Good natural sleep aid?

F

FloridaJim57

Recycles dryer sheets
Joined
Sep 3, 2020
Messages
177
Location
Tampa, FL
I have no trouble falling asleep but invariably wake up inbetween 2 and 3 AM and have trouble falling back. I tried something called ZMA which did nothing. Can anyone recommend a good natural sleep aid available either in drug stores, health food stores, or Amazon? Good night.
 
The simplest, and most natural, is to drink some warm milk. That works wonderfully well for DW.
 
Just a few things that you may be doing already. Have a consistent bedtime, change eating habits, get some good exercising in during the day. Counting or music seem to help some people also.
I have no problem falling to sleep but might wake up once but go right back to sleep. For me I seem to only need about 7 to 8 hours of sleep.
 
Perhaps valerian root.
 
Life long insomniac:

Melatonin is good for a few hours. Valerian root as well. Benadryl and other OTC meds work for some. I like repetitive noises "Alexa play A Babbling Brook" works well for me.

Prescription drugs are available. Trazadone is good for getting to sleep, zolpidem and other benzos work too but are habit forming.

ETA: If you're in a legal cannibis state, indicia strains, work very well.
 
Last edited:
You don’t mention what time you go to bed so you didn’t say how long you are actually sleeping. Personally, if I wake up and can’t go back to sleep, I just get up. Thankfully I’m retired and can take a nap later if I need to. Usually if I read, I will get sleepy again in an hour or so.
 
Melatonin, but try the smallest dose.
 
Last year I began having the same exact problem. It was an awful experience since I was so sleep deprived during the day. I tried many supplements. Melatonin did not help me stay asleep. It's worth a try, though. At the suggestion of someone on this board, I took 1/2 a Unisom, available everywhere (I used a Walgreen's brand of doxylamine succinate). That was the first pill that truly worked for me. It's an antihistamine and I didn't want to stay on that long-term so I talked with my doctor, who put me on 300mg gabapentin nightly. It's a prescription drug for nerve pain. The dose I take is low. I still wake up at 3 a.m. but am easily able to fall asleep and I have no side effects.
 
I have had sleep problems off and on for many years, fall asleep easy and fast, seem to wake up sometime between 2-4 and have difficulty getting back to sleep.
What I have found most helpful:

Good sleep hygiene. (regular bed time, routine bedtime rituals, ie, shower, brush teeth, etc) Do not read or watch TV while in bed before trying to sleep. We do not have a tv in the room.
Dark, quiet room (have room darkening shades, no lights, radios, tvs)
I usually fall asleep fine, if I do wake up, I will lay there a while and then get up if I can't go back to sleep. I do not toss and turn in bed, that gets too frustrating. I will get up and go sit in a recliner in the living room . I will often fall asleep there, or after a bit get sleep and head to the bedroom.

I have used melatonin and still do occasionally.
I have tried prescription drugs and THC or CBD. They worked well for me, but I have stopped them for personal reasons.

I hope you find some help, do talk to your DR if it continues, you might want to evaluate sleep apnea.
The nice thing about retirement, is you can take a nap during the day if sleepy. Just don't allow yourself to sleep too long!

As we age, our bodies generally require less sleep, so that may be a factor also.
I used to "need" 8-10 hours. Now I do fine with as little as 6, but prefer 7-8.
 
Last edited:
MRG said:
Life long insomniac:

Melatonin is good for a few hours. Valerian root as well. Benadryl and other OTC meds work for some. I like repetitive noises "Alexa play A Babbling Brook" works well for me.

Prescription drugs are available. Trazadone is good for getting to sleep, zolpidem and other benzos work too but are habit forming.

ETA: If you're in a legal cannibis state, indicia strains, work very well.
Click to expand...


I second the Benadryl and I did try CBD oil with THC 8 and it did help me sleep well. The clerk warned me, if you take it and 3 hrs later you think you need more, don't do it. But I did not feel any psychoactive affects, in other words, I didn't get high. I might use it, but I'm to frugal, it's pretty expensive.
 
Prescription meds and sleeping pills lose effectiveness, and then if you try to quit them when that happens, you will have bigger problems than you started with.

I have tinnitus, which is too loud to mask, but it still seems to help to have some white noise or environmental sounds playing. I could not sleep in absolute quiet since it doesn't really exist for me, anyway.

Meditation helps some people.

I've done a lot of research on the matter of waking up in the middle of the night and not getting back to sleep for a long time (if ever) before morning. Nothing has helped me much. One thing I haven't tried was CBD and THC, but I've heard they can make tinnitus worse, which would help keep me awake.

It's actually gotten worse for me lately since my tinnitus has suddenly worsened - now I'm even having trouble falling asleep, and recently went sleepless 3 out of 4 nights. I have a very limited supply of Ambiem, and I used them several times to get a little sleep, but I'm avoiding using them now because they are only intended for short term use as you can become dependent on them as they also lose effectiveness.
 
