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Anyone Else Suffer From Insomnia

shithawk420

Well-known member
Veteran
Yeah,I know better but it's not like it's knocking me out cold.I don't drink hard booze anymore or I'd be dead. been wanting to try kratom but only place I know to get it is ebay,and I hear is has bad side effects too.I'm thinking I should try to find valerian root and make a tea or something.but I live in the middle of nowhere and can't find shit.hell,I was looking for Italian sausage at my local Walmart and they didn't even have that.that should give an idea of how fucked it is by me.I don't have a credit card or paypal so I can't order online either
 

Loc Dog

Hobbies include "drinkin', smokin' weed, and all k
Veteran
The cannabutter recipe I posted, is made from sugar trim, which is thrown away, so if you know any growers, they have plenty. The soy lecithin makes it 50% stronger. I think it was 100 grams of sugar trim to a pound of ghee (I used butter). It takes a few days to make, but made about a hundred cookies, and 1/4th of a cookie is about as strong as you would want. I have had them in freezer for over a year with no loss of potency.
 

WelderDan

Well-known member
Veteran
I went to a sleep doctor for a while. Was put on Xyrem (legal GHB). When that shit kicks in, you better be in bed. One minute you are there, the next out cold. If you are sitting at the table, you will face plant. It lasts for 3-4 hours and you have to wake and dose again. No hangover and it is not addictive. But few sleep docs will prescribe it as GHB is a date rape drug and they are very leery of it. And many insurance plans won't cover it a $1600 a bottle. It works, but it's hard to get, and it is only available from one central pharmacy. It has to be FED-EXED to you.
 

redlaser

Active member
Veteran
Never tried GHB, from what I've read it puts you in a two hour literal coma. Sounds like some hardcore insomnia.
We used to get Rohyphnol prescriptions legally filled in Mexico, along with diazepam and one other choice, 3 months worth a visit. Didn't really need them, seemed like a good idea at the time. Rohyphnol was interesting like all sedatives, but really just another benzodiazepine, not really more effective than diazepam. Like all benzos, it has a very limited use without increasing dosages unrealistically.
 

Lost in a SOG

GrassSnakeGenetics
I posted this in another thread but since its a ballache to type out serious stuff im posting it here as well..

Hey hmw123 thanks for dredging this thread up..

I can add some opinions here.. I could put a rhino to sleep with the amount of insomniacs ive treated

So Chamomile (German is the best Matricaria recutita) is a nice GABA neurotransmitter raising herb and that is one of the brains main anti excitatory chemicals. Chamomile might relax the over stimulated and spasm suffering person and is brilliant for IBS and other nervous/immune issues affecting the G.I.T. This is one of the most anti inflammatory herbs. I just love the stuff.

Valerian is a wonderful herb but it is forceful in its action and though it near saved me a long time ago when suffering CFS/ME for the retarded cortisol caused bad sleep.. Valeriana is a good retroactive herb but the question is why aren't people sleeping in the first place?

Your pineal gland and HPA axis should regulate your melatonin and cortisol response to a normal daily cycle largely regulated by sunlight and times that you eat at but that can become irregular due to chronic stress of one form or another, the most common is working night shifts.. Night shift workers are 1/3rd more likely to develop agressive cancers due to the role of the circadian rhythm on the immune system.

Crucially lifestyle wise you need to not look at blue light after 8pm, use candles as the red light helps reset the pineal gland. Eat meals at the ideal healthy times, 8am, 12-2 pm and 6 pm. Go to bed as the sun goes down.

Some more important herbs used for sleeping, I put most of these into a tea blend I sell.

Hop flowers (Humulus lupulus)- deeply sedative relative of Cannabis. even used in pillows

passion flower fol (Passiflora incarnata) - sedative, antispasmodic, nervine

Lime tree flowers (Tilia europea Fol)- a stunning sedative, hypotensive and antispasmodic.

Lavender- Lavandula angustifolia - pure magic as all humans know lol. recent studies have shown that the effect of the essential oils, ingested in tea or smelled acts as a peripheral circulatory stimulant which opens the capillary bed and takes huge stress off the liver (the hardest working organ).. it also acts through the lymbic system to help align hemispheres and theta wave rhythm.

Chamomile as I mentioned is fantastic... I also put Rosa gallica petals which mixed with the chamomile is lovely.

Also nervines and analgesics like Scutellaria (skullcap) and California poppy (Eschscholtzia californica) go well with these things, these are sleeping aids but not really for the insomniac that has adrenal fatigue or CFS or adrenal dysregulation anyway.. These above are all aerial parts suited to a tea.

Another kind of specific trick for full on insomnia in herbal medicine in certain is to take 60 drops of agnus castus (Vitex agnus-castus fruct) tincture in the morning at the time you want to wake and it often eventually resets the pineal gland..

More serious contenders that are largely sweet roots that are proven adrenal medulla and cortex restoratives are (get these in powders or tinctures and mix):

Withania somniferum ( Ashwaganda root)
Panax ginseng (Asian ginseng root)
Panax quinquifolius (Amurican ginseng root)
Asparagus racemosus (Shatavari root)
Glycrrhiza glabra (Liquorice root)
Avena sativa seed (Oat seed)
Astragalus membranaceus (Astragalus root)

collectively known as adaptogens

Get into herbs guys they saved my life about ten years ago and now I use them daily to help save others.

If you want to cheat a herbal education just buy a copy of "Bartrams Encyclopedia of herbal medicine" I have a really large library of herbal medicine and medical texts and Bartrams is still just the best.. Matthew Woods "herbal repertory" as well he's a fucking legend up in portland..

You can also try taking food based B vitamins, Magnesium saturated oil sprays (don't have hot baths towards the end of the day) also take Magnesium citrate as you probably need it despite it's mineral origin..

Be kind to your Kidneys and Adrenals guys.. The world is stressful as fuck but we don't need good people dying early through endocrine dysruption.

Use my suggestions, find a herbalist, buy a good herbal, get growing and self medicating properly..

You can't use weed for everything... I mean you can tell yourself you can use weed for everything but it doesn't make it true.
 
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St. Phatty

Active member
2 1/2 mg Diazepam For The Win.

I'm pretty sure America's "doctors" prefer Americans to be sleep-deprived.

Then their immune systems are A LOT WEAKER, and they are much more susceptible to extremely profitable disorders.

Ambien I found to be quite stupefying. Yes you sleep, but the next day, forget about using your brain.

I've also found that Tylenol (acetominophen) can be helpful, for some people. Used to work for me.

Recently Tylenol has upset my stomach. Since there are 2 compounds there - the medication itself, and the pill binder - if you dissolve the tablet in water, and filter it through a coffee filter, you will have just the medication, in an aqueous solution. In that form, it is often much stronger - there is no time release.

I find that smoking too much pot during the day can interfere with sleep.

Also, one of the things I find that interferes with sleep is, going to bed hungry. I have to be careful about over-exercising, because I have a hard time eating enough to make up for the calories lost.

When I see someone buying Melatonin at the supermarket, I feel sorry for them. I know they are struggling with sleeplessness, and that Melatonin probably won't help them.
 

mr.brunch

Well-known member
Veteran
What about gaba capsules? A friend has a bottle and says they are working for him- are they safe?
 

St. Phatty

Active member
What about gaba capsules? A friend has a bottle and says they are working for him- are they safe?

I would do more research than to take my word for it.

I've tried it, from a health food store. Was not effective for me, treating either pain or insomnia.

The same stuff, Gabapentin, sold under the Trademark "Neurontin", was prescribed to thousands of pain patients before January 2014. Then, the DEA severely tightened up restrictions on opioid & opioid mimick meds, destructively interfering in the health of millions of Americans - including a friend of mine.

AFTER January 2014, the American "medical" profession tried to shuttle millions of American pain patients from medications like Vicodin, to Gabapentin/ Neurontin.

One of my friends was caught up in that BS. John L. had 4 hernia sites in his belly, and all the pain that went with it.

I met him at the local Caffeine cafe in 2011. One of the most stable people I've ever met, in a difficult situation. He was homeless at the time. His only income was giving blood. Income-wise, he was a middle class guy that lost that lifestyle when the Oregon economy dried up in the 00's.

On the Vicodin, he smoked a fair amount of pot, and that plus the Vicodin let him be functional, with the hernia pain.

On the Gabapentin, it did sh.t for his pain. He compensated by smoking much larger quantities of Cannabis. He used to be my pet-sitter.

