Trouble falling asleep

[samplegirl]

Even with no naps during the day. Some nights it seems impossible. I’ve tried melatonin doesn’t seem to help.
My sleep is really a mess. Any suggestions on trying to go to sleep. I try to stay off my phone and even listen to sleep stories.
Last night I was awake every hour.

[CentralMass]

1. Do you drink caffeinated beverages ?

[samplegirl]

3. No never

[Hoyt]

4. Certainly not reliable medical advice, but now that circumstances

allow me to nap when I feel sleepy, I do. One reason is that I’m never sure I’ll get good sleep at night.

I think experts would probably say most people are better off not napping. But it’s working for me.

Best advice, talk to doctor if you can. If their recommendations don’t work for you, then you have to experiment and find what works best.

Sometimes, I don’t think I really feel better getting more sleep. When I feel positive, I figure maybe I’m getting enough, just don’t realize it.

Probably has nothing to do with your situation. Good luck.

[Midnight Writer]

5. Tylenol PM.

Take a half dose, usually one pill.

It's the same sleep ingredient as in Unisom, if you don't want to take Tylenol.

Make sure you have eight hours to spare to sleep.

The good news is you wake up feeling refreshed and not groggy.

There are plenty of generics and store brands available at a lower cost. This has been a common sleep aid for years, with millions of users and a good safety record.

[samplegirl]

8. Yes...

that’s what I can try. Melatonin don’t help me much.

[Midnight Writer]

12. Sometimes it's a big break just to get one night's good sleep.

It's not a solution, but good for quick relief.

[Mosby]

25. Just use a plain antihistamine.

Like benadryl.

[samplegirl]

30. Thank you

I picked some up.

[Midnight Writer]

32. Hope it works out for you.

[Laffy Kat]

6. Wondering if you have sleep apnea?

Especially if you're falling asleep and then waking up every hour or so. Is there any way to get a sleep study?

[samplegirl]

10. Some nights I sleep

A solid 5 or 6 hours. But lately just can’t sleep.

[spinbaby]

23. Second the suggestion it might be sleep apnea

I was waking up all night before I got a CPAP.

[Miguelito Loveless]

7. Benadryl

“May cause drowsiness” is an understatement.

[Cryptoad]

21. Makes my feet want to dance,,,,,,,,,

[Miguelito Loveless]

26. It does that with some people

So, there's that.

[cilla4progress]

9. I wake up multiple times during the night

and don't sweat it. I've read that that was humans' typical sleep pattern in prehistoric times. Waking and going back to sleep several times a night.

The best sleep story podcast I've found is Nothing Much Happens. It usually sends me to sleep pretty quickly.

Some nights are worse than others for sure. Frustrating!

Have you tried CBD?

[samplegirl]

11. No I've never

tried it. My daughter bought me some stress relief tea and that helped one night. Maybe she should of bought me a bottle wine. I try everything! Lavender oil.
Tonight the sleep story sounds good. She has a soothing voice. None of those sleep noises help me.
The keep me awake.
Stephen Fry has a good one... Blue gold which I’ve listened to many times... because I love his voice.
Thanks for the tip!

And to all who are suggesting.😫😴

[Timewas]

13. Personally

I use a combination of "benadryl" in a more generic form that is just a sleep aid, one 25mg tab of that and some melatonin, the melatonin helps you fall asleep and sleep aid helps you stay asleep. Been using that for years now..

[vanlassie]

14. Melatonin- I use a half a tablet. No more than 150 mgs.

I heard lower is better. But the trick is that the second you feel the least bit sleepy- close your eyes. I think it’s easy to miss the “sleepiness window.”

[ZZenith]

15. Sleepy time tea and philosophy lectures on You Tube knock me right out.

Also, putting the screens away an hour before sleep can really help. No tv, no computers - nothing that’s backlit.

I wish you a speedy recovery from the insomnia - such an exhausting malady.

[phylny]

31. I second the use of podcasts.

I can generally fall asleep, but don't stay asleep. If I can't get back to sleep, I pop in my earbuds and put on a podcast and I fall asleep 9 times out of 10.

Also, check the lights in your room. I close my door and have shielded my clock and gotten rid of all lights, and it has made a big difference. Good luck!

[BigmanPigman]

16. I use a combo of stuff to fall asleep

and to go back to sleep. Xanax and Ambien are the go-to cures. I also take Diphenhydr... (Benedryll, Tylenol PM, same thing). The one thing that makes me do back to sleep is if I take a hit/vape some Indica weed at the 90% THC level. You can also buy gummies/edibles if you don't want to smoke. They work well too.

[multigraincracker]

18. Most of those have some next day side effects, but

I've found that just two puffs of a good Indica pot works great for me with no next day effect of being groggy the next day. Works even better to fall back asleep after I waked up way too early.
Anything less than 2 puffs doest work for me and if I take 3, my heads spins with too many thoughts.

[BigmanPigman]

22. 2 is my number too....

which reminds me it is time to take a hit and get ready for bed.

[Hugh_Lebowski]

17. If you get to the point where you just really want to sleep and sleep all night

But don't want to go with something really strong like Rx sleep aids (ambien, etc), I'll tell you what will put you out ... doxylamine succinate.

Its a non habit-forming anti-histamine that is OTC, and will PUT YOU DOWN.

It stops working after awhile, like everything else, but if you only use it occasionally, it's friggin aces.

Definitely stronger then that weak-sauce Diphenhydramine in Tylenol PM, benadryl and some formulations of Unisom.

Besides being what's in Nyquil, all the major drugstores make a house version with it as a sleep aid, and Unisom has a formulation with it in there as well. These always cost more than the diphenhydramine version, but it is extremely reliable, again, as long as you don't use it every night.

And it LASTS through the night.

Also, see if your doctor thinks you should get a sleep test.

[NNadir]

19. I've been a chronic insomniac my whole life.

I try to manage it with OTC stuff; when all else fails and I know I'm not going to sleep by midnight - you can tell - I may resort to Ambien if I have lots of important meetings the next day.

When I know I'm not going to sleep, I try to do useful things, catch up on reading, write down ideas, do a little productive daydreaming, find the answers to questions bugging me on the internet, sometimes write here.

When all else fails, if you can find a used copy of "Atlas Shrugged" on a remainder table at a used book sale, you can always read John Galt's oppressively stupid but extremely dull speech at the end of the book.

[JohnnyRingo]

20. I hope you're asleep now.

You worry too much

[piddyprints]

24. Read this.

https://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Sleep-Unlocking-Dreams/dp/1501144324/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=why+we+sleep&qid=1620729146&sr=8-1

He has a lot of great suggestions. But the book itself will put you to sleep. Maybe that was his intention.

[Baked Potato]

27. Make sure nothing you consume has High Fructose Corn Syrup or MSG.

Both of those are terrible at night when you want to crash. High Fructose corn syrup triggers rapid heartbeat and racing thoughts. Same with MSG, it won’t let you fall into real sleep and it causes bad, vivid dreams.

[Warpy]

28. I didn't think melatonin worked, either, until I started taking it 2 hours early

That was the key for me.

[GregD]

29. Consider these

herb pharm ashwagandha
herb pharm relaxing sleep
Bach Original Flower Remedies- Rescue Sleep Liquid Melts
Bach Original white chestnut
kirkland signature sleep aid (costco)

My sleeping patterns have been a nightmare for years.

I dose myself nightly with a dropper of the first 2 every night, alternating the Costco tablets with nighttime ibueprofein, and add in some of the Rescue stuff (spray) or their White Chestnut drops, and perhaps some CBD tincture.

Falling asleep? not a problem. Staying asleep? Oh I so wish...