Out of curiosity, have you tried melatonin? I have been an insomniac in one form or another for the past 15 years and I have had some success with it...(not across the board, but it has worked for me).

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Melatonin does absolutely nothing for me, unfortunately.

I think tonight I'll be drowning my insomnia in NyQuil. I don't have a cold, but it does tend to knock me unconscious when neccessary :p

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I have done the Nyquil cocktail many a time -- the one thing I dislike about it so much is the feeling almost hungover of the next day.

Melatonin only started working a little for me when I hit my 30s...apparently, the older you are, the better it works.

There is another formula called simply sleep that has the same diphenhydramine that Nyquil does without the rest of the stuff...


(As you can undoubtedly tell, I know the OTC sleep thing like the back of my hand).

Prescription wise, tried Ambien (groggy but not sleepy, though I was happy to not have any of the eating chicken going out for a drive episodes) and Xanax which did NOTHING for me...

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I suppose I could try melatonin again...?

Although, this diphenhydramine does sound promising :D

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When all else fails Tylonel PM (or the like) tends to work for me. So does half a xanax but you need script for that or a friend like I have that gives me some for emergency insomnia. Yoga also helps if you willing to try that. Yoga has definitley helped my insomnia issues over the years and since i've been taking that super oil omega stuff, I've been sleeping really well. Not waking up at all and that is quite amazing since I'm under a HUGE amount of stress right now.

Other "natural" things you can try before bed is kava kava, chamomile and valarien root.

Edited at 2009-02-26 04:21 pm (UTC)

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Tylenol PM tends to not only not work, but strangely will sometimes give me anxiety. I, too, have a friend who will occasionally give me a half a xanax for sleeping if I'm desperate, but I don't like taking it (I get huge medicine hangover).

Yoga holds no interest for me at all (the only types of physical exercise outside of marathon bouts of walking that appeal to me are certain martial arts), nor do I have any space in my house for any kind of exercise or stretching (seriously, none), or I might start tai chi. In the end, I'm lately totally unhealthy and recognize the fact. I seriously need more fresh fruit and vegetables, and more exercise.

Chamomile relaxes me, but not enough to sleep if I'm having problems. Haven't yet tried kava kava.

I went through a similar trial with my dad a few years ago, so I can totally sympathize with how stressed you must be. MGH has awesome care, though. They saved my dad's life. Positive thoughts are being sent your way.

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If I take a full xaxax and don't have 8 hours to sleep I feel hungover the next morning but a half gives me no hangover. But I do think you need to allow yourself at least 7-8 hours of sleep so you don't feel crappy the next day.

That sucks about no space. For me yoga is the only thing that doesn't bore me. Exercise machines, lifting weights, running all bores me. Yoga doesn't especially kundalini since kundalini is more cardio and you aren't holding poses for long periods of time. Your body is moving more then in other forms of yoga. Tai Chi would be good. My parents used to take classes at the Y and they loved it. I've never done it. But yeah, any kind of exercise will help you sleep better.

I believe kava kava & valarien root are a bit stronger then Chamomile and both are used in homeopathic medicine for insomnia. Valarien root has the most data regarding helping insomnia and people who tend to wake up a lot during the night. Might be somethign to look into. I know Whole Foods sells both.

I also read that eating foods with tryptophan before bed can help you sleep better too but you should avoid sugars. And avoiding alcohol and nicotine before bed. Here's a decent article http://www.crackingthesleepcode.com/2008/01/no-more-insomni.html

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You're welcome to bop over to the dungeon de flub to use either the
treadmill or the step thing. If we get a headphone extension cord
you can even actually listen to tv while using the beastily loud
treadmill lol

also check this out:

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I am always up for new kinds of tea!

Génial!

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Haha you're such a tea head lol

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That's horrible! I feel bad for you. I've had similar periods of insomnia.

Valerian root is good stuff to try. It's very calming. I think it has a nice gradual sleeping effect.

Have you ever had Sleepytime tea? Bunny used to brew that for me at night, when I still worked. Try the Sleepytime extra, it has more sleepy herbs in it.

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Valerian root? Is it a supplement or does it come in tea format?

I had some Sleepytime last night! I got to sleep with the help of antihystamines (did I spell that right?), but I'm sure the tea didn't hurt...

I love tea anyhow.

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