Melatonin

tipadoo

Anybody take Melatonin? Do you have any side effects? Since I stopped taking champix, I can't sleep unless I take some Advil PM and I'm looking for alternatives. My doctor seems to think I should just go to sleep...I wish!

vmoyer2002

I used to take gel caps nightime (liquid benadryl). But I find that 3mg of melatonin does pretty good. If there's a night where I want to make sure I get really good sleep, I still use the benadryl....but for the most part...melatonin does the job. There are all different type of mg out there. You'll have to find what works for you. I started with 2...but 3mg is my magic #.

RunHardBeStrong

I take 3 mg occasionally and it works well for me. I sleep sound and no after effects but have heard a couple people say it makes them drowsy the next day.

janlee_001

I take it. It's natural and start with 1 mg and see how that works. It's also important to relax and turn down/off the lights - that is how melatonin starts producing naturally in the brain.

3 mgs might make you drowsy the next day.

busymomma97

melatonin is completely natural so I don't see the harm in it. I am going to sound like a bad momma, but I give my two girls melatonin to help them unwind for bed. It used to take my youngest who was three at the time hours, I mean over two hours, to go to bed. I tried every trick to get her to go to sleep and it just didn't work. Someone told me about melatonin and I checked with my pediatrician and she said it is perfectly safe, that is is just something that our bodies produce but sometimes our bodies don't make enough melatonin.

ecarmita

Hi there,
I take melatonin in the evening to help me feel sleepy. Otherwise I have a great deal of difficulty falling asleep. The doctor has me taking it 5 hours before I go to bed. Others have told me that they begin to feel sleepy after 1/2 hour so you need to see how it affects you. I have no side affects from it.
Best,
Elisabeth

rf169606

I've taken it when I've had a hard time falling asleep. I usually works for me in about half an hour and I take 2mg. Although sometimes it gives me some odd dreams, but I always feel VERY well rested the next day.

elisabeisme

Melatonin works really well for me but I do find it to be a different feeling than other sleep aids. I find that those "PM" pills give me a groggy "boy i'm tired now" feeling that I don't get from melatonin. Since I don't get that sleepy feeling with melatonin, at first I thought, there's no way this is putting me to sleep. But then, I lie down on the bed and next thing I know, it's morning. I take 2-3 of the 1mg sublingual (dissolve under the tongue) pills about 20 minutes before I want to sleep. I usually sleep for 7 hours and then pop up wide awake. I use them a lot when traveling. Never had any side effects.

RainHoward

Personally I can't take it. When I do I have very vivid and very disturbing dreams. Certainly not the desired effect. However, it is mostly natural and shouldn't cause any long term side effects. It may take a couple nights of use to notice a difference but hey, it's worth a try.

seashman

I'm not sure why my tolerance is so high compared to everyone else's, but I'll take 10mg about an hour/90 minutes before bed, and then I usually have no problems getting to sleep and staying asleep for a good 6 hours, at least. No significant adverse effects either, although I believe if you take it for too long without taking the recommended week break every couple of months, it does lose its effectiveness.

lll0493

I recently started taking Melatonin because i wanted to stop taking taking nyquil to help with sleep. Yes, it has made a difference and has helped me fall asleep. Not as fast acting as nyquil, and I haven't noticed any side effects.

corrinek81

I swear by melatonin! Ever since I had my son I am a very light sleeper... hard to fall asleep. I take one of those and I am out in about 30 mins and don't wake up every hour. I do get some weird dreams but nothing that wakes me up. I wake up feeling quite refreshed in the morning too. LOVE IT!

xnovalentine

I've heard so many good things about melatonin by so many different people. So I decided to try it, I have to take something otherwise I am up all night. I woke up with an awful headache that caffeine or tyelnol couldn't even touch. I thought that maybe it was just a bad headache that day, or something, and it really left me nonfunctional and even foggy into the day after that. So I waited a couple more days until it was a Friday, incase it happened again when I took it. Again, I woke up with a horrid headache even worst than the last and my saturday was over. I threw the bottle in my drawer and didn't look at it for 5 or so months when I was out of my regular sleeping aid so I decided to give it a shot again. I woke up with another massive headache. I gave the bottle to my boyfriend who swears by the stuff, but it just did not work for me. Every time I took it I was pretty much dysfunctional the next day and even into the next day after that. I've never heard of it happening to anyone else, but I thought I would share the horrible side effect I got from it!

sarahrbraun

melatonin is completely natural so I don't see the harm in it. I am going to sound like a bad momma, but I give my two girls melatonin to help them unwind for bed. It used to take my youngest who was three at the time hours, I mean over two hours, to go to bed. I tried every trick to get her to go to sleep and it just didn't work. Someone told me about melatonin and I checked with my pediatrician and she said it is perfectly safe, that is is just something that our bodies produce but sometimes our bodies don't make enough melatonin.

I've just recently started giving it to my 6yo and 12yo. My 12yo was one of those kids that would come down 15x a night to get a drink, go to the bathroom, and give hugs for the 4th time. As soon as I started the melatonin, that stopped. My 6yo would stay up until 11pm then need me to lay down next to him until he fell asleep. Once I started giving it to him, he's asleep by 930pm and stays in his own bed til 7am when he wakes up on his own.

On the weekends I am not giving them the melatonin unless they ask for it. That way they can have a break from it and have a chance to go to sleep without it.

ETA: I just recently learned that a company called Vitafusion makes a melatonin gummy. That is what I got for my kiddos and they really like them even though it is a white tea passionfruit flavor.

orapronobis

I'm not sure why my tolerance is so high compared to everyone else's, but I'll take 10mg about an hour/90 minutes before bed, and then I usually have no problems getting to sleep and staying asleep for a good 6 hours, at least. No significant adverse effects either, although I believe if you take it for too long without taking the recommended week break every couple of months, it does lose its effectiveness.

You are not alone. I was getting a bit worried seeing that 1-3 mg seems to be working for so many other people. I take 10 mg rapid dissolve about 30 minutes before bed. It really helps me go to sleep, but only for 3-4 hours at a time. Still, for me,that is a HUGE improvement in my sleep.

Jargarita

Melatonin is my favorite sleep aid! I like that it takes a while to kick in so I can chill for a while before drifting off to sleep.

drog2323

side note - I find chamomile tea really helps for sleeping as well.

bkesecker

I have taken melatonin. Just be careful that you stick to the dosage. Too much can cause nightmares - no fun. I would stay away from Advil PM; it is just ibuprofen with Benadryl. You really should not be taking ibuprofen unless you need it for something.

RhonndaJ

I use melatonin on occasion. One mg and it works great with no side effects or lingering drowsiness. I'd say start with one mg and see how it works for you.

Magicalmomma

Melatonin is my favorite friend. I use 5 mg every night except the nights that I am on call. It works in about 30 minutes for me. Good luck. :happy:

mbajrami

I take it sometimes...the only thing I have noticed is that sometimes I'll have weird(er) dreams on the nights where I take it. I haven't noticed any lingering drowsiness and I usually only sleep about 6 hours a night.