I didn't sleep for nights in succession from the time I was 10-12 yrs.old. It got harder to handle as I went through college & transitioned into teaching.Often,I would read a book in one night.After two babies (who didn't sleep throught the night until they were 2 yrs. old), it was becoming impossible. I finally went to a doctor for a sleep study & was diagnosed with RLS (restless leg movement). I took Valerian before the diagnosis after researching for years. It really helped, but only to an extant. I either fell asleep quickly & woke up a couple of hours later, or could not fall asleep until about 5a.m. After the diagnosis I began taking Requip, & it has been a God-send.
With sleep disorders, your body does not get enough REM sleep, which is when a hormone is released to repair small muscle tears that occur everyday. If this continues too long untreated, you often wind up with an autoimmune defficiency disease. I have fibromyalgia now because it was not caught in time. I do sleep almost every night with the Requip, but under stress, the insomnia returns.
This has been my experience. God bless & good luck!