Sleeping aid advice

[coffeebuddha]

So here's the thing. I'm tired. I'm ridiculously, literally fall down when I try to walk, feel like my eyes are about to fall out of my head tired, but I just can't fall asleep. It's 5:45AM and I haven't slept even a moment. I only slept about three hours last night (night before last at this point? idek) before my alarm went off and I had to get up. This has been the norm for me for months now. I've been drinking a single glass of red wine before going to bed, which helped to slow my brain down enough that I could fall asleep, but that doesn't seem to be working anymore. I don't want to go on sleeping pills. I really don't want to go on sleeping pills. I have an addictive personality and a history of alcohol/narcotics abuse in my family. For me, sleeping pills are the absolute last resort, and maybe even not then.

I'm tired and I'm desperate. If anyone has any tricks they use to help themselves fall asleep, I'd be willing to try pretty much anything at this point. Except for sleeping pills--vitamins and supplements would be okay--or meditation--because I've been trying that on and off for years and it's never once helped me. Other things I've tried that don't work include warm milk, tea, and lavender scented lotion. Tried that shit for a week and I hate the smell of lavender. Which is possibly part of the reason it didn't work.

Comments

[sinjah.livejournal.com]

I have the exact same problem and still haven't found a solution, so I don't know how much help I can be, but there are things that help me on occasion. Reading usually helps, as does listening to podfics/audiobooks with a timer on so it shuts down and doesn't keep my brain busy all night. Clean sheets do help, like dlasta said, especially if it's hot.

And I've never tried it myself (yet) but I've heard great things about valerian. There are all-natural valerian pill things that you can take. I know that it doesn't help some people, but I've heard mostly positive things.

Oh, and try keeping your bedroom as dark as possible. Or at least make sure there isn't any blue light. Blue light especially suppresses melatonin. (This is why doctors tell you to avoid electronics around your bedtime, because their light suppresses melatonin production). I'm a bit wary about melatonin supplements, but if you work somewhere with mostly artificial lighting, and you generally spend a lot of time in front of a screen, it's quite possible that your melatonin levels are low.

[coffeebuddha.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the tips! I'd never heard about valerian until someone else mentioned it further up in the comments. The fact that there seem to be less horror stories about it than melatonin pills makes me hopeful. My melatonin probably is low, but I don't really want to mess around with hormones without a doctor monitoring/advising me and I don't have insurance anymore, so that's not an option.

[sinjah.livejournal.com]

I haven't heard any horror stories about valerian, just someone I knew got really weird dreams from it. But I know at least three other people who are extremely, extremely pleased. I think it comes in syrup form too? I'm pretty sure I've seen it, but the pills are the most easy to use.

I agree with the messing around with hormones thing without going to a doctor first, and especially with melatonin, because they say you shouldn't use it for more than 3 months, and that it's not proven it's very effective with sleep disorders.