I've been a chronic insomniac for as long as I can remember, going far back into my childhood, and was a big reason I became severely alcoholic.
I am rx'd Ambien and it works great. But I would absolutely advise against mixing it with alcohol. When I take it by itself I fall asleep quickly and sleep soundly with no problem. When I mixed it with alcohol is when I woke up with two black eyes and unexplained cuts on my face and I have never had a history of sleepwalking. Like with benzos, tolerance is an issue, so I don't take it when I feel I can fall asleep fairly quickly, and if I find myself taking it a few nights in a row, I alternate it with 50mg trazodone.
Remeron and doxepin are two other sedating antidepressants that can be effective. Remeron helps with sleep onset and doxepin helps you stay asleep.
I agree about antihistamines - when I was rx'd hydroxyzine, I found it difficult to even get out of bed.
Good sleep hygiene is also important. A cool, dark, silent room is ideal, although white noise (esp rain) helped me when I had insomnia from alcohol WD. Also, I had a therapist tell me don't do anything in bed except sleep or have sex so that your mind does not become accustomed to the idea that bed is where you do stuff. I had the bad habit of watching Netflix on my phone or reading a book in bed. The "blue filter" on most modern smartphones seems to help.
I have never used anything OTC except Benadryl and melatonin, but I have a friend who swears by Unisom, although I think that is another antihistamine. Melatonin is a supplement, though, where counterintuitively, less is actually more effective. Herbal teas are also good, although it is too hot in Florida most of the year to use it to unwind. But it is nice during the winter months. Oh, and Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate baths) are extremely soothing. I also take a magnesium supplement before bed as well.
