best natural sleep aids

 I suppose it wouldn't be fair if I told you the benefits of sleep without providing you advice on the very best sleep aids available. There are a great number of factors that lead me to believe that sleep aid use is quite common on earth of poker. They include: 1) the overuse of stimulants such as for instance caffeine, Red Bull, Amp, Adderall, etc 2) the long duration of poker games, some lasting before next morning 3) the increased play of on-line poker, lasting well to the night. I'd suppose poker players have their sleep schedules pretty screwed up. I'd even bet that their own circadian rhythm might be only a little off tilt. Don't worry though. Hopefully after scanning this section, you'll be able to choose the right sleep aid for you in order to experience all of the great benefits of a great night's sleep. You could even win more often.best natural sleep aids

Sleep aids

Nearly all sleep aids are relatively safe and effective. Some are controlled substances, however their abuse potential is minimal compared to other controlled substances. The main concept concerning selecting the very best sleep aid is residual drowsiness. The last thing a poker play wants is to be drowsy a day later at the table. Too many bad things could happen if you're sluggish. You need to focus on the sleep aid's half-life. Half-life is truly merely a fancy medical term that describes the time it requires the human body to eliminate 1 / 2 of the original concentration of the drug. Usually, it requires anywhere from 5-7 half-lives for the drug to be entirely eliminated from the body. Thus, if the original concentration of the drug was 10mg and has a half-life 2 hours, then after 2 hours the newest concentration could be 5mg, and after 4 hours the newest concentration could be 2.5mg, and so on. I'll briefly discuss the most frequent sleep aids below. I've grouped them to the drug classes based on the mechanism of action. By the end, I'll let you know my recommendations.
Prescription sleep aids

Non-benzodiazepine (non-BZN) sleep aids

All of these work the exact same way. They bind to the benzodiazepine 1 receptor in the brain. The side effect profile can be similar. It includes drowsiness, dizziness, amnesia, headache, and GI problems. The difference between drugs in this class is their duration of action and potency.

Ambien is the most frequent sleep aid prescribed today. The half-life of Ambien is around 2.5 hours. Thus, it requires around 10 roughly hours for it to be completely eliminated from your body. It's pretty good at getting you to sleep and keeping you asleep. It's also generic so it's inexpensive compared to a number of the other sleep aids. If you're looking to get a great night's rest of at the least 8-10 hours, that is my drug of choice. Its effectiveness and price allow it to be the best of all of the sleep aids. However, if you're in a tournament and may only get 5-7 hours of sleep, there is a powerful possibility you could have some residual drowsiness the following day.

Lunesta is really a relatively new sleep aid. The half-life is around 6.5 hours. Thus, it's going to take quite a long time to get out of your system. In addition, it does not have a common so it's pricey. Due to the long half-life and high probability of residual drowsiness, I don't recommend this drug for poker players. The only real time you may use this drug is if you're able to sleep for a few days straight.
Sonata is my drug of choice with this class. Its half-life is around 1 hour. Thus, it will soon be from the system in 5-7 hours. It may possibly not be as strong as Ambien or Lunesta, but it should do the job. If you're unsure of simply how much sleep you'll manage to get, you should select this drug. The odds of residual drowsiness are minimal of the other drugs in this class. Due to the short half-life, it may also be used if you get up early in the night time and have trouble getting back to sleep.

Benzodiazepine sleep aids

These drugs aren't as selective while the non-BZN sleep aids. They bind never to only the BZN1 receptor, but also the BZN 2 receptor. Thus, there is an increased likelihood of side effects. Side effects include drowsiness, decreased concentration, cognitive impairments, anterograde amnesia, daytime anxiety, and rebound insomnia. The differences in drugs in this class are time to onset of action, duration of action, and potency.

