I use Ambien a couple times a month when I'm trying to re-orient my sleep cycle for that 0300 wakeup, otherwise there's no way in heck that I can get to sleep at 1900 the day prior without it.

I used Ambien extensively in the USAF when in Iraq and found it to be totally safe (for me). There are some funny stories though as it seems to hit some people a lot harder than others and some not at all. Sometimes it totally knocks me out right away and sometimes its and hour later and I'm still wide awake, but it WILL make me sleep eventually.

Either way, I find it's better than tossing and turning in bed and being bleary eyed the next day.