Hey,
Please update answers in this thread. I’m 3.5 months off and have terrible sleep quality. I can only sleep 5 hours per night. Did it improve over time or what can I take to sleep longer?
Thank you
My sleep is much better, almost pre-fin. Have had ups and downs I’d say, usually coinciding with whichever protocol I’m trying, but these days very good.
Perhaps on the light side, but I’m not sure. I can totally take naps now if I want to too which is, well, heavenly.
It is as good as you might imagine/recall it being also.
To be honest I’d say 5 hours is heading in the right direction - I consider myself having 5 -6.5 hours as a good night .
Many of us on here had the episodes of total insomnia (0 hours ) or 1.5 -3 per night .
I averaged 2 hours per night for months and months , whereas now I’m doing much much better .
I think if you’re on 5 hours at this stage so near to your discontinuation the only way is up ( although I think it might take up to 6 months to feel more normal patterns)
Do you use any kind of sleep medication or sleep aid?
Ahh I just re read the lower part of the post - zopiclone is really good to take here , a few of us have used that and it helps fall asleep quicker and get a few more hours in . Just be careful as it is addictive and you will have to have a serious game plan if you use that one (but it will deliver instant results)
Sleep aids - melatonin is good , L Theanine, CBD oil , 5htp has worked for some people and also the amino acid Glycine is supposed to be good .
Ones that have worked for others include : chamomile , passionflower , lemonbalm and lavender pills.
The thing that seemed to reset my sleep pattern the most was Amitriptyline. It just made everything in my mind and body seem ‘normal ‘ again , but this one would need some discussion with a doctor as it’s not for everyone .
Thank you guys,
I can take a nap during the day but my sleep at night is so bad. I just never feel rested these days. What is the realistic timeline to see at least any improvements in this area? I know that it may never improve but I’m just asking from your experience or based on everything you have read so far.
I don’t have a problem with falling asleep, only with sleep duration and when I wake up lets say at 5 am I can’t go back to sleep at all.
Just for awareness, it was a problem for a member here too https://forum.propeciahelp.com/u/rb26dett/summary
after PFS I had a terrible insomnia for many, many years. It took about 8 years for my sleep to return to normal. I don’t know about you, but for me the recovery started with several water fasts and a lighter diet.
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Besides proviron, did you also use HCG or clomid in the past?
Easy food to digest.
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@backfromhell ok thanks but some of these aggravate my widespread intolerances. Can you specify if you don’t mind. Given you recovered so well after a number of years gives me a little more hope. I regularly fast but gained nothing as yet.
I can believe this.
It seems a lot of my symptoms are related to the things I eat. There is no doubt in my mind that for me, anything with caffeine causes a few tinnitus throughout the day.
Once I abstain from caffeine, the tinnitus goes away.
Personally, I feel that it’s a case-by-case basis and requires trial-and-error.
For me, eating or drinking the wrong substances causes 2 or 3 tinnitus episodes throughout the day. I’ve tested it over and over again for the past 5 months, and it’s a consistent pattern.
I also used a caffeine-fortified shampoo, and guess what? 3 hours later, I got a tinnitus episode.
Yeh mate I appreciate that. Stuff I could have even a year ago “already with years of well established PFS” I can’t go near now. My allergic/I intolerance list has just continued to grow. I returned to chicken after a full year off and the reactions to that subsided with time as long as I don’t have it too often. I am/was running out of things to eat. Almost everything hits me. Some in a very bad way. Even with trial and error it’s often like chasing a moving target.
What symptoms do you get when you eat the wrong kinds of food?
Cold limbs, pins and needles, increased anxiety, bloating, louder tinnitus, bleeding gums, sleepiness, sweats, diarrhea, rectum bleeding, even more strength loss, dryer skin, greater urination, hooded eye gets worse It can aggravate most of my symptoms tbh Carbs actually improve my mood then I fall off a cliff the next day, obviously seratonin then the receptor issue with carbs.
For me it improved big time. After crash it was impossible to sleep or like 3-5 hours if at all,
Now i can sleep good deep 8-9h. Except when i get stressed of anxious before bed time
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Just remembered this forum which helped me a lot over a year ago. I’m doing much much better now. I still don’t sleep as long as before the AI fucked me but it’s enough now. Usually 7 hours or so, usually wake up once a night. Mentally feeling fine… working full time. It took a year for the suicidal depression to lift and a few months after to feel pretty normal. I didn’t have much sexual sides but that’s all fine now too. I only take 1mg melatonin for sleeo now.
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I had insomnia for >2 years before starting finasteride. Where I had to take benzo’s to get to sleep. Eventually their effects wore out, because my body got used to it.
I never got over the insomnia. But over time became less sensitive to the stress that caused the overthinking and consequently insomnia, which made it easier to go to sleep. I always used meditation as a way to let go of the thoughts.
Highly recommend getting into it. Meditate for at least a two months every day for at least ten minutes using a guidance app. You’ll get the hang of it, and once you do it’s easier to let go of disturbing thoughts. Just my two cents.
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I agree I’ve dabbled with meditation too. What I found very helpful was doing the Wim Hof method practices. I only had cold showers since Jan and I do the breathing exercises a few times a week. I should do it more! I found the breathing exercises to be more beneficial than guided meditation, like headspace, but guess they are different.