Originally Posted by
lovbyts
Careful about popping 2 depending on MG. I was also doing that and it was not helping at all but mine were 5mg each so that means I was taking 10mg when I did 2. Everyone I have talked to on here who use it say it should be only 1mg or a little more otherwise it can have the opposite effect. I still have quite a few so I break them in 1/2 and then 1/2 again so it's only around 1mg and it seems to help.
Mistake #1: Melatonin is a sleep hormone
Most people think melatonin is a natural sleeping pill. This couldn’t be more wrong; melatonin on its own won’t induce sleep, and is usually only effective in short-term applications. It’s more correct to think of melatonin as a ‘darkness’ signaler, that is, it tells the brain that it needs to prepare for a night time or winter cycle. If taken in the evening or when it’s dark, melatonin can speed up sleep preparation, and it can tell the body clock to shift its sleep cycle to an earlier time.
Mistake #2: I can take melatonin at any time.
If melatonin is used during daytime brightness, it can cause adverse effects. If the body clock is receiving conflicting daytime light signals and dark signals from melatonin, it can malfunction and not work properly when it is time to go to sleep later.
Mistake #3: Melatonin is a natural supplement, so it can’t do any harm.
The wrong amounts of melatonin or melatonin at the wrong time of day can cause serious health risks. Daytime melatonin has been shown to cause depression. This makes sense, especially when you consider that melatonin causes us to pull back, withdraw, become disoriented and irritable – the classic hibernation response. It’s best to avoid using melatonin that could be in our system during the day.
Mistake #4: I need melatonin to help me sleep
In most cases, your sleep problem isn’t from a lack of melatonin, and increasing melatonin can mask underlying problems that are the real cause of insomnia. If you need melatonin to help you fall or stay asleep, you are more likely suffering from a circadian rhythm sleep disorder. Circadian rhythm sleep disorders mean that your body is producing melatonin and other sleep hormones at the wrong time of day, so when you need to sleep, you don’t have enough melatonin in your system. Simply adding melatonin doesn’t fix the sleep problem and can contribute to depressive mood disorders. The most effective treatment for circadian rhythm sleep disorders is light therapy, because bright light is the zeitgeber or signaler the body clock uses to reset itself each day.
Mistake #5: I need to keep taking melatonin.
Sleep experts don’t recommend taking melatonin for more than two weeks at a time. Melatonin is effective as a signal augmenter (reinforcing external cues), or as a tool to help shift sleep and circadian rhythms. Long term use of melatonin indicates a more serious underlying sleep disorder that should be investigated by a sleep professional.
Mistake #6: The dosage amount isn’t important.
The problem with melatonin is that it was discovered long before scientists really understood what it does and how much you need. For example, in the late 80’s and early 90’s, we thought melatonin was a sleep hormone. Now we know it is much more complicated. In addition, tablet sizes average 3-5 mg. New evidence shows that adult males only need 150 micrograms, and the average female needs only 100 micrograms (a microgram is 1/100 th of a milligram). So the average melatonin supplement is 20 – 50 times more than we need! If you are using regular melatonin tablets, you can cut the pill into fourths, otherwise, try to find the smallest pill size available. If you are taking time-released melatonin, do not break the pill, as this will ruin the time-release
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and it helps tremendously!
