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While melatonin helped me, the results were inconsistent. However, 10,000IU of vitamin D3 before 10am (see e.g. [0] for discussion and analysis that do NOT sup

While melatonin helped me, the results were inconsistent. However, 10,000IU of vitamin D3 before 10am (see e.g. [0] for discussion and analysis that do NOT support my regime) seem to consistently give me a good reliable sleep schedule. I was definitely not as thorough as Gwern, nor comparing to placebo - but for decades I have tried tens of different sleep aids, most of them useless, some working for a couple of weeks and then not, melatonin being inconsistent - with vitamin D feeling like a jackpot. If you care to experiment, do your own reading on dosing - it should be adjusted down if you spend any time in the sun - but it should 25-50IU/lb of body weight, which is way higher than the FDA RDA. This is not medical advice. I am not a medical professional, nor do I play one on TV. YMMV. Proceed at your own risk. [0] https://www.gwern.net/zeo/Vitamin-D https://www.gwern.net/zeo/Vitamin-D

ak39 8y ago
Hi Beagle, Is this a daily dose of D3 of 10,000 IU? And for how long have you been taking it?
- beagle3 8y ago
  Daily dose, have been for ~6 years now, not religiously - when traveling for less than a week I usually don’t take any with me, and I deliberately take a couple of weeks off every year to see if it still makes any difference (after 2-4 weeks, it starts becoming harder to fall asleep again, after which I wait another week and restart). 50,000 daily for a month is toxic, though afaik 20,000 has no “period of time it becomes toxic”; however, D is fat Soluable, so I take breaks to make sure my body can get rid of any excess.
  - macawfish 8y ago
    Do you also take magnesium?
    - beagle3 8y ago
      Yes; regular 400mg elemental magnesium (in chelated form)/day, and occasionally (e.g. after serious exercise) an additional teaspoon - 300-600mg elemental, in citrate form -- I find it keeps the muscles feeling much better (in a way that increasing the dose of chelated form does not -- even though the latter is supposed to be much more bioavailable). I have never thought about the calcification angle that you mentioned in another thread, I'm just constantly experimenting since my teens, and keeping the things that seem to improve my well being (with the occasional breaks to guarantee I'm not overdosing/accumulating, and also to see that it still helps). How much magnesium do you add to your D3? (and, if anyone is going to try magnesium citrate or magnesium oxide as a result of this post - I highly recommend building up your dose from very little, and doing that on days where you have easy access to a bathroom - in the beginning, bioavailability is low, but it does relax your bowel muscles ... and even after your bioavailability rises, will happen with excess amounts)
      - macawfish 8y ago
        I honestly just go by how I'm feeling. If I'm tense or restless, I might take some magnesium citrate before bed to help me sleep. If I'm feeling dehydrated or constipated, I'll take some magnesium citrate or an electrolyte drink packet with magnesium and potassium salts. If I'm anxious, I can take an epsom salt bath.
canttestthis 8y ago
10,000 IU is the upper limit recommended by researchers, but afaik 4,000 is the more commonly accepted/advised number.
- beagle3 8y ago
  The recommended dose and limit are body weight dependent, age and light/uv exposure influenced.
  - canttestthis 8y ago
    Yes, agreed, but the 10,000 IU number is on the very upper end of the recommended intake in some research papers regardless of your body weight and age, and about twice as high as the upper recommended intake in current medical consensus. I'm also not a doctor but I would just ask anyone considering 10,000 IU / day for a long period after reading this post to run it by their doctor first.
- macawfish 8y ago
  Wasn't there a recent study suggesting that the recommended daily value was off by a factor of ~10? I think an important thing to consider is that if your going to take large amounts of vitamin D, you should also be getting enough magnesium to prevent unhealthy calcification. In the winter, I've taken one time doses of ~40,000 IU every few weeks or so, (always in the morning of course). I remember reading that 40,000 IU every single day for more than 3 months was what it would take for many people to develop hypercalcemia. Because vitamin D is fat soluble, that made me feel pretty safe taking a large mega dose from time to time. The effects of a large megadose are emotionally palpable. But I will say that the magnesium also seems important. I have a sensitive ankle that was once run over by a taxi and got badly sprained. Last winter, I started taking daily vitamin D without magnesium, and was probably doing about 10,000 IU/day. After a week or so, I noticed that my ankle was acting up more than usual. I took an epsom salt bath (magnesium sulfate) and it helped immediately. (https://www.vitamindcouncil.org/about-vitamin-d/am-i-getting-too-much-vitamin-d/ https://www.vitamindcouncil.org/about-vitamin-d/am-i-getting...)
bg4 8y ago
I take 5,000 IU of Vitamin D daily and 3 mg of Melatonin about an hour or so before bed. It has all but cured a lifetime of serious sleep issues.
- kazinator 8y ago
  I take 5000 D3 at 9 in the morning. It causes me to naturally wake up at 6 a.m. or even earlier, without feeling groggy. If I take it when traveling, jet lag is greatly diminished and overcome much more rapidly. I switch to taking it 9 a.m. of the destination's local time. If 9 a.m. occurs during the flight, I take it then. It's like an external clock pulse! The first time I took 5000 D3, I made the mistake of doing it in the evening. My sleep that very night was quite strange, disturbed with weird dreams. I immediately clued in to the fact that morning might be better. Basically, mimicking the onset of daylight. D3 is beneficial for exercise; it relieves that muscle soreness and tiredness and improves mental alertness. It helps beat those winter blues and gets you out there.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- kazinator 8y ago
  I should mention that when I'm too long on D3, I start to "feel my teeth". Exactly like this blogger: http://ctheblog.cforyourself.com/2008/12/overdosing-on-vitamin-d-side-effects.html http://ctheblog.cforyourself.com/2008/12/overdosing-on-vitam... When I get those teeth sensations, I back off the D3. That blogger's experience with waking up early in the morning between 5-6 exactly matches mine, also.