Last edited:
bltkmt said:
THC
Click to expand...
From what I've read several times, THC and CBD (or CBN) together do better for overnight sleeping than THC alone.

But I've read that each can increase tinnitus, which would detrimental to sleeping.
 
Another thing to try is listening to an audio book or podcast.

I do this when I can’t get back to sleep. It’s a little tricky in that it can’t be too interesting or I stay awake wanting to listen to it.

This is especially useful when there is something on my mind I want to not think about too much. The audio diverts my mind and allows me to relax and fall back asleep.

I use an old iPhone with wired earbuds so my DW isn’t disturbed by it.
 
I have insomnia a couple times a month.

Good sleep practices as mentioned upthread. Cold, dark, quiet room. No screen time before bed (1 hr). If possible, try and read an actual book for a while prior to bed. I find tired eyes help make you sleepy.

Failing that I usually take two melatonin (10mg) chewables and one extra strength aspirin about a half hour before bed. I almost never take any painkillers or drugs otherwise so for me the combindation conks me out.

Good luck.
 
I second the warm milk, sometimes with sugar. The sugar will blunt high cortisol. Glycine is also good for sleep /cortisol

Chris masterjohn says 3 grams before bed. 3-5 grams before/with meals-keep blood sugar down.

If you want more intense stuff Dr Stasha Gominak suggests b vitamins and checking d levels. She has several videos. She is a neurologist.
 
I usually only wake up if I've too much coffee or have eaten too many acidic foods. I monitor my pH levels with paper from Amazon. To get to sleep, I eat or drink something alkaline, like a banana, antacid, magnesium supplement, coconut milk or peppermint tea. Also acupressure balls on tight muscles in my legs help me to relax and fall asleep easier.
 
Do you drink, FloridaJim? I only ask because the only experience I have that might apply to the problem you mention is when I drink too much, I have the same pattern. I pass out easily, but then wake up when it starts to wear off, and then I have trouble falling back asleep. Now I limit myself to about 4oz of hard liquor or 3-4 regular beers (or one high ABV beer), and I don't wake up like I did when I would overindulge. I still find that I need 1-2 nights a week where I'm alcohol free to "reset", or even with the same intake every night, after 5 or 6 nights in a row it will affect me more and more.

I also had the same pattern just a few times due to anxiety, and I took diphenhydramine to make myself sleep through the night, but others have addressed that, and if I had it regularly I'd probably try CBD/THC, but some of that depends on the legal status in your area.
 
mpeirce said:
Another thing to try is listening to an audio book or podcast.

I do this when I can’t get back to sleep. It’s a little tricky in that it can’t be too interesting or I stay awake wanting to listen to it.

This is especially useful when there is something on my mind I want to not think about too much. The audio diverts my mind and allows me to relax and fall back asleep.

I use an old iPhone with wired earbuds so my DW isn’t disturbed by it.
Click to expand...


I have used a pillow speaker since the 80s. First it was local radio stations or long distance radio stations, loved to listen to Boston's WBZ overnight especially the entertaining Larry Glick. Then years later got an internet radio and got interested in old time radio programs. I now mostly listen with my phone to Gunsmoke, Dragnet, Our Mrs. Brooks, Let George do it, The Adventures of Philip Marlowe, Richard Diamond private detective and many more. The worst is start listening to a program and then never know how it ends, because I fall asleep!
 
Time2 said:
I have used a pillow speaker since the 80s. First it was local radio stations or long distance radio stations, loved to listen to Boston's WBZ overnight especially the entertaining Larry Glick. Then years later got an internet radio and got interested in old time radio programs. I now mostly listen with my phone to Gunsmoke, Dragnet, Our Mrs. Brooks, Let George do it, The Adventures of Philip Marlowe, Richard Diamond private detective and many more. The worst is start listening to a program and then never know how it ends, because I fall asleep!
Click to expand...

Check out an early Jack Webb effort, "Pat Novak for Hire." One caveat -- it may be too entertaining to put you under.
 
OP have you ever tried a time release melatonin. Dh has middle of the night wake-up and it helps
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Romer
Hip pain only at night
2 3
Replies
52
Views
5K
Aerides
Aerides
2017ish
Trip Report: Fiji dive resorts
Replies
3
Views
255
audreyh1
audreyh1
S
High School Best Friend Small Stroke - wife and legal recommendations?
2
Replies
40
Views
3K
stephenson
S
C
Do any of you cut it really close in easy retirement?
2 3 4
Replies
87
Views
8K
Koolau
Koolau
G
Jordan/Covid
Replies
21
Views
2K
Gearhead Jim
G

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom