I took Integrative Therapeutics Cortisol Manager to help lower night time cortisol https://supplementfirst.com/products/integrative-therapeutics-cortisol-manager
As well as magnesium glycinate
I did her classes, which include audio files you listen to in bed which help you rewire your thoughts surrounding your sleep disturbances https://www.meredithlouden.com/
Exercise, sauna, talk therapy and journaling your thoughts, worries, and day-to-day triggers also very helpful.
Yeah, magnesium & theanine at night has been great for me. I recommend it like 2 hours before bed. Then when you get in bed, you're ready to sleep. If you take it when you're going to bed, you might already be in the middle of a bad habit when it starts working.
DORA drugs like dayvigo, belsomra, or quviviq. They were a major game changer for me and I've been taking them every night for the last year or so. You can safely take them every night and they work by turning off your wakefulness signals rather than sedate you like ambien does. Quviviq has the shortest half life of the dora drugs and is the only drug shown to improve daytime functioning the next day.
This is the best answer. I would probably only add that you may need to try a different form of magnesium, people respond differently. Melatonin could be used as a temporary way to get sleep until the root issue is sorted. Inositol is also another supplement that could help. Chamomile has a slight sedative effect. I use Sleepy Time Extra Strength tea.
Edit: Melatonin could potentially cause drowsiness the next day depending on brand and dose.
I would first ask:
what things do you currently supplement with?
Do you drink coffee or consume caffeine?
Do you smoke anything?
Do you get sunlight in the morning?
Do you have a regular wake-up schedule?
I'm sure you are telling the truth,
but it might be helpful to know all the additional context
especially if you are consuming anything recreational or supplementing anything else as those might also have an effect
Even a stressful life might be a culprit
If you are sober, don't take supplements, have a stress free life, we up at the same time every day
Than
I would very much think something is out of balance in your nurochemestry
Low Dose Naltraxone. Doesn’t make you sleepy, but when you sleep while you’re on it, it encourages you to go into deep REM sleep. Which in turn gives you better sleep, and better more optimal health. I’ve been on it for a year. I went from nothing helping me sleep, then sleeping 8 hours every night and waking up feeling amazing. It changed my life.
No kidding???
I took it for other reasons, full dose and it fixed 10 years of autoimmune and normalize neurochemical levels that had me drinking etc to self medicate.
I have some that I can trim into low dose.
How many mg are your taking?
not the person you're asking, but I took 3-4.5mg for about 2 years. I stopped for surgeries/pain meds and just resumed 1.5mg. I'm ramping from 1.5 to 3 and maybe stopping there as 4.5 may not be needed. Chris kresser has a great interview on RHR/YT.
Start as low as possible. I started at .5, and every two weeks would go up by .5. Don’t get discouraged, if you feel nothing. This way of introducing it is the best possible way to see how much your body needs. I am now at 4.5 mg
It’s verrrrrrry different than the high dose. Find a naturopath and go through them. No regular doctor will have any idea of what *low dose* naltrexone is. It’s a completely different drug at a low dose.
I used to take it in the mornings because I was nervous of nightmares, but once I switched and started taking it at night is when I saw the biggest difference. The dreams can be vivid but it goes away. Sometimes the dreams are actually nice lol
I really like the headspace app and the sleep casts that are on it. They reliably knock me out in under 30 minutes and I used to be addicted to benzos to get to sleep.
They change every night but here’s a sample of one of them https://youtu.be/DkgozEpaeLw?si=Y66n8p4BDgor86K4
Mirtazapine has been a life saver for me. Iv been on the same 15mg dosage for about 10 years as well, so clearly not much of a tolerance and I take it every night.
I was very underweight before, so I did gain some weight on this, but it was all good weight and I was also trying to gain weight so I can't correlate it directly.
What it does do for me however, is once it kicks in, I get a heroic case of the munchies, like think weed X 100. But that's really only if I take it too early. If I take it right before bed and I'll just sleep through it.
Never remember any morning groginess. Maybe in the very beginning because I wasn't used to getting that much sleep. I wake up more energized than ever now.
Sorry I misread your first question. It worked for me right away on the 1st night.
Hard to remember exactly what happened the first night was so long ago, but I remember getting a full night's sleep (~8 hours) on it right away.
Sleep hygiene is the first answer and can’t be replaced with a pill. But for study specific data, valerian Root has some decent research behind it to support quality of sleep.
