It's likely that with short-term use, sleeping pills can help you with a minor short-lived sleeping problem, but as part of a regime for dealing with insomnia naturally, you really need to know about the possible side effects - including addiction, that you could suffer.
In fact, due to all of the possible side effects, sleeping pills can very often be just another thing aiding and abetting your insomnia, along with the usual stress, depression , the need to re-train your brain for sleep, healthy exercise and diet etc.
Commonly Known Side Effects
Do yourself a serious favor, be aware of sleeping pill side effects and avoid further, possibly more serious, health issues;
Addiction - emotional or physical addiction causes many further negative effects
Sleep-walking
Unusual dreams
Hallucinations
Amnesia
Daytime drowsiness and dizziness
Dry mouth
Weight gain/Binge Eating
Diarrhea
Gas
Constipation
Weight gain and/or binge eating
Other large changes in appetite
Heartburn
Stomach pains and other stomach discomfort
Dry mouth
Headaches
There's also the fact that sleeping pills cause a slower/shallower breathing rate - a possible life-threatening side effect for those with lung conditions like asthma.
None of this should really surprise anybody too much, after all we are talking about a drug and it's a well known fact that any drug, be it prescribed or not, is basically a poison and will most definitely have side effects of one type or another.
So to summarize; stress, depression, lack of a healthy exercise routine, a poor bedtime routine and diet, the need to re-train your brain and your way of thinking, coupled with a knowledge of what you may be letting yourself in for when using sleeping pills is critical for ensuring you rid yourself of the misery of insomnia.
