Melatonin and Alcohol to help with stress and sleep–is this a dangerous mix?
My mind is racing right now…
I have a seasonal job working for one of the lessee companies at Six Flags and continuing my education at the community college. I’ve been working there for years, I go back in a week when the park opens, and I have another meeting this Tuesday at Human Resources building about changes made for this upcoming season. I’m one of their best employees and even got promoted last year. Yet, I keep having obsessive thoughts about getting fired from my job, even for no reason or that I’ll make a fool outta myself by accidentally doing stupid sh*t I wasn’t aware of and my boss will get pissed at me or that I’ll get a date and time wrong after confirming and writing it down. I have severe obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and it has been acting over time on me and has gotten worse within the last six months. I take Melatonin at night to help me fall asleep. Tonight after a couple of deep breaths, my mind is still racing, so I thought about drinking something alcoholic, like mixing Vodka with soda, along with my Melatonin. Is this safe? mixing alcohol and Melatonin? Cause my head keeps racing and I want my thoughts to just shut the f**k up so that I can sleep, and make the weekend go by faster.
Tagged with: Alcohol • Dangerous • help • Melatonin • sleepis • stress • this
Filed under: Alcohol Stress
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mixing any kind of sleep medication with alcohol can be an extremely dangerous combination. i would consult your doctor – maybe he can put you on a better sleep medication and help you with your OCD.
I think you are stressed over school and going back to work. This is normal and happens to everyone. We as humans tend to think we have always been this way , but it will pass, it’s most likely a stage you are going thru and will go away when you get back into your work. You are “beating up on yourself” Tell yourself constantly how blessed and what a great person you are, you were created to be who you are and that is a child of the King. You can think your self into anything. If you want to feel good then think positive thoughts, even pat your back and say, you did good. Everyone is afraid of failure. Keeping busy is a good thing for you. Having too much time on your hands is not good. You will be ok. If you need something for sleep then consult your dr. Hang in there, it will turn out good, just wait and see.
Well, melatonin is a drug your brain produces anyway, (the pineal gland does this), so I don’t see how alcohol can be dangerous with it since it’s always present in your system in some amount whether you’re taking pills or not.
However. . , alcohol is not a good way to relax. –It may feel like it, but both the long and short term effects will only cause you to be MORE anxious and screwed up.
What you might want to try is cutting all caffeine products from your diet. (Many softdrinks, even some clear ones, have more caffeine than a cup of coffee.)
Also, while it may be hard to sit still for long enough, if you can do 20 minutes or more of meditation every day, it can pretty much save your life. 20 minutes is nothing, and it will make a big difference.
What I like to do is this. . .
When you wake up in the morning, go use the washroom if you have to, but basically don’t start your day yet. Just get nice and comfy, (meditation doesn’t require any special sitting positions. It’s about the mind, not the body).
Lie on your back and shut your eyes. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth, imagining that you are circulating energy from the air through your body and out again in a big circle. Just try to empty your mind and think of nothing. –If thoughts come in and out, just watch them and don’t let them carry you away.
Then bit by bit, as you relax your muscles, (especially those behind your eyes), imagine yourself melting down into the earth. Start with your toes and feel them melt down into the earth, and slowly work your way up along your body and your fingertips and arms up to the top of your head. Imagine yourself drifting down under the ground where the earth is comforting and cool, and let the energy of the earth flow through you, taking away all your stresses and filling you up with fresh energy from the planet.
When you are done down there, slowly rise back up to your body and when you are connected again, open your eyes and get up.
This is called, “grounding” and it will do a huge amount to keep you stable and centered throughout the day so that any problems or stresses are much easier to deal with. If you meditate daily for 20 – 40 minutes, you will become quite powerful over time.
You don’t have to do it in the morning, but I like to, because I’ve already slept, so there’s little chance of falling asleep again.
Give it a shot for a week and see how big a difference it makes.
I hope that helps!
Q. Are there any side effects to mixing alcohol and melatonin? Sometimes I may have a beer or two and then later take a melatonin when bed time approaches. Does alcohol lessen the effectiveness? Strengthen it?
A. Alcohol helps induce sleep, however, there is often a rebound effect a few hours later with waking up in the middle of the night with difficulty falling back asleep. I think one drink of alcohol combined with one mg of melatonin should be safe, but two or more drinks along with more than 1 mg of melatonin may interfere with clarity of thinking or induce vivid dreams. However different people respond differently.
(Keep in mind when they say one drink- they mean one mild mix drink or one beer. Not like one drink with two or three shots in it…)
yes you will have a long unproductive sleep and doing this long enough lactic acid will build up in your muscles