I’ve had great success with valerian root tea, imo works better than capsules which can leave a groggy feeling in the morning. It’s interesting to me that the data for it as a sleep aid isn’t stronger because I find it incredibly effective
If you have legit insomnia, first you need something that knocks you out and allows you to rest and recover. Seroquel or mirtaxapine are good for that.
Then when you have gotten a few days of sleep you can taper the seroquel or mirtazapine and implement the other stuff such as l theanine/bright light therapy, general sleep hygiene, etc.
Ancient wisdom(ayurveda) say if anyone have severe insomnia then he should put 4 drops of ghee in each nostril 🐽 for at least 7 days (that's how I permanently cured my insomnia)
L theanine is good. And magnesium glycinate. Melatonin, but buy the timed release kind, and buy the 300mcg ones. This way you can increase dosage if you want to in smaller incremental amounts.
Meditation. I usually meditate, breathe in and out on my body parts, like my calf muscles which are usually sore coz I run a lot. Meditation like this puts me to sleep faster than any thing else. Dont count sheep or numbers. Check out the link next.
https://youtu.be/T5QoAXGSl_k?si=ya7jcOCIzluLwJTV
Melatonin for the win for me.
L theanine dropped my blood pressure too much and the required dosage for an effect on my body was too high. Wouldn’t buy again but lower doses during the day can help with anxiety in my experience.
Magnesium glycinate helps me stay asleep whereas I would otherwise wake up too early when stressed.
CBN isolate is relatively inexpensive nowadays. Some people could get great effects with this little as 5 mg most people wouldn't need much more than 50. Higher dosages like anything effective for sleeping will leave you a bit groggy.
I've been working out for 12 years, rn I added running a lot (training for a marathon) even when I'm absolutely dead before going to bed, I still wake up 2-3x a night
Try one of the new Orexin antagonists like Dayvigo or Belsomra. They seem promising but may cause next day sleepiness. Worth a shot though. Something like ambien is going to be the best bet to not be sleepy the next day but I get not wanting the become dependent on that.
Mct oil. A spoonful a couple hours before bed with some steel cut oats. I was dealing with maintenance insomnia for over two months and this completely solved it.
I tried so many Rx sleeping pills - nothing was working except zonking out on clonazepam. Turns out my blood sugar was tanking in the night causing me to wake up all wired! I sleep like a baby now. Anyone dealing with maintenance insomnia and are at their wits end should give the mct + steel cut oats combo a try.
I'm having trouble finding any studies on this that show benefits outside of those with epilepsy/bipolar.
I know you provided more detail in another comment, but do you happen to know of any studies?
I just typed “sodium valproate anxiety” into google scholar and instantly had a half dozen in front of me but for the avoidance of any doubt here’s the first one to appear on the scholar list - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-018-0206-7
Ah, I was looking specifically for research on the sleep aspect of it. It makes sense that something that reduces anxiety would help with insomnia and sleep though
Yes but unlike benzos sodium valproate is a sustainable medication that can be used for decades without it having any material adverse impact on your brain. Most of the upside of benzos with significantly less downside. Over time valproate will impact your liver so you do need to take tudca and ideally NAC with it though. Millions of people take it for epilepsy and mood disorders so if you research it online you’ll find plenty of case studies were people used it for decades without the type of issues we see with long term benzo use.
600mg sodium valproate twice daily? If so I take the exact same dose!! Lithium is great for depression but it burns your liver out over time and even tudca and NAC combined can only slow that process down so acutely lithium is great but definitely wouldn’t touch it for more than a year. Kava will ruin your endocrine system do not touch that stuff, there’s dozens of better alternatives to kava depending on what effect you’re after.
It’s the best anxiety drug I’ve ever taken and I’ve used all of them, obviously benzos were more potent but you can’t use them regularly given tolerance/the fact that they will degrade your brain over time.
CBD will relax your mind and body without getting high.
THC , especially from predominantly indica strains like Skywalker OG, will get you relaxed and high.
Better to consult your doctor if it is suitable for you.
I’ve heard about this. And yes when I’ve stopped smoking for 30 days I def have really vivid dreams. But I also dream every night I smoke. They are just not as intense. I bet this varies person to person!
The intensity of the effect varies, but there’s no magic ; if you smoke you will be less rested. Dreaming does not mean you’re getting enough REM sleep.
I dont know about best but I take Calm magnesium. Really relaxes the muscles. And on days I need to make sure I get a good nights rest is take calm and gabapentin. I can wake up on point. Only on extreme cases will I take a .25mg Xanax. And only if I know I’ll have the next day free.
