Posted by Larry Hoover on December 31, 2003, at 21:18:04
In reply to Lexapro, melatonin and just can't sleep!, posted by Marietta on December 31, 2003, at 7:45:38
> I have been on Lexapro 10 mg (first time a/d user) for only a week now but find i just can't sleep more than 2 or 3 hrs at night restfully. I take it first thing in the am. I haven't had a good nights sleep in over a month; i'm sure some of it is attributed to the reasons i was prescribed a/d in the first place but i am exhausted. At recommendation of some, i started 3 mgs of Melatonin in the pm....to no avail. Took ANOTHER 3 mgs.....no help. Actually worse.
> HELP? any suggestions?3 mg melatonin is way more than your own body would normally secrete. And, contrary to all logic, too much is as bad as too little. If you take too much melatonin, it will have no effect whatsoever (except that it is an excellent antioxidant).
If you want to use melatonin, use around 0.5 mg. Cut a tablet up with a knife, and just guess which fragment(s) are, say, just under 1/4 of the tablet. That should be about the right dose. Some people need closer to 1 mg.
I've also heard that sublingual melatonin is more effective, but that may just mean that some people have tried taking melatonin with food, and absorption was impeded. I think you need to take it on an empty stomach.
Lar
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:295013
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031231/msgs/295255.html