As we age our sleep naturally deteriorates. But this doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do about it.
The mainstream advice would be about sleep hygiene. Don’t eat crackers in bed. Don’t do other non sleep activities in bed. Sleep in a dark room. Go to bed the same time each night. Don’t drink stuff like coffee before going to bed. I would hope my patients would already know this.
Assuming you know the above and still your sleep is not restful, read on.
You may be able to find a dose of melatonin that puts you into nirvana every night. This dose may be anywhere between 1 m.g. to 20 m.g. per night. We have available 3 m.g. caps, 10 m.g. caps and 20 m.g. caps at the clinic. Some will find a dose that gives a wonderful night’s sleep. Most will at least be able to find a dose that helps a little.
Women have a big advantage over men when it comes to sleep. This is because women can use progesterone for perfect deep sleep all night long. The right dose of this hormone puts most women in a deep natural sleep. Progesterone also works in men but I won’t Rx this for them as I’m afraid this might make them grow C cups; become transvestites, grow horns or even worse they might degenerate into Oboma supporters.
There are other natural ways to help your sleep. You can try taking up to 600 m.g. of 5-HTP at bedtime.
You can try herbs like kava, valerian or the amino acid L-theanine. If none of this puts you into a deep restful state, you can ask me to Rx a drug for this purpose. I think it’s better to give you a drug induced sleep than leave you tossing and turning all night. Poor sleep gives you a lesser quality of life and is otherwise very bad for your health.
