Insomnia is the chronic inability to sleep well.
In many people it is experienced as a difficulty in falling asleep. In others it is experienced both as a difficulty in falling asleep and in staying asleep. Disturbed patterns of sleep are a common occurrence for thousands of people. And frequently it drives people from one physician to another seeking some help in overcoming the problem. Drugs such as Valium, Dalmane, chloral hydrate, and barbiturates, which are prescribed by many doctors for treating insomnia, have many disadvantages.