How do you break bad sleeping schedules?

[haohmaru6]

Second on the melatonin. CVS was having a sale so I bought a bunch.

The first night I tried it, I took a 5mg pill, and that was TOO MUCH. It worked a little too well. I went to sleep at a decent hour but didn't wake up until 3 hours after I wanted to.
The second night I tried it, I cut it in half, and again that was too much. It took a little longer to fall asleep but I still woke up 2 hours later than I wanted to.
I have been trying a quarter of a 5mg pill (1.25mg) for a while now. When I get to sleep seems highly dependent on when I take it, usually about 30-40 minutes after I take it. If I want to wake up by 8am I must take it no later than 9pm the previous day.

Every one's metabolism is different of course, but its a solution that is inexpensive and widely available, and doesn't have the dangers of sleeping pills or the like.

Having a calendar that you write every night what time you take it, and what time you go to sleep and wake up, really helps to zero in on what the right amount to take is, and when to take it.

Good luck getting it on track man, I know trying to fix it can really be frustrating.

 

[JoostinOnline]

Second on the melatonin. CVS was having a sale so I bought a bunch.

The first night I tried it, I took a 5mg pill, and that was TOO MUCH. It worked a little too well. I went to sleep at a decent hour but didn't wake up until 3 hours after I wanted to.
The second night I tried it, I cut it in half, and again that was too much. It took a little longer to fall asleep but I still woke up 2 hours later than I wanted to.
I have been trying a quarter of a 5mg pill (1.25mg) for a while now. When I get to sleep seems highly dependent on when I take it, usually about 30-40 minutes after I take it. If I want to wake up by 8am I must take it no later than 9pm the previous day.ROFL! I don't think a quarter pill would do me any good. I notice mine kicking in around 15 minutes later, and I am knocked out for 8 hours (unless something wakes me up before then, in which case I have trouble going back to sleep). The 9mg works perfectly for me, but your post really backs up my suggestion on the alarm clock.

QUOTE(haohmaru6 @ May 16 2011, 05:43 PM) Every one's metabolism is different of course, but its a solution that is inexpensive and widely available, and doesn't have the dangers of sleeping pills or the like.

That's the main reason why I suggested it, and why my doctor recommended it. I take a fair amount of medication (half is to counteract side-effects), and I didn't want anything else that my body would begin depending on or that would cause bad side effects. Melatonin is cheap and is out of your system after a few hours, so there isn't any risk of dependency. You can decide to stop taking it any time and there won't be a problem.