(CNN) — Long-term use of melatonin supplements may be linked with a higher risk of heart failure, according to new research — but does that mean people taking it as a sleep aid should stop using it now?
In a review of electronic medical records, thousands of adults who had chronic insomnia and took melatonin for a year or longer had a 90% higher chance of heart failure over the next five years, compared with participants who had the same health factors but didn’t take melatonin. Melatonin users were also more than three times as likely to be hospitalized for heart failure and about twice as likely to die from any cause.
But experts suggest holding off on seeing melatonin as a definite danger. The research had significant limitations, was not designed to be able to prove cause and effect, and contradicts previous studies that indicated positives for heart health.
The research also hasn’t yet been peer-reviewed or published in a journal but will be presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2025 meeting taking place November 7-10.
“Melatonin supplements are widely thought of as a safe and ‘natural’ option to support better sleep, so it was striking to see such consistent and significant increases in serious health outcomes, even after balancing for many factors,” Dr. Ekenedilichukwu Nnadi, lead research author and chief resident in internal medicine at SUNY Downstate/Kings County Primary Care in Brooklyn, said in a news release.
However, “while the association we found raises safety concerns about the widely used supplement, our study cannot prove a direct cause-and-effect relationship,” Nnadi said. “This means more research is needed to test melatonin’s safety for the heart.”
Naturally occurring melatonin in the brain is a hormone produced by the pineal gland in response to darkness, to help the body wind down for sleep.
The melatonin in supplements can be extracted from the pineal glands of animals or synthetically produced via a chemical process.
In the United States, because melatonin is sold as a dietary supplement, manufacturers aren’t subject to the level of scrutiny involved in the US Food and Drug Administration’s safety measures and approval processes for drugs. This means melatonin supplements can contain significantly more of the active ingredient than advertised or necessary, as well as harmful hidden additives.
Chronic insomnia, experienced by 10% of the global population, is defined by taking more than 30 minutes to fall asleep or fall back to sleep up to three times weekly for more than three months. It can lead to problems with memory, daytime energy, mood, thinking and concentration, work or school performance, and one’s social life.
A doctor can help one determine whether insomnia is occurring on its own or because of an underlying factor, such as a medical condition or stressful life circumstance, and therefore determine the best ways to treat it — whether that’s adjusting your sleep routine, undergoing therapy for mental or emotional distress or cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, taking medication, or treating a medical condition.
Melatonin use and heart health
Melatonin supplements are often marketed as a safe sleep aid, but there hasn’t been sufficient data on long-term safety for cardiovascular health, the authors said.
The research team assessed more than 130,000 adults with health records in the TriNetX Global Research Network, a large international electronic database. They were about 55 years old on average, and 61.4% were women. Participants with melatonin use documented in medication entries in their health records for more than a year were classified as the melatonin group, whereas those without any record of melatonin use were in the “non-melatonin group.”
These factors lend themselves to a few important limitations, the authors and independent experts pointed out.
The database includes patients in countries that require a prescription for melatonin, such as the United Kingdom, and those that don’t, including the United States — so the control group may unknowingly include adults who take melatonin without a prescription, which wouldn’t be reflected in their medical records, Dr. Carlos Egea, who wasn’t involved in the research, said in a statement provided by the Science Media Centre. Egea is president of the Spanish Federation of Sleep Medicine Societies.
The researchers also didn’t have details on the severity of participants’ insomnia or whether they had any mental health issues, both of which can influence melatonin use and heart health risks, Nnadi said.
Insomnia has been associated with a higher risk of having a heart attack or stroke. Disrupted circadian rhythms — our body clocks in which melatonin plays a role — and insufficient sleep have been linked with greater odds of cardiovascular issues including heart failure.
Other limitations include a lack of information on dosage, the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a trade association for the dietary supplement and functional food industry, said in a statement. “Decades of consumer experience and multiple clinical studies indicate that low-dose, short-term supplementation is safe for healthy adults when used as directed,” the association added.
The research challenges previous studies, including a March analysis of four studies that found melatonin supplementation improved heart failure patients’ quality of life and cardiac function, Egea said.
Melatonin is also an antioxidant, and antioxidants help protect against damage to DNA by oxidative stress, an imbalance between free radicals and antioxidants in the body.
Before you take sleep aids
Many people turn to melatonin as a short- or long-term solution to sleep woes. But for some people, the supplement has been linked to various side effects including headaches, nausea, dizziness, drowsiness, stomach aches, confusion or disorientation, tremors, low blood pressure, irritability, mild anxiety and depression.
Before resorting to supplements, “speak to your doctor first about, for one, getting a proper diagnosis for your sleep difficulty and then discussing the appropriate course of treatment,” Dr. Marie-Pierre St-Onge, director of the Center of Excellence for Sleep & Circadian Research in the department of medicine at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, said in the American Heart Association news release. “People should be aware that (melatonin) should not be taken chronically without a proper indication.”
Healthy sleep hygiene involves limiting light exposure, screen time and consumption of food and alcohol in the few hours before bed. Your bedroom should be dark, cool and quiet.
If you still choose to supplement melatonin, pharmaceutical grade melatonin is best, experts told CNN in a 2022 report — look for a stamp showing that the independent nonprofit US Pharmacopoeia’s Dietary Supplement Verification Program has tested the product.
Whenever I feel a little under the weather or sense that I’m coming down with something, these essential oil roll-on remedies are the first thing I turn to. These essential oil roll-on recipes are super simple to put together and really work. I’ll show you my favourite recipes to help relieve symptoms from headache, insomnia, and cold and flu viruses naturally!
Roll-on remedies are a quick and natural first line of defense against common (yet super annoying) ailments: headaches, disrupted sleep, and cold and flu viruses. They are made with high concentrations of herbs and essential oils in a gentle dilution of carrier oil that is convenient to use.
