It’s always been iffy for me. I have been taking ½ of a doctor prescribed Alprazolam (Xanax) and it worked for the most part, but not always. Sometimes I will awake and look at the clock and it’s only midnight and I can't go back to sleep again. At times I got disgusted and just got up and had breakfast at 1:00 AM. I don’t want to get dependent on sleep aids but if they work…
I sleep well after I finally go to sleep. I'm a night owl so I'm usually up until 2 a.m. or so; I get up around 9-10 a.m. Occasionally I take a melatonin to help me doze off. You might find this interesting... https://www.forhims.com/blog/xanax-alprazolam-sleep "The researchers also noted a “significant increase in sleep difficulty” within three nights after the patients stopped using alprazolam, meaning that many of the people that initially benefited from the alprazolam slept worse after they stopped using it than they did before treatment. This is called “rebound insomnia,” and it’s a common problem among people who use Xanax and other benzodiazepines to treat sleep difficulties. While these drugs work in the beginning, it can become more and more difficult to sleep without medication after using them repeatedly."
I have no problem getting to sleep 99.5 of the time. But staying asleep is hard, because of taking Lasix and constantly going to the bathroom. Slept decent last night, got up at 7:04 - late for me. Last two night awake before 5 am. @Ed Wilson I sleep much better in recliner. Plus a very light snack helps, then turn streaming channel to something boring.. asleep soon usually,
Both wife and I can have trouble going to sleep and staying asleep, unless we are near exhaustion. Sometimes a shower can help me go to sleep and, sometimes, that shower has been at midnight or 2AM. For a better night's sleep, my wife can take a 200mg Motrin. Generally, I'm the "early bird" with getting up, sometimes around 5AM. Most of my jobs I had, started at 7AM, whereas hers started at 8:30AM. I still have the old "Navy" wakeup time in me of 6AM. That is the time Revelle happened at sea and in port. My high school years on a small farm, had to get up at 5:30AM to feed/water hogs. My wife is still working a full-time (weekly), "at home" job, that, to a point, hopes that will end in May. Sometimes just too much stress for a 74 to-be year old. We hardly ever go to bed after 10PM. "Night Owls"? Definitely not us.
Years ago, when I was in my 20s and struggling to maintain and move ahead in my early jobs, I used to worry about getting enough sleep so that I would not only be able to get up in time for work but be awake and alert enough to make a good job of it, as I knew that I didn't want to get stuck in an entry-level position for any longer than was necessary. I can remember sleepless nights as my worrying about being able to sleep would keep me up at night. At one point, I even had a doctor prescribe Quaaludes in order to help me get to sleep. They did that, but they didn't help me get up in the morning or to achieve the alertness that I had hoped for. As I have with most medications that I have taken, I gave up on them after a couple of nights. Although they were an abusable drug at the time, I wasn't an abusing guy so I threw them away and never asked for a refill. Then I found the solution in night shifts. Working the graveyard shift, I found that, not only were there fewer people for me to impress during my shift, but I could easily get by on four or five hours of sleep a day. My production spoke for itself so I didn't have to perform, as did those who were working the dayshift. For most of my working life, I have worked the graveyard shift while on shift work or, as was the case in EMS, we would sleep between calls. While teaching EMS, I did have an 8:00 am class but, by then, I had become aware that the thing that had kept me up at night was worrying about not being able to get to sleep, that it was the stress that was keeping me up. Without all of that nonsense, I could get up in time to get to my first class without even setting an alarm. For the past twenty-plus years, I rarely have to get up at any particular time so I have no set bedtimes. I go to bed when I am tired and I get up when I feel like it. If I am interested in whatever book I am reading, I might read for an hour or two before falling asleep but, otherwise, I can get to sleep easily enough.
No good. Averaged 5.5 hr. last year. I've tried everything from over the counter CBD tinctures, gummies, (free of THC), to doctor prescribed medicines, such as Trazadone, and many others. Best so far is OTC Sleep Formula, called Naturelo, with melatonin (chamomile, Valerian extract, Lemon Balm, Hops extract, GABA, 5-HTP, passion flower) 30 min. before bedtime, after which I take an Excel PM pill. I also keep my I-phone playing some white noise all night. If its as late as 3AM, I just get up, fix coffee, and struggle through the day and wait for a better night, which is fine since, being retired, I usually can put off any activity for later, when I have, hopefully, my full faculties (even though there's some doubt about that)
I usually go to bed sometime between 8:30 - 9:00 PM. It is an old "early to bed, early to rise" habit that goes back to my youth., We've found that watching recorded zoo/animal programs on TV puts us to sleep and we're both out in about 30 minutes. The TV shuts itself off after the program ends and I sleep until about 5:00 AM or so when the bladder begins complaining. Then, if there's nothing pressing this day, it's back to bed for a 1 or 2 hour snooze. Sorry I don't have some magic formula. I think every person needs to find their own.
I've had insomnia since I was in my 30s. Been on Ambien for years, among various other drugs. I went to a sleep clinic a few years ago and it was a pretty good help up until this year. I always slept on my right side, but because of tendonitis in both shoulders I have to sleep on my back now and it is my worse position (stomach is out) and so I am back to having a nightly struggle with insomnia.
I generally fall asleep pretty quickly. Any issues I may have sleeping through the night are directly related to my inability to resist an afternoon "nap." If I can push past the urge to crash around 3PM (or even as late as 5PM), I'll get a long night's uninterrupted sleep. If I crash, my "nap" is around 2 hours. I'm always up somewhere between 7AM and 9AM (I used to get up 4AM-5AM during my working years), even if I go to bed at 2AM.
I was always a morning person naturally, but most of my working career was in the evening, so I learned to change my habits. Now in retirement, my wife and I are on different sleep schedules. She has issues that I don't have, and melatonin seems to help her a lot, and, contrary to others' experiences, she has fewer dreams on melatonin. Most of the time, if I have activity in my day, I can sleep well if I take magnesium prior to hitting the sack. My mind used to "race" and keep me awake, but since retirement and getting old, that doesn't seem to happen anymore. I have found that "resetting my clock" with a "happy light" in the morning helps as well. Showers help my wife relax, but they tend to wake me up.
I've been taking melatonin for years also. For more convenience, I get gummies from Amazon and leave them on the coffee table. That way, I don't have to get up to get a drink when it's time to take one. These gummies are 2.5 mg each, normal "dose" is two. I take one, see below. A couple things the sleep doc said (who was a real MD, not a guru) -- if you take too much melatonin it won't work -- he said we should take 3-5 mg, less is better. Also, take 3 hours before bedtime.
She uses the Spring Valley gummies, as she has trouble with tablets. 5 mg. nightly. I think she buys them at the local Kroger affiliate, but they are available at Walgreens here as well I think.
Thanks for the info. I bought a bottle of Natrol melatonin today at Rite Aid. They are 3 mg. There was quite a selection of manufacturers and I believe I saw Spring Valley too. If one brand doesn't do any good I'll try others. I read that the aging body produces less naturally than when young so I'll be adding melatonin to the list of supplements.