Thursday, March 17, 2011

Getting My Beauty Rest

We have all had nights where we can't sleep...and it sucks. 



Getting a good night's sleep is about getting our beauty rest. We've heard it called that but it really is just that...beauty rest. Our bodies need at least 7-8 hours of rest each night to rejuvinate and rebuild our immune systems, etc. A good night's sleep helps us deal with stress, inflammation caused by environmental toxins and whatever else comes our way on a daily basis.

As we get "older" and sleepless nights are more frequent and more annoying (I'm speaking from personal experience). Now for sleep the room temperature needs to be just right, the pillow fluffed correctly, no exterior sounds or lights to annoy and bedtime must be around the same time each night. Finally, we lay our weary self down to rest after a long day...and we don't sleep, just toss and turn! What's up with that?

A full work week, errands to run, chores to tend to and going to the gym 3-4 times a week (and working out really HARD mind you) should be enough to get any woman's body to crash once her head hits the pillow!

Taking mom's advice. My mom ended up being my saving grace when it came to my lack of a good night's sleep. I don't like taking medications and so I suffered silently with frequent sleepless nights. Then one conversation about not sleeping came up. My mom suggested I take a natural supplement: Melatonin. Melatonin is a natural hormone your body produces. It also occurs in foods like turkey and it makes you feel naturally sleepy. Natural melatonin levels slowly drop with age...no kidding, LOL!


Who knew my beauty rest could be purchased at Target for only $5.99! Nature's Bounty 3 mg of Melatonin is my saving grace. I take one tablet about an hour before bed if I feel I might not sleep (this is about 2-3 times a week). The next morning you are refreshed and not groggy at all.


Thanks mom! You always know best. 


What do you do to prevent sleepless nights? Have you tried melatonin or another natural supplement to aid sleep?

5 comments:

  1. I've been taking melatonin as well. It works really well for me! Yay!

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  2. My therapist recently recommended Melatonin because I was having terrible problems sleeping (2-3 hours a night) and it helped. People taking medication should be aware that they should check with their doctor or pharmacist before taking it, to make sure it doesn't interact with their other medications.

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  3. I haven't tried Melatonin yet, but will have to check it out. I keep my Ipod on my nightstand. When I wake up during the wee hours of the morning with my mind whirling around with too many thoughts to sleep, I just pop in my earbuds and listen to soothing voices. My first choice is MissusSmartyPants blog talk radio of course (not that it's boring, just soothing).

    Sherry @ A Happy Valentine

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  4. @ Serendipity...yes, I agree before taking anything including a natural supplement you should always check w/ your doctor first.

    @Sherry it's nice to hear that the MSP show is soothing and NOT boring :)

    I find myself waking one to two times a night often. I turn on talk radio--it's on "auto" for 45 min.(Coast to Coast is on in the middle of the night and they do have some crazy topics) often I don't even hear what they are talking about before I fall asleep again...it lulls me to sleep.

    I also keep a note pad & pen on my nightstand to jot down my "ephiphanies" so I can remember these brillant thoughts in the morning :) Just writing down my thoughts allows my mind to get some rest. You might find that helpful too.

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  5. I always take melatonin, but it's not enough for me, so I alternate between some herbal remedies: valerian root, passion flower and GABA. They are all gentle, non-addictive, and better than a prescription from your doctor or just suffering through & not sleeping at all every night!

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Love, Leslie

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