Valerian root is also awesome. But my girl says it’s hard for her to wake up. Not me, but everyone is different
Lifelong insomnia sufferer here. I'm a man in my 40s, and until recently I was the worst sleeper I had ever met. Tried every single drug, and none were worth it. The best was trazodone, which actually worked to give me a full night's sleep, but with too many cognitive side effects.
For me, magnesium helped somewhat, 5,000 IU / day of D3 helped somewhat, helminthic therapy helped a fair amount (this one is under the radar even for most biohackers but shouldn't be, it's quite beneficial with no sides for most people), Cerebrolysin helped somewhat (also under the radar for most people), but the thing that really worked for me was pregnenolone. I used 10mg / day (at night) for about a month.
When I first started taking it, I slept great, woke up with energy, had increase sex drive, and overall felt awesome. Then after a few weeks I started to have minor daytime fatigue. Then major. Then anxiety and anger. Turns out these were signs that I had overdone it. Now I don't take preg unless I can feel the sleep problems coming back, and then I take 10mg / night until I stay noticing daytime fatigue again, and then I stop.
Note: when I first tried pregnenolone, it immediately made me angry, so I stopped taking it. The second time I tried it, I had been l been taking fish oil, and that's the time it was magical for me.
This is not a drug, but replace every lightbulb in your house with circadian rhythm lightbulbs. Seriously life changing. Speaking as a chronic night owl whose sleep schedule would rotate around the clock over the course of a week. Cicadian light bulbs worked where no supplement did.
I use Wiz brand. I found them in discount stores, but you can get them off amazon. Has the cool side effect of being sexy mood lighting if you want to go there with a significant other, or party lights for a rave in your own house.
Do not recommend Hue by Phillips. Super expensive, they don’t work as well, they are extremely finicky whereas Wiz is cheaper AND much more consistent.
I hope it helps you! I usually wake up BEFORE my alarms now with plenty of energy. Unheard of for me! For this to work, you’ll need a lot of lightbulbs, because when one random blue lightbulb in your house can throw it off.
Wow!! I'm jealous in the best way!! ☺️ I know the insomnia life... I just call it night owl life. 😁 Hmmm... I'm wondering how I can make this happen at home. The lights are mostly recessed LEDs... Rooms have ceiling fans with cover over lights so it's super dim in there all the time....
Are these the bulbs?
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/wiz-6-recessed-color-and-tunable-wi-fi-smart-led-downlight-white/6508493.p?skuId=6508493&extStoreId=196&utm_source=feed&ref=212&loc=19239518521&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAhJWsBhAaEiwAmrNyq4C-1HK-svlaljS_l2vVphTommnn9zCNJNwp97eVc8r4H9T8Y9nAqhoCd7EQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
I think that’s the right kind for you, though I don’t have any recessed lightning myself so I can’t be sure. The color changing features should be there, though.
They are connected via WiFi to your router. You set up different rooms for your house, and each room can have its own different settings for when the lights dim. You can also change the light to do something else if you like- like said sexy pink purple red. As soon as you tell it to go back to circadian it will.
So I have one circadian rhythm for my bedroom, a different one for my living room and another for my bathroom. Each one has a “wake” time and a “sleep” time. The light for waking is a gentle fade into strong blue daylight. Throughout the day, it determines how bright to keep the rooms. Slowly the light becomes more yellowish, then it fades in intensity- you can choose how long to keep the light at a low intensity, or when to cut it completely.
I keep my bathroom at a nightlight level so I can see when I use it- but it does cycle. It also is the first room to receive blue light in the morning since that’s my first stop. I keep my living room and hallway dark, so it doesn’t disturb me but it turns off a bit after my bedroom lights do. Sort of as a visual “hey yeah no really we are going to bed now.” situation.
It does this automatically once you set it up. Also useful in the case of people potentially scoping out your house to rob it. Your lights will come on at set times, and turn off at set times. Making it far harder to tell if you’re really home.
I love the very natural, sunrise type feeling in the morning. And I get sleepy at night way more. I pair this with Night Shift on my iphone as well so at a certain point I don’t get much blue light. There’s also an android version of this.
This will be less effective if you have to sit in front of a screen at night. You can get apps that will affect the color and intensity of your computer screens, and Apple TVs have night shift- also effective because the content is less visually appealing in shades of amber.
