Sleep Medicine Specialist Questions Sleep Medicine Specialist

Sleep insomnia?

I’ve been not sleeping until 3 am 4 and 5am. I want to know what that can be. I’ve tried everything to make me sleep but I still continue to stay up the only thing that seems to help is weed.

Female | 19 years old
Complaint duration: Years
Medications: None
Conditions: None

3 Answers

Most teenagers and young adults have "Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder" who prefer to go to bed late and sleep late. The key is waking up 8 hours after her preferred bedtime and no naps. Taking Melatonin 2 hours before preferred bedtime and "shift your sleep clock" forward
There are many things that can lead to insomnia - too much screen time before bed (the blue light from screens promotes alertness), caffeine in the afternoon/evening, large meals in the evening time, anxiety, not enough activity or exercise during the day. I would speak to your physician more extensively about your sleep habits and/or mental and hopefully they can pinpoint some lifestyle changes you could make. Melatonin is a relatively benign supplement that mimics a neurotransmitter in our own brain that helps us to fall asleep and is available at the pharmacy without a prescription. You could try taking this 30 minutes before bedtime to see if it helps you fall asleep. It is not addictive.

Heather Collette
At your age it is common to have a delayed sleep onset and sleep cycle.... teens tend to be night owls... weed will lead to other problems.... or unmask problems...