High Dose Melatonin Therapy

[987baz]

I noticed something, at least in Belgium and The Netherlands; melatonin above 299 mcg is being gradually withdrawn from the market, melatonin is said to be dangerous in high doses (we are familiar with this rhetoric), I don't know if this is happening in other parts of Europe, but the fact is that I have to order melatonin from Spain.

We can't get pharma grade synthetic melatonin in Aus, we can only get the stuff which is apparently made from the pineal glands of animals, so we have to order it from overseas.. i buy it from iherb fwiw link is the one I use .. i take 3 as that's what the kinesiologist tested andf I have to say, according to my sleep tracker I'm a sleep ninja now (I got a 98bout of 100 sleep score twice in the last month or so althought he last few days I've had lower scores than usual for some reason, I think there's a bit of processing going on

 

[Deliverance]

I´d be grateful for a quality melatonin recommendation within Europe.

I find this melatonin at Life Extension Europe

Science-based supplements & vitamins | Life Extension Europe

500+ supplements with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fish oil, omegas, amino acids, herbs, probiotics, CoQ10, NAD+ & more.

www.lifeextensioneurope.fr

 

[Breo]

Thank you @Konstantin and @Deliverance for this recommendation. There is also a 1mg version and that´s what´s the limit I am allowed to import. I will order and report back! Thanks also to all of you who posted valuable links. I looked at each of them

 

[katarinak]

Hi, I found this thread here yesterday about melatonin. I would be very grateful if you could help me answer a few questions. I had a very difficult 1.5 years where in 1 month I had maybe 5 nights with almost normal sleep, after a year I was so exhausted that my head was buzzing almost all day and sometimes I was not able to get out of bed at all and could barely answer basic questions. After the covid period, I completely lost faith in our health care system and therefore tried to help myself somehow without medication.

I'm currently sleeping well for a few months, but I have occasional weaker nights where I either stay asleep for a long time or wake up in the middle of the night and can't fall back asleep.

Thank you very much in advance for all the answers and I apologize if I ask some trivial questions that are clear to others. I haven't had time to read the whole thread yet

1. Do you use melatonin for falling asleep or does it also work for waking up at night?

2. How do I know if it is synthetic melatonin or naturally derived? Is there any difference between them?

3.How many mg is it good to start taking?

4. Have you also tried breathing exercises for slow and deep breathing?

5. Have you tried anything else, such as finding the cause of your insomnia and then eliminating it?

 

[Konstantin]

I'm sorry to hear about your struggles with insomnia; it can be truly exhausting. Let me share some thoughts based on my perspective and experience.

What has happened in the last 1.5 years? Did you have this issue before? If not, try to identify any significant changes in your life during this time that might be contributing to the problem.

If your mind becomes overly active when you try to sleep, with all kinds of thoughts flooding in—almost like a brainstorming session—it might be worth considering GABA as a potential solution. In cases like this, GABA could be more effective than melatonin.

1. Do you use melatonin for falling asleep or does it also work for waking up at night?

I think it works for falling asleep.

2. How do I know if it is synthetic melatonin or naturally derived? Is there any difference between them?

You can find that information on the producer's bottle label. I don't know if there is any difference; I haven't tested it.

3.How many mg is it good to start taking?

I am perfectly fine with 3mg. If you are using for the first time, start with 1mg so your body can adjust to it. Otherwise at the beginning it can have the opposite effect and cause you to be even more alert and cant fall asleep. It is just for a few days. So go slow and see what works best for you.

Have you also tried breathing exercises for slow and deep breathing?

Sure. Have you tried Eiriu Eolas?

 

[nicklebleu]

Hi katarinak - here a few thoughts on your questions. Most of these have been addressed in the thread, so just read through it and you should get a good idea about melatonin.

1. Do you use melatonin for falling asleep or does it also work for waking up at night?

It is used mainly as a sleep inducer - however the dose may provide help with sleeping through as well, if you bump it up, but maybe at the expense of feeling groggy in the morning.

3.How many mg is it good to start taking?

Generally a good starting dose is 1-3mg, then see what happens, and dial it up or down depending on the effects. Not much effect - bump it up. Good effect, but feeling drowsy in the morning - dial it down. Generally, it is very individual, and you need to apply ‘trial and error’ to work out a dose that suits you.

4. Have you also tried breathing exercises for slow and deep breathing?

As Konstantin has mentioned, a breathing program like EE can do wonders, although it is generally not a quick fix. Also mediation can help, too.

5. Have you tried anything else, such as finding the cause of your insomnia and then eliminating it?

There are multiple factors that may influence your sleep pattern, so it is a good idea to try to influence those, too. Af ew ideas from the top of my head:
- Eliminating blue spectrum light early in the evening (electronic devices, LED lights etc), and/or wearing blue blocking glasses. Eliminating electronic devices may also calm you down regardless of blue light blocking, and is generally a good thing to do (at least 2 hours before bedtime)
- Diet may also play a role, like limiting food after a certain time, eating early evening in general, maybe avoiding high-carb loads in the evening etc.
- Some people have had success with certain supplements like Ashwaganda, GABA and others - I personally have no experience with these, as my sleep is generally good, but others may chime in with their experience.

In summary, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach, and you will need to experiment with different things, which takes patience and time, but it is definitely possible to vastly improve your sleep pattern over time.

Hope that helps!

 

[katarinak]

What has happened in the last 1.5 years? Did you have this issue before? If not, try to identify any significant changes in your life during this time that might be contributing to the problem.