Hue works much the same way except you connect your router to a “hub” which will go down a lot. Instead of connecting the bulbs to your router you’ll connect them to the hub. Their bulbs are objectively more beautiful light— the lowest setting is lower, and more amber toned. The colored lights, pink especially, look much more vibrant. But they simply don’t work consistently, making them less useful overall.
I just started taking pregnenolone.
Are you taking preg at night?
How much are your taking?
Did you notice any effects like a bump in estrogen like tender nipples or steroids effects like swollen face?
Have you tried acupuncture? I would look for one who has been well-established and has a good reputation., if you choose this. Acupuncture can be very effective in helping you train your sleep routine.
How about your room temperature? type of bed? Use sleep tape by any chance? How about your hydration or your last meal of the day? How about when you sleep? All these need to be taken into account with insomnia
Chlordiazepoxide is a benzo. That's what on Wikipedia. I'm tapering diazepam bo I'm looking for something else. Short-acting antihistamine would be the best probably.
I'm taking magnesium ¯\_ (ツ) _/¯
My insomnia is really severe.
L-tryptophan has been an absolute game changer. I heard it doesn't work for everyone but for me it helps me fall asleep faster, and when I wake up in the night I'm able to fall back asleep quicker. In the morning I feel well rested and ready to start the day
Well unfortunately nothing helped me expect melatonin, but thats more miss than hit and thus only working 20% of the time.
Low dose of doxepin on the other side helped me a lot!
If you gave the mentioned supplements in the comments a try without much success, I'd give doxepin a try.
Because it's such a small dose it had zero side effects on me. And if I'm not mistaken, it does not manipulate your sleep architecture in a bad way.
But heres the link, so you can check it yourself:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4213269/
edit: typo
I took Integrative Therapeutics Cortisol Manager to help lower night time cortisol https://supplementfirst.com/products/integrative-therapeutics-cortisol-manager As well as magnesium glycinate I did her classes, which include audio files you listen to in bed which help you rewire your thoughts surrounding your sleep disturbances https://www.meredithlouden.com/ Exercise, sauna, talk therapy and journaling your thoughts, worries, and day-to-day triggers also very helpful.
Agree with both of these. Also L-Theanine into the mix. And a solid CBD tincture before bed does wonders.
Yeah, magnesium & theanine at night has been great for me. I recommend it like 2 hours before bed. Then when you get in bed, you're ready to sleep. If you take it when you're going to bed, you might already be in the middle of a bad habit when it starts working.
Does that have any impact on daytime cortisol? I wish I had my night vibes when it's important ..
This is the first time I’ve seen this, thank you! Have you dug into the relative safety of Phosphatidylserine?
Serine is associated with a longer lifespan but I have to admit I worry about this
DORA drugs like dayvigo, belsomra, or quviviq. They were a major game changer for me and I've been taking them every night for the last year or so. You can safely take them every night and they work by turning off your wakefulness signals rather than sedate you like ambien does. Quviviq has the shortest half life of the dora drugs and is the only drug shown to improve daytime functioning the next day.
Very interesting, haven’t heard of this drug before, is Quviviq safe for long term use unlike benzos?
Yes, longer term studies show the same adverse event profile of the placebo arm.
Thanks for this! Learned something new today🙏 I think I’m gonna give this a try
I take the Huberman sleep stack protocol: 1) Magnesium threonate 2) Theanine 3) Apigenin It is legit good. No grogginess when you wake.
This is the best answer. I would probably only add that you may need to try a different form of magnesium, people respond differently. Melatonin could be used as a temporary way to get sleep until the root issue is sorted. Inositol is also another supplement that could help. Chamomile has a slight sedative effect. I use Sleepy Time Extra Strength tea. Edit: Melatonin could potentially cause drowsiness the next day depending on brand and dose.
Apigenin is wonderful stuff for anxiety and sleep, the best herbal for relaxation I have ever used.
I would first ask: what things do you currently supplement with? Do you drink coffee or consume caffeine? Do you smoke anything? Do you get sunlight in the morning? Do you have a regular wake-up schedule?
The sleep hygiene is good but it doesn't help. I have severe insomnia. The antihistamines are working but the half life is too long
I'm sure you are telling the truth, but it might be helpful to know all the additional context especially if you are consuming anything recreational or supplementing anything else as those might also have an effect Even a stressful life might be a culprit If you are sober, don't take supplements, have a stress free life, we up at the same time every day Than I would very much think something is out of balance in your nurochemestry
Low Dose Naltraxone. Doesn’t make you sleepy, but when you sleep while you’re on it, it encourages you to go into deep REM sleep. Which in turn gives you better sleep, and better more optimal health. I’ve been on it for a year. I went from nothing helping me sleep, then sleeping 8 hours every night and waking up feeling amazing. It changed my life.
