Sounds good. I actually bought these a few weeks ago, but haven’t tried them yet (I still have the mints...)
$4 for 120
I bought these off Amazon. They didn't work for me, but I don't think that's the fault of the pill.
Be aware that melatonin is completely unregulated by the FDA or whatever the equivalent in your country. That means that formulation and dosage varies by brand / lab. The little science available suggest that 350 mcg (I think, can't remember the exact number) is the appropriate dosage. If you go to the store you'll see presentations vastly exceeding this dosage, going up to 10, 20 mg. If you are interested in starting out at the alleged right dosage, I suggest Sundown Naturals, you can find it on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O
I've taken a few and they've all seemed similar, right now I take Sundown. My recommendation is to just stick to a low dose -- under 1mg. I think 300mcg or 500mcg is the sweet spot.
Why? 0.3mg is claimed by MIT to be the amount of melatonin in an average adult while sleeping and 0.5mg is believed to be the max effective dose. Going above that just keeps excessive melatonin in your body and you risk having high levels when you wake up -- potentially harming your circadian rhythm and making it harder to sleep the next night.
I like to take it 25 minutes before going to sleep and then read a book under orange light until I start losing concentration. I put the book down and am normally out in 5 or so minutes.
It helps a lot man. I take this shit you can get from Amazon though I’ve seen it in store a few times at different dosages.
https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O
Apparently 300mcg or less than 1mg seems to be the sweet spot for melatonin. Any more, and you’ll just feel groggy as hell in the morning. I started off with 5mg but I went off it pretty quick.
Maybe try /r/AskDocs for the burning stomach and tongue numbness.
As for the DSPD, the melatonin I’ve been taking is <$4 on Amazon right now. I shoot for taking half a tablet about 8pm, and getting some light as soon as possible in the morning. That’s worked pretty well for the last few years, though it’d work better if I worked harder at taking it on time.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000GG2I9O/
But I agree about not pushing your body, and getting as much restful sleep as possible if you can, esp with the other issues going on.
I actually have used melatonin in many forms and doses. There was some sort of research about the effective dose of melatonin being far lass than what is normally sold..
I take this Sundown Melatonin 300 mcg, 120 Tablets (Packaging May Vary) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000GG2I9O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_k1i3DbF5Q60V9
Not sure other people’s experiences but this has worked just as good if not more than any quick dissolve, gummy, liquid melatonin fat higher doses
I also have used unisom that works awesome as wlel
Got it, I'm assuming you're not in the US (otherwise: https://smile.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O/).
One other thing you can try in the meantime is splitting the pills in half (or into four). Assuming they're not extended-release/time-release, splitting them physically in half should safely give you roughly half the dose (even if you split into four and the doses end up being 0.5mg/1mg/1.5mg/2mg due to inconsistent distribution, all doses should be safe/better than 5mg. But more likely it will be more like 1mg/1.3mg/1.3mg/1.4mg).
Melatonin seems to make me fall asleep faster and improve sleep quality, it depends a lot on the dose/person i guess. People with adhd produce more melatonin on stims, because the brain doesn't produce enough melatonin without adequate dopamine levels. I'm not sure how stims affect melatonin in neurotypicals or high dosages.
I use the 300mcg pills, I would recommend trying these first since you can pretty much only find overdosed pills at the store (its probably cheaper to put 10mg in a pill than 0.3mg i guess, and they're not required to put overdose risk label on supplements).
https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O/ref=sr_1_2_a_it?th=1
Up until earlier this year, I had been taking 3mg of meletonin for about 6months and it didn't really seem to be doing much. My sleep specialist then told me to drop down to 300mcg (0.3mg) as new research has shown that less can be more. I did a bit more research and it seemed to back her up, though I didn't look into it too much.
Supposedly, 0.3mg is the amount that the body naturally produces to signal sleep. That does was restricted to a specific prescription brand due to patenting, and people tend to believe that "more is better" with supplements, thus the really high doses you can get. After switching to the lower dose, my mood improved a bit during the day and it feels as if my sleep is a bit more regulated (I also have non-24, so nothing really helps everything). Doses greater than 1mg are reported to increase daytime drowsiness and depression, though they will often knock some people right out.
Do your research, and it's a supplement so regulation isn't the greatest. I take this
I think I remember reading something about how MIT had patented that dosage and that's just the way they get around it. But - you can actually buy it at the proper dosage, here's what I went with: https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O?th=1
Super cheap, and if you find 1 doesn't do the trick, no harm in taking 2 every now and then
300mcg is the medically recommended dosage for help falling asleep.
https://news.mit.edu/2001/melatonin-1017
https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O/
More will be counter productive as the poster above me said.
