Discus fish should never be kept alone for the sake of their health. They must be kept in a group of at least six, otherwise they might end up getting stressed out.” This is due to the fact that they are social and can be seen in clusters. Otherwise, Putting them in smaller quantities can result in a compromised immune system, which in turn leads to infections & parasites swelling in the body.

Question

What are some helpful supplements to turn to if I tend to wake up every once in a while at night?

Answer 1

I have insomnia, ptsd, and sleep apnea. Magnesium threonate and l- theanine have helped me more than any therapy or advice  I have gotten

Comments

When do you take them? Right before bed?

---

How do you know you are getting a real threonate? They will put Glycinate and you won't even know the difference

---

How do you feel in the morning after taking them at night. More tired/groggy?

---

Interesting. I figured they would be bad for apneas since the are relaxants and might airway to collapse

---

Dr jin I love all types of magnsium but threonate was horrible for me... constant trobbing pain in the spine,  irritability and the worst nightmares a human can have. Maybe im too low or too high mag in the brain already. Many people on reddit reports withdraw side effects also.

---

Bro if you have sleep apnea take rna supplement it should help tremendously if not cure it I’m going to start soon on that supplement excited hope it cures my apnea which seems impossible but anything is possible

---

that is why you have a CPAP machine.

---

What is the best Brand Magnesium and L-A please?

---

Glycinate gave me a hangover.    Mag malate is best.

---

~ Hi,  Which brand of RNA do you use?  Cheers ^_^

Answer 2

I have had insomnia for my entire life, I can work all day ,eat, watch tv and i usually end up finally getting tired enough to go to sleep around 11 or 12 pm, then I lay down sit there and its like I am wide awake, it sometimes takes me a hour or more to finally go to sleep ,then after about a hour or 2 of sleep, i wake up every night like clock work, go to the bath room, and then lay down and wait about a hour and finally go to sleep again for maybe 2 hours, Then i am wide awake, get up and start my day, I dont ever remember dreaming in my lifetime and when i get 4 bours sleep I feel lucky, I sleep very light  ,so any noise usually wakes me up instantly or just keeps me up if i hear a furnace kick on or rain on the roof. Even tho i have been this way for my entire life and learned to just live with it, i wonder what its like to sleep even 6 hours in a night

Comments

maybe mk-677 can help, but there is not enough research about it, phenibut or gaba itself can help too?

---

Maybe that’s a sympathetic dominance…

---

Hi,  I sympathise and also empathise as I, too, have had extremely severe insomnia every night since infancy.  I'm 46 now, and have basically given up hope that I will ever sleep enough.  Do let me know (by commenting here) if you ever find anything that helps you sleep better.  All best wishes zZz

---

If noise is a problem for you, try using earplugs, but make sure to invest in good-quality ones. I purchased a pair of HappyEars, and they solved the problem for me. I live in a noisy neighborhood close to a road, and I share my living space with a roommate, so noise was constantly annoying me and waking me up

---

I can relate 100%. I think I had an idea I will be testing involving no caffeine and certain protein powders since they make my heart rate go up

---

I go days without out sleep ikmsomtir e then I lay down and something I just cant sleep it drives me crazy so I usually go 2 days 1 night may 2 days 2 night without sleep them have an amazing sleep
So it's like one good sleep last me 2 days I don't no what to do its literally killing me

Answer 3

I had chronic insomnia and often would awaken in the middle of the night. I also had untreated hypertension and when I started on hypertension medication I found I was sleeping better. I would feel so wound up all the time, but I realize now it was because my blood pressure was so high. Now, I feel more relaxed since my BP  is lower.

Comments

Amlopidine

---

some salt , just don’t pound it .

---

I go by my energy levels

---

you say carbs do you mean refined? If whole then what about fruits and veggies like bananas and beats?

---

I eat whatever but eat less than 10g seed oils, 30g or less carbs per day, the rest is beef/beef fat, I will go more strict later lol  but that last bite of something that tastes good keeps me going

Answer 4

thanks...did notice you didn't mention GABA, which i use sublingually by opening up a 100mg capsule, putting it under the tongue (has a pleasant taste)...and it really works to relax.

