Insomnia

Take a break from Clutchfans.

 

Meh, I run a limousine and transportation business and probably haven't had a good nights sleep in 10 years. Sleep is for wimps. You got this, OP. Life ain't easy but the dude will always love you.

 

I struggle with insomnia. Melatonin is non addictive and doesn't make you groggy the next day.

You can use something stronger like zzzquil, but I always struggle waking up when I take it.

My fiancée recommends meditation, but I'm not about that life.

 

Doxepin/Silenor quick fix
Thyroid test for underlying causes

 

Get hammered and then pass out.

 

Smoke a bowl.

 

Promethazine / Codeine.

 

You might try downloading the "Calm" app on your phone. It's relaxing. I had anxiety for a while and it helped me.

https://www.calm.com/

They have a new feature called "sleep stories".

 

I had some problems with that a few weeks ago when I was studying for a big exam. Pharmaceutical solutions are definitely only a short-term solution. Most affect your REM sleep, so you get decreased quality of sleep/less restful sleep. Alcohol does the same thing.

Regular melatonin helps, but I found that while it's good for sleep induction it doesn't do a good job of sleep maintenance (keeping you asleep). I recently tried an extended release formulation from Walgreens and that got me 8 good hours of sleep. Take it about 20min before you want to go to bed.

Really, the basics of good sleep hygiene are most of what you need:
-No stimulants/caffeine at least 6 hours before bed.
-Exercise once a day, not too close to bedtime.
-Regular but not overly large meals.
-Sleep in a quiet, dark room. I have blackout blinds and sometimes use ear plugs.
-No web-surfing in bed, or at-least use something that reduces blue light (known to keep you awake). I use a program called Flux on my macbook, which automatically reduces blue light with time of day. It also has a filter called "Dark Room" which reduces eye strain in a dark room.

Good luck, I know how anxiety provoking it can be.

 

I sometimes have sleep troubles -- not that often, but when I get out of my routine, like you mention, or when I have too much going on at work. So I discovered (via a research paper): Sour Cherry Juice (or Tart Cherry Juice, depending on where you buy it).

Apparently, this is a much better biological delivery of melatonin to your system than taking a melatonin pill. This stuff is straight up magic. And, even if it doesn't work for you, it's freaking delicious.

If I had trouble sleeping the night before, I do about 6 ounces before I go to bed. Boom. Good night's sleep.

 

I get on my treadmill for 30 minutes fast pace walking and that does it for me.

 

I was the same way.
Take a few melatonin pills .3-1.0mg if you can; nothing wrong with the standard 3mg found in stores, but it has diminishing returns past 1mg.

And then once your sleep schedule is settled stop using the pills.

Above all else having a dark room, not taking caffeine before bedtime, and using a blue-light filter on electronic devices is crucial.

 

Workout a few hours before bed then take an epsom salts bath. Afterwards brew yourself some sleepy time tea mixed with some honey and maybe a dash of lemon juice. Take a couple melatonin pills to go with it and make sure the room you sleep in is free of any distractions like a running television and make your bedroom dark. I used to work overnights and had to get dark shades so light wouldn't creep in from my windows. When you take the bath try and focus on relaxing your muscle groups individually. Start from your shoulders and mentally tell yourself to relax and ease into the water and work your way down to your toes eventually. Should help you get in the mindset to relax as you get ready for bed. No point in being wound up like a coil as you try to get some sleep.

Smoking a bowl or getting hammered actually hurts your sleep more than helps it. You don't get as deep rested REM sleep and can end up feeling tired even when waking up. So anyone that does have sleeping problems may actually want to lay off the drugs before bed as it affects your sleep among other things.