Is silenor a new sleep medication and is it similar to ambien (zolpidem)?

For sleep, but....: Silenor is a sleep medication but it works very differently from ambien. Silenor's chemical name is doxepin, this has been used as an antidepressant for many years (at much higher doses 100-300mg/day vs 3-6mg for silenor). It works similar to OTC sleep aids like Benadryl (diphenhydramine) and doxylamine by blocking histamine. Zolpidem works in a more complex way on hormones that regulate sleep.