Insomnia sufferers are putting their health at risk by taking sleeping remedies without medical advice, pharmacists have warned.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) says nearly a third of people with sleeping problems have taken pills for longer than a month without talking to a health professional.
Fourteen percent have taken remedies for more than six months, according to a survey carried out for the RPS.
But the society's Neil Patel told Sky News sleep difficulties could be a symptom of more serious problems.
"If you have a sleeping problem that lasts longer than a month, in the majority of cases there will possibly be an underlying medical condition," he said.
"That could be a mental health problem, like depression, or a physical symptom, like asthma. So, we would like people to talk to their pharmacist and find out what that condition may be."
The society said people with short-term insomnia caused by jet lag or shift work can safely use over-the-counter medication.
Sheila Fitzpatrick, 76, has struggled to get a good night's sleep for 15 years.
The sleeping pills she bought over the counter from the chemist did not work for long - she became so anxious about becoming dependent on tablets that her insomnia got worse.
She now uses an online sleep programme that works for her, and would never go back to medication.
"It's been a lifeline for me, it really has," she said.
"I was totally dependent (on sleeping tablets). I thought, 'I've got to come off the pills.' The difference in me as a person … I feel 20 years younger than I did.
"Sometimes I had no sleep whatsoever, sometimes I managed two hours. Very, very, very rarely did I get more.
"How can you carry on life when you haven’t had any sleep?
"I wasn’t sure if the (lack of) sleep was causing the depression or the depression was causing the (lack of) sleep. I thought seriously of suicide."