ak39 8y ago

Hi Beagle, Is this a daily dose of D3 of 10,000 IU? And for how long have you been taking it?

beagle3 8y ago
Daily dose, have been for ~6 years now, not religiously - when traveling for less than a week I usually don’t take any with me, and I deliberately take a couple of weeks off every year to see if it still makes any difference (after 2-4 weeks, it starts becoming harder to fall asleep again, after which I wait another week and restart). 50,000 daily for a month is toxic, though afaik 20,000 has no “period of time it becomes toxic”; however, D is fat Soluable, so I take breaks to make sure my body can get rid of any excess.
- macawfish 8y ago
  Do you also take magnesium?
  - beagle3 8y ago
    Yes; regular 400mg elemental magnesium (in chelated form)/day, and occasionally (e.g. after serious exercise) an additional teaspoon - 300-600mg elemental, in citrate form -- I find it keeps the muscles feeling much better (in a way that increasing the dose of chelated form does not -- even though the latter is supposed to be much more bioavailable). I have never thought about the calcification angle that you mentioned in another thread, I'm just constantly experimenting since my teens, and keeping the things that seem to improve my well being (with the occasional breaks to guarantee I'm not overdosing/accumulating, and also to see that it still helps). How much magnesium do you add to your D3? (and, if anyone is going to try magnesium citrate or magnesium oxide as a result of this post - I highly recommend building up your dose from very little, and doing that on days where you have easy access to a bathroom - in the beginning, bioavailability is low, but it does relax your bowel muscles ... and even after your bioavailability rises, will happen with excess amounts)
    - macawfish 8y ago
      I honestly just go by how I'm feeling. If I'm tense or restless, I might take some magnesium citrate before bed to help me sleep. If I'm feeling dehydrated or constipated, I'll take some magnesium citrate or an electrolyte drink packet with magnesium and potassium salts. If I'm anxious, I can take an epsom salt bath.

canttestthis 8y ago

10,000 IU is the upper limit recommended by researchers, but afaik 4,000 is the more commonly accepted/advised number.

beagle3 8y ago
The recommended dose and limit are body weight dependent, age and light/uv exposure influenced.
- canttestthis 8y ago
  Yes, agreed, but the 10,000 IU number is on the very upper end of the recommended intake in some research papers regardless of your body weight and age, and about twice as high as the upper recommended intake in current medical consensus. I'm also not a doctor but I would just ask anyone considering 10,000 IU / day for a long period after reading this post to run it by their doctor first.
macawfish 8y ago
Wasn't there a recent study suggesting that the recommended daily value was off by a factor of ~10? I think an important thing to consider is that if your going to take large amounts of vitamin D, you should also be getting enough magnesium to prevent unhealthy calcification. In the winter, I've taken one time doses of ~40,000 IU every few weeks or so, (always in the morning of course). I remember reading that 40,000 IU every single day for more than 3 months was what it would take for many people to develop hypercalcemia. Because vitamin D is fat soluble, that made me feel pretty safe taking a large mega dose from time to time. The effects of a large megadose are emotionally palpable. But I will say that the magnesium also seems important. I have a sensitive ankle that was once run over by a taxi and got badly sprained. Last winter, I started taking daily vitamin D without magnesium, and was probably doing about 10,000 IU/day. After a week or so, I noticed that my ankle was acting up more than usual. I took an epsom salt bath (magnesium sulfate) and it helped immediately. (https://www.vitamindcouncil.org/about-vitamin-d/am-i-getting-too-much-vitamin-d/ https://www.vitamindcouncil.org/about-vitamin-d/am-i-getting...)

bg4 8y ago

I take 5,000 IU of Vitamin D daily and 3 mg of Melatonin about an hour or so before bed. It has all but cured a lifetime of serious sleep issues.

kazinator 8y ago
I take 5000 D3 at 9 in the morning. It causes me to naturally wake up at 6 a.m. or even earlier, without feeling groggy. If I take it when traveling, jet lag is greatly diminished and overcome much more rapidly. I switch to taking it 9 a.m. of the destination's local time. If 9 a.m. occurs during the flight, I take it then. It's like an external clock pulse! The first time I took 5000 D3, I made the mistake of doing it in the evening. My sleep that very night was quite strange, disturbed with weird dreams. I immediately clued in to the fact that morning might be better. Basically, mimicking the onset of daylight. D3 is beneficial for exercise; it relieves that muscle soreness and tiredness and improves mental alertness. It helps beat those winter blues and gets you out there.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
kazinator 8y ago
I should mention that when I'm too long on D3, I start to "feel my teeth". Exactly like this blogger: http://ctheblog.cforyourself.com/2008/12/overdosing-on-vitamin-d-side-effects.html http://ctheblog.cforyourself.com/2008/12/overdosing-on-vitam... When I get those teeth sensations, I back off the D3. That blogger's experience with waking up early in the morning between 5-6 exactly matches mine, also.