There is a thing called the Cortisol Awakening Response which is basically all about waking up. There are three hormones in this CRH ( Corticotropin-releasing hormone), ACTH ( Adrenocorticotropic Hormone) and Cortisol.
The interplay between these hormones creates the ultradian cycle. Without going into the details it is normally every 90 minutes.
If Cortisol is high then people are awake and cannot sleep. This is in the sympathetic state. This is obviously a continuum of values, but in a sense we can think about a switch.
One thing I have been studying is the relationship between melatonin and this cycle.
What I have discovered is that at the end of the cycle if serum melatonin is going down then the cycle switches into the sympathetic state.
Hence if you take melatonin just before bed, and the amount is large enough to overwhelm serum quantities when the cycle next changes because of the 30 minute half life of serum melatonin the ultradian cycle that next occurs will be pushed towards the sympathetic state.
If you take melatonin in the previous cycle (say 2 hours before hand for safety) the serum level will be dominated most likely by endogenous melatonin and hence will be in the parasympathetic state.
This is why melatonin can wake you up if you take enough at the right/wrong time.
Most time release melatonin does not last long enough, but in a limited way it can overcome this.
The cornerstone of CBT is the idea that thoughts create our feelings and that many of our thoughts are distorted. Therefore, if you are telling yourself or having automatic thoughts that lying down to meditate is ‘a waste of time’, ‘so boring’, ‘never going to work for me’, ‘my brain is different’, CBT would predict that you will feel bored, restless, impatient, and hopeless, or something like that. The work would entail really understanding what, if any, thought distortions exist. Most importantly, however, is the initial question of whether someone wants any help at all.
Hope this wasn’t too intrusive. I am reading a CBT book currently, so I’ve got this stuff on the brain.
I was a lot happier about using meditative practices when I learnt that it is the slowing of breathing that actually creates a physiological effect. Calming the mind goes into the HPA axis as well. Before that I thought meditation was woo woo.
An international study led by the University of Granada (UGR) has revealed that melatonin, known for its ability to regulate the sleep/wake cycle, can restore the composition of muscle fibers and protect skeletal muscle from damage caused by obesity and type 2 diabetes, known as “diabesity.”
The results, published in the journals Free Radical Biology and Medicine and Antioxidants, show that this hormone improves mitochondrial function, reduces cellular stress and prevents programmed cell death, offering a new therapeutic strategy to combat this metabolic disease.
More information: Diego Salagre et al, Melatonin induces fiber switching by improvement of mitochondrial oxidative capacity and function via NRF2/RCAN/MEF2 in the vastus lateralis muscle from both sex Zücker diabetic fatty rats, Free Radical Biology and Medicine (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2024.12.019
Diego Salagre et al, Melatonin Ameliorates Organellar Calcium Homeostasis, Improving Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress-Mediated Apoptosis in the Vastus Lateralis Muscle of Both Sexes of Obese Diabetic Rats, Antioxidants (2024). DOI: 10.3390/antiox14010016
I don’t think I’ve seen this source listed anywhere for high dose melatonin capsules, so here I am.
In the comments of the video you posted, I noticed Ryker Black buys his melatonin from Pure Bulk. I then discovered Pure Bulk also sells 100mg capsules with no fillers.
(You can select powder or capsules, so pay attention to that option).
You can sign up for 12% off your first order. That makes it $45 for 120 caps of 100mg.
FWIW, last night I took my highest dose yet at aprox 100mg, and coincidentally or not, I had one of the best HRV scores I’ve had.
I did that by swallowing too many chewables (blech, will not be doing that again, my tummy is not happy) so I’m looking forward to more experiments with the caps. My sleep is pretty good these days anyway, but I see a positive difference in my stats when I take extra.
Arsenic exposure can cause synaptic damage, which can lead to neurotoxicity.
Arsenic exposure regulates mitochondrial damage through SIRT1 and activates autophagy leading to synaptic damage
The neuroprotective effect of melatonin may be due to the prevention of SIRT1-mediated mitochondrial damage and autophagy activation.
As someone who has a mild (so far) case of RLS, I have shied away from melatonin. There is an interesting connection between RLS and PD, so the role of melatonin is all the more intriguing in both disorders, I sense this disparity might be a fruitful research avenue that might reveal something about both.
Restless Leg Syndrome and Melatonin
Linking restless legs syndrome with Parkinson’s disease: clinical, imaging and genetic evidence
I thought I’d share that with my new bottle of Pure Bulk 100mg pills, I’ve experimented with taking 1200mg on two different nights.
I took 12 pills all at once, right before I went to sleep.
I based this number on watching the Ryker video from above which contained excerpts from Dr Loh. She said if one is 50, take 180mg, and then add 100mg for each additional year. I through in a little extra to be, you know, extra.
She says if you take enough, you wake up full of energy, but I found myself dragging those two days.
On a few other nights, if I didn’t take any at all but woke up in the middle of the night, I’d take 100mg and it does work like a champ in helping me fall back to sleep.
Is there any more experimenting to be done? Meaning, should I be breaking up the 1200mg dose or even adding more? I don’t want to blow through this bottle of pills if high dosing just isn’t for me.
I have 5 mg dissolve tabs and 20 mg capsules. I’m taking about 40-60 mgs nightly. With melatonin, I sleep better, get up to the bathroom much, much less (which is a true miracle), and I feel less stressed if/when I do wake up.
Sleep is important, so in the past when I would wake up, I used to lightly fret, get up to use the bathroom repeatedly and/or determine what I needed to take to get back to sleep (Sulforaphane, ashwaganda, magnesium, etc). Melatonin seems to take away my anxiety both at night and in the day, so even if I have a more restless night, I’m just not feeling distressed or negative about it.
I’m still fairly new to melatonin, but I will slowly experiment with increased doses because it’s been a game changer for me. Thanks for sharing the formula that you are following, Beth.