Today, I’ll share the three essential oil roll-on recipes that I turn to so I can avoid popping pills.
This post will cover…
Herbs have many different healing properties, depending on which you choose.
Do Roll-On Remedies Work?
In a word…yes!
Somehow, I’m always surprised at the effectiveness of my homemade roll-on remedies. Even though I use a lot of essential oils and remedies on myself and with my family, I still have the tiniest jolt of awe every time they work.
And why shouldn’t they? Herbal healing has been around for longer than me, or you, or Western Medicine, for that matter. The power of plants is something that you can easily harness into a pocket-sized roll-on bottle to help with little ailments before they get out of control.
I include essential oils in many of my recipes both for their scent and herbal properties.
Selecting Essential Oil for Your Roll-On Recipes
Before I give you the recipes for my roll-on remedies, I want to share a little about essential oil brands. I’m not affiliated with any essential oil network marketing companies and, to be honest, I’ve only tried a few of the products they offer.
Over the years, I have tried a large number of brands from traditional stores, though, and I like to shop around for different brands to experiment with. I use my nose and other senses to evaluate how the oils work for me.
I have researched and even chatted with the makers of a number of brands and have learned two things:
There is no certification or industry standard for essential oil brands, meaning the quality of the products is all over the map.
More expensive oils are not necessarily better. Some brands that have high price points have far inferior products than those with lower price points. Yes, ingredients are one reason for the price of the bottle, but that number is also influenced by marketing, customer demand, and supply scale, among other things. I used to bypass the inexpensive essential oils brands, thinking that they were of poor quality, when in fact the price of some brands is low because they produce so much that they are able to gain more economies of scale.
Do your research to ensure your essential oils are of good quality.
Are Roll-On Essential Oils Safe?
Essential oils are compounds extracted from plants, meaning they are supercharged with the plant’s aromas and herbal benefits. They’re potent and strong, one of my favourite herbal ingredients, and completely safe for use when used right.
When using essential oil roll-ons, it’s important to get the dose right. Typically, you never want to place pure essential oil directly on the skin. That is why I dilute it with a high-quality carrier oil to make it completely safe for skin application. Certain essential oils should also be avoided for skin use, such as cinnamon bark and oregano.
And as mentioned above, you want to make sure you’re using high-quality essential oils. So do your research into any brand before buying, regardless of price point. This will make certain that you’re actually getting results from your roll-on oil!
Essential oils will need carrier oils to be safely applied to the skin.
How to Use an Essential Oil Roll-On
I made three of my favourite roll-on remedies from the essential oils, and I used grapeseed oil as the carrier oil to dilute them.
To apply your roll-on oil, make sure to perform a patch test beforehand to see how your skin will react. To do this, wash your forearm with soap and pat it dry. Roll on your essential oil remedy and wait 24 hours to see if there is any kind of reaction.
I apply every one of my roll-on essential oils differently. Some I like on my face, behind my ears, on my chest, and even on the bottom of my feet. I noted for each roll-on oil how I like to use it, but experiment for yourself. Just make sure to keep the oils far enough away from your eyes!
So let’s put these oils to good use, shall we?
Headache Relief Roll-on Remedy
Add the drops of essential oil into the roller bottle and fill with grapeseed oil, leaving a bit of headspace for the roller cap. Pop the roller into the bottle and add the cap.
How to Use
When I first feel a headache coming on, I use this roll-on for headaches by creating a halo around my head. Rolling it around my hairline from my forehead to temple, around the nape of my neck, and back up to the starting point. If I catch a headache before it gets momentum, this remedy will help take it away.
Sleep Well Roll-on Remedy
Add the drops of essential oil into the roller bottle and fill with grapeseed oil, leaving a bit of headspace for the roller cap. Pop the roller into the bottle and add the cap.
How to Use
I apply this remedy before bed to help promote restful sleep. To use, I roll it behind my ears, the back of my neck, and the soles of my feet. I also apply hand and foot lotion at night, so I roll the ball in the palm of my hand, mix it in with the lotion, and then rub it into my hands and feet.
Cold and Flu Roll-on Remedy
Add the drops of essential oil into the roller bottle and fill with grapeseed oil, leaving a bit of headspace for the roller cap. Pop the roller into the bottle and add the cap.
This one has a lot more ingredients, but every drop is worth its weight in gold! Having gone through every single virus the last few years that my son was in daycare, I stopped getting 80% of them when I started using this combination.
How to Use
I apply this remedy in cold and flu season and when there is a virus going around. Usually, I roll it on my chest and the soles of my feet. I also use it as a hand sanitizer when I’m out in public and can’t wash my hands.
Thanks to their small size, you can bring these remedies with you on the go.
For fun, I added some fresh herbs to my essential oil roll-ons to help me identify them. I added a tip of young rosemary to the cold and flu remedy, and a few small peppermint leaves to the roll-on for headaches.
I also added small lavender flowers on the stem, plus some purple Centaurea Classic Artist Mix petals (because lavender doesn’t hold its colour in oil, but Centaurea does) to the sleep remedy.
Add fresh or dried botanicals for appearance.
But…you can go a bit more traditional by using a label maker to identify the name of each of the essential oil roll-on recipes, too.
Add labels, especially if you plan on gifting these remedies.
Either way, you’ll be sure to love these fantastic essential oil roll-ons. I recommend mixing them up so they are ready for you the next time you feel symptoms coming on. You’ll be thankful you did!
More Ways to Use Essential Oils
A city girl who learned to garden and it changed everything. Author, artist, Master Gardener. Better living through plants.
It is nightmare where waking up is the problem…but a new study suggests CBD could help
It is one of the most common health complaints in the modern world, now a new study offers hope for CBD and insomnia. A groundbreaking trial in Australia is putting CBD (cannabidiol) to the test as a potential new treatment.
