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To top up < 5h sleep, can I take a sleep med or more melatonin?
I took 1 mg melatonin last night, fell asleep pretty fast but woke up less than 5h later (which included N3 and REM) and wanted more sleep before having to go about do stuff. Couldn't get back to sleep except maybe a brief stint of what I suspect was just N1-N2 for 20-30 mins max. Next time this happens, or even now, is it okay to top up melatonin or use a 5 mg Dayvigo within an hour or later of waking up partway?
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I think that sometimes taking the melatonin about the time you normally wake up is the better solution...IF....you want to extend a short sleep. Assuming you can fall asleep relatively reliably, even if it takes 20 minutes or more, it is the waking shortly after that is the problem. So, you sleep, awaken, reach for the 3 mg gummy (you don't need, or want...more!) or tablet, ingest, and try to drift off again. Might take 30 mintes or a whole hour, but if you awaken four hours later, no obligations to make you awaken before that, no meetings, no chores....then you might just get six or even seven hours.
Second part is this: don't use melatonin or sleep aids regularly. The body gets used to them, and then they lose their potency. Instead, only use them maybe twice a week...if you can manage....and plan it so that your next day is free from the heavy duty obligations that make your mind work and ruminate all the time. You want to feel secure that you can sleep-in until even 0900 if your body wants to.
There is a time release melatonin. The half life “metabolism “ is just 4 hrs.
5 mg would might last a bit longer. Have you done a sleep study?
Melatonin does have a side effect profile, I would ask your doctor about using more of it.
@gloaming
From what I read, melatonin and Dayvigo don't have a notable risk of tolerance. I've only use Dayvigo once so far (have an overnight economy flight coming up and considering using it again on that). I try not to use melatonin every night but it does seem to help and I haven't noticed any lowered efficacy yet.
@seniormed
I would consider a time/slow-release melatonin. I usually take 1mg melatonin so 5mg seems a lot but I understand the recommended amount may differ for time-release. Need to research the optimal amount for that. I'll consider a sleep study if issues continue.
@lauriefeenstra
I usually wake up multiple times a night, which I suspect is usually due to a need to urinate (although I've been trying to not drink much water before bedtime), and typically have no trouble returning to sleep if it's not later in the sleep cycle, but past 5-6+ hours sleep it becomes more of a coin toss, although recently it seems that attempting to nap a few hours after waking may work (assuming no obligations at that time).
I take 250 magnesium oxide and drink chamomile tea.
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1 Reaction@cmx I think it warrants caution and more study:
https://www.sleepfoundation.org/melatonin/is-it-safe-to-take-melatonin-every-night
At 75 I get up about every 2-3 hours to urinate. I usually far back to sleep quickly. I take a melatonin when I need to go sleep which helps me fall sleep. But not everyday.
I to avoid using any sleep OTC or prescription. For me they rarely work well and can be habit forming.
“Topping up” melatonin after you wake up isn’t really recommended it doesn’t work like a typical sleep drug, and taking more mid-night can actually throw off your body clock or just give you groggy/light sleep. If this happens again, it’s better not to take anything. If you can’t fall back asleep after 20–30 mins, get up for a bit and keep things low light/stimulating, then try again. If staying asleep is the issue, it’s usually better to adjust what you do at the start of the night (timing/dose of melatonin, or using something like extended-release melatonin) rather than adding meds in the middle of the night.