Discussions

HeartBeat said "My personal favourite for sleepy bedtime tea is Lemon Balm Leaf. I make it super concentrated by letting two bags steep for at least 15 minutes in hot water, even squishing them to get as much into the tea as I can. It pretty much tastes like a hand full of grass. I always find that in less than half an hour, I start to get a nice cozy heavy feeling in my body, my mind slows and feels relaxed, and I can get right to sleep. And no groggy drugged feelings in the morning! "

...you beat me to it. I was just reading some articles comparing the effectiveness of lemon balm vs, benzos.  
 
I second the lemon balm suggestion. It's also very easy to grow in an herb garden.  
 
I would also suggest also improving your sleep hygiene.  
 
Here's something to get you started:  
 
Write down everything that is on your mind before bed, so you can consciously leave your problems on the page, and know that they'll be there when you wake up, so you don't have to worry about them whilst trying to rest.

I couldn't fall as we until 4 hours after I went to bed, my brain just would not shut off. Then I could barely drag myself out of bed in the morning. I've had really amazing results with stress reliever supplements. Natural, of course. Got them at Hedleys. They're 100% GABA, an amino acid. I fall asleep without a problem, I wake up feeling good, and my anxiety levels are nonexistent.

exercise, meditation, cotton muslin bag with lavender buds near or under your pillow, limiting or eliminating screen time before bed, and Thrive REST gel pouches are a really great all natural sleep aide.  
https://melkar.le-vel.com/Products/THRIVE/SGTRest

Makes me sleepy. Find the right Doctor maybe get prescribed.

Probably the most effective solution for insomnia is cognitive behavioural therapy. I believe some local psychologists are trained in this.

I wondered how long it would take until someone suggested CBT. People complain that 'the doctor just kept throwing pills at me'....and yet that's what they went to the doctor for! Eventually, all 'sleeping pills' will stop being effective, and need higher doses or different pills. Cognitive behavioural therapy is absolutley the best way to go!

curlysister said "I wondered how long it would take until someone suggested CBT. People complain that 'the doctor just kept throwing pills at me'....and yet that's what they went to the doctor for! Eventually, all 'sleeping pills' will stop being effective, and need higher doses or different pills. Cognitive behavioural therapy is absolutley the best way to go! "

If it works, didn't work for me for sleep, depression or anxiety, we are all wired a bit differently.  
 
Google best sleeping meds and see the thousands of posts there. It is amazing! Not everything works for everybody. I am strictly prohibited form melatonin due to the antidepressant I am on. Make sure if you are on any prescribed meds to check with your doctor about OTC sleep aids.

Brenda said "    curlysister said "I wondered how long it would take until someone suggested CBT. People complain that 'the doctor just kept throwing pills at me'....and yet that's what they went to the doctor for! Eventually, all 'sleeping pills' will stop being effective, and need higher doses or different pills. Cognitive behavioural therapy is absolutley the best way to go! " If it works, didn't work for me for sleep, depression or anxiety, we are all wired a bit differently.     Google best sleeping meds and see the thousands of posts there. It is amazing! Not everything works for everybody. I am strictly prohibited form melatonin due to the antidepressant I am on. Make sure if you are on any prescribed meds to check with your doctor about OTC sleep aids. "

It's certainly not going to work for everyone and it all depends on why one is suffering from insomnia as there are many reasons. Your circadian rhythm really is a fragile thing.  
 
Think of a factory creating a product that takes thousands of different steps to accomplish it. If one thing is off the end product is not what it is supposed to be. Insomnia sufferers have a similar issue where the body is going through many different steps to make serotonin to make us happy and melatonin to help us sleep. If one thing is off the end result is depression, anxiety, insomnia and so on.  
 
The trick is to find where everything went wrong. Stress is likely the most common culprit which affects digestion and things go bad from there.

JD said "    Brenda said "    curlysister said "I wondered how long it would take until someone suggested CBT. People complain that 'the doctor just kept throwing pills at me'....and yet that's what they went to the doctor for! Eventually, all 'sleeping pills' will stop being effective, and need higher doses or different pills. Cognitive behavioural therapy is absolutley the best way to go! " If it works, didn't work for me for sleep, depression or anxiety, we are all wired a bit differently.     Google best sleeping meds and see the thousands of posts there. It is amazing! Not everything works for everybody. I am strictly prohibited form melatonin due to the antidepressant I am on. Make sure if you are on any prescribed meds to check with your doctor about OTC sleep aids. " It's certainly not going to work for everyone and it all depends on why one is suffering from insomnia as there are many reasons. Your circadian rhythm really is a fragile thing.     Think of a factory creating a product that takes thousands of different steps to accomplish it. If one thing is off the end product is not what it is supposed to be. Insomnia sufferers have a similar issue where the body is going through many different steps to make serotonin to make us happy and melatonin to help us sleep. If one thing is off the end result is depression, anxiety, insomnia and so on.     The trick is to find where everything went wrong. Stress is likely the most common culprit which affects digestion and things go bad from there. "

A chemical imbalance, in my case causing treatment resistant depression.  
 
Anyway, be careful with all OTC drugs, talk to your doctor first and this i:ncludes herbs, etc.

The company I work for sells an oral spray that contains 2mg of melatonin, camomile, Passion flower and other calming botanicals. It works great for me, I notice my eyes get heavy in about 10min, and I've always been a night owl. Great for traveling too or shift work! Email me brookeclayton7@gmail.com and I'll send you some info