Melbourne-based Avecho Biotechnology has launched the world’s largest randomized, placebo-controlled trial of CBD for insomnia, enrolling more than 500 adults across Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, and the Gold Coast. The goal: to find out if CBD, delivered in a new capsule form, can help people fall asleep faster, stay asleep longer, and wake up refreshed.
The numbers are staggering. Globally, 10 to 30 percent of adults experience insomnia, and up to 15 percent live with chronic insomnia. In Australia, surveys show 60 percent of people report at least one symptom of sleeplessness. Economists estimate poor sleep drains more than $19 billion a year from the Australian economy, with nearly $11 billion lost in productivity alone.
Photo by Erin Hinterland via Pixababy
Existing treatments—from melatonin to prescription sleep aids—can leave patients groggy or don’t work well long-term. This is why the Australian CBD sleep study is drawing international attention.
Avecho’s Phase III trial is designed with pharmaceutical-level rigor. It’s double-blind, placebo-controlled, and randomized, meaning participants and researchers don’t know who is getting CBD versus placebo. Volunteers will take capsules containing 75mg or 150mg of CBD each night for eight weeks while tracking their sleep.
The capsules use Avecho’s TPM (tocopheryl phosphate mixture) delivery system, a Vitamin E–based technology boosts CBD absorption. Poor bioavailability has long been a weakness of CBD oils and gummies—Avecho hopes this solves it.
If the trial succeeds, Avecho could become the first company to register an over-the-counter CBD product for insomnia in Australia. It would put CBD directly on pharmacy shelves, available without a prescription.
For millions struggling with sleepless nights, this could be a medical and lifestyle game-changer. Insomnia has been linked to heart disease, depression, anxiety, and reduced quality of life. With demand for safe, non-addictive sleep aids rising, CBD could offer a natural alternative backed by hard science.
“This is the first large-scale test to see if CBD really works for sleep,” said Avecho CEO Dr. Paul Gavin in a statement. “We want to give patients safe, effective and accessible options.”
What if the very hormone designed to help you survive is actually the reason you’re struggling to thrive?
My mother relentlessly saved and sacrificed so that she could enjoy her life in retirement. But two years into retirement, she was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s.
Here’s what I’ve learned since becoming a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner: she didn’t just “get” Alzheimer’s two years after retirement. It was building and building for years before that. She was making it worse with lifestyle choices: the over-exercising that women in their 40s and 50s often do, eating trans fats during the low-fat craze of the 80s and 90s.
Had I known what I know now, her outcome might have been different.
This is why I’m passionate about functional health. This is why thousands of practitioners are learning to identify and address the root causes of dysfunction before they become disease. If we can reach people in that gray space (when things are out of balance but before they become diagnosable conditions), we can change their trajectory. We can save lives.
As functional health practitioners, we see it every day: clients who’ve tried everything, followed every protocol, cleaned up their diet, and taken all the right supplements, yet they’re still stuck in that frustrating place of “I’m okay, but I’m not great.”
The missing piece? Understanding cortisol and its profound impact on every system in the body.
If you’ve ever wondered why some clients get amazing results while others plateau, or why you yourself might be experiencing symptoms that doctors dismiss as “normal aging,” this deep dive into cortisol will change everything.
What Is Wellness, Really?
Before we dive into cortisol, let’s get clear on what we’re actually working toward. At FDN, we don’t believe in “fine” or “okay.” We believe in abundant vitality.
Picture this as a spectrum:
The Right Side (The Medical Model): Symptoms → Sickness → Disease → Death
The Middle (Neutral Health): No symptoms, but no energy either. This is the “I’m fine, I guess” zone where most people live.
The Left Side (True Wellness): High energy, optimal function, metabolic fire, abundant vitality, joy for life.
Here’s the thing: neutral health equals a neutral life. When you’re operating from “I’m okay, I don’t have any complaints,” you’re not building empires, writing books, raising joyful kids, or showing up as your best self in relationships.
Good health, abundant vitality, is your birthright. It’s not just for the lucky few.
The Body’s Incredible Healing Power (And What’s Limiting It)
Your body is a self-healing machine. You know this because when you get a cut, it heals. When you break a bone, it mends. When you catch a cold, you recover.
But this healing ability isn’t infinite. If it were, we’d never age or die.
So what’s the difference between what your body can heal and what it can’t?
It’s a savings versus spending problem.
Think of your body as having a bank account called “Vital Reserve.” This is your innate intelligence: your body’s natural ability to function at 100% and fix imbalances before they become problems.
Where do you spend this precious currency? On your environment.
This has always been the case. Our paleolithic ancestors spent their Vital Reserve on not knowing if food would be available, dealing with harsh weather, avoiding predators, and navigating tribal conflicts.
Today? We spend it on mental-emotional stress, environmental toxins, and poor lifestyle habits that are constantly draining our account.
The main spender of Vital Reserve is stress.
The Modern Stress Problem: It’s Not What You Think
When most people think of stress, they picture this: work deadlines, traffic, relationship conflicts, financial pressure. And yes, these mental-emotional stressors are huge.
But there are two other categories most people completely miss:
Physical Stressors:
Sitting too long
Blue light exposure from screens
Too much coffee
Not exercising enough (or exercising too much)
Needing wine to fall asleep
Poor sleep quality
Environmental Stressors:
Depleted soils
EMF exposure
Chemicals in food, water, and air
Toxins our paleolithic ancestors never encountered
Plus, there’s the existential stress of modern life: What’s my purpose? How do I make my life meaningful when I’ll likely be forgotten in 100 years?
All of these are constantly withdrawing from your Vital Reserve account.
Meet Cortisol: Your Body’s “Energy on Credit” System
Cortisol is your primary stress hormone, and it’s actually designed to help you survive. When your environment throws stressors at you, cortisol says, “We need to put internal spending on hold and take all available resources to deal with this external threat.”
