Okay, it's 3am and I am awake-again.  In an effort to numb my brain, I started searching for insomnia remedies that do not require one to ingest an arsenal of drugs that leave you hung over the next day.  I found tips on changing your habits, your life style, your diet...all the stuff that makes good sense.  At 3am however, I do not make good sense, so these well meaning suggestions just piss me off.  They also make me feel like eating all the leftover Halloween candy.  My thought process here is that it really does make sense to eat a whole bunch of sugary treats, because we all know that after that glorious sugar rush comes the ugly sugar crash.  Hey-I think it is a dandy rationalization!

 Although I am awake, it does not mean that I have ambition; the candy is hidden in the closet, and that means I have to haul my butt to said closest, and I don't wanna.  So I continue to search for answers on the web, sans chocolate.  I did stumble upon something of interest, though.  Dr. Lissa Rankin has a blog called 'Owning Pink'.  She talks about (among other interesting ideas) natural supplements to help one sleep, or rather, get to sleep!  Has anyone tried these?

• Taurine 1000-2000mg daily before sleep. You can repeat the dose if you wake up at night to help you get back to sleep.
• L-tryptophan, taken with taurine, helps promote sleep. Taurine has a calming effect and L-tryptophan has a more hypnotic effect.  Take 500-3000mg before sleep.  Begin with 500mg and increase every third day by 500mg as needed.  If you wake up at night, take half your nighttime dose.
• Vitamin B6- 100-300mg/day with food.
• Magnesium glycinate 400-1000mg/day with food.  Begin with the lowest dose and increase by 100mg/day.  Reduce your dose if your stools are loose.
• Valerian root extract- use as directed on the label.

If you have, I'd love to hear how they worked for you.  Here's the link to the article:
http://www.owningpink.com/blogs/owning-pink/how-to-treat-insomnia-naturally