Comments

Thank you

---

I take a sleeping pill with ashwaganda, gaba, l-theanine, magnesium, and melatonin. Works wonders

---

Hi Johnny,  Which brand of GABA do you take?  Cheers ^_^

Answer 5

Interestingly enough, apigenin, l-theanine and mg-bisglycinate all individually and combined actually cause worsening of my time to fall asleep and sleep. What works for me, after trying dozens of supplements: lithium orotate (Swanson), chamomile extract (Swanson), inositol, mg-mix (without B6).

One note on vivid and crazy dreams that'd wake one up - Relora does that for me as well. Plus, on a side-note, if someone is taking sleep supplements and then adds a sleep medication, the supplements may now cause side-effects.

Systematic approach and individual testing are great tipps!

All the best,
Thomas

Comments

I found the same thing too, mg mix and theonine did not work at all and inositol worsened my insomnia

---

Odd, because the active ingredient in that chamomille extract would be apigenin. So maybe just the theanine that throws you off?
Works wonders for me combined with tart cherry extract

---

​@@mathiasdeceuninck Yeah absolutely fair point. I tested all of these individually and it may be the dosage that doesn't work for me. On the other side, it may be the low dosage + the combination of other things in this extract that makes it work for me. Don't really have an answer besides that it does work for me this way.

---

Hope that isn't the case for me, just bought a bunch of sleep supplements, gonna try em with 30mg Seroquel and try to nuke myself to sleep and hopefully stay asleep for more than 5 hours

---

Chamomile extract is with apigenin...

Answer 6

It would be helpful if you listed the names of the supplements in your description here. Your show notes link has a lot of info and I couldn’t find what I was looking for.

Comments

"Portal Sleep Aid" is the sleep supplement that i take has all the ingredients at the dosages mentioned.

---

Agree with needing a list of what he’s sharing

Answer 7

Has been dealing with bad insomnia cycle for past 2 month. Been taking the other 3 supplements for a while without much effect (maybe was good for anxiety but less for falling asleep). Been using sleeping pills and melatonin etc, not fun. Past 2 nights started taking myo inositol and been able to fall asleep without melatonin or pills. Seems like it really makes a difference for me. Was told about it by a friend who also had immediate effects on his waking up. So definitely worth a shot it could make all the difference

Comments

When did you take the supplement? In the evening before going to bed?

---

Did u get headaches on starting Inositol?

---

Nothing worse haveing know sleep it happed too me through some one know what thy did and I have tryed every thing still the same years later you dont think it will happen you but can dont over work your body and ask fore help if have children,its hard work and not meny tell you a bout ageing,

---

I was dealing with the same problem. After a bit of research, I learned about dried tart cherries and its effects on quality sleep. Now I only take tart cherry extract and dried tart cherries. It works! If you are looking for more holistic approaches, tart cherry extract and dried tart cherries  are worth considering. I use Berrilys and Rawya brands.

---

Can you addd how much of the Myoinositol you are taking?   He doesn't mention that on this video.   Also, have you tried the Mag. threonate?   And if so, how much.???

Answer 8

Turn off all electronic devices...especially your modem( internet) ,don't keep your cell phone close to you at nite...or watch it at least 1chr before bedtime.

Answer 9

This has worked for me.

Morning:
- Matcha Green tea - 2 Grams - 75mg in the Tea.


Night (Before Bed):
- Magnesium L-theronate -  144mg - NOW Brand.
- Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) (75mg - 50mg - I bite off a quarter of the tablet usually) .
- 1x Natures own Sleep Ezy.
- 1x Natures own Sleep Advanced.

The Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) offsets the magnesium relying on thiamine to work effectively.
When I initially started taking Magnesium L-theronate, it made my insomnia worse and I gave up on it but I tried it again with B1 and it worked wonders'

I encourage anyway who has tried Magnesium like Glycinate, L-theronate etc and it didn’t work / caused more problems like insomnia to try it with Vitamin B1

Comments

are you sure is vitamin b1 or vitamin b1?

---

vitamin b1

---

manybe it´s vitamin b1

Answer 10

When l wake up in the middle of the night and l can’t go back to sleep l take 2 lavender essential oil capsules, they work great and l wake up feeling rested

Comments

Where do you buy this ?

---

You can find lavender essential oil capsules in health food stores

---

Hi,  Do you make the capsules yourself (by putting essential oil into capsules)?

