I keep waking up early
09-24-2011, 10:54 PM
I used to have crazy insomnia, and went through what you and Roosh go through and more. I used to use an eyemask and occasional earplugs, as well as blackout shades on my windows, but I dont need any of it anymore.
What works best is deep breathing, the exact way that I tell you, or dropping the right supplement, on an empty stomach, with no water, and letting it dissolve in your system and put you back to sleep.
The best that I have found are:
1. Neocell Collagen from iHerb. (Its just aminos, as you will see on the plastic tub, but for some reason it works in this form very well. Buy and keep "00" size" capsules near your bed, with the supplement, cap one or two up, drop, and wait for the aminos to metabolize into neurotransmitters that will calm your mind and put you back to sleep. I would definitely try this first thing, in addition to the breathing method that I describe below, and if those don't work, then try my second recommendation below. The neocell collagen works pretty well, though, and you are getting aminos at the perfect time, when there is nothing else in your stomach to compete for absorption. If you haven't taken an amino complex before, the optimal time to take them is in the morning with nothing else. So, this is a perfect opportunity AND it will put you back to sleep.)
2. Lithium Orotate. Advanced Research Brand. Also, iherb or amazon. (this works really well IF you need it. If you have serious insomnia, then you may have an over-excitation effect happening due to excess Calcium and glutamate firing into neurons, and this supplement will block that over-excitation through your NMDA receptors and drop you back to sleep. If you have migraines like I do, or get hang over headaches a little too regularly, have any type of memory issue, or wake up very early only to feel tired again in the afternoon, then you likely have over-excitation to a degree. Lithium is very neuroprotective and has been shown to extend the lives of worms and shit. Impressive, heh? Seriously, though, its very good for calming down a "hot" neurochemically overexcited brain. Look at the research on Pubmed for Lithium and neuroprotection. I recommend that you stick to taking it in the morning, though, and not at night, because blocking those same receptors can inhibit memory formation which occurs at night. You have nothing to worry about if you don't OD on it and if you keep it mostly in the day. However, an occasional night dose is fine. It doesnt block your memory to the degree that a Benzo or alcohol does, its way more subtle and takes a lot of dosing over time, and even then the effect would be minor. It is a salt that processes through your kidneys, and so I dont recommend anymore than one or two 120mg pills at a time (5-10mg effective lithium per pill) I take two because that's what I need, but experiment with one first. More isn't better , in this case, unless you need it.
3. Deep breathing. (seriously, this works if you do it exactly the way that I tell you. You want to breath in as deep as is comfortable, and breath out as SLOW as possible without it being uncomfortable. If you have to catch your breath by speeding up your next inhale, then its too slow. You want to be able to do this as long as possible without stressing yourself, but the longer the exhale the better. It should be all deep and slow, with no oxygen deprivation at the end. I can exhale for a pretty long time. I think this works somehow based on the fact that you are increasing CO2 in the blood, but I'm not sure. Anyway, you'll be doing this, and not feeling anything, and then you'll be asleep and not even realize it, even if you stop a few minutes before you fall asleep. It has an incredible calming effect on the nervous system. It also works great for calming a racing heart. Basically, if you need to calm your NS quickly and powerfully, this is the way to do it. I often use it at night as well)
Over time, these methods may work to reset your system a bit and you may wake up less and less early. Sleeping pills won't do that.