Unable to sleep, exhausted all day/everyday - developing dark circles under eyes. Getting desperate.

[DrivesOldTruck]

Update! So I've spent a couple nights A/B testing EMF and no-EMF. I am definitely sleeping better on the no-EMF nights. No more wired headphones for this guy.

This morning I watched a podcast interview with Dr. Stasha Gominak and am really interested in her approach to sleep disorders (mainly emphasizing vitamin D and B vitamins). For the next few days, I'm going to take a Vitamin D supplement and a Vitamin B-100 supplement. I'll report back my results in a few days.

 

[Mathgirl]

Update! So I've spent a couple nights A/B testing EMF and no-EMF. I am definitely sleeping better on the no-EMF nights. No more wired headphones for this guy.

This morning I watched a podcast interview with Dr. Stasha Gominak and am really interested in her approach to sleep disorders (mainly emphasizing vitamin D and B vitamins). For the next few days, I'm going to take a Vitamin D supplement and a Vitamin B-100 supplement. I'll report back my results in a few days.

Yes-Gominak's protocol fixed my sleep. They also line up nicely with Peat. I didn't buy her program-just watched a ton videos and read all her free content.

 

[Bluebell]

Great results on EMF, DrivesOldTruck. Now you need to check for all the other sources of EMF - 5G, cell towers, smart meters, neighbours wifi, dirty electricity.

Watch out for the supplements. Vitamin D can cause insomnia which can be instant or build up over days/weeks. B vitamins can cause insomnia.

B-100 gives you an arbitrary dose of 100mg or 100mcg of each B vitamin apart from folate - just because the numbers are round, with no actual biological reason at all. For example Now Foods B-100 gives you:
8333% RDA B1 - 100mg
7692% RDA B2 - 100mg
625% RDA B3 - 100mg
5882% RDA B6 - 100mg
170% RDA Folate - 400mcg
4167% RDA B12 - 100mcg
333% RDA Biotin - 100mcg
2000% RDA Pantothenic Acid - 100mg

100mg B2, 100mg B6, 400mcg folate can easily cause insomnia. It all depends on your personal health situation and body makeup.

Ray didn't recommend taking B12 or folate. Even when B6 was actually needed, he only recommended taking very small amounts and only temporarily.

You could consider getting vitamin D from sunshine and food or at least get a blood test before supplementing it, and B vitamins from food, or at least smaller doses and tested individually.

 

[DrivesOldTruck]

Yes-Gominak's protocol fixed my sleep. They also line up nicely with Peat. I didn't buy her program-just watched a ton videos and read all her free content.

Will continue watching her content this week! How long did her protocol take until you started to see results?

 

[DrivesOldTruck]

You could consider getting vitamin D from sunshine and food or at least get a blood test before supplementing it, and B vitamins from food, or at least smaller doses and tested individually.

I'm due for an annual physical with blood work in October. I'll post the results of that lab work. My last lab test was a bit over a year ago: Vitamin D levels came in at 60ng/mL. This was me getting 1 hour of direct sunlight every day plus supplementing 5,000iu every day. So I think the Vit D supplement is necessary. But one item on my list is to experiment with getting even greater amounts of sunlight.

As far as B vitamins from food is concerned, one of Dr. Gominak's assertions is that we don't actually get much, if any, B vitamins from food - or at least not in a proper bioavailable form. Instead, we get the 8 different B vitamins from 4 different species of bacteria in our gut. If the microbiome is compromised, these bacteria can't flourish and stop producing B vitamins. Her view is that the system needs to "primed" for a few months with vitamin B supplementation (B100) to re-create an envrionment to bring back the proper microbiome. Once those B-producing bacteria return, you have to hope off the protocol because now you'll be overconsuming B vitamins that and that scenario also causes insomnia.

 

[Risingfire]

cyproheptadine...mmmm.

+1

 

[Mathgirl]

Will continue watching her content this week! How long did her protocol take until you started to see results?

I think several months....it was before Peat and after I had been intermittant fasting for several years. So I'm sure I had high cortisol among other issues. But it was definitley her protocol that fixed the sleep. I continue to improve my sleep as time goes by taking ADEK and B vitamains, Taurine, Progesterone, DHEA and Pregenalone fairly regularly. I no longer do time restricted eating.