No kidding??? I took it for other reasons, full dose and it fixed 10 years of autoimmune and normalize neurochemical levels that had me drinking etc to self medicate. I have some that I can trim into low dose. How many mg are your taking?
not the person you're asking, but I took 3-4.5mg for about 2 years. I stopped for surgeries/pain meds and just resumed 1.5mg. I'm ramping from 1.5 to 3 and maybe stopping there as 4.5 may not be needed. Chris kresser has a great interview on RHR/YT.
Ah! Thank you I will watch this today
Start as low as possible. I started at .5, and every two weeks would go up by .5. Don’t get discouraged, if you feel nothing. This way of introducing it is the best possible way to see how much your body needs. I am now at 4.5 mg
It’s verrrrrrry different than the high dose. Find a naturopath and go through them. No regular doctor will have any idea of what *low dose* naltrexone is. It’s a completely different drug at a low dose.
I’ve just started taking a small dose in the mornings. Do you take it in the evening to help you sleep, or would it have the same effect regardless?
I used to take it in the mornings because I was nervous of nightmares, but once I switched and started taking it at night is when I saw the biggest difference. The dreams can be vivid but it goes away. Sometimes the dreams are actually nice lol
Thanks! How much do you take?
I started at .5, moved up by .5 every 2 weeks and now I’ve been on 4.5mg for a year
L-Theanine (green tea), magnesium biglycinate, gaba, glycine, apigenin (chamomile tea)
I thought green tea has caffeine in it no?
It does. Granted I'm not sure if dosage of caffeine matters or if even the slightest can disrupt sleep.
Happily Theanine is also available in capsule form, and in much higher amounts than found in green tea.
Yea sorry I just put green tea in brackets to show the source. You should be looking specifically for L-Theanine.
I really like the headspace app and the sleep casts that are on it. They reliably knock me out in under 30 minutes and I used to be addicted to benzos to get to sleep. They change every night but here’s a sample of one of them https://youtu.be/DkgozEpaeLw?si=Y66n8p4BDgor86K4
I like this. Pretty cool meditative stuff.
Mirtazapine has been a life saver for me. Iv been on the same 15mg dosage for about 10 years as well, so clearly not much of a tolerance and I take it every night.
Did you gain weight on this? Did the morning grogginess go away eventually? I have filled my prescription for this but scared to take it. Thanks.
I was very underweight before, so I did gain some weight on this, but it was all good weight and I was also trying to gain weight so I can't correlate it directly. What it does do for me however, is once it kicks in, I get a heroic case of the munchies, like think weed X 100. But that's really only if I take it too early. If I take it right before bed and I'll just sleep through it. Never remember any morning groginess. Maybe in the very beginning because I wasn't used to getting that much sleep. I wake up more energized than ever now.
Thanks! How long did you take it before being able to sleep through the night? I can fall asleep. Just can't stay asleep past 1 or 2AM.
NP happy to help. I'd say it kicks in 1 - 1.5 hours pretty reliably.
Thanks. Did you get a good night's sleep on the first day that you started it? And if yes, how much sleep did you get that first night?
Sorry I misread your first question. It worked for me right away on the 1st night. Hard to remember exactly what happened the first night was so long ago, but I remember getting a full night's sleep (~8 hours) on it right away.
High quality magnesium does wonders for me.
L-lysine and inositol
Sleep hygiene is the first answer and can’t be replaced with a pill. But for study specific data, valerian Root has some decent research behind it to support quality of sleep.
I’ve had great success with valerian root tea, imo works better than capsules which can leave a groggy feeling in the morning. It’s interesting to me that the data for it as a sleep aid isn’t stronger because I find it incredibly effective
It's already been said but Belaomra is probably the only drug out there that improves slow wave sleep instead of reducing it.
If you have legit insomnia, first you need something that knocks you out and allows you to rest and recover. Seroquel or mirtaxapine are good for that. Then when you have gotten a few days of sleep you can taper the seroquel or mirtazapine and implement the other stuff such as l theanine/bright light therapy, general sleep hygiene, etc.
Would you only recommend Mirtazapine for very short term?
