Melatonin

[rosephase]

I don't know about helping make you lucid but Melatonin really increased the vividness of my dreams. I did some research and gave it a try and its well worth the try. I used it last night and I remembered about 6 dreams and they where incredible vivid.

[CheshireMischief]

I have used melatonin numerous times in the past to aid lucidity. If you don't take enough of it nothing really happens, however if you take too much it becomes very hard to stay alsleep(although dreams can be INTENSE). Start slow with it and work your way up to the level you'd like to be. I have recomended this to friends, all of which reported increased lucidity. You are the first person I have met that made the connection, I stumbled upon it years ago and never read too much into it.

[hydroPWNic]

I was really wanting to do this but my Doctor and Therapist STRONGLY recommended me to stay away from Melatonin due to the fact i have Moderate Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. (Caused by damaged Seratonin receptors) They said theres such a thing as Seratonin Overload which could cause me to be in the hospital and usually causes coma/unconciousness withing 24 hours. I did some research and the reason this happens is an overload of Seratonin in the brain, and my damaged receptors wouldnt be able to take it in fast enough. Dont let me stop you from taking it, but i'm just warning that if someone with a similiar condition as mine tries it just be careful, and probably tell someone what could possible happen so they what to do just in case. ;)

[Armageddon_Heaven]

Wow, I have melatonin in my house!
It's my sister's but I usually take it.
I actually STOPPED taking it when I tried to get a Lucid Dream-
Mainly cuz I thought it would make me so asleep that I wouldn't be vivid at all during my dreams.
But if you're saying it works, I'm sure as hell gonna give it a shot!

[tjg92]

I've never heard of it being used as a lucid aid. I just use it to get over insomnia and get my sleep schedule back on track. Now that I think about it, I've had some pretty vivid dreams after taking it. I've also had pretty vivid dreams without it... Dunno.

[Torcher]

I've used Meltonin now for a few years, often in combination with valerian or kava or both. I have trouble sleeping, so this helps, but it also greatly enhances my dreams. I've noticed that melatonin lends itself to increasing the actual dream material, while valerian adds more to the sensory experience. Kava, aside from being a general groovy relaxant, can at times aid in lucids or expand the dream or lengthen the duration of the remembered dream. These are all pretty cool supplements. So far, one of the wildest dream sequences I've ever had resulted from a Valerian and Melatonin combo. I was also sleeping in someone else's house that night, so the change from my normal sleep setting probably had something to do with it as well. And coffee, try that once in a while. The dream mentioned above happened after a long driving trip, so take Coffee+Melatonin+Valerian+not a lot of sleep the night before+different setting = blam. Cheers

[redtitan]

I was really wanting to do this but my Doctor and Therapist STRONGLY recommended me to stay away from Melatonin due to the fact i have Moderate Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. (Caused by damaged Seratonin receptors) They said theres such a thing as Seratonin Overload which could cause me to be in the hospital and usually causes coma/unconciousness withing 24 hours. I did some research and the reason this happens is an overload of Seratonin in the brain, and my damaged receptors wouldnt be able to take it in fast enough. Dont let me stop you from taking it, but i'm just warning that if someone with a similiar condition as mine tries it just be careful, and probably tell someone what could possible happen so they what to do just in case. ;)
[/b]

Umm, all I can find online actually recommends taking melatonin for OCD. Personally, I'd like to take some to help me LD, but considering I have OCD too, I really don't want to die or anything . . . Are you on any anti-depressents (MAOIs)? It says that melatonin can react with MAOIs which can lead to overdose. Maybe this is what your doctor was talking about. Since I'm able to control my symptoms without medication, it might be safe for me to take melatonin. But I'm definitely going to check it out some more first . . .

Adam

[FluBB]

hmm... how much melatonin should someone take to get the best chance? i have taken it when i have had some anxiety problems but never regularly... so how many mgs?

[CheshireMischief]

I have used melatonin numerous times in the past to aid lucidity. If you don't take enough of it nothing really happens, however if you take too much it becomes very hard to stay alsleep(although dreams can be INTENSE). Start slow with it and work your way up to the level you'd like to be. I have recomended this to friends, all of which reported increased lucidity. You are the first person I have met that made the connection, I stumbled upon it years ago and never read too much into it.
[/b]

To clarify, start with one pill. You'll know when you've taken too much when you don't get any sleep (when too much is taken your dreams get crazy clear, though you wake up every 5 miutes or so). Take about two or three weeks to adjust your body to it. And be carefull man, everyone is different and playing with chemistry always entails a bit of a risk. I have found melatonin to be very pleasant, but I have read on other posts that it doesn't agree with everybody.

[Dm7]

I took melatonin before... I can't remember the dosage (I only took a pill... ah.. possibly 3 grams per pill), but it always cause me to have nightmares with vividness. I could not sleep any longer than 10 min with that dosage. I tried it with half the dosage and I still had the same result... my dreams were so nightmareish and vivid that I could not sleep very well. It always make me feel like I was under the attack.