Cortisol breaks the body down for quick energy. We call this “catabolic.”
Why would your body have a mechanism for breaking itself down? Because sometimes you need energy RIGHT NOW. When your boss says, “This project is actually due in 30 minutes,” you can’t drive to the store, buy food, cook it, eat it, digest it, and then produce energy. You need quick fuel immediately.
So cortisol reaches for easy-to-break-down tissues like cartilage, tendons, connective tissue, and muscle, converting them to blood sugar.
Here’s the kicker: Cortisol is also a natural painkiller and anti-inflammatory. It masks the damage it’s doing, which is why it makes you feel amazing in the moment: clear thinking, quick reactions, pain-free movement.
Think of cortisol as your body’s credit card. You’re borrowing energy now and promising to pay it back later through rest, recovery, and healing.
When “Energy on Credit” Becomes a Problem
Throughout history, humans dealt with stress that was intense but occasional and short-lived. A wild animal attack, a natural disaster, a tribal conflict: these were serious but temporary.
Take a moment to think about this: Does this describe the stress in your life?
For most of us, stress is intense, constant, and never-ending. We wake up stressed, work stressed, drive home stressed, and lie in bed stressed about tomorrow’s stress.
This creates what we call “catabolic debt”: you’re constantly running up charges on your cortisol credit card without ever paying it back.
Chronic stress is not within our biological design.
Consider this: Anthropological studies show paleolithic humans worked only 15-20 hours per week. How many of you work only 15-20 hours per week? (And remember, “work” includes housework, childcare, and all the other responsibilities that don’t stop when you leave the office.)
They lived in close communities with cooperative resource sharing and had each other’s backs. Think about your own life: Do you know your neighbors? If you do, would they really have your back if things got serious?
Most of us are duplicating resources instead of sharing them. We’re all figuring out our own childcare, making our own meals, maintaining our own everything. There’s no interdependence, no shared load.
The cost of modern life is enormous:
70-80% of doctor visits are for stress-related illnesses
People with high anxiety are 4-5 times more likely to die from heart attack or stroke
Stress contributes to 50% of all illnesses
The Stress Response Curve: Your Roadmap to Understanding Where You Are
This is where it gets really interesting. Understanding this curve will change how you see your health (and your clients’ health) forever.
We all start in the green zone: Homeostasis. When you experience occasional stressors, cortisol and adrenaline spike, you handle the situation, then return to baseline to rest and repair.
But when stress becomes chronic, you move into the orange zone: Acute Stress. You’re constantly producing cortisol and adrenaline, never returning to homeostasis.
Here’s the thing: on your way up this curve, you feel AMAZING. Remember when you could pull all-nighters and still ace exams? When you could eat junk food without consequences? When you had laser focus for 12-16 hours straight?
That’s the acute phase. You’re running on cortisol, and it feels like superpowers.
Then you hit Peak Production. Your body says, “We’ve put way too much on the cortisol credit card. We have to cut back.”
Now you fall into the Compensatory Phase. Your cortisol numbers might look normal to a doctor, but the distribution is all wrong. Maybe you have too much in the morning and crash by afternoon, or you spike at night and can’t sleep.
Plus, you have a relativity problem. You’re used to feeling like Superman from the acute phase, so normal cortisol levels feel terrible by comparison.
Continue down this path, and you reach the Exhaustive Phase. Like a phone on low battery mode, everything still works but at 30% capacity and not for long. You’re devoting everything to just getting through the day.
The Hidden Cost: What Happens to Your Body’s Core Systems
At FDN, we focus on six foundational systems that chronic stress systematically shuts down. We call them the H-I-D-D-E-N systems, and understanding what happens to each one under chronic stress is crucial for practitioners:
H – Hormones DHEA is your anabolic hormone: the one responsible for building you back up after cortisol breaks you down. This is how you pay off your cortisol credit card. But when stress is constant, DHEA steps back and says, “I’ll come back when it’s safe to focus internally, but right now we need to keep spending on the environment.” DHEA becomes chronically low, which means your healing potential becomes chronically low.
Then sex hormones get the message: “We don’t have enough resources to fund fertility right now.” Sex hormones plummet, taking motivation and joy for life with them. This is when you get to that neutral state where you’re thinking, “I have dreams I want to pursue, but it’s just too much effort. I’ll just watch Netflix instead.”
I – Immune Your immune system is expensive to run. Under chronic stress, it says, “I cost a ton of money, so I’m going to operate at 30% capacity and not for very long.” Now you’re getting sick often, it takes forever to heal, you can’t shake that cough, and if anyone around you is sick, you know you’re going down.
D – Digestion Digestion costs a lot of energy to function properly. When you’re spending everything on stress, digestion goes into low-power mode. Now you’re only digesting at 30% capacity. Even if you’re eating the cleanest diet in the world, you can’t use it. You’re not getting the building blocks to repair or the nutrients your body needs to power metabolic functions at full capacity.
D – Detoxification Detoxification is another huge system that’s expensive to run. When your body’s bank account is overdrawn from cortisol debt, detox says, “I don’t have enough money to find these toxins, bind them up, and effectively remove them. So I’ll put them in storage instead.” Your body shoves toxins into fat cells, brain tissue, and bones, creating a toxic backlog that makes you feel slow, gives you acne, throws off digestion, and impairs hormone production.
E – Energy Production Your mitochondria can’t function optimally when all resources are diverted to stress response. This leads to that “tired but wired” feeling where you’re exhausted but can’t actually rest.
N – Nervous System Sleep, mood, and cognitive function all suffer. This is where we see the brain fog, insomnia, anxiety, and depression that so many people struggle with.
The fundamental principle of FDN: These systems don’t operate in isolation. You can’t just say, “Oh, you have classic hormone symptoms, so let’s run a hormone test.” You miss immunity, digestion, detoxification: all the other systems contributing to what we call “Metabolic Chaos.”