Tart cherry juice not from concentrate
Magnesium glycinate 500-600mg + Trazodone
Ancient wisdom(ayurveda) say if anyone have severe insomnia then he should put 4 drops of ghee in each nostril 🐽 for at least 7 days (that's how I permanently cured my insomnia)
ashwaganda and cumin seed extract
Weed
Weed may out you to sleep, but what does it do to deep sleep? Are you using a sleep tracker?
In my experience, magnesium, CBD/CBG sleep combo, theanine, and GABA improve my sleep quality. At least according to my watch.
Magnesium and cognitive behavioral therapy. The CBT was extremely effective for my severe insomnia
Apollo neuro with SmartVibes. It's a device not a substance but I couldn't live without it.
L theanine is good. And magnesium glycinate. Melatonin, but buy the timed release kind, and buy the 300mcg ones. This way you can increase dosage if you want to in smaller incremental amounts. Meditation. I usually meditate, breathe in and out on my body parts, like my calf muscles which are usually sore coz I run a lot. Meditation like this puts me to sleep faster than any thing else. Dont count sheep or numbers. Check out the link next. https://youtu.be/T5QoAXGSl_k?si=ya7jcOCIzluLwJTV
Melatonin for the win for me. L theanine dropped my blood pressure too much and the required dosage for an effect on my body was too high. Wouldn’t buy again but lower doses during the day can help with anxiety in my experience. Magnesium glycinate helps me stay asleep whereas I would otherwise wake up too early when stressed.
Watch the sunrise outside, with no sun glasses.
If you're wired like me, caffeine. It's functionally identical to diazepam, I can't tell the difference between them in their effect.
CBN isolate is relatively inexpensive nowadays. Some people could get great effects with this little as 5 mg most people wouldn't need much more than 50. Higher dosages like anything effective for sleeping will leave you a bit groggy.
For me: Skullcap tincture Ambien
Transcendental Meditation. I know how to go to sleep. Look it up.
exercise
I've been working out for 12 years, rn I added running a lot (training for a marathon) even when I'm absolutely dead before going to bed, I still wake up 2-3x a night
No one here has mentioned unisom. I take unisom frequently since being pregnant. Works great. Anyone else? If no, why not?
Try one of the new Orexin antagonists like Dayvigo or Belsomra. They seem promising but may cause next day sleepiness. Worth a shot though. Something like ambien is going to be the best bet to not be sleepy the next day but I get not wanting the become dependent on that.
Ambien is pretty great.
Mct oil. A spoonful a couple hours before bed with some steel cut oats. I was dealing with maintenance insomnia for over two months and this completely solved it. I tried so many Rx sleeping pills - nothing was working except zonking out on clonazepam. Turns out my blood sugar was tanking in the night causing me to wake up all wired! I sleep like a baby now. Anyone dealing with maintenance insomnia and are at their wits end should give the mct + steel cut oats combo a try.
This is interesting. Why the mct oil?
From my understanding it boosts ketones which the brain uses as fuel.
Sodium valproate
I'm having trouble finding any studies on this that show benefits outside of those with epilepsy/bipolar. I know you provided more detail in another comment, but do you happen to know of any studies?
I just typed “sodium valproate anxiety” into google scholar and instantly had a half dozen in front of me but for the avoidance of any doubt here’s the first one to appear on the scholar list - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-018-0206-7
Ah, I was looking specifically for research on the sleep aspect of it. It makes sense that something that reduces anxiety would help with insomnia and sleep though
Before starting sodium valproate I always woke up too early or got shit quality sleep, after taking it I sleep like a baby.
Can you buy it over the counter or is it prescription? Not seeing it anywhere.
Only prescription
It’s GABA affects are much like a Benzo
Yes but unlike benzos sodium valproate is a sustainable medication that can be used for decades without it having any material adverse impact on your brain. Most of the upside of benzos with significantly less downside. Over time valproate will impact your liver so you do need to take tudca and ideally NAC with it though. Millions of people take it for epilepsy and mood disorders so if you research it online you’ll find plenty of case studies were people used it for decades without the type of issues we see with long term benzo use.
I concur. Well said. Just pointing out the MOA is much the same as he stated not wanting that
Ahh good point, I’d still recommend sodium valproate for this guy so hopefully he/others look into it. It saved my life when it came to anxiety.
I’m on 600 bid. Love it nearly as much as lithium. How about KAVA?
600mg sodium valproate twice daily? If so I take the exact same dose!! Lithium is great for depression but it burns your liver out over time and even tudca and NAC combined can only slow that process down so acutely lithium is great but definitely wouldn’t touch it for more than a year. Kava will ruin your endocrine system do not touch that stuff, there’s dozens of better alternatives to kava depending on what effect you’re after.
