Can anybody recommend a good sleep aid?

[Rune Bivrin]

Perhaps taking a look at your sleep habits might help. Only use your bed for sleep and sex; try not to hang out in your bed before you go to sleep. Try to get on a consistent schedule if you are able to. At times, I use Trazedone, which is non-addicting, and it works pretty well for me.

Couldn't agree more. It's quite common for people with sleeping problems to lie twisting in their beds for hours on end. Don't do that! That changes the perception of what the bed is there for; from something you sleep in to something you can't sleep in.

Don't wait more than maybe 15 minutes for sleep to come. If it hasn't come by then, get up and do something. A walk, practice the bass or do your taxes. Doesn't matter too much, but excercise is good in any case. One to two hours, then hit the sack again. Repeat until success.

The key is to work at getting yourself conditioned to sleeping in bed. Execercise and reading in succession works marvels for me, which isn't strange since sleep is about recovery from physical and mental strain.

Medication is really a last resort, and it is of little concern what that medicin is; it will be addictive because you learn that sleep comes more easily after medication.

 

[Stumbo]

I've found the following help me with my sleep:
1) room temp (note that it may be colder at 4 am than when you went to bed)
2) air movement (fan), best with a fan that has a thermostat built in.
3) black out curtains (also block clock/video LEDS)
4) white noise (sound) machine
5) foam ear plugs
6) eye mask
7) comfortable attire (appropriate for the temp), also note that those shiny basketball shorts allow you to change position with less effort
8) showering before bed
9) replacing your pillow every few months
10) making sure your significant other is not waking you up with snoring or tossing-turning. If they have sleep problems, then maybe they should review this list.
11) Buy the most comfortable bed you can afford. Putting 2 beds together allows each person to have their own level of comfort and isolates each person from the tossing/turning of the other.
12) Never miss brushing/flossing teeth.
13) Go to sleep at the same time.
14) Don't watch TV in bed.
15) Get a full blood work up from the Dr. There are many conditions that affect sleep.
16) If you snore, get a sleep study to determine the seriousness of the problem.
17) Drink water during the day so you're well hydrated during the night. That way you won't get dry mouth. I also keep a glass of water handy if needed.
18) Get in about 10-15 of sunlight as early in the morning as possible. Helps reset your internal clock.
19) Don't eat a heavy meal near bed time.
20) If you get lower back ache during the day, sometimes it means that your mattress is not supportive enough, especially if you have gained weight and not replaced an older mattress.
21) If you sleep with the window open, adjusting how much it is open helps control the temp. in the room.
22) Exercise in the morning.

Just a few things off the top of my head.

Gotta go. I'm tired.

Note: if you feel the same after 8-10 hours sleep as you do with 3-4 hours sleep, you probably have a problem that needs investigating.

 

[popinfresh]

Change of lifestyle.

Unless you've seriously got something wrong and have been medically assessed you shouldn't be taking things. Less drugs, computers, TV etc, more exercise and healthy eating habits etc. You should be going to bed tired and when ready for sleep.

I spent a while on all sorts of things to knock me out as I thought I was dead set insomniac, went natural and changed my lifestyle around to a more physical routine and it did wonders. I still take a little longer than most to fall asleep at times and some nights (when I have weird/changing sleep patterns) I still need to take something, but seriously, it works.

 

[Georynn]

+1 on Ambien.....I took it for awhile coming off working nights (for the day job....don't almost all of us work weekend nights?). That shizaz will knock you out.....I stopped mostly because I was sleep eating everything I could get my hands on...and had a strange urge to organize stuff.

Truly a great nightime sleep aid/what the hell am I doing on the kitchen floor and where the hell is the ice cream drug of choice.

Man I had a bad experience on Ambien. It seems to affect certain people differently.

Wife goes to work (11-7am shift) I took one as she was leaving for work. (10:00) she leaves... And to me she walked right back in the door. I even asked her what she forgot... Needless to say I had sat in the exact same position for like 9 hours... smoked 3 packs of cigarettes, dont remember one thing that happenned that night...

My doctor gave me some Lunesta, that stuff really is the shizzle.
Take pill, lie down immediately (works very fast). wake up refreshed 8 hours later...

 

[SteveC]

Get up at 6:00 am, get yourself and your 2 year old ready for the day, make breakfast, pack lunches, go to work, pick up 2 year old, chase after her, make dinner, bath, play, read, get her to bed, and get ready to do it all over again.

I still don't sleep very much or well...

 

[tplyons]

I just got the best sleep ever. All it took was a bunch of peanut butter.

Apparently peanut butter is high in tryptophan, and knocked me out last night.

Haven't felt this refreshed in a long time.

 

[Stumbo]

I just got the best sleep ever. All it took was a bunch of peanut butter. Apparently peanut butter is high in tryptophan...

From: Wikipedia:

It is also particularly plentiful in chocolate, oats, bananas, mangoes, dried dates, milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, red meat, eggs, fish, poultry, sesame, chickpeas, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, spirulina, and peanuts. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tryptophan

 

[wb20]

All those over the counter "PM" drugs are just analgesics (acetaminophen / ibuprofen) with Benadryl (diphenhydramine) added. Look for cheap generic "cold and allergy" pills that are pure diphenhydramine. Be sure to take your reading glasses to the store, if your eyes are like mine Take two if needed. Does the trick and not too harsh.

If you're really having trouble, there's an old Rx psychiatric drug, Trazadone. It's non-addictive, doesn't have a cross tolerance with alcohol or benzos. Try a 1/3rd or 1/2 a tab to start. I've had really bizarre & scary dreams / hallucinations on it, but lots of folks take it with no trouble.

 

[Pacman]

"in a mellow-tonin...."


It's the stuff....

 

[WookieeForLife]

Did you try any suggestions? Did they work?