This is why the “take this supplement for that symptom” approach rarely works long-term. You’re not dealing with isolated problems: you’re dealing with systemic dysfunction where multiple systems are compromised simultaneously.
Real-Life Case Studies: The Stress Curve in Action
Let’s look at three real clients to see how this plays out. As FDN practitioners, we use what we call “clinical correlation,” which means we never look at lab numbers in isolation. We always consider how someone feels alongside their test results.
Case Study 1: Adam – The Acute Phase Crash
Profile: 35-year-old male, broker at a mid-size investment firm, former athlete still crushing CrossFit workouts
Symptoms: Weight gain, trouble concentrating, loss of muscle mass despite rigorous workouts, headaches
Doctor’s Assessment: “Your results are unremarkable. This is normal aging.”
Lab Results:
Cortisol sum: 9 (acute phase)
Four-point pattern: Way too high in morning, drops low at noon, crashes severely in afternoon, bounces back up at night
The Reality: How do we know Adam isn’t on the left side of the stress curve going up into acute phase? His symptoms tell us everything. If he were on the way up, he’d feel amazing and wouldn’t be in our office. Instead, he’s on the right side coming down from peak production.
His cortisol pattern explains everything: sky-high morning cortisol makes him feel wired and anxious, the afternoon crash leaves him unable to concentrate (not ideal for an investment broker), and the nighttime spike disrupts his sleep.
Even though his DHEA looks “normal,” when we compare it to his cortisol level of 9, he’s clearly catabolic dominant. He’s breaking down faster than he’s building up, which explains why his intense CrossFit sessions aren’t building muscle: they’re just adding more stress to an already overloaded system.
The Reality: Caitlyn’s cortisol sum looks normal, but the distribution is completely dysfunctional. She can barely drag herself out of bed in the morning, crashes hard in the afternoon (imagine trying to accurately record legal proceedings when your cortisol is plummeting), and lies awake at night because her cortisol spikes just when it should be lowest.
She also has a relativity problem. When she was in the acute phase, she felt like Superman. Now that she’s in compensatory with “normal” cortisol levels, she feels terrible by comparison. Her DHEA is low, confirming she’s still in catabolic debt despite the lower cortisol numbers.
Case Study 3: Maggie – The Exhaustive Phase Crisis
Profile: 43-year-old chef at a popular five-star restaurant, diagnosed with hypothyroid
Symptoms: Weight gain in hips and belly, trouble keeping up at work, depression, irregular menstrual cycle
Lifestyle: Working 60+ hours per week, consistently sleeping only 5 hours per night
Medical Status: Seeing a counselor, considering antidepressant medication
Lab Results:
Cortisol sum: 3.1 (exhaustive phase)
Four-point pattern: Way too low in morning, drops low at noon, slight bounce in afternoon, drops again at night
DHEA: Very low
Clinical correlation: Still catabolic dominant despite low cortisol
The Reality: Maggie’s body is operating like a phone on low battery mode: everything still works, but at 30% capacity and not for long. Her thyroid has downregulated because there’s literally not enough energy in the system to maintain normal function.
The depression isn’t just psychological: it’s physiological. Her body can’t afford to fund optimal brain function. Even though her cortisol is very low and her DHEA is very low, she’s still cortisol dominant and in catabolic debt.
This is why understanding the stress curve is so crucial. Three people, three different phases, three different approaches needed.
The Path Forward: Why Understanding Cortisol Changes Everything
Here’s why this matters for you as a health practitioner:
1. It explains why some clients plateau. If you’re not addressing the stress component, you’ll hit a ceiling on healing no matter how perfect the diet or supplement protocol.
2. It validates your clients’ experiences. When someone says, “I used to be able to handle so much more,” or “I don’t feel like myself anymore,” you now understand the physiology behind it.
3. It gives you a roadmap for intervention. Different phases require different approaches. Someone in the acute phase needs different support than someone in the exhaustive phase.
4. It highlights the importance of comprehensive testing. A single cortisol measurement tells you almost nothing. You need the full pattern plus clinical correlation.
The FDN Approach: Test, Don’t Guess
At FDN, we don’t just talk about stress: we measure it. We use what we call “clinical correlation,” which means we never look at lab numbers in isolation. We always consider how someone feels alongside their test results.
We look at:
Four-point cortisol patterns throughout the day (not just a single measurement)
DHEA levels and the cortisol-to-DHEA ratio
How stress is affecting all the H-I-D-D-E-N systems
The complete picture of metabolic chaos
Progress tracking with tools like the Metabolic Chaos Scorecard
Then we address it systematically through our DRESS protocol:
D – Diet: Personalized nutrition based on lab findings, not generic “healthy eating” advice
R – Rest: Sleep optimization and recovery strategies tailored to your stress phase
E – Exercise: Right-sized movement for your current capacity (over-exercise is just as harmful as under-exercise)
S – Stress Reduction: Targeted techniques for your specific stressors: mental/emotional, physical, environmental, and lifestyle factors
S – Supplementation: Targeted support based on actual lab results, not guesswork
This isn’t about generic protocols. It’s about understanding exactly where someone is on the stress curve and what their body needs to heal.
Key Takeaways for Health Practitioners
Cortisol isn’t the enemy. A lot of people talk about cortisol as if it’s the villain—commercials make it sound like cortisol just makes you “old and fat.” That’s not what cortisol does. Cortisol is a vital hormone for navigating stress. The problem is chronic stress disrupting its natural rhythm.
Understanding the stress curve is diagnostic gold. It explains why clients feel the way they do and gives you a framework for intervention. Different phases require different approaches.
Clinical correlation is everything. You can’t just look at lab numbers in isolation. A cortisol sum of 5 might be “normal” to a doctor, but if your client feels terrible and the distribution is dysregulated, that tells you the real story.