On the combination of Gapapentin and a lot more Cannabis, he was a lot less functional. Of course, he had a lot of hernia pain to live with.

His girlfriend's cat had kittens, and John was stuck with the task of re-homing them. That's how I realized he was having problems - taking pictures of the kittens and listing it on Craigslist was too much, overwhelming.

His health continued slipping with the hernias & the mis-treated pain. I believe he passed away about 6 months ago, though it's hard to get an answer out of his girlfriend.

That's an example of how Gabapentin/ Neurontin did not work for a middle-extreme pain patient - for pain.

The bottom line is, it depends on the patient - and the patient's age.

When I was younger, I took Trazodone for insomnia. As I got older, it just didn't work.

I don't think Gabapentin is dangerous to try, though I wouldn't recommend driving under the influence, & wouldn't plan a mentally complex task for the day after.
 

DrDee

Member
Hi Guys,
I just wanted to mention one sleep problem that is possibly under-diagnosed. I 'm talking about sleep apnea. It used to be thought that it was an issue with overweight people...but it's more a function of jaw shape.

I would gasp awake with a pounding heart and my blood pressure was high and hard to control. Sleepy and nodding off lots during daytime.

So I had a sleep study which revealed moderate sleep apnea...and I was started on cpap. Now there's a cause for insomnia right there...having to wear a breathing mask. But I persisted. learned how to do it properly. I take several meds that make me drowsy, so I've scheduled those for bedtime. I added in a small dose (3 mg) of melatonin and 250mg magnesium. I's not just for plants. The magnesium helps to prevent wake-ups. I try and ovoid drinking liquids after around 8pm and now, even though I'm 7 years older then when I was diagnosed...I feel dramatically better. More awake in the daytime, losing weight, bp lower.
Hope this helps someone.
Cheers,
JD
..
 

JustSumTomatoes

Indicas make dreams happen
I was sent to a sleep specialist to diagnose what was wrong with me. Did a sleep study at a clinic and of course I was awake from 9:00 PM until 5:00 AM. Took me 2 months to get a follow up appointment after that. Went in for the follow up and they gave me the formal diagnosis of having chronic insomnia (no surprise there.) After doing blood work and other tests everything came back normal. They gave me a monitor to wear for 3 weeks because they felt that I was probably sleeping and didn't realize it. Coincidentally I started sleeping better. Go figure... It is going to be a few more months until my next appointment where they review all this data that was collected.

It's frustrating because when insomnia is a standalone issue there really is no long term cure for it and many of the short term ones are very questionable. Cannabis has been a close friend on some of those rough nights, but unfortunately in my state it is still illegal for rec and medical is very restricted with no home grow and only a handful of serious qualifying conditions.

I've been seeing improvement lately so hopefully everything keeps up.
 

DrDee

Member
I've been seeing improvement lately so hopefully everything keeps up.

Hey JST...glad you're doing a bit better. Sometimes wending your way through Doctors and sleep clinics and such is the hardest part.

On the study issue...it is possible to do a portable sleep study with equipment and electrodes that you wear at home in your own bed. That's what I did.
Good luck,
JD
 

JustSumTomatoes

Indicas make dreams happen
Hey JST...glad you're doing a bit better. Sometimes wending your way through Doctors and sleep clinics and such is the hardest part.

On the study issue...it is possible to do a portable sleep study with equipment and electrodes that you wear at home in your own bed. That's what I did.
Good luck,
JD

Thanks buddy. They could do that but with that setup they are typically looking for sleep apnea or restless leg syndrome which doesn't seem to be my problem. Also, there is no way in the world I'm going to sleep all hooked up or sleep without yanking off all the wires and such in my sleep. I have enough trouble sleeping as it is without all that stuff attached to me. The monitor they gave me was an actigraphy watch that recorded my heart rate and other stats. I also had a sleep journal to fill out. From this they are trying to pattern my sleep habits and activity.

Insomnia is freaking brutal.
 

redlaser

Active member
Veteran
What about gaba capsules? A friend has a bottle and says they are working for him- are they safe?

I’ve been given neurontin for pain and it was ineffective , it did have an annoying side effect as well.
It provided what I would describe as a half-assed tiredness the whole time while taking it which was about three weeks.
 

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