Alright, the secret is out. I have not been sleeping well. Before you ask, yes, I have been taking my melatonin, but as of late, it seems to be causing problems, and that is nightmares. But before I get to possible melatonin nightmares, let’s drop into a conversation I was involved in the other day.
Standing in line at the pharmacy, I overheard a conversation between two women that I knew. One was my neighbor, and the other was my son’s teacher. They looked at me and invited me into the conversation. The topic was the same. How tired we all were.
My neighbor worked the third shift and could not get any sleep because her kids were home now all the time with virtual school. My son’s teacher was teaching from home, trying to keep up with her children and all the other responsibilities that we women have to deal with.
My neighbor said her sleeping problems could be solved when the kids go back to school, but my son’s teacher had a different outlook. As the tears welled up in her eyes, she said I cannot remember the last time I had a good night’s sleep. Just about that time, a stranger walked right into our conversation.
A Stranger
With her gleaming white coat and high heels, she walked up to the three of us, which I am sure looked like something the cat left at the door. As she explained who she was, I really did not pay much attention; I was too amazed at how clear her skin was. Not a blemish, not a dark circle, nothing to indicate that she had ever suffered from lack of sleep.
She went on to tell us that she had four kids, had a job outside the home, and cooked every meal from scratch. No fast food for her family, but she also shared her secret, a simple ingredient that would make you sleep like a baby when taken about an hour before bed. Hummmm, a baby, I thought so, wondering what this magical substance was, I took the bull by the horns and asked.
Melatonin was the answer, and she even took the three of us to the aisle where we could find it. While the three of us looked at the shelf and then back at the stranger, it became apparent there was a problem. What was it? Well, it appeared that I was not the only one that had melatonin nightmares. All of us suffered from nightmares when we took this supplement. Was it all in our heads, or is there truth in nightmares caused by melatonin?
What Is Melatonin?
Melatonin is a chemical or hormone that the human body produces. As we age, though, the production of this hormone can reduce. This can be one reason why a person could have problems sleeping. But keep in mind that the subject of sleep is a complicated one, and a combination of factors can cause your inability to sleep.
Sleep Science: The 4 Stages Of Sleep
Before we move on to answering the question of melatonin nightmares, we must first understand the 4 stages of sleep.
The feeling of sleepiness is brought on by the amount of light you receive, which encourages the production and release of melatonin. This stage is called NREM and is broken into 3 parts.
NREM stage 1 begins with your brain waves producing theta waves. This is also the stage by which some people refer to as light sleep or the phase by which such things as sound easily wake you up.
NREM stage 2 begins with your body temperature dropping slightly; you become less aware of your surroundings and your breathing levels off.
During NREM stage 3, your blood pressure gradually reduces, your muscles relax, and now you are in a deep sleep. This now leads into the last stage of sleep, which is called REM or rapid eye movement.
During REM sleep, your eyes move rapidly, your brain becomes more active, and your body becomes immobilized. Due to the increase in brain activity, you also have vivid dreams.
Do not think that once you get into REM sleep, you stay in that phase until morning. This is not the fact, and the truth is you will go up and down in the sleep cycle on average 4 to 5 times during the night.
Science Behind Melatonin Nightmares
Now that we understand the stages of sleep, let’s examine melatonin nightmares but before we jump in, remember why melatonin is taken. This hormone is consumed when an individual is finding it hard to sleep.
The goal is to stay in REM sleep as long as possible because we get the best quality of sleep in this phase. Now, there is a downside of this stage because it is when you have your most vivid dreams, and yes, they can also be nightmares.
But dreams themselves, good or bad, are how the brain handles the day’s activities. In a nutshell, if you had a bad or stressful day, your brain can process these events as nightmares during REM sleep.
Ok, I know at this point you are shaking your head but stay with me. The reason you take melatonin is to help you sleep. Some evidence exists that melatonin helps you sleep and aids you in staying in the REM sleep stage longer.
What does this mean? The simple answer is it allows you to stay in REM sleep, which means it increases your exposure to vivid dreams. This increased time can be full of rainbows and unicorns or nightmares, depending on what your brain is working on.
But what can you do to reduce melatonin nightmares? Well, the first step is to order your GxCBD kit to learn what your DNA has to say.
Why Do I Need The GxCBD Kit?
The GxCBD kit creates an open window to your DNA. Your kit requires you to take a swab and rub it inside your mouth to collect your DNA. Once we receive your DNA, we analyze it for certain strands that give us information about how well you deal with stress, your level of social anxiety, and your sleep period. As we discussed previously, having a lot of stress and/or anxiety can influence your sleep.
But what can you do if your DNA shows that you have high levels of stress and anxiety? I mean, this is your DNA. Right? Are you doomed to have melatonin nightmares? Well, the answer is no, but……it will take some work.
How To Get Better Sleep
There are several things you can do to achieve better sleep. This includes creating a comfortable and restful environment. Another situation you can control is the amount of blue light that your eyes are exposed to 2 hours before bed.
What is blue light? Well, you may not like the answer, but it is the light produced from TVs, cell phones, and computers, but sacrifices have to be made to get a good night’s sleep.
Melatonin nightmares are real but not necessarily all bad. Now, you can also control your stress, which leads to anxiety. Decreasing stress will help to curb the nightmares. If your GxCBD test shows that you have high levels of stress and anxiety, learning how to work with these problems will help you sleep better.
Getting some exercise will help you reduce stress and can aid you in working out the issue. Journaling is another technique you can try to get your feelings out. If exercising or journaling is not your cup of tea, give meditation a try. There are several videos and apps that can help you learn this technique.
Keep in mind, though, that you are an individual, and you may need to find a practice that helps you work out the stress that has built up during your day. If you do not do it while you are awake, you run a chance that your brain will process it while you are asleep.
Ok, yes, I know this is a lot of information. So let me pour you a cup of tea, and let’s talk. Can I tell you something? You are worth it. Take some time for yourself and get the answers. Some people call it self-care, but I go beyond self-care and simply say you need to understand all the angles that makeup you so you can take care of yourself.
So click on the link below and order your GxCBD kit. After we finish our tea, let’s go for a walk and enjoy the day.