Thursday, June 7, 2018

trivial medical info ...

... is a sketchy way for getting your attention, but here is some pertinent info. of benefit if you are one of many who struggle with disrupted overnight sleep. I might as well confess to being in that category: as I have weathered enough seasons (sounds much better than 'aging', right?) to know a night of sound sleep can be elusive. That year I spent working in a position where the assignment was to put forth my best efforts to guide people who were substance abusing into clear thoughts and freedom from drugs/alcohol, I learned too much about prescription sleep aids to ever use Rx for that.  Causing me to try various options in order to sleep well and long enough to qualify for restful nights.

I think Sleepytime tea helps, and know many people who have a warm cuppa before heading off to bed. My reluctance for choosing chamomile tea is based on the fact that my bladder already wakes me at some point to stumble off in a bleary state for relief. I've been desperate enough to sit down with a cup of tea, after a good sized dollop of honey is added, to sip before bedtime. But I know my bladder (like the caricatures in the ad. you see in magazines, dragging some hapless female off track to make a pit stop) will make excessive demands on my rest at some point in the wee hours of the morning. I can guarantee I am never hydrating sufficiently as I long ago learned: the more you drink, the more you pee.

Other options include generic benadryl. I have been there, done that. Don't like the way it dries out my mouth and sinus, but still on occasion will resort to taking a little pink pill when I am wide awake at 2: 19 a.m., and I want more sleep. It is often a toss up - especially when the alarm is set for four so I can get to work at 5:00. I know it works, just don't like to take it. Great too, for small children on road trips to keep you from strangling someone in the back seat...

The solution I would like to tender: a small blue pill I buy at walmart. I have shared this option with a variety of friends and family members after conversations over feeling sleep deprived. Especially when talking with 'women of a certain age.' I am happy to be here, breathing, taking up space, so no complaints about the info. on my driver's license.

The OTC med., in a little white plastic bottle, is hard to find. I have looked at two different stores this week, and the slot for this product has been empty. A bottle of 32 pills is only $4. Sounds good to me! So when I do find it, I buy all they have. You will find it on the bottom shelf there where the products change from pain killers to sleep aids. It is a generic, called: 'Sleep Aid'. How original is that? The actual ingredient is doxylamine succinate, 25 mg. I will confess to also taking a tablet that is melatonin, bought when they have a buy-one-get-one on generics at CVS. Whatever works for you is what you should do, but I find this to be a winning combo.

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