Insomnia

[Jenniferdiana]

I haven't slept in 4 nights. I can't seem to make myself fall asleep and it's not healthy. I need to sleep because I feel tired during the day and it makes me feel bad. What can I do to go to sleep?

 

[Jason_apostle]

sleep is the brother of death. believe it or not but the apostle paul said to stay awake and sober. but whether we sleep or we are awake we still belong to christ. cold milk used to help me go to sleep but now my stomach seems kind of sensisitive to it. another thing that will make you sleepy is a well cooked steak. or maybe a tylenol pm

 

[~Anastasia~]

There can be many reasons for insomnia. You might try different things and see what will work.

Make sure the lights are dim. It's a good idea to dim them at least an hour before bedtime. Some people fall asleep easily watching television (something you've seen before is good), others do best with quiet. Reading puts some to sleep. Praying until you fall asleep is good. If anxiety is making your mind run on, the herb Skullcap (which is a nerve tonic, not any kind of depressant) can help. A warm bath with real lavender oil is very relaxing. A few drops of lavender essential oil (again, the real thing, not just a scent) on the pillow can help. Be comfortable as far as temperature. Most people need to not engage in strenuous activity before sleeping. Turkey has tryptophan which can increase sleepiness. Melatonin is good IF YOU NEED IT (counterproductive if you don't). A routine helps many people, including not engaging in other activities when you lie down to sleep. If you have physical pain, you may need to alleviate that first. Insomnia can be a side effect of some medications.

If you know why you can't sleep, you may be able to better figure out how to deal with it.

 

[Jenniferdiana]

I tried the tylenol pm..it didn't work for me... :-/ I want to try melatonin but I'm scared to take it....i really miss sleeping

 

[~Anastasia~]

I tried the tylenol pm..it didn't work for me... :-/ I want to try melatonin but I'm scared to take it....i really miss sleeping

Please note - we cannot give medical advice in the forum. But I will tell you this. Melatonin is naturally produced by the body, so in itself is quite safe. The main way to create a problem is that your body remembers how much it produces, and what the effects were.

So IF your body is producing enough melatonin, and that isn't your problem, and you begin taking significant doses regularly, what happens is that your body recognizes that it has more than enough and decreases production.

The suggestion then is to take a small dose - anywhere from .3 to 1 mg at first is safest - no more than 5mg. These are all considered low doses. If it helps, you can try the same dose again (not increasing it) the next night, and talk to your doctor for advice. If it doesn't help at all, forget about it (unless your doctor wants to run tests and do trials).

People get into trouble by taking 10, 20mg or more, and continuing to take it regardless, and it decreases their own production so they end up NEEDING to take it, where before they didn't.

Please feel free to call your doctor or pharmacist and ask. They will generally suggest the low dose, and see what happens. It needs to be taken 60-90 minutes before you want to sleep, and as the lights are going down somewhat, in order to work properly.

If you're desperate right now, you might call a 24-hour pharmacy and might be able to talk to a pharmacist who can advise you, so you don't have to trust what a stranger on the Internet says.

 

[teresa]

I haven't slept in 4 nights. I can't seem to make myself fall asleep and it's not healthy. I need to sleep because I feel tired during the day and it makes me feel bad. What can I do to go to sleep?

Check out this thread for some really great ideas for soothing musical relaxation:

Peaceful music/sound

 

[Jenniferdiana]

Ok thanks Anastasia and yeah spice I like listening to those..they are relaxing...

 

[~Anastasia~]

Ok thanks Anastasia and yeah spice I like listening to those..they are relaxing...

You're welcome.

 

[Jenniferdiana]

I took some Nyquil it made me sleep but I don't want to depend on that stuff...its not healthy for me...i wish I could sleep naturally..i feel sleepy but I just can't fall asleep...is it true warm milk helps?

 

[teresa]

I took some Nyquil it made me sleep but I don't want to depend on that stuff...its not healthy for me...i wish I could sleep naturally..i feel sleepy but I just can't fall asleep...is it true warm milk helps?

yes it can be helpful, bc it has tryptophan in it but so does a turkey sandwich

milk with a half sandwich of turkey can be good.

for me, its knocks me out to ride my bike for about 6-8 hours outside.

i don't go fast at all, but very slow, and very far

im so wacked by the time i get home i have to sleep

i think its the fresh air and the movement of my lungs like that for hours

also, swimming endless laps and doing water exercises for an hour on the same trip can send me to sleep

the hard part of doing this is that afterwards, when my body cools off, I get super tight and cant move.

i become the tin man