Restoril is probably the most commonly prescribed BZN sleep aid. However, it's possibly the worst one for poker players. The half-life is between 10-15 hours. Because its metabolites will also be active drugs, if used for consecutive days, the half-life of the drug will actually increase to even significantly more than 15 hours. Thus, there's a powerful likelihood you'll experience daytime drowsiness. Even though it is cheap, I recommend staying from this drug. The half-life is simply too long.

Triazolam isn't prescribed much anymore, however it's primarily used for insomnia. Because it's more fat soluble than Restoril, it's onset of action is quicker, and its half-life is only around 2 hours. It's good at getting you to sleep and keeping you asleep. In reality, this is the drug of choice by my professor of pharmacology. Side note: This person was active in the creation of Gatorade. His memory was unbelievable. He never used one note during his lectures. The issue I have with triazolam is its high incidence of anxiety and amnesia. Because it's so fat soluble, it is in and from the system ultimately causing an increased incidence of side effects. Still though, if I'd to utilize a BZN sleep aid, I'd choose this 1 over Restoril.

Other prescription sleep aids

These sleep aids don't fall under the above categories.
Trazodone was originally used to deal with depression. However, due to the unfavorable side-effect profile and the introduction of more efficient and safer antidepressants, it's mostly only used for insomnia. The half-life is between 4-5 hours. Due to the long half life, and its capability to cause cognitive slowing, I recommend staying from this if you play poker.

Rozerem is the newest sleep aid available. Because of the, it's pretty expensive. It works only a little differently compared to the other sleep aids. It actually binds to and stimulates the melatonin receptors in the brain. It's been nicknamed melatonin on steroids. Its half-life is between 1-3 hours. It's really only utilized in patients who have a history of substance abuse because it's zero addiction potential. I think, there's cheaper and better sleep aids readily available for poker players.
Non-prescription sleep aids

Melatonin is probably the granddaddy of OTC sleep aids. It's a hormone that is secreted by the pineal gland at night. It's considered to help regulate a person's circadian rhythm. Its secretion is stimulated by darkness, and inhibited by light. It's commonly used by individuals who experience jet lag or midnight-shift workers. Because poker players could have a messed up circadian rhythm, it could be beneficial to incorporate between 0.5-5mg nightly. Why the wide selection of dosage? Some individuals sleep fine just using 0.5mg and actually experience stimulation on doses of 3mg. However, others need 5mg to help sleep. Get the dosage that's right for you. If you experience drowsiness a day later, you almost certainly used too much. I recommend the controlled-release melatonin over regular melatonin. I think, those poker players that stay up late through the night, and sleep well to the afternoon could greatly benefit from melatonin.

Valerian root is thought to truly have a similar effect as BZN's because it inhibits the metabolism of GABA. Because it is much less potent as BZN's, it's onset of action is really a little longer. You ought to bring it about 2 hours before you go to bed. Due to this inconvenience, I don't understand how beneficial this will be to a poker player. If you do purchase some valerian root, search for supplements that contain 0.4-1% valerenic acid. A normal dose is between 400-900mg 2 hours before bedtime. If you're looking for a natural supplement to cut back anxiety and help you sleep, that is definitely your very best choice.

Magnesium is probably the hidden jewel when it comes to OTC sleep aids. It not merely calms your nerves, additionally it helps improve the quality of your sleep. Nearly all the US population is deficient in magnesium. It's associated with a huge selection of chemical reactions within the body, sets from anxiety to heart problems. Entire books have now been discussing the benefits of magnesium. Like fish oil, this will be an addition in every poker player's nutritional regimen. Do not buy magnesium oxide because poor absorption. Take anywhere from 400-600mg of magnesium citrate or glycinate an hour before bed. Orange juice, apple juice, or tomato juice increases magnesium's absorption while calcium or other diary products decrease its absorption. I cannot stress enough how important magnesium supplementation is.best natural sleep aids

Benadryl and other sedating anti-histamines shouldn't be used by poker players. The increased likelihood of residual drowsiness and having less efficacy of improving sleep quality make these an undesirable choice for poker players. There are too many other sleep aids on the market that are more effective.