Ditto on this.

I tried Valerian, St. John's Wort, and Kava kava (before they realized that one can screw up your organs pretty badly). Pretty much all ineffective; I could hardly tell the difference and plain old vitamins would have been a better use of the money. I think if I'd had mild non-bipolar depression, the Valerian and SJW might have helped, so the total fail is hardly a surprise given the severity of my symptoms at the time. Do note that SJW is known to have medication interactions, and supplements are not free of side effects!

Melatonin works great for helping me fall asleep too. It's not one that really helps you stay asleep, as I understand it, but it's the body's natural hormone that triggers sleep. It works better for me than anything else I've tried, without any noticeable side effects at all and no next-day grogginess. It's not available OTC worldwide, but it will be in practically every grocery or health store in the US that has vitamins and supplements. And cheap! If you try melatonin, know that it has a "window" of effectiveness and will only help you fall asleep if you go to bed right after taking it. This should be obvious, but I can't tell you how many times I took melatonin and then stayed up for hours and hours and hours because I was hypomanic and just had to learn all the things on the Internets, but if I'd just tried to sleep right away, it probably would have worked.

Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) is one of the few things that has scientific research backing the claim that it helps with bipolar. If you do take Rx's, you might want to add some vitamins depending on which meds. B-complex (with folic acid) and D-3 are recommended with anticonvulsants like Lamictal/lamotrigine because they may deplete your existing supply, but they are brain/mood-boosters regardless. My pdoc OK'd all of these before I mixed them with prescriptions.