High doses reccomendations were based on flawed research on people who weren't producing enough natural melatonin. That dosage will just blow out your natural production of the hormone.
An effective dose is measured in the Micrograms and is best taken about 5 hours before you want to go to sleep instead of right before bed. Scott even wrote a good summary of the state of research on it. Here's the dosage I use
Here are two brands - but right now they're sold out on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O
https://www.amazon.com/Natural-Health-International-Herbatonin-Supply/dp/B006H9T94Q
I've bought as low as .3 online.
I've never seen less than 1 in-person.
I've used this: https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O
I don't think more is necessarily better. I'm 6'1"/185lbs and I take 600mcg a night and that works nicely for me.
​
It's hard if not impossible to find the small dosage ones in stores, so I ordered 300mcg tablets on amazon and take 2.
​
heres the ones I have:
Yep 300mcd melatonin is the correct dose, take it with a cup of Sleepytime Tea before bed. Megadoses leave me groggy the next day and don't work any better.
https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O/ is what I got after I got tired of gnawing bits off tablets.
Oh nice! $5 on Amazon! That sure beats having little bits of nibbled on pills everywhere... https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O
Happy cake day, btw! :D
FYI, there are convenient 0.3 mg pills available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Sundown-Naturals-Melatonin-300-Tablets/dp/B000GG2I9O/ I take the same dosage myself, and find these to be very effective.
I'm in the same boat man. This is my post http://www.reddit.com/r/sleep/comments/382sri/melatonin_and_sleep_problems/ though i doubt ill get a response
If you havent tried melatonin, you could try that, but it worked great for me now i cant stay asleep like you
Look at the stuff ive considered on that link, maybe u can try that too heres what ive written down in a notepad
these are random ideas / point form, random shit ive jotted down:
% eat more, especially BEFORE bed
% Body trying to tell you something: Might be hungry, eat foods w/ tryptophan http://www.healthaliciousness.com/articles/high-tryptophan-foods.php
Try taking a low dose of melatonin around 6pm. The dosage should be 500 mcg - 1 mg. Then you should feel sleepy by 11pm and go to bed by 11pm
This guy says Recently I skeptically tried a low dose of melatonin. I bought 1mg tabs and broke them in 1/4's so .25mg~ each. I've been taking it for 2 weeks and each night its been very effective.
[–]thegrumpyhypnotist 6 points 1 year ago Natrol makes a liquid version of melatonin, it can sometimes be found at places like Walgreens and Vitamin Shoppe. 4 droppers = 1mg (their recommended serving size), so 1 dropper = .25mg, 60 doses in a $5 bottle... couldn't be easier or cheaper. Also, taking it sublingually seems to be faster-acting than tablets.
Look into buying https://well.ca/products/now-foods-l-tryptophan_73712.html (Tryptophan)
try to take only 1mg of melatonin
blue light blocking glasses, ask around whats best ones
random quote from a post " 2) How often do you consume dark green vegetables?"
VITAMIN D.. THAT COULD BE IT.. http://www.reddit.com/r/Health/comments/1c9iey/melatonin_vs_tryptophan/c9eegmo
vitamin C too..
probiotics / healthy eating translates to better sleep. but for now get vegetables + align
find out what exercise makes u tired
great read http://www.moodcure.com/pdfs/Townsend-Letter-NNTI%20article.docx.pdf
[–]OpiumPhrogg 1 point 5 months ago I have been having pretty good luck with L-Tryptophane. I have figured out that I have to down regulate on the weekends and take it no later than 10:15pm ( I usually am up at 5:30am ).
melatonin: [–]Hypocritese 1 point 5 months ago I take 325micrograms at night; I found it be more effective than higher dosages and I have less trouble waking up. It also helps my heartburn, strangely enough.
Keep in mind this is all random shit i jotted down. For me to figure out what i should do. So this is all random shit. some of it may not work at all or is BS or may not apply to you or me. but at least it ssomething
Lastly, the most important, go see a doctor, this is what i have been avoiding but i am gonna do it soon. Doctor doctor doctor. There's gotta be something wrong with us, like..... elevated cortisol levels at night time, or, some kind of problem. theres no way this shit is normal
But my main working theory right now is, vegetables, nutrients, and eating more, and for me personally, i guess taking LESS melatonin and seriously giving 0.3mg a try i guess
Low dose melatonin with a cup of sleepytime tea before bed has cured my insomnia issues.