You can’t ignore stress and expect lasting results. No matter how perfect your diet protocol or how targeted your supplements, chronic stress will cap healing potential. There’s a ceiling you’ll never break through if you don’t address the stress component.
The body’s systems are interconnected. You can’t just “fix hormones” without addressing how stress is affecting immunity, digestion, detoxification, and all the other H-I-D-D-E-N systems. This is why comprehensive testing and systematic protocols are crucial.
Metabolic Chaos requires a systematic approach. When multiple systems are compromised simultaneously, you need a framework like DRESS that addresses all aspects of healing, not just isolated symptoms.
Your Next Steps
If you’re ready to master functional lab testing and learn how to identify and address cortisol dysregulation in your practice, FDN provides the training, community, and ongoing support you need.
Because here’s the truth: your clients deserve more than “fine.” They deserve abundant vitality. And you deserve the confidence that comes from knowing exactly how to help them achieve it.
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Forty percent of sleep apnea patients enrolled in Minnesota’s medical cannabis access program experienced significant and sustained improvements in their sleep following the use of medical cannabis products, according to data provided by researchers at the Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management.
State investigators analyzed data from 3,102 first-time patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). They reported that 40 percent of patients “experienced significant improvement in their sleep within four months of beginning treatment and were able to maintain the sleep improvement for an additional four months.” Over half of those who experienced moderate to severe fatigue upon enrollment also reported significant improvements in their symptoms.
“These numbers show meaningful changes in disturbed sleep and fatigue for patients after starting medical cannabis,” said OCM Senior Researchers Grace Christensen. “Obstructive sleep apnea can affect a patient’s mental health and physical health, so helping patients treat their symptoms can have a holistic outcome on their well being.”
Over a third of OSA patients who reported experiencing symptoms of depression or anxiety upon enrollment also acknowledged mental health improvements following cannabis treatment.
The study is the largest ever conducted assessing cannabis use in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.
Clinical trials have previously concluded that the use of oral THC (dronabinol) mitigates symptoms in sleep apnea patients. Several studies have also linked the use of cannabis to improvements in patients with insomnia. Data published in 2022 in the Journal of Cannabis Researchfound that over half of adults who consume cannabis for purposes of self-medication do so to address sleep disturbances.
“Consumers have long utilized cannabis as a sleep aid and these new data substantiate their experiences,” NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano said. “Those involved with Minnesota’s medical access program are to be commended for not only providing regulated cannabis products to those who need them, but also for collecting and making available this important data so that it can be shared with other regulators, policymakers, patients, and their physicians.”
Over 26 percent of adults between the ages of 30 and 70 years are estimated to suffer from sleep apnea. However, most patients are unaware that they have it. Sleep apnea is a chronic disease that increases one’s risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, stroke and depression.
Minnesota regulators added obstructive sleep apnea to its medical cannabis program as a qualifying condition in 2018.
Prior analyses of patients enrolled in Minnesota’s medical cannabis registry have reported that those suffering from chronic pain and post-traumatic stress experience clinically meaningful reductions following cannabis therapy.
The full text of the study, “Obstructive Sleep Apnea Patients in the Minnesota Medical Cannabis Program,” is available from the Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management. Additional information on cannabis and sleep apnea is available from NORML’s publication Clinical Applications For Cannabis & Cannabinoids.
If you’re looking for an all-natural way to encourage sleep, this homemade herbal dream pillow utilizes the calming powers of well-known sleepytime herbs to relax the mind and send you off to a good night’s sleep.
Sleep. It’s one of our most basic needs. It’s also one of the things that most people don’t get enough of. With early mornings, late nights, busy schedules, and all of the stress, anxiety, and discomfort that life can dish out, getting enough rest is tough.
Committing to a consistent bedtime, limiting technological distraction, and integrating pre-bed rituals into your routine can all help you get a good night’s sleep, but one of my favourite techniques that’s been effective for me is to use an aromatherapy herbal dream pillow made with ingredients from my garden.
The herbal blend is specifically chosen to release a fragrance that will promote calm and send you off to dreamland.
This post will cover…
You can customize your herbal dream pillow based on the herbs you like and have on hand.
My Long Journey to a Restful Sleep
Sleep is a wonderful, magical, healing, and often unappreciated luxury. When you sleep your body rebuilds itself, applies what it has learned from the day, builds muscles, repairs brain cells, and boosts immunity. If there’s one thing that you can do to care for yourself, it is get a good night’s sleep. It’s the most natural thing in the world, and yet good restful sleep can be so hard to capture.
I have a complicated relationship with sleep. Part of me feels that I’ve lost so much of my life to sleep, and the other part is grateful for how much healing comes from it. Due to a sudden illness, I slept for the better part of two years. That’s not hyperbole. I would go to bed in the early evening, sleep all night, wake up in the morning, then move down to the couch and sleep for the day.
For the first year, that was my whole life. As I moved into the second year, there was more waking time, gradually. I was so sick of being indoors and being in bed and yet I was unable to do anything else. I believe that my body was so run down from whatever it was fighting that it essentially rebooted.
After that crippling fatigue started to wear off, I had a whole other sensation to deal with: the chronic pain of fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is often described as a never-ending cycle of fatigue and pain. The pain was so bad that it was hard to sleep at night, and without a good night’s sleep, the fibromyalgia would be worse the next day.
It was crazy making. And I knew I had to do something about it. I went to sleep studies. I tried medical apparatuses and pharmaceuticals. While the drugs helped with sleeplessness and pain, they came with many more unpleasant side effects.
I looked at my sleep habits and tried to do everything that I could to make sure I found a way to develop proper sleep. For me, that meant forcing myself to do some sort of activity every day, no matter how exhausted I was. That’s how I started gardening. Getting outside in the fresh air and engaging with nature was just what I needed.