---

Rosemary’s Garden, Sebastopol California

---

JS Health (Australia) has them- includes magnesium as well

Answer 11

I'm with a few others, what are the doses you recommend with the magnesium and apigenin?   Thank you. Love your podcasts, great to get information from a real scientist.

Answer 12

A solid sleep routine helps me immensely. Waking up at 6:45am every morning and not going to bed until 10:45pm means I’m getting a solid 8 hours a night.

Answer 13

Mix of 2mg of melatonin, double dose of tea for sleep and 2 magnesiums knock me out cold. Only use it once per week when I need at least 7-8 hours of sleep before a heavy deadlift session. Also, a 60 degree/15C room temperature helps alot.

Comments

Should be carefull with melatonin, its a hormone and it raises your prolactin, and you don't want that for a long time... made me going mental... all the best.

---

.8018what do you mean going mental?

---

melatonin suppresses all hormones including testosterone

---

Melatonin works amazingly well for everyone, but no one wants to use it, hence Huberman's Sleep Stack    2mg of melatonin is a HUGE dose in the long run- do your research

Answer 14

Dr. Andrew. Have you seen/heard/noticed any connections between blood sugar imbalances and night wakes between the same hours each night, around 1-3 am.  ?

Comments

Hi there! Not a medical professional or even a scientist, but a lifetime diabetic (T1D with insulin resistance). There is a tendency for diabetics to struggle with their sugar in that time frame, usually lows. Having low blood sugar, at least for diabetics, can pull you out of a dead sleep for sure. High blood sugars can also easily cause sleep disturbances. Lifestyle factors like late night snacking habits, stress, alcohol consumption, and the timing of exercise would influence anyone's sugar, but I'd also be very curious to find out if it would be enough to cause generally healthy individuals to wake up from it.

Answer 15

GABA works great for me.  Easily averaging another hour a night.  Falling BACK asleep is easier.

Comments

Hi,  Which brand of GABA do you take?  Cheers ^_^

---

I actually switched to a sleep aid sold by Costco.  It has 10MG of time release melatonin and a little bit of GABA.  Been using this a week and the results have been fantastic so far, better than the GABA I had been taking with 5MG of disolvable melatonin.

---

~ Thank you so much for the update :)  I live in the UK, so can't get melatonin OTC, only via prescription.

Answer 16

I wish so much you would do a full episode on supplements that help and are safe when tapering benzos. And tips in general to make it easier. This is something Dr Anna Lempke is an expert on as well. Andrew we really need you in the tapering from benzo community. So much information and misinformation and it's already hard for us to deal with stress in this condition.

Comments

Exactly the reason why I'm here! Unsure what is safe to have to fall asleep during benzo wd

---

THC or CBD  is anti convulsive. I'm sure there's a tapering guideline just like with severe alcoholics. Could probably just reduce by 10% every week without large gaps of breaks. I've known people who heavily abused benzos and did similar things. I'm talking like 10 bars per day.

---

Very interested to know about this too

Answer 17

L-Theanine and magnesium glycinate does it for me.

Comments

L theanine boosts cognitive function so you’re kinda missing out on all the benefits if you take it before sleep

---

Magnesium threonate is supposed to be the best for sleep......

---

​@@stephenstuckeyisn't Glycinate best absorbed though?

---

apparently, yes. Glycinate is what I take. I've never tried threonate, it's just what I've read and heard. Both are absorbed better than the rest.  So you can't go wrong with either.

Answer 18

After watching this episode,  I bought all three supplements and have been taking them every evening for last three weeks.  I haven't noticed any effects at all.  Both falling asleep and staying asleep are still a problem.  It's 3:00 am now, and I've been up since 1:00 am after tossing and turning since 10:30.  Very disappointed.

Answer 19

magnesium threonate can be a strong laxative for some, make sure you are close to a bathroom if you are susceptible, I am.

Answer 20

What i do which i don't advice anyone else to try is as follows. Magnesium and vitamin B complex, fish oil during the day. At night Atarax half a pill of 25 mg. Ashwagandha 500 mg, melatonin and Gaba. There are lots of side effects especially from the Atarax and i know it is not a long term solution, but really knocks me out and is not the worst sleeping pill as its not addictive. There are lots of other supplements i am willing to try.