Thinking back to when I was a kid, I think I’ve always had some form of a sleeping disorder. Mild as it may be, I’ve always had a hard time falling asleep at a reasonable time; most nights I can’t get to sleep before midnight. While this helps the ratings of all the late night cable shows, it certainly doesn’t help me perform at my best in the morning if I haven’t gotten enough sleep. From school classes to work meetings, if I’m not well rested in the morning, I can’t do my best and perform at the highest level. I’ve tried many solutions for this, from drugs from the drug store, to powdered drink mixes, to changing the area around me to be more conducive to sleep; nothing has provided anywhere near the results, without all the nasty side effects, as melatonin.

The first choice for many people if they have a time to time sleeping issue is reaching for a bottle of NyQuil or a packet of Theraflu. Both of these products are very good at getting you to fall asleep. The downside is that neither of these are made just for sleeping, so you are getting all kinds of cold, headache, ache, and pain medicine that you probably don’t need. To avoid taking those, you can try something like Tylenol PM or another over the counter sleep drug, but even those didn’t feel very natural to me. If I’m not taking a natural product, it doesn’t feel like something I should be putting in my body very often.

I also tried just changing my surroundings. Experts recommend removing the TV for your bedroom, so I tried that. Unfortunately, it didnt help me fall asleep any easier. I still ended up sleeping around the same time it was just a lot more painful because the TV wasnt there to help the pain go by. I tried playing light music, but that didnt help, either. I just kept thinking to myself what artist played it, or what instruments were being used, etc. I came to the conclusion that changing the surroundings didnt help me with getting to sleep.

Then, I came to learn of something else I could try at a party. I overheard a few women discussing the problem of falling asleep, and one of them asked if they had tried Melatonin. The went on to tell them about how it was helping her fall asleep and that it was a natural substance that your body already makes to help you fall asleep. She said it really worked well for her. After overhearing this I concluded that I had to try it for myself.

Immediately after the get-together I went straight to a twenty-four hour drug store. I really had to try Melatonin for myself. I searched and search but was unable to find it; after asking for assistance, I eventually found it in the Herbal Supplements section (not with the other sleeping pills). I bought a small bottle of a small dosage of melatonin and set out to give it a try the next day. I ended up taking it the next day about an hour before I was ready to fall asleep and sure enough, 45 minutes later I got that feel that I was “ready to go to bed”. I was tired, but not knocked out. The melatonin eased me into sleep, and I slept great through the night and woke up feeling refreshed and rejuvinated. I didn’t experience any side effects, such as grogginess or waking up in the middle of the night. I was so happy to find what felt to me like a miracle. I’ve taken melatonin many nights since then, and all had the same great result.

I did some digging online to make sure I was taking a safe drug. From everything I’ve read, I know the experts recommend you start with a small dosage. The smallest I found was 3mg – and it is working great for me. If you find it doesn’t work for you, you may need a little larger of a dose, but do this with caution as many doctors felt that even 3mg was too much. Also, make sure you buy melatonin that was ‘created in a lab’. Some brands are selling harvested melatonin, but that can contain bacteria that you don’t want. Finally, it is very important you talk with your doctor first before taking melatonin.

As you can see, I am have great results from taking Melatonin. I think that Melatonin can be very helpful for people with mild sleeping problems such as falling asleep. Its important not to rely to heavily on it as you don’t want to become dependent or addicted, but for the occasional use, I reach for it every time now!