Melatonin?

[sleepnasta]

I have a lot of trouble falling asleep. I often lie awake for an hour, sometimes 2 while my husband falls asleep within 5 minutes of lying down. It's very annoying really! I've heard of melatonin but never tried it. If you have, how did it work for you? Did you have any side effects? And how does it affect apnea? Any input would be appreciated.

[LSAT]

I have used Melatonin on occasion. I would fall asleep but couldn't stay asleep. I was taking 3mg without any problems. I have seen information indication that 1 mg is normally all anyone needs. I's cheap and available in most pharmacies. I don't think it interacts with any meds. I;m sure it affects everyone differently.

[RogerSC]

I have a lot of trouble falling asleep. I often lie awake for an hour, sometimes 2 while my husband falls asleep within 5 minutes of lying down. It's very annoying really! I've heard of melatonin but never tried it. If you have, how did it work for you? Did you have any side effects? And how does it affect apnea? Any input would be appreciated.

Yeah, my wife falls asleep in about 5 minutes, too, very annoying *smile*. I'll usually lay on my back for about 15 minutes, just being sleepy, then roll over on my side and go to sleep. Doesn't usually take me very long after that to be asleep. I try to wait until I'm really sleepy to go to bed, though. If I'm not sleepy, I'll stay up a while longer.

I've taken melatonin, back when I started CPAP...took Ambien for a week, then 1 gram sublingual melatonin for a while, they both seemed to help me when I was getting used to CPAP. Then I took melatonin sporadically when I felt stressed out and knew it would take me a while to get sleep. It did seem to help in terms of getting to sleep and staying asleep. The only side effect that I had was a little grogginess in the morning that went away after an hour or so, didn't seem to have an effect on the apnea, neither did the Ambien. Controversial stuff though, there's lots written on the internet about it, you might look around and see what people have written. I would say just try it and see how it affects you. Start with a low dose, like 300 mg., you can take multiple pills if that isn't enough. I wouldn't start with more than 1 gram, personally. It may help you be sleepier at bedtime, or you may see no effect at all *smile*.

[LSAT]

I have a lot of trouble falling asleep. I often lie awake for an hour, sometimes 2 while my husband falls asleep within 5 minutes of lying down. It's very annoying really! I've heard of melatonin but never tried it. If you have, how did it work for you? Did you have any side effects? And how does it affect apnea? Any input would be appreciated.

I've taken melatonin, back when I started CPAP...took Ambien for a week, then 1 gram sublingual melatonin for a while, they both seemed to help me when I was getting used to CPAP. Then I took melatonin sporadically when I felt stressed out and knew it would take me a while to get sleep. It did seem to help in terms of getting to sleep and staying asleep. The only side effect that I had was a little grogginess in the morning that went away after an hour or so, didn't seem to have an effect on the apnea, neither did the Ambien. Controversial stuff though, there's lots written on the internet about it, you might look around and see what people have written. I would say just try it and see how it affects you. Start with a low dose, like 300 mg., you can take multiple pills if that isn't enough. I wouldn't start with more than 1 gram, personally. It may help you be sleepier at bedtime, or you may see no effect at all *smile*.

Roger......I think you have your measurements confused...there are 1000mg in 1 gram. Starting point should be 1 mg as I indicated in my post.

[stage0]

I use Melatonin almost daily. I use a time-release version. It works well for me. If I do not get a full 8 hours of sleep, I sometimes get a headache. Bear in mind that pain, stress and some meds wll keep sleep from starting. Google "sleep Hygiene" and compare your habits to good ones that promote sleep.

[SethW]

Melatonin never seemed to do much for me, but I also never tried taking more than the recommended dose. I think the advice from stage0 about reading up on "sleep hygiene" is good advice.

[kteague]

Timely topic for me. I have taken a very small dose for years, and when I tried to increase it I had nightmares and restless sleep. In recent months I had settled in at 1 mg. About a week ago I ran out, and it was going to be a while before I could get more, so I was concerned about how bad my sleep might be. Oddly, it has not been any worse and I've actually had a cluster of decent nights. Whether it was placebo effect or real, I think that when I needed them, they helped, but at some point I just didn't need them any longer. That statement may be premature since I've only been off them such a short time.

[merhaba12]

My doc took me off of Lunesta because it adversely affects sleep apnea. She put me on Rozerem (prescription), which is a form of Melatonin. It works great for me and my doc is not concerned about the respiratory problems with sleep apnea.

[rjm]

I tried Melatonin, it did not help much. Now taking something called Ativan, works much better, it calms you down so you can fall asleep.

[Uncle_Bob]

I have a lot of trouble falling asleep. I often lie awake for an hour, sometimes 2 while my husband falls asleep within 5 minutes of lying down. It's very annoying really! I've heard of melatonin but never tried it. If you have, how did it work for you? Did you have any side effects? And how does it affect apnea? Any input would be appreciated.

I was told by my doc that its a natural thing (chemical) that goes on in your brain when you are tired. I used it without any problems.
However I have since been better at getting ready for sleep and not needing to wait hours to do so. Leanr how to bring on the natural wave of sleep with this book

http://www.amazon.com/Sound-Sleep-Mind- ... sound+mind

[archangle]

Melatonin seems to be one of those trial and error things. It's a miracle for some, a nightmare for others, with everything in between.

I don't think there are any significant risks other than a bad night's sleep for short trials to see how it works for you.

[edm_msu]

There was a recent episode on the Dr. Oz show on melatonin. Melatonin is a sleep regulator, not a sleep initiator. It tells your body that it is night time. Maximum dose is 1mg 1.5 hours before bedtime. Melatonin should only be used in three situations. 1. Jet lag, 2. Shift workers, and 3. the elderly. The elderly produce less melatonin when they get older and their recommended dosage is .5mg.
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/melatoni ... sleep-pt-1
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/fact-sheet-melatonin
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/melatoni ... llet-sleep