I didn't have this issue before, I used to sleep like a baby Therefore it was something unusual in my life. I think I managed to identify the cause and eliminate it, now I would say that I am sleeping about 85% compared to my normal sleep.

If your mind becomes overly active when you try to sleep, with all kinds of thoughts flooding in—almost like a brainstorming session—it might be worth considering GABA as a potential solution. In cases like this, GABA could be more effective than melatonin.

Yes, it's exactly as you write. Thank you very much for the tip, I will go read more about gamma-aminobutyric acid. Thank you very much.

Sure. Have you tried Eiriu Eolas?

I watched Laura's video, it's great. I have practiced yoga and also pranayama breathing exercises for many years in the past. And also pranayama with breath holds, which are a powerful purification technique and which just reminded me of EE breathing. I had already started EE breathing, a few days ago. It was this EE breathing that made me think how to calm the mind, slow down the breathing and thus relax the body and in this way improve sleep in a natural way.

I am perfectly fine with 3mg. If you are using for the first time, start with 1mg so your body can adjust to it. Otherwise at the beginning it can have the opposite effect and cause you to be even more alert and cant fall asleep. It is just for a few days. So go slow and see what works best for you.

yes, thank you very much Konstantin.

 

[katarinak]

There are multiple factors that may influence your sleep pattern, so it is a good idea to try to influence those, too. Af ew ideas from the top of my head:
- Eliminating blue spectrum light early in the evening (electronic devices, LED lights etc), and/or wearing blue blocking glasses. Eliminating electronic devices may also calm you down regardless of blue light blocking, and is generally a good thing to do (at least 2 hours before bedtime)
- Diet may also play a role, like limiting food after a certain time, eating early evening in general, maybe avoiding high-carb loads in the evening etc.
- Some people have had success with certain supplements like Ashwaganda, GABA and others - I personally have no experience with these, as my sleep is generally good, but others may chime in with their experience.

In summary, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach, and you will need to experiment with different things, which takes patience and time, but it is definitely possible to vastly improve your sleep pattern over time.

Thank you very much for all the information and advice, I'm just about to experiment in this direction to understand the context.

 

[iamthatis]

Thank you very much for all the information and advice, I'm just about to experiment in this direction to understand the context.

I was having insomnia a few years ago, and I was taken to a sleep clinic. I was wired up with a lot of sensors, etc., and had a night of sleep in the clinic. They were monitoring my sleep state for the night, and were able to give advice based on what was causing the insomnia. For me it was basically too much thinking, and they suggested using a regular mantra whenever I woke up in the middle of the night. The rule was 'no thinking in bed allowed'. Only mantra, sensing the body, and breathing.

You may consider seeing a doctor and asking about this sort of test.

The other thing I do now as a sleep aid is use my infrared sauna blanket. I lay on top of it, and it usually sends me off into dreamland quite nicely.

About melatonin, for some people the total amount in the system is used up quickly, and when it depletes, the body takes this as a signal to wake up, so they wake up in the middle of the night. That happened for me. So 'sustained release' melatonin can be a worthwhile experiment as well.

The other thing that can help with sleep - physical exercise during the day. Not light physical exercise like walking or stretching, but an actual workout that gets the heart pumping.

 

[katarinak]

I was having insomnia a few years ago, and I was taken to a sleep clinic. I was wired up with a lot of sensors, etc., and had a night of sleep in the clinic. They were monitoring my sleep state for the night, and were able to give advice based on what was causing the insomnia. For me it was basically too much thinking, and they suggested using a regular mantra whenever I woke up in the middle of the night. The rule was 'no thinking in bed allowed'. Only mantra, sensing the body, and breathing.

You may consider seeing a doctor and asking about this sort of test.

The other thing I do now as a sleep aid is use my infrared sauna blanket. I lay on top of it, and it usually sends me off into dreamland quite nicely.

About melatonin, for some people the total amount in the system is used up quickly, and when it depletes, the body takes this as a signal to wake up, so they wake up in the middle of the night. That happened for me. So 'sustained release' melatonin can be a worthwhile experiment as well.

The other thing that can help with sleep - physical exercise during the day. Not light physical exercise like walking or stretching, but an actual workout that gets the heart pumping.

Thank you for sharing your experience, I appreciate it, I think one can more easily find inspiration and ideas from the experiences of others. Physical exercise during the day I will definitely try

I believe that our body is the outer image of our inner self. I got asthma when I was around 30. After four years of treatment, when I still wasn't compensated, I asked my doctor that I would like to be cured. The answer was that if I didn't take corticosteroids (large doses) I would be dead in 5-6 years. I think that was one of my last visits to any doctor. I came home crying, slept it off and then changed job (due to high stress), started doing yoga and breathing exercises and changed my diet to a healthier way of life. The asthma went away and hasn't come back.

I feel the same way now when sleeping issues have appeared. It started in 2022 and I found that I was living in such a way that even when I saw a pile of manure in front of me, I looked for the flower on it and focused my attention on it. I basically ignored the bad around me. And the COVID situation I think was the last straw that spilled my cup. I was forced to look at reality as it is in all its truth and accept it within myself as well. I think it did the trick and my sleeping improved from 5% to about 85%. The Cassiopaeans came my way this year and I'm extremely grateful for that because I got a lot of answers to my questions. I don't really understand it myself yet, because in the past I lived quite rationally, but I believe that nothing is a coincidence in our lives and it is possible to find connections in everything.

Now I would especially like to try Laura's EE breathing with breath holds, what it will do and also control not thinking and slow and deep breathing in bed as you write. I'd also like to try the melatonin experiment, what a difference it will make.