Any Drugs for Sleep?

[BlueOak]

Is there anything out there that will put me to sleep, preferably to stop me hearing animals scratching?

At the moment I am using alcohol once a week to give me about 5 hours, which works, and I've considered going to twice a week or more, but i'd rather have alternatives. Someone said weed would help once a week, anything else out there you've tried?

Desperate now I'm a light sleeper and it's been six weeks in 3 different locations.

Edited November 7 by BlueOak

[josemar]

Are these real animals, or something present only in your mind? Seems strange to happen in 3 different locations.

What works for me is melatonin, but don't take a full pill, experiment and see what works for you... For me, about a quarter of a 3mg pill works great, no point taking more.

[Schizophonia]

The more you think of sleep, the less well you will be able to fall asleep.

Mirtazapine is efficient for sleep, more than benzodiazepines for me.

[BlueOak]

5 hours ago, josemar said:

Are these real animals, or something present only in your mind? Seems strange to happen in 3 different locations.

What works for me is melatonin, but don't take a full pill, experiment and see what works for you... For me, about a quarter of a 3mg pill works great, no point taking more.

1st Location:
I was caring for my Mum and tried to live upstairs but the landing there woke me up with regular traffic in a busy house.
2nd Location:
The guy was great but he was on his phone at 3am and there were loud trains next door, plus a rogue mouse,
3rd Location
The woman has a lovely home, but the pets are used to scratching at all the doors to get let out. I cannot fall asleep if I am woken up early on in my sleep cycle, and then she gets up at 4am for work (I work evenings) so I get 2 and half hours max.

@Schizophonia

I agree I found this out last time and I do try the, whatever happens, happens mentality, but also its the biggest priority I have, more than food. You get to a point where nothing else matters, I was almost walking into cars, and lashing out, forgetting everything etc.

Thank you both for your suggestions, if anyone has any more please offer them. I will try them one at a time obviously, and not mix anything.

Edited November 7 by BlueOak

[ChrisZoZo]

@BlueOak there is sleeping pills I’m not sure if you can gain a tolerance which just delays the problem. With sleep there is underlying problems you may need to fix these. You don’t fully sleep while drunk so alcohol probably doesn’t help. Same with weed. 
 

From the sound of things you get next to no sleep and this is disastrous. You need to spend next to all of your spare time fixing this. I found mediation works well but it has to be serious mediation. Serious mediation is not expecting a result 

[RightHand]

Use earplugs, noise-canceling headphones, and a fan in your room.

If this still doesn't work, you may need to consider moving. Leo had a similar problem in his previous apartment, where a child upstairs was making too much noise. He tried everything but ultimately had to leave the apartment.

[Princess Arabia]

lavender essential oil. Few drops on pillow.

[cistanche_enjoyer]

Try using amber coloured blue light blocker glasses in the evening. They will increase your endogenous melatonin production and make you fall (and stay) asleep easier.

[Yimpa]

Here is a related topic that may interest you:

 

[PurpleTree]

Benzos, low dose anti psychotics (quetiapine), tricyclical antidepressants, anti depressants, anti histamines (benadryl etc) etc.

But the only ones that don’t make me groggy are benzos. Just don’t get addicted. And i don’t use them very often.

Edited November 8 by PurpleTree

[El Zapato]

It think melatonin is supposed to work.  However, I tried them and they had a weird effect on me.  I kept dreaming that I was being abducted by Aliens...no, not really.  They come in cute little blue semi-transparent pills.  I have a couple of bottles I will send you for free.

[El Zapato]

Michelle Drerup, Psy.D., a psychologist with the Sleep Disorders Center at the Cleveland Clinic, who treats patients suffering from sleep issues, says melatonin supplements can be helpful for addressing sleep concerns when you need to shift the timing of your sleep cycle. For example, if you’re experiencing jet lag from travel, melatonin may offer an effective strategy for getting you back on a particular time zone, Drerup says. She adds that melatonin may help align the natural circadian rhythm for those who work a night shift.

However, while melatonin can help you fall asleep in these cases, it doesn’t mean it’ll help you stay asleep, she says

Edited November 9 by El Zapato

[El Zapato]

Can melatonin supplements be overused and if so, what are the side effects?

A lot of times people think a higher dosage of melatonin will have a better effect, but that’s not the case, says Drerup. With an increased dosage you might experience excessive sleepiness in the morning, as well as confusion, dizziness, headaches, or GI issues. “Higher doses don’t lead to improvement in sleep, just more potential side effects in the morning,” she says.

Even if you’re taking a smaller dose, you may want to watch out for these side effects of melatonin, especially if you’re already prone to things like headaches and nausea. But the higher your dose, the more likely you are to feel the side effects.

“It also tends to increase the vividness of dreams for some people, so someone who has nightmares related to PTSD, should be mindful of that,” Drerup says.

Grover cautions that melatonin can also interact with other medications, including immunosuppressants, blood thinners, and some diabetes medications, so it’s important to discuss with your doctor before starting melatonin.

[PurpleTree]

50 minutes ago, El Zapato said:

Can melatonin supplements be overused and if so, what are the side effects?

A lot of times people think a higher dosage of melatonin will have a better effect, but that’s not the case, says Drerup. With an increased dosage you might experience excessive sleepiness in the morning, as well as confusion, dizziness, headaches, or GI issues. “Higher doses don’t lead to improvement in sleep, just more potential side effects in the morning,” she says.

Even if you’re taking a smaller dose, you may want to watch out for these side effects of melatonin, especially if you’re already prone to things like headaches and nausea. But the higher your dose, the more likely you are to feel the side effects.

“It also tends to increase the vividness of dreams for some people, so someone who has nightmares related to PTSD, should be mindful of that,” Drerup says.

Grover cautions that melatonin can also interact with other medications, including immunosuppressants, blood thinners, and some diabetes medications, so it’s important to discuss with your doctor before starting melatonin.

Used melatonin once for two weeks everyday and it gave me depression. Guess it’s rare but it somehow seemed to mess with my serotonin/neurotransmitter balance etc.

[El Zapato]

@PurpleTree That doesn't surprise me at all.  

[Princess Arabia]

15 hours ago, PurpleTree said:

Benzos, low dose anti psychotics (quetiapine), tricyclical antidepressants, anti depressants, anti histamines (benadryl etc) etc.

Drugged up. Creates other symptoms in the body. Benadryl? Ugg. There are more natural options. That's too healthy I guess.

[Hugo Oliveira]

Take care with drugs that can turn you off giving the illusion of sleep. Real sleep requires full cycles with different stages.
Clonazepam helped me for a while but it is very easy to get addicted. Now I'm using Valeriana. Sometimes tea made from bay leaves and chamomile.
You may be skeptical but tapping (EFT) was helpful on some occasions.

[Nilsi]

GABAergics/GABA agonists (e.g. Phenibut).

Melatonin.

Those are the ones that work for me.

Edited November 9 by Nilsi

[Schizophonia]

24 minutes ago, Nilsi said:

GABAergics/GABA agonists (e.g. Phenibut).

It feels like i'm teleporting to the next day, it also suppress my libido and mental flux.  

[PurpleTree]

3 hours ago, Princess Arabia said:

Drugged up. Creates other symptoms in the body. Benadryl? Ugg. There are more natural options. That's too healthy I guess.

They are not reliable.