Circadian rhythm disorder- melatonin dosage?

I did not do melatonin but hubby did a combo of herbs for sleep. It had melatonin, valerian, hops, lemon balm, passion flower, and a lot of other herbs. He said it worked for him.

I did Benadryl children's liquid. I did the dose for an 11 yr old child.

Neither of us did these on a regular basis. We just did it as needed for help.

For me it doesn't matter if I take 3 mg or 15, I always wake up after 3-4 hrs - doesn't 'keep' me asleep

I use melatonin as one of my sleep aides - as well as several other things. I need a combination of things to help me sleep because of adrenal issues.

Have you had your adrenals checked by a 4 point saliva test? That's the only way to accurately test the levels throughout the day so you know if they are working properly.

You can easily find 1 mg melatonin tablets online. We have a list of places that have been used by members for ordering herbs and supplements for those that aren't used to ordering online and what to look for in the 'New to Lyme?' thread.

The ideal dose is different for each person. I have needed as much as 10 mgs at first, but I'm now on only 3 mgs.

Melatonin is something I have studied in the past. Part of the problem with Melatonin supplementation is that it has multiple functions in the body. In high doses, it does other things than signify darkness. We all know of it as a sleep aid, but it is also an antioxidant. As an antioxidant in someone like us that has chronic inflammation, the little that is made won't get used much to signify sleep but rather to decrease oxidative stress. Your thinking about the higher doses is correct. Optimal dosage for creating normal nocturnal melatonin blood levels in the literature is 0.3mg. To obtain normal blood levels, a 9am dose is required. It will not act as a zeitgeber time signal, but in CRSD, you just need normal nocturnal blood levels. A 1mg dose produces a 100 fold increase in circulating melatonin levels and we may get benefit from its antioxidant properties and its oral temperature reduction, but the sleep latency is longer than the smaller dose.

If it were me, I'd take Lithium Orotate 10mg at bedtime before I upped or went on Neurontin. I'd do this for a week and then add in Vitamin D at bedtime. I use 4000 IU but your dose may be different. Getting in the sun is much more efficient but some of us don't produce and absorb the Vit. D as well as others. The ebb and flow of melanin is the issue here but another immune topic. There can be multiple reasons why someone can't stay asleep and melatonin is usually farther down the list of things going wrong.

Agent Bex said...

Georgia Hunter, thank you for the detailed information. I am a little confused, because I thought melatonin was supposed to be taken when it's dark out...did you mean 9am or 9pm? Why do you think sleep latency is longer with a larger dose than a smaller dose?

Again, thank you everyone for your help!

Melatonin begins to be made when it is dark, but to have normal melatonin levels circulating in the blood when it becomes dark, you must supplement at 9am, not 9pm. The studies showed that melatonin timing was just as important as the amount of melatonin administered. As for sleep latency being slightly longer with the larger doses, that comes from the scientific literature.

Hey guys, I just wanted to update you on my sleep disorder/insomnia.

I returned the 3mg Melatonin supplement to the pharmacy and decided to order a liquid melatonin supplement online (that way, I can adjust the dose to me personally) with the advice of my doctor. After doing some research, I decided on the Benevolent Nourishment brand of liquid melatonin found here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01FL9MXXG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Overall, it works really well; I take 3 drops (0.3mg). I've had one unwanted all-nighter in the last couple of weeks, but I actually fall asleep by 11pm almost every night and some of my cognitive symptoms have improved a lot with the improved sleep.