They gave me an entire case. lol

I had it backwards, it's bug particles and rodent excrement, but yeah. There's variations of percentages based on the product.

They being the FDA, right?

Yarp. It's been a while since that job, so I got curious and went digging:

https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/04/healt...0rodent%20dung.

I'm suffering severe insomnia. I haven't left my bed much in six weeks save for bowls of cereal and a bit of tidying. Waking up for the day at midnight is awful, as I'm alone and trapped inside my mind.

A brief visit from some friends was great medicine for melancholy, but these long stretches of weeks without human contact and days bleeding into nights wreaks havoc on my ability to sleep. I try to go to bed at 7 every day and take as much melatonin as I can stand, but sometimes that's just not enough.

I'm going to try taking 100mg of melatonin to see if that gets me some rest. I've been googling insomnia treatments but can't find anything that works. :(

If anyone has a tip of what works for them I'd love to hear your ideas.

I’ve not suffered from insomnia, but I imagine some of yours is caused or exacerbated by anxiety, in which case I recommend progressive muscle relaxation. It can be as a guided meditation, or just an internal dialogue, but it works to relax the body and mind, and is one of the techniques used in the military to train themselves to sleep anywhere, anytime.

That's excellent advice, WWP; thank you. I have a severe anxiety disorder and am medicated for it. My daily strategies to combat anxiety include the prescription drugs, plus 10mg melatonin just before bed at 7, nightly chamomile mint tea, several hours of drone music meditation daily, and more drones at a low volume with sleep headphones through the night. I also verbally coach myself all throughout the day, and start each day with a positive mantra recitation to try and start on a good note.

Despite these efforts I still often wake at midnight and am trapped in my head until I can get to sleep the following evening.

I recognize that one of the challenges is, as I mentioned, that I haven't really gotten out of bed much in 6 weeks. That may be making it difficult for my body to know when to go into sleep mode. I live alone and seldom leave the house so I have very little human contact each month, but at least that way I'm not disturbing anyone with my restlessness. I am free to pace the house at any hour I wish.

I've searched local community event calendars and have come up with at least one event to explore each day this week so at least it breaks up the monotony of laying in bed all day until I can pass out. Maybe those events will help.

This is awful. :(

Exercise really helps. I know it's easier said than done, but there's nothing better for general wellbeing.
Try to get out more, especially somewhere with a lot of green. Seeing daylight, especially in the morning after waking up is important and helps setting your inner clock.
Also limit the time you stare at screens or at least use blue light filters.

I find it helps to read. If you actively try to keep yourself awake to, say, finish a chapter, I usually end up having real trouble staying awake. Music worked for me when I was a kid; I used never to be able to sleep then I bought a radio and listening to the music lulled me off to sleep. Doesn't happen any more, so maybe that's just when you're young. Karen often has the same problem - and she's taking zoplidem tartrate, which we're told is the strongest sleep medication available here - and I tell her it's something that's on her mind which is keeping her from sleeping, coupled with this self-fulfilling prophecy of thinking she won't sleep, and so she doesn't. Can't do it for you, ISB, of course, but I have her toy cat Millie talk to her and promise she'll sleep, and that usually works. Not a lot of help, I know. There's also the old remedy of going for a small hours walk to tire yourself out. Hope you manage to get some sleep; I remember what it was like not to be able to just close your eyes and drift off.

We also have stress relief tablets here called Kalms, and a thing called Rescue Remedy, which seem to help her. I don't know if you have them where you are?

12 Mg Melatonin and 2 Benedryl about 90 mins before bedtime. Been doing this for years now.

And most importantly - if you decide to try reading, Bradbury is a poor choice.:rofl:

I'd suggest something much 'lighter'.