I don't know why. Maybe next time, I will try a lower dosage, but so far, I didn't like the effect of it. A friend of mine have suggested that I take less than 1 gram, but it was already hard trying to make it into a half dosage... maybe next time I'll find a weaker version of melatonin and try that.

So maybe you can try it with 1 gram or less and see?

Oh and it never helped me into getting lucid at all.

[gonnabeathinker]

I just made a new post about Neocitron, maybe its like melatonin. What is melatonin?

[Dm7]

I just made a new post about Neocitron, maybe its like melatonin. What is melatonin?
[/b]

Melatonin is a natural harmone in our brain known to be responsible for our bioclock for sleeping. Apparently, it is also linked to anti-age harmone. When we take melatonin, it makes us feel sleepy because melatonin is naturally produced and peaks at night time when you sleep.

It is a supplement/herbal medicine as far as I know... and a natural solution compared to all sleep medicines out there.

It also is famous for relieving jet lag by taking some few hours before going to sleep then brain resets the bioclock faster compared to when you don't take it for jetlag.

[The Mad Hatter]

Melatonin is a controller of the sleep cycle, as previously stated. Its production is inhibited by light, so that's why it is only produced during sleep. Also something anybody taking supplements should know: They are not recommended for anybody under 18, and I've seen some that have said 21. You don't want to flood an already hormonally crazed teenage body with more hormones, do you?

Also, the normal production of Melatonin is between 5 to 25 micro grams a night. The supplements have anywhere from 1000 to 3000 micro grams a pill. So if you're comfortable putting that much more of one hormone into yourself, then go ahead.

I'm not knocking it's effectiveness, I'm just pointing out that its a huge change from what your body is used to.

[Sparrower]

Wikipedia on the safety of melatonin:

"Melatonin is practically nontoxic and exhibits almost no toxic side effects. However, melatonin taken in combination with monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) can lead to overdose because MAOIs inhibit the breakdown of melatonin by the body. Exogenous melatonin normally does not affect the endogenous melatonin profile in the short or medium-term, merely advancing the phase of endogenous melatonin production in time.

In individuals with auto-immune disorders, there is concern that melatonin supplementation may exacerbate symptoms due to stimulation of the immune system.[31]

Melatonin causes somnolence, and therefore should not be taken within five hours before driving, operating machinery, etc. As melatonin is almost always taken at the end of the waking day, this is generally not an issue.

Individuals who experience orthostatic intolerance, a cardiovascular condition that results in reduced blood pressure and blood flow to the brain when a person stands, may experience a worsening of symptoms when taking melatonin supplements, a study at Penn State College of Medicine's Milton S. Hershey Medical Center suggests. Melatonin can exacerbate the symptoms by reducing nerve activity in those who experience the condition, the study found.[32]

As a natural substance with a virtual absence of problematic side effects, with health benefits to users without illnesses, melatonin has been classified as a dietary supplement and made freely available in the USA, but in the EU, over-the-counter sale without prescription is not yet officially permitted."

Seems safe enough to me

[The Mad Hatter]

Well, you can trust wikipedia, or the label on the bottle. Don't get me wrong, I like wikipedia, but it's been quite biased about things before, so I'd go with the bottle.

Just sayin'

-Hatter

[SKA]

I have been taking Melatonin for years since I've always been quite a restless one and a terrible Insomniac at times. It has helped me before but later on it didn't seem to have the same effect anymore: Tolerance had built up. Which is why I stopped taking Melatonin. I still have em in my house and get them prescribed by my doctor.

and erm...
Melatonin doesn't work AT ALL if you take it after Dawn. It should be Taken by Dawn, when Natural Melatonin production is active in the Brain. Take them later than Dawn and it'll hardly work at all.

can anyone, who's had vivid and clear dreams after Melatonin intake, tell me how much MiliGrams were taken, how long before Sleep and at what time of the day/evening/night?

[FluBB]

I have been taking Melatonin for years since I've always been quite a restless one and a terrible Insomniac at times. It has helped me before but later on it didn't seem to have the same effect anymore: Tolerance had built up. Which is why I stopped taking Melatonin. I still have em in my house and get them prescribed by my doctor.

and erm...
Melatonin doesn't work AT ALL if you take it after Dawn. It should be Taken by Dawn, when Natural Melatonin production is active in the Brain. Take them later than Dawn and it'll hardly work at all.

can anyone, who's had vivid and clear dreams after Melatonin intake, tell me how much MiliGrams were taken, how long before Sleep and at what time of the day/evening/night?
[/b]
yeah i asked someone to do that for me a while ago in this thread... yet no reply!!! maybe it doesnt work. ill just stick to my natural lds.