Now, I grow herbs in my garden to help me with many things, including helping me to sleep.
I cut out all caffeine and other stimulants to make sure that I was setting myself up for rest. I went to bed at the same time every night and woke up at the same time every morning. I also set up a proper sleeping environment in my room with a comfortable bed, appropriate temperature, herb tea, aromatherapy, and herb-filled dream pillows to help create an atmosphere of relaxation.
Now that I have practiced these sleep habits regularly, I sleep like a dream. I go to bed at the same time every night, drift into a deep and healing sleep and wake up the next day refreshed and happy.
Today, I want to share a little bit of the peace that sleep has brought me by showing you how to make your own dream pillow stuffed with relaxing herbs.
It feels wonderful to snuggle up to a bit of my garden at night. You don’t need a garden to make these dream pillows, though. All of the ingredients are readily available as dried herbs at local and online shops. I’ve linked to some in the materials list to make it super easy for you to access everything you need.
Tuck these dream pillows into your regular pillow or nestle by your head.
What is a Dream Pillow?
Dream pillows have been around for hundreds of years (since at least the sixteenth century, probably earlier). They were once used commonly by doctorsas a way to heal patients with all sorts of infirmities. They’ve also been used historically to ward off evil spirits and induce dream visions.
Dream pillows, also called “sleep pillows” or “comfort pillows” are not the same as eye pillows. Eye pillows are weighted with dried beans, flax, or popcorn and often scented with dried lavender and lavender essential oil. The weight of these provides pressure on your eyes and a relaxation experience in addition to the aromatherapy. See how to make them here.
Dream pillows have no beans or weighted elements in them, nor do they contain any essential oils. They’re simply filled with an assortment of dried herbs. To use a dream pillow, place it inside your pillowcase. You can gently crush the herbs to release the smell if you would like a little more aromatherapy. Otherwise, the herbs will offer a gentle, pleasant aroma that helps you drift off to sleep.
You’ve probably heard that scent is deeply connected to memory and emotion. This is because the part of the brain that processes smells, the limbic system, is the same part that processes memory and emotion. There are certain aromas that can’t help but remind us of a certain time or feeling that we associate with that particular fragrance.
This can work to our advantage at bedtime, because we can use scent to influence our dreams and gently push our brains towards pleasant subject matter, away from anxiety and stress.
The combination of herbs I used for this dream pillow is meant to promote relaxation and help you sleep deeply, but you can certainly customize your dream pillow with different dried herbs and flowers according to what kind of aromatherapy you’re looking for.
If you use a dream pillow consistently, it can help you sleep in unfamiliar places (if you’re travelling, for example). The scent will remind you of your own bed and lull you to sleep faster, wherever you are.
There are many different herbs known to help aid sleep.
There are many herbs that are useful for helping you fall asleep (see more on herbs for sleep here). The basis for this recipe is hops. Hops is very good at helping you relax and have a restful sleep. I’ve also mixed in dried chamomile, lavender, roses, and a variety of mints all from my garden. I know that these are all organic, fresh, and dried properly so they have the perfect amount of aromatherapy for me at night.
Dried hops. Yes, the ones used to make beer!
How to Make a Dream Pillow
I’ll admit that I’m not an experienced sewer. I have found that even though I’m very creative and love fabrics, I would much rather be sowing than sewing. But I do have a lovely sewing machine and I can do a few basic things on it.
If you’re experienced with sewing, I’m sure you can take this simple tutorial on how to make dream pillows and turn them into something absolutely stunning. If you’re a beginner and are more interested in herbs than sewing, then these instructions are going to work out just perfectly for you too.
Making a dream pillow is as simple as cutting two equal sized pieces of fabric, and either with a sewing machine or by hand, sewing them into a pillow filled with dried herbs. You can really make this any size you want, but my favourite size is a thin, long pillow that can slip right along the side at the end of my pillowcase.
I’ll provide the dimensions for that, but please know that you can make smaller square pillows, round pillows, heart-shaped pillows, whatever you fancy.
I find the long size tucks nicely into the end of my pillow.
Materials
Make It!
Cut the fabric pieces to size and place one on top of the other with the right sides together.
Sew the two long sides together to create a tube.
Turn the tube inside out (so the right sides of the fabric are on the outside now) and fold an inch of the open ends inside the tube. Iron the folded ends flat.
Using a sewing machine or by hand with a needle and thread, stitch one of the ends closed (it doesn’t matter which one).
I used a decorative leaf stitch that was programmed on my sewing machine. If I’m being honest, these decorative stitches are pretty much the only reason I want to come in from the garden and use my sewing machine. They are adorable!
Now, fill up the pillow starting with the dried hop heads. Using the whole heads intact will create a lot of space that you can fill in with some other herbs. Add a scoop of the other dried herbs and mix it around a little bit. Shuffle the herbs down to the closed end so that you will have a little bit of space to sew the open end shut.
Stuff your herbs in, creating a good mix as you go.
7. Pin the pillow closed a little way down from the open end in order to keep the herbs in place and then use your sewing machine to do a matching decorative stitch to close the open end or hand sew a simple stitch to close the end.
You can also attach velcro to one end, so you can remove and freshen up the herbs as needed.
No-Sew Version
If you have even less experience and sewing then me, then get yourself some seam tape and instead of sewing it closed, you can iron it closed! The seam tape acts as a glue when heated with the iron and so this becomes an easy no-sew project.
That’s it, you’re done! I hope this project helps you find your way to a restful slumber. For more on how to develop healthy sleeping habits, read this post and try my essential oil roll-on remedy for insomnia.
Dream Pillow FAQ
How often should I replace the herbs?
Replace the herbs whenever they start to lose their fragrance. Mine will last anywhere from six months to a year before they need replacing.
How many herbs should I have?
