<p>I never realized how bad I sleep until a month ago when I came down with a very bad cold. I took a Niquil-type generic syrup every night for a week or so and had the best night’s sleep of my life! I think it was because of the antihystamine, which I’d never taken before. I felt so relaxed and calm during the daytime because I wasn’t exhausted all the time. Since then, I’m back to my old sleeping habits- waking up at the slightest thing, unable to get back to sleep, disturbed sleep cycles. It’s not that bad that I need to go to a psychologist or get hooked on tranquilizers and such, but I was wondering, is there such thing as a safe over the counter sleep product? I hate those Tylenol PMs or Sominex type pills- they actually have the opposite effect of sleep with me and make me nervous and cranky the day after. Anyone know of anything safe that keeps you from waking up all night?</p>
<p>Beats me. In my case I think stress and age is catching up. I often wake up at 3 or 4am and sometimes just give up and start my day. I am tired and cranky most days…but then I guess I have always been a touch cranky.</p>
<p>There are some new drugs on the market (via prescription) that are supposedly not habit forming. I’ve taken Ambien on about three or four occasions and find it works very well, with no “hangover.” You should see your doctor.</p>
<p>doubleplay - your sleep habits sound exactly like mine…the slightest noise or movement wakes me. (I sleep with a small fan nearby to counter the noise factor.) I also wake a half dozen times everynight to change positions. I take Tylenol P.M. occasionally when I find myself walking the floor at 3 a.m. (Only one at a time though…they really knock me out.)</p>
<p>Have you considered that your mattress is the problem? My sleep issues seem to have increased dramatically since the purchase of our latest mattress. I know we need to get rid of it even though it is fairly new; but I just don’t know what to buy to replace it.</p>
<p>Ambien definitely is habit forming. If you take it for more than about three nights you’ll have to wean yourself off of it or you’ll just lie awake the first night you go without it. Apparently Lunesta’s the same although they claim its not habit forming. (my MD told me this)</p>
<p>My sleep habits are not the greatest since reaching a “certain age.” Nyquil-type products give me good night’s sleep too, dp. But I have never tried anything on a regular basis.</p>
<p>DH uses melatonin and likes it. He used to use Benadryl and melatonin, but reduced it down to just the melatonin. I think he believed the Benadryl was to help him fall asleep and the melatonin to keep him asleep? He falls asleep at the drop of the hat (his spot on the couch can attest to that!), so he felt he didn’t need the Benadryl. I have no idea if his theories are correct in any way.</p>
<p>Echoing IDmom’s experience, about 10-15 years back, we discovered that both of us were sleeping very poorly and had back aches following the purchase of a new mattress - I think we used it for a year or two before realizing it was a problem. We like “hard” mattresses, but we think we went too far in that direction. We switched to Tempurpedic (barely heard of at that time, but we took a chance relying on their 30 day trial guarantee). We love it! So you might consider that.</p>
<p>Sweet dreams :).</p>
<p>As a nurse, doctors will order Benadryl (diphenhydramine), an antihistamine, for patients to help them sleep while in the hospital if they aren’t used to sleeping agents. The antihistimine has a side effect of drowsiness that helps people sleep. Diphenhydramine is the ingredient in Tylenol PM that helps you sleep. All medications have possible risks, so read the warning labels. Even cough and cold medications are risky if you have certain medical conditions and should never be taken for prolonged periods of time.</p>
<p>Isn’t Tempurpedic terribly expensive? I mean, like, terribly??</p>
<p>there are a bunch of new sleeping meds on the market, the next ‘generation’ of ambien and lunesta, that are supposed to be non habit forming.</p>
<p>Try the following first:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>A cup of hot cocoa, sipped slowly, a little before bed. Hot milk has a soothing effect and seems to be a natural relaxer.</p></li>
<li><p>A nip of a really good liqueur, straight or over ice. Bailey’s Irish Cream, or - my favorite to help sleep - Cuarenta y Tres; either will do the job. BTW, I’m only talking about a single shot - one ounce. I’m not trying to promote alcoholism.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>About two or three times a year I resort to one of these and it works for me. :)</p>
<p>Yummy, the hot cocoa WITH the Bailey’s!</p>
<p>I have had very good experiences with Ambien, especially on long flights.</p>
<p>Valerian herbal pills can help. Most recently I had to wear ear plugs because of DH’s snorring :eek: …and found to my surprise that I had a significantly better sleep, now I wear them even if it is quiet on the other side of the bed …easy to try…</p>
<p>jmmom - glad to hear tempurpedic is good, I’m wheedling to try and get one too! :)</p>
<p>Try an eye mask. Seriously, I put mine on and it just knocks me out, even if it isn’t light in the room! (And if it is a tiny bit light - oh my gosh I can’t sleep a wink without my mask.)</p>
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<p>Me too, and I sleep very deeply when I wear them. They can be a bit uncomfortable, though.</p>
<p>On a 12-hour flight, I took one Benadryl, and I slept 8 of the 12 hours. Not bad. But Benadryl isn’t for every day.</p>
<p>There’s also something called “sleep hygiene”: Examine your pre-bed-time habits. Make sure you don’t get too excited. Get a routine and stick with it. (I always read for about 20 minutes before turning out the light, and I find I can’t keep my eyes open after 15 minutes.)</p>
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<p>Actually, my parents got my fiance and me a king-sized memory foam mattress for Christmas. It helped my sleeping a little bit (not as much as I would like) but where it really helped was with my fiance’s back pain. He very rarely wakes up with back pain now.</p>
<p>If you find a good vendor on ebay, you can get a very good price for a memory foam mattress (same material as tempurpedic, just generic). I think you can get a king-sized one on ebay for ~$350 or so, which isn’t too bad, considering they retail for ~$1100 or more for the name-brand ones.</p>
<p>I do use benadryl to help sleep sometimes, I too have the problem of waking up in the middle of the night. Many times I’m up for an hour before, finally, drifting back to sleep. It really sucks because I’m only 24!</p>
<p>What are Valerian herbal pills? My problem is I wake up - wide awake- around 3 am and cannot go back to sleep. I need something that is going to KEEP me asleep that I can take regualrly. Seems like herbal pills would be the safest bet…</p>
<p>Reading usually knocks me out too; but I have to go to another room to read because in addition to being an incredibly light sleeper, I also have a problem with the snorer lying in the bed next to me. Sleep, reading, everything is disrupted by the noise. In fact, one night I was so impressed with my dh’s snoring, I got the camcorder out. 
It’s not always a problem; just mainly when he returns from overseas trips and is jetlagged…bless his heart.</p>
<p>I do think Tempurpedic is expensive, but…</p>
<p>in our case we only needed the mattress (our bed is a modified platform), so the cost compares to about a high end combo mattress/box spring.</p>
<p>I have friends who are very happy with generic/off-brand versions, but I don’t know one from the other, so can’t recommend which are good and which aren’t (I’ve heard some have fumes, etc., which don’t go away). These weren’t available when we bought, as the memory foam concept hadn’t caught on yet.</p>