I’ve battled insomnia for decades, often losing the battle. For many years I took trazodone, which seemed to help. But then, as often happens with sleeping pills, one day it just stopped working. I’ve also tried other pills, over the years, with poor results.

For the last few years I’ve taken Natrol time release melatonin pills. (Available at many online and offline stores.) Melatonin, like all supplements, varies a lot in quality from brand to brand, but Natrol seems to work well for many people. But for me it only worked around half the time. The other half, I was up all night, miserable and desperate to get to sleep.

Oh yeah, and I tried all the “sleep hygiene” solutions, too – blackout shades, “blue blocker” lightbulbs and screen filters, cooler room, lots of exercise, limiting caffeine and electronics use, podcasts, etc. (Did I leave anything out?) Nothing worked.

Until now. For the last couple of months I’ve been taking Cannabidiol (CBD) Oil and it has helped better than anything else I’ve tried. It is a derivative of the hemp plant, which is related to marijuana, but (unlike marijuana) CBD is NON psychoactive and you do NOT need a prescription to get it. It relaxes you and reduces pain and anxiety; and for me, apparently, that seems to be enough to get some sleep.

I’ve even taken a second small dose on nights when I’ve woken up prematurely, and it’s helped then, too, without serious impact on my performance the next day.

You can get it in pill and liquid (under-the-tongue) form; and I use the latter as I think it works more quickly.

It’s not cheap – around $1 – $1.50 per dose – but I would pay more than that for a night’s sleep.

Again, like all supplements, quality varies so choose carefully and avoid the cheap stuff. Ananda Apothecary’s CBD DeFlame is a well-regarded online brand, and I’ve also used Barlean’s, which is available at many health food stores.

Obviously insomnia is a serious medical condition that can be linked to other serious conditions, so check with your doctor and let her know you’re considering using CBD oil.

If you’re taking CBD oil or another insomnia treatment how is it working for you? Please let us know in the comments. Also, please let us know what brands work for you!

Note: as always, I do not receive a commission or any other compensation for products I mention.