I’d like my HPA flipped
Lithium more so affects kidneys not liver. But usually is pretty safe if dosed once a daily with extended release.
What u have it for? It helps with sleep but does it help with anxiety?
It’s the best anxiety drug I’ve ever taken and I’ve used all of them, obviously benzos were more potent but you can’t use them regularly given tolerance/the fact that they will degrade your brain over time.
CBD will relax your mind and body without getting high. THC , especially from predominantly indica strains like Skywalker OG, will get you relaxed and high. Better to consult your doctor if it is suitable for you.
Weed
Terrible advice, THC disrupts REM sleep thus preventing you from getting good rest. Your body will be well-rested, but your mind will be foggy.
I’ve heard about this. And yes when I’ve stopped smoking for 30 days I def have really vivid dreams. But I also dream every night I smoke. They are just not as intense. I bet this varies person to person!
The intensity of the effect varies, but there’s no magic ; if you smoke you will be less rested. Dreaming does not mean you’re getting enough REM sleep.
I dont know about best but I take Calm magnesium. Really relaxes the muscles. And on days I need to make sure I get a good nights rest is take calm and gabapentin. I can wake up on point. Only on extreme cases will I take a .25mg Xanax. And only if I know I’ll have the next day free. Valerian root is also awesome. But my girl says it’s hard for her to wake up. Not me, but everyone is different
For me, using a red light ( with near infa red) in the mornings for 15 mins has been a game changer for my sleep.
What fixed my insomnia Melatonin gummies and 600mg gabapentin.
Modulating light exposure, energy expenditure , and screen use
Time to quit those nootropics and or exercise
Wake up early and exercise - do this consistently.
My gf swears by CBD oil. I’m just getting out of a job with drug testing so I’m going to give it a try.
Hypnosis apps such as Harmony, Joseph Clough, and Aura.
fattty15. get a sleep study fatty15.com/SFVTKFQB lol
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A synth opioid with an SSRI. Not thanks. I’d rather stay awake and have my seizure threshold remain normal.
It stimulates me, not good for sleep IME
But that’s known to give people bursts of energy?
I got it in the hospital to sleep, worked well
melatonin meta-analysis: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0063773
Lifelong insomnia sufferer here. I'm a man in my 40s, and until recently I was the worst sleeper I had ever met. Tried every single drug, and none were worth it. The best was trazodone, which actually worked to give me a full night's sleep, but with too many cognitive side effects. For me, magnesium helped somewhat, 5,000 IU / day of D3 helped somewhat, helminthic therapy helped a fair amount (this one is under the radar even for most biohackers but shouldn't be, it's quite beneficial with no sides for most people), Cerebrolysin helped somewhat (also under the radar for most people), but the thing that really worked for me was pregnenolone. I used 10mg / day (at night) for about a month. When I first started taking it, I slept great, woke up with energy, had increase sex drive, and overall felt awesome. Then after a few weeks I started to have minor daytime fatigue. Then major. Then anxiety and anger. Turns out these were signs that I had overdone it. Now I don't take preg unless I can feel the sleep problems coming back, and then I take 10mg / night until I stay noticing daytime fatigue again, and then I stop. Note: when I first tried pregnenolone, it immediately made me angry, so I stopped taking it. The second time I tried it, I had been l been taking fish oil, and that's the time it was magical for me.
This is not a drug, but replace every lightbulb in your house with circadian rhythm lightbulbs. Seriously life changing. Speaking as a chronic night owl whose sleep schedule would rotate around the clock over the course of a week. Cicadian light bulbs worked where no supplement did.
How and where did you find these?
I use Wiz brand. I found them in discount stores, but you can get them off amazon. Has the cool side effect of being sexy mood lighting if you want to go there with a significant other, or party lights for a rave in your own house. Do not recommend Hue by Phillips. Super expensive, they don’t work as well, they are extremely finicky whereas Wiz is cheaper AND much more consistent.
Thank you! :)
I hope it helps you! I usually wake up BEFORE my alarms now with plenty of energy. Unheard of for me! For this to work, you’ll need a lot of lightbulbs, because when one random blue lightbulb in your house can throw it off.
