Thanks everyone for your input. To assure you, I do have a neurologist/internist who I see regularly (along with some other specialists). They know about my sleep problems and have all decided Benadryl is the best option for me. I was the one who brought up the study re anticholinergenics with them. I mean, the choice was that option, becoming addicted to a much stronger medication, or just not sleeping. A person can’t survive on 2 hours sleep/night, and that’s what I was getting for about a year. I was absolutely miserable. My family was affected. Google the effects of lack of sleep. Here’s a short summary, but I suggest doing the search yourself for detailed information if you’re interested.
Sleep loss (less than 7 hours per night) may have wide-ranging effects on the cardiovascular, endocrine, immune, and nervous systems, including the following:
Obesity in adults and children
Diabetes and impaired glucose tolerance
Cardiovascular disease: heart attack, heart failure, irregular heartbeat, stroke, inflammation, and hypertension
Anxiety symptoms
Depression
Cognitive impairment
I have a minor heart condition (my outpatient procedure last week was related to that) and the effects of lack of sleep on my cardiovascular and mental health played a role in my doctors making the decision to recommend Benadryl for me. And I think it was a good one considering how much better I feel now. I’m now getting 8 hours a sleep most nights which has been wonderful. It’s obviously it’s a Catch 22 situation for me - get no sleep and suffer the consequences, or take a med for that and still suffer the consequences. Not to be morbid, but I decided what was best for me was to keep my heart healthy and be alive for my kids.
I have been working on diet and exercise for several months. I’ve made good progress, have lost almost 20 lbs and reduced my sugar consumption drastically. I drink nothing but lots of water.
I’m going to take your advice and do more things to stimulate my brain. Also when I finish this last comment, I’m going to Amazon and order some books to read to reduce my time online. Give me some suggestions for some good recent mystery/thrillers please if you have time 
Thanks again for your comments. Knowing I’m not the only one dealing with this helps tremendously.