I recently went to my doctor because I felt fatuiged for a while. She said that my lack of good sleep may be the cause.

I wake up frequently during the night, have very vivid and sometimes disturbing dreams, and wake up feeling more tired that when I went to bed. My doctor gave me a light dose of sleeping medication but I’m not too sure if I really want to take it. Will the medication get rid of my dreams? I like the fact that after I wake up I can still remember my dreams clearly. Also taking medicine to sleep better makes me a little nervous. What if I become dependant on it?

—Carrie, Age 20, Folsom, CA, USA