enough he simply increased the dosage. When my GP heard that I had been using the tablets for a long time she was shocked and weaned me off them, which was hell. I don't want to ever go through that process again. Right now I'm trying meditation everyday 10 to 20 minutes and hoping that that will make my sleep calmer.
Wishing you a calm, restful night!

My situation is exactly like yours. Can you share what sleep meds you tried that you don't want to take again? I currently take 2.5mg melatonin and 75-100mg Trazodone which help me fall asleep, but I wake after a few hours and most often can't fall back asleep. I'm also trying THC 15mg and CBN 12mg sleep gummies, but they aren't helping much. My sleep Dr only recommends hypnotic drugs, where you can sleep walk and not remember it, so I don't want to take those. I see a different Dr next week and am quite sure she will recommend the same meds. I am getting desperate to find something that helps me.