I feel the need to chime in here... I'm not disagreeing with anybody, just telling my own story.
I worked in a nursing home and found that where they used to give Benedryl (which leaves you really feeling hung over) for sleep, they have switched over to Melatonin. It doesn't leave them so hung over and doesn't appear to interact with other meds. You be surprised how much medicines residence in nursing homes take, it's crazy!
Anyhow the residents at the nursing home take it along with pain meds, anxiety meds, and all kinds of different meds, without anywhere near the ill effects caused by stuff like Benedryl.
As for weed, I really miss good old fashion REGULAR weed. The stuff these days is way to strong for me. I go into complete panic attack mode. Even from just 1 or 2 hits. If I ever find some of the old stuff, it's great for sleep for me, but it's really hard to come by. I'm not sure what the difference is in the stuff these days, but I can't stand the feeling it gives me.
Having said all that... I take 10mgs of Melatonin several times a week. Not necessarilyevery night but it's the only thing I've found that will shut off the random thoughts that keep me awake at times.Every timeI take Melatonin I wake up almost exactly 7 hours later and feel great and rested. I never felt any kind of high from it at all. I never built up a tolerance, it just didn't work at all until I got to 9-10mgs. So I take 2, 5mgs tablets, or 3, 3mgs tablets. May partner takes 3mgs every single night and has done so for at least 4 years! Neither of us have unusual dreams. Nothing different than before we found the Melatonin.
I'm not making any suggestions, just telling my own experience with it. I think you just have to experiment and see what works for you. Be careful, and ask your Dr. about it. Just because I mentioned that the residence at the nursing home take it with other meds, does NOT mean you should. PLEASE talk to your Dr. about it first. I was just trying to point out how mild it seems to be.
I did try Ambian once, and it was horrible. I got up and did things around the house and chatted with people online and even sent emails that I had no memory of the next day. Now that was scary!
Oh one last thing.... with Melatonin, there is about a 30 min window to go to sleep in. After that it's gone. So if you do choose to take it, take it and lay down within about 15 mins and you should drift off to sleep. If you wait past about 30mins, it's gone and won't do any good for falling asleep.
Take care!