Alternatives to Sleeping Pills and or Benzos

I never thought I would be encouraging THC use, but my husband has been suffering from long COVID for 25 months and has been unable to find medical relief. Yes, a small dose of edible Indica before bed gives my husband the most restorative sleep. He has a watch that tracks his REM, deep, & light sleep. Since he got long COVID his deep & REM sleep durations have been extremely low. He tried melatonin first, some over-the-counter, and finally prescription sleep aids from his doctor. The prescription sleep aids worked the best, but had side effects that he did not like. Finally one of his "specialist MDs" hinted that he should try edible cannabis. His REM and deep sleep numbers were the best he had measured compared to all the other treatments. Having a good night's sleep greatly improved his other symptoms (brain fog, etc.) during the day. We were both anti-recreational drug use in the past, but have changed our views somewhat with regard to CBD & low doses of THC. Please do your research to make sure you purchase products from a reputable manufacturer, since this is still an unregulated business. Also, scientific studies have shown that THC raises your heart rate, so please check with your doctor if you have heart issues. If you work in a job that does random drug testing, you could risk losing your job due to THC. Lastly, if you have an "addictive" personality, THC use may be a bad idea and you should stick to CBD. A very small dose of Indica THC right before sleep seems to be the most effective for my husband. CBD also helped, but was less effective at blocking his headache pain.

Glad it worked for your husband. I tried it last night no sleep at all

Have found edibles to be great at relieving pain and anxiety. My Psychiatrist urged me to try it and wrote a prescription. I was amazed I was in no pain and did not feel dopey.

I am glad it helped you. I am interested in hearing you were able to get a prescription for it. He would love to be able to get a prescription through a legitimate doctor. His pulmonologist was actually the MD that recommended it, but didn't offer him a prescription. We live in a state where it is legal, so easy to obtain, but I worry about the quality control since it hasn't been adopted by the mainstream medical profession yet.

The problem is you have to figure out appropriate dosing & there isn't a lot of guidance. Also, because it is unregulated it is risky as to what you are actually getting. My husband did a lot of research to determine the safest options. Lastly, if you take sativa it is going to wake you up. It has to be Indica for relaxation.