Possibly true. Unknown if it’s optimal.
It was just my suggestion answering the original question about getting a good nights sleep.
We will only know if it’s good for rejuvenation or too excessive for that if I live to over 120 
Sleep is important though.
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I’ve successfully managed my severe insomnia with the following regimen:
- Chamomile tea (particularly the Sleep+ brand)
- Kava tea (I prefer the Yogi brand. Despite opinions that tea doesn’t contain enough kava to be effective, I find it works well and enjoy the taste.)
- A small dose of melatonin
I make a hot tea blend with chamomile and kava, adding honey for sweetness, and it helps me fall asleep within an hour.
Additionally, a high-quality mechanical white noise machine has been incredibly beneficial. Using it exclusively for sleep has conditioned me to associate its sound with sleeping, which might be a form of hypnosis.
For an antihistamine sleep aid, I recommend doxylamine (found in Unisom) rather than diphenhydramine, based on its effectiveness. However, I use it sparingly to avoid building up a tolerance.
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I think antihistamines are really bad for sleep. I started biohacking to improve sleep and have made good progress. Diphenhydramine has not been good, however. I think this is the wrong target.
I am currently working on increasing the length of my natural sleep that i get before using melatonin to extend it. I think mitochondrial quality in the pineal drives this.
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I’ve used gaba when I’ve wakened and had trouble getting back to sleep. Found it effective and quick.
Trazadone 50mg after I brush my teeth at night has been a game changer for me and a couple of close friends. Getting sleep is no longer a major concern. As Matthew Walker and others say, it doesn’t mess with your sleep architecture. There are no morning remnants. Ditch everything else.
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Can others on these boards speak to this? Would like more than N=1 when trying something that messes with your brain (so to speak), plus is it one of the things that can make people dependent on it? @desertshores and all have you ever tried Trazadone?
thanks,
GABA does seem to work but I am searching for the right dose for me. My first try was too much and I was really groggy the day after. Now much less and it is working better but still need to fine-tune.
Something I now realize is that it is likely one of my other relatively new supplements is causing some of my problems. So I am going to shut down virtually everything but sleep supplements for awhile and see what happens. I do not believe it is Rapa that is causing this by the way. Just took some yesterday AM and slept very well last night.
For me it’s l-theanine, glycine, taurine and tryptophan that seem to work. I don’t think i got anything from GABA
I have tried trazadone. It only needs to be a 50mg dose to reduce the time it takes to go to sleep.
It has a half-life of: “Trazodone has biphasic elimination, with a redistribution half-life of about one hour and an elimination half-life of 10-12 hours.”
It seems like “clean” medication. Originally it was used as an anti-depressant, but it wasn’t very effective and now it is sometimes prescribed off-label for sleep problems.
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Thanks Good to know I won’t be hauling at the moon 
I might give it a try. Been having a bit of sleep issues lately.
FWIW. I am currently experimenting with zero supplements before bed to eliminate any unintended effects. So far I have had no problems falling asleep despite not feeling as sleepy as I did when I took sleep aids.
It is a strange feeling since I have taken sleep aids forever. But I fall asleep easily.
I am also going to sleep earlier (930pm). This is enforced by turning off the TV at 9pm without discussion.
My routine is to turn off my phone at 8pm after listening to a meditation recording. I have not been good about doing this but I will keep at it.
If I wake up early (frequently I do), I read a book (yes, a physical book — sci-fi) until I feel sleepy, then I take melatonin. Phone is not allowed. This approach has worked about half the time.
So: ½ the time I sleep through night, ¼ of time I wake up but go back to sleep, and ¼ of time I get a short night sleep.
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I take 400mg theanine just before bed. I sleep about 8 hours through the night and I usually wake up to pee a couple times. I used to wake up wired after 6 hours from what seemed to be excess histamine and I would take a couple Claritin antihistamines and read until they kicked in.
An interesting thing about histamine is that in addition to being an immune system activator it is also an activating neurotransmitter.
I’ve managed to get my generalized inflammation levels lower and I don’t have that histamine arousal so much anymore. I had problems from over-activated mast cells for many years and it took quite a bit of time to calm that down enough so I could sleep through the night. I’ve had a high serum histamine and lab tests for more than a decade. I predict it’s much lower now.
After moving to a small new place in the country with no pollution and not a lot of pollen that bothers me.
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Start low and see if your body clears it. My dim memory is that my trial of trazadone did not leave me feeling clear-headed the next day. Half-life is not the same as duration of effects; not all bodies react the same way.
Also, there are potential contraindications. Please do your research.
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AIUI trazadone increases serotonin and the body metabolises serotonin into melatonin.
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Thanks, Will pass for now. I’ll just stick with Theanine, glycine, taurine and tryptophan.
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Theanine is a GABA agonist. I read the problem with taking GABA itself is that it doesn’t get through the stomach very well.
I was wondering about that. And yet it seems to work for some. Guess one just needs to take more? Or is there something that gets through better?
I have sleep maintenance insomnia, and I’ve tried the following supplements:
L-Tryptophan (enhanced taken w/Tart Cherry powder), L-Theanine, L-Serine, Inositol, Magnesium Lysinate Glycinate, Magnesium L-Threonate, (other Mg’s), Apigenin, 5-HTP, GABA, Phosphatidyl Serine, Shoden Ashwaganga, Taurine, Glycine, CBD oil, Lettuce Leaf Extract, Kava Extract/Kava Tea.
Some may be somewhat helpful - but hard to say. I think you need to rotate.
Many are GABA precursors - there’s argument over whether GABA itself can even cross the BBB at all - but gut/brain axis interactions are not fully mapped out by a long-shot.
For prescription meds (which I try to avoid as much as I can) - nothing beats the benzo- and related meds if your mind is racing - if I open up a capsule of Temazepam and take half of the powder, I’ll sleep for about 3-4 hours and wake up with no drowsiness. Of course, these meds (especially Ambien, which I would avoid if at all possible) are habit-forming and may not give you “sleep” as much as make you unconscious. (Ambien also gives you retrograde amnesia.) Trazadone gives me a headache, but is one of the few meds that maintains proper sleep architecture. Belsomra (Suvrexant) is my favorite - but isn’t covered by insurance and 30 pills costs about $425…
My sleep may be a little better on my first night after taking Rapa - but not too sure - I don’t have a sleep tracker at the moment.
Luckily I’ve discovered that exogenous keytones really seem to help me sleep more deeply – just been a few weeks, but fingers crossed. I’m taking 1/2 shot of HVMN Keytone-IQ at bedtime. (I still maintain a relatively low-carb diet, but I’m no longer regularly in ketosis.)
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I thought that taurine and glycine cancel each other and shouldn’t be taken together.
I didn’t say I took them all at one time
Taurine is a strange one because it’s both in energy drinks and some sleep supplements - but I also equate it more with the former.
I did find this: Can Taurine and Glycine Be Taken Together? Benefits, Dosage, and Potential Interactions- Statcare.
which seems to suggest it’s okay.
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