My watch (when paired with a smartphone) will give you a bar graph each day to show you the light and deep sleep. I was rather horrified to see the sleep pattern of my teenage daughter when she used her watch to track her sleep. Few and brief were her periods of deep sleep. No wonder she is tired a lot!
I tried a few things - some herbs, melatonin, etc.
5 HTP was the best for improving the amount and frequency of deep sleep for her. It does not cause any side effects for her that we have noticed, anyway.
Blue Star (Tennessee) on 05/01/2018:
5 HTP for Sleep and Depression
I recently discovered 5 HTP for my sleep issues. I never seemed to go into a deep sleep and would grind my teeth. I have back, neck and sciatica issues so the pain would keep me up at night.
With 50 mg of 5 HTP about an hour before I go to bed, I go into a deep sleep and finally become fully rested. I wake up in the morning loving my life. I am feeling that 5 HTP is going to be great dealing with my SAD, which seems to happen every year Jan- March. I just want off the planet with SAD... it will sneak up on me..
My attitude towards life is much better. It seems my depression has lifted somewhat. I don't seem to crave carbs as much.
C (Ava, Mo) on 06/05/2016:
2 stars for 5 HTP.
I have tried it off and on and you can build up an intolerance, which I did and cause you not to sleep. The best sleep aid is not on here are adaptogens for adrenal health.. Helps with deep sleep, energy like crazy---the best!!!!! This is almost my silver bullet and I have had extremely severe problems!!!!!
Oh I forgot the most important one!!! If your stomach is bloated and you have gas, it may be a sign of allergies of food, for example gluten or milk. If people eat what they are allergic to, it can cause severe insomnia. The very best recommendation is go on an elimination diet like I did and I started sleeping. When I mess up the diet, my sleep is bad.
C (Ava, Mo) on 06/05/2016:
2 stars for 5 HTP. Oh I forgot the most important one!!! If your stomach is bloated and you have gas, it may be a sign of allergies of food, for example gluten or milk. If people eat what they are allergic to, it can cause severe insomnia. The very best recommendation is go on an elimination diet like I did and I started sleeping. When I mess up the diet, my sleep is bad.
Andrea C (Cardiff, Wales) on 04/15/2013:
I had really bad side effects from 5-htp. I couldn't sleep, and every joint in my body hurt!!! It was 100mg slow release. I tried again 2 weeks later, same effects!!!! I threw them out, and found out these are known side effects to 5-htp. love Andrea C xxx View Entire Thread
Anon (Roanoke, Va) on 04/14/2013:
Even in small doses 5 HTP leaves me wide awake ALL NIGHT LONG if taken in evening. I've have started experimenting with taking it in morning, primarily for mood, however so far I have had not experienced any change or improved sleep.
5 HTP is supposedly useful for weight loss, pms, anxiety/depression, migraines and fibromyalgia in addition to insomnia. It is recommended to take it with vitamin B3 or C.
Jp (Ottawa, On) on 02/16/2011:
Regarding 5htp for insomnia: Dr. Roger Murphree recommends up to 300mg at bedtime on an empty stomach with grape juice. I found that this helped me (I started at 50mg and worked up) quite a bit. Sleep was more restful, although still broken. Daytime anxiety and tremours really subsided.
Lila (Kodiak, Ak) on 04/29/2010:
I have been able to sleep less and less over the last few years. I have tried so many things to help get past my insomnia (I have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep). I heard about your website and searched for things to help me sleep. The only thing I had in the house that night was 5htp. I take it for mood but have always taken it in the mornings. I didn't think it would help but felt desperate so i tried it. I have been taking it for 9 nights and have only had trouble sleeping 2 of those nights; a HUGE improvement! Thank you!!!
Shino (Auckland, NZ) on 09/29/2008:
ive taken 5HTP (150mgs) and it relaxed me and made it way way easier to sleep. with stress during the day, i hadnt been able to sleep until 5-7 in the morning, but when i started taking this i was feeling sleepy by about 10pm, asleep before midnight!
Stefanie (Minden, Louisiana) on 07/17/2008:
I found this remedy when I was looking for herbal remedies for my daily headaches. I found 5-HTP. According to the article, some of the things it helped with are insomnia, headaches, anxiety & depression. I thought could it be? I immediately went to my husband to show him what I had found because he had problems sleeping at night as well. We went a few days later to our local drug store and picked up a bottle of 50mg. 5-HTP. We had decided on the lowest dosage available in our area, upping the dosage as we went along if it was necessary. We have only been on it for a few days now but there is a very noticeable difference. We both have been sleeping through the night and feeling more refreshed when we wake. My anxiety attacks are gone as well as my headaches. We both are much less snappish than what we were before. We haven't noticed any side effects so far. We are taking them with a meal or a small snack and so far we have stayed at 50mg. Thanks for the very useful information that lead to this discovery!
EC: Read more about 5-HTP here.
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