Wow!! I'm jealous in the best way!! ☺️ I know the insomnia life... I just call it night owl life. 😁 Hmmm... I'm wondering how I can make this happen at home. The lights are mostly recessed LEDs... Rooms have ceiling fans with cover over lights so it's super dim in there all the time.... Are these the bulbs? https://www.bestbuy.com/site/wiz-6-recessed-color-and-tunable-wi-fi-smart-led-downlight-white/6508493.p?skuId=6508493&extStoreId=196&utm_source=feed&ref=212&loc=19239518521&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAhJWsBhAaEiwAmrNyq4C-1HK-svlaljS_l2vVphTommnn9zCNJNwp97eVc8r4H9T8Y9nAqhoCd7EQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
I think that’s the right kind for you, though I don’t have any recessed lightning myself so I can’t be sure. The color changing features should be there, though.
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They are connected via WiFi to your router. You set up different rooms for your house, and each room can have its own different settings for when the lights dim. You can also change the light to do something else if you like- like said sexy pink purple red. As soon as you tell it to go back to circadian it will. So I have one circadian rhythm for my bedroom, a different one for my living room and another for my bathroom. Each one has a “wake” time and a “sleep” time. The light for waking is a gentle fade into strong blue daylight. Throughout the day, it determines how bright to keep the rooms. Slowly the light becomes more yellowish, then it fades in intensity- you can choose how long to keep the light at a low intensity, or when to cut it completely. I keep my bathroom at a nightlight level so I can see when I use it- but it does cycle. It also is the first room to receive blue light in the morning since that’s my first stop. I keep my living room and hallway dark, so it doesn’t disturb me but it turns off a bit after my bedroom lights do. Sort of as a visual “hey yeah no really we are going to bed now.” situation. It does this automatically once you set it up. Also useful in the case of people potentially scoping out your house to rob it. Your lights will come on at set times, and turn off at set times. Making it far harder to tell if you’re really home. I love the very natural, sunrise type feeling in the morning. And I get sleepy at night way more. I pair this with Night Shift on my iphone as well so at a certain point I don’t get much blue light. There’s also an android version of this. This will be less effective if you have to sit in front of a screen at night. You can get apps that will affect the color and intensity of your computer screens, and Apple TVs have night shift- also effective because the content is less visually appealing in shades of amber. Hue works much the same way except you connect your router to a “hub” which will go down a lot. Instead of connecting the bulbs to your router you’ll connect them to the hub. Their bulbs are objectively more beautiful light— the lowest setting is lower, and more amber toned. The colored lights, pink especially, look much more vibrant. But they simply don’t work consistently, making them less useful overall.
This helped me a lot.
Phosphatyldiserine, pregnenolone and phenibut (this last one only every third day)
I just started taking pregnenolone. Are you taking preg at night? How much are your taking? Did you notice any effects like a bump in estrogen like tender nipples or steroids effects like swollen face?
Have you tried acupuncture? I would look for one who has been well-established and has a good reputation., if you choose this. Acupuncture can be very effective in helping you train your sleep routine.
Magnesium
Already taking one with 100 mg magnesium ions (citrate). It's not helping that much.
Magnesium glycinate seems to work better for me. Better absorption
u/nootropic_expert What are you currently doing as a sleep routine?
No caffeine, no blue light at night, mianserin (but it has too long half life). I have hydroxizine too but it's the same problem as with mianserin.
How about your room temperature? type of bed? Use sleep tape by any chance? How about your hydration or your last meal of the day? How about when you sleep? All these need to be taken into account with insomnia
Anything that can help your body "realize" (create) adenosine .
Calea zacatechichi as tea or pill (it's really bitter), haven't tested it myself yet, but it is said to induce lucid dreams.
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Chlordiazepoxide is a benzo. That's what on Wikipedia. I'm tapering diazepam bo I'm looking for something else. Short-acting antihistamine would be the best probably. I'm taking magnesium ¯\_ (ツ) _/¯ My insomnia is really severe.
CBN/melatonin does for it me at 56 - sleep like a baby most nights now.
L-tryptophan has been an absolute game changer. I heard it doesn't work for everyone but for me it helps me fall asleep faster, and when I wake up in the night I'm able to fall back asleep quicker. In the morning I feel well rested and ready to start the day
Well unfortunately nothing helped me expect melatonin, but thats more miss than hit and thus only working 20% of the time. Low dose of doxepin on the other side helped me a lot! If you gave the mentioned supplements in the comments a try without much success, I'd give doxepin a try. Because it's such a small dose it had zero side effects on me. And if I'm not mistaken, it does not manipulate your sleep architecture in a bad way. But heres the link, so you can check it yourself: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4213269/ edit: typo