 

[VitoScaletta]

have you looked into breathing related sleep disorders?

 

[mgrabs]

Pick up high dose melatonin from mitozen.com

Follow a reset protocol.

Take the high dose melatonin suppository a few hours before bed every night at the same time and wake at the same time and see the sunlight. Step outside. This will drastically bring you back into balance. Do this for 30 days

 

[HeyThere]

Pick up high dose melatonin from mitozen.com

Follow a reset protocol.

Take the high dose melatonin suppository a few hours before bed every night at the same time and wake at the same time and see the sunlight. Step outside. This will drastically bring you back into balance. Do this for 30 days

Be careful. Everyone is different. The tiniest amount of melatonin makes my brain snap wiiiide awake ALL night long. Melatonin affects histamine. They say it suppresses histamine, but for me any supplement that says that it's the 100% OPPOSITE for me. I have life long histamine issues, so each person is different. ALWAYS start anything slowly with low dosage. You can always add, you can't take it out once it's down your gob

 

[Risingfire]

Ray had warned against taking melatonin.

A far better strategy is to get early morning sunlight on your skin

 

[mgrabs]

Ray had warned against taking melatonin.

A far better strategy is to get early morning sunlight on your skin

Im not sure why when there is no negative feedback loop vs other exogenous hormones

 

[DrivesOldTruck]

Pick up high dose melatonin from mitozen.com

Follow a reset protocol.

Take the high dose melatonin suppository a few hours before bed every night at the same time and wake at the same time and see the sunlight. Step outside. This will drastically bring you back into balance. Do this for 30 days

I tried this at length last year, but it had no impact on my sleep quality. I've long since stopped taking melatonin, but I still get outside first thing every morning and get sunlight in my eyes.

 

[DrivesOldTruck]

If it's of any use to anyone checking this thread out, these are the results of a DUTCH test I did in April 2022. That was a while ago, but nothing in my lifestyle, environment, diet, the way I feel, etc. has changed. So these results are probably still pretty close to the mark for me today.

 

[Risingfire]

Im not sure why when there is no negative feedback loop vs other exogenous hormones

You should read what Ray has said on this. It's simply not Dr. Peat that has warned against melatonin. There are a host of other doctors and researchers who have similar positions.

 

[mgrabs]

You should read what Ray has said on this. It's simply not Dr. Peat that has warned against melatonin. There are a host of other doctors and researchers who have similar positions.

Gotcha ill check it out. But what exactly is so bad taking it?

 

[HeyThere]

Gotcha ill check it out. But what exactly is so bad taking it?

Curious as well since it's supposed to be amazing against covid.

 

[Risingfire]

n 1994 A.V. Sirotkin found that melatonin inhibits progesterone production but stimulates estrogen production, and it’s widely recognized that melatonin generally inhibits the thyroid hormones, creating an environment in which fertilization, implantation, and development of the embryo are not possible. This combination of high estrogen with low progesterone and low thyroid decreases the resistance of the organism, predisposing it to seizures and excitotoxic damage, and causing the thymus gland to atrophy. -Ray Peat, PhD

Although melatonin sometimes antagonizes serotonin in a protective way, in itself it can lower body temperature and alertness, suppressing thyroid and progesterone. (Sirotkin, 1997) -Ray Peat, PhD

 

[webbt]

phenibut same as alcohol b/c gaba. tolerance builds quickly though.

co2 buildup in bedroom?

magnesium in the morning. magnesium BHB.

nadh (PANMOL trademark). Very high dose.
and sam-e [strongly advised to take w/ b vitamin complex]

yohimbe bark powder to treat possible sleep apnea.

could be an issue with neck instability. / bad posture.
neck exercises.

 

[DrivesOldTruck]

have you looked into breathing related sleep disorders?

I don't believe this is the case. I had great sleep all my life all the way through college. Not sure why I would develop breathing issues after that point. I've downloaded several apps that record audio of your sleep and provide a sleep score; I'm always dead silent. I never wake up with dry mouth or any other signs of mouth breathing. I never snore.