Since you’re just using the herbs for their scent, you don’t have to worry about any specific measurements. I just eyeballed it, putting in approximately a cup of herbs in total. It will also depend on the size you make your dream pillows.
Where should you put the herbal dream pillow?
I just tuck it in with my normal pillow, somewhere close by, where I can enjoy the fragrance without it bothering me or creating a big lump in my pillow.
No garden should be without a hops plant. And not just because it makes great beer! There’s so much more to know about hops as a wonderful ornamental garden plant and powerful healing herb. This guide to hops will show you why you should absolutely grow it as an ornamental, how to harvest the strobiles, and how to dry and use hops for insomnia and anxiety.
The beautiful hops arbour.
Over ten years ago, I went on a garden tour where the homeowner had a beautiful arbour covered in gorgeous golden flowers that looked like paper pinecones. I was drawn to this arbour, and as I stood underneath it, I was able to breathe in the aroma that can be described as none other than hoppy. It’s not a sweet or floral smell, and yet I was immediately relaxed.
The combination of the plant’s prolificness, the beauty of the arbour covered in flowers and green leaves, and the heady, bitter smell of hops was intoxicating. It was at that moment that I knew I wanted hops in my garden, too.
I didn’t grow it to make my own beer but rather for the beauty it provides as an ornamental. Little did I know I was growing a powerful, unsung hero. It can cover a whole trellis in one summer, make beautiful dried flower arrangements, put me to sleep, and even decorate a wreath.
So really, what can’t hops do? Let’s dive into everything you need to know about hops.
Hop bines fresh and ripe on the plant.
Lori’s Green Blessings
This article was reviewed by herbalist Lori Snyder. This is not to be used as personal medical advice; always consult your health care professional for individual concerns.
Here is what Lori had to say:
Humulus lupulus is native to North America, Europe, and Asia. Various nations like the Cherokee, Delaware, Dakota, and Ojibwa accessed hops for their analgesic properties, used as a gynecological aid, a sedative, gastrointestinal pains, toothache, and earache remedy. The Algonquin peoples of Quebec used to make bread and cake hops! In Traditional Chinese Medicine, hops were used for insomnia, restlessness, indigestion, intestinal cramps, and lack of appetite. By soothing the smooth muscle of the gastrointestinal tract, hops affect the “second brain” known as the enteric nervous system, relaxing the central nervous system. Hops have a mild influence on estrogen and may cause menstrual irregularities.
What Do Hops Look Like?
Hops have long leaves and the flowers resemble light green pinecones. The flowers dry to a warm golden colour and hold their shape well. The bines stay intact when cut and it makes them perfect to wind around a grapevine wreath for festive fall decoration.
Dried hop bines made into a wreath.
Hops Flower Benefits
Because of the sheer volume of hops that the bines produce in a season, I have dried many flowers and tested out many recipes.
This practice dates all the way back to 9th century Europe when the hops plant first became a useful tool for herbal medicine. Field workers who were working with hops plants to grow beer would often fall asleep on the job compared to other workers. People connected the dots and started using the sedative effects to help with sleep and anxiety disorders.
The plant also has estrogen-like characteristics as it contains phytoestrogens. These share many properties similar to human estrogen, meaning hops can helptreat menopausal symptoms.
Helps with Anxiety
Like many people, I’ve struggled with anxiety and insomnia. Daily stresses, money troubles, family trauma, and chronic pain have done their part to make it hard for me to sleep some nights, which can lead to anxiety.
I work hard to maintain healthy sleep habits because sleep is so important for the body to heal. Including hops in a variety of ways has been really good for me, but please keep in mind that hops’ strong sedative properties mean that they may not be the right herb to use for people with depression.
However, if you’re looking for something to help you slow down and rest, hops are the way to go. Especially when you grow this prolific plant in your own garden.
Hops are one of the best herbs to aid with insomnia.
Growing Hops at Home
Hops (Humulus lupulus) can reach staggering heights in a short growing season. They grow on climbing bines (not vines) where the stems wrap-around support structures (like pole beans) rather than attaching like a vine by tendrils or suckers (like peas).
Hops flowers will always twist in a clockwise direction, even if you try your best to get them to go another way. So let them do their own thing!
Build a tall trellis or arbour to let them twist and climb and you will notice how they fill it up quickly. In fact, they can grow up to 12 inches a day! Talk about a lot of hops.
Hops are a climbing plant and will need something to support their growth.
The plants are hardy in Zones 3-8. They like deep, well-draining soil in full sun. Hops can be started from seed, but they can grow into male or female plants.
Female plants produce the strobiles, or the leaf bracts surrounding small flowers. AKA, the hops flower cones you see pictured above and the ones used to make beer. Instead, take a rhizome division from an established female plant, you don’t need a male plant for flowering.
This is a great video on how to grow hops in your home garden.
Drying and Harvesting Hops Flowers
Hops are in the same family as cannabis and hemp, so if you have grown cannabis before, you may find the hops plant has some similarities. The best time for harvesting hops is when they have ripened on the bines in the late summer. Do not pick them early, or they will not ripen.
They are ready to pick when they are papery, springy to the touch, and a bit sticky. They should smell distinctively hoppy when they are ready. Check them by smelling first, then gently squeezing one between your index finger and thumb to test how they feel.
You can pick ripe hops one by one or remove bines from the plant. Unless you are making beer, you should have plenty to leave in the garden in the fall and winter as well. I only take a small fraction of the plant to use and leave the rest to overwinter.
I hang my hops to dry in my studio and it provides decoration, aroma, and a perfect spot to dry them. You can also use a food dehydrator or oven-dry hops if you are in a hurry. More hop drying methods can be found here.
Dried hops will feel papery to the touch.
Using Hops Plant as an Herb
Beyond beer, what are hops used for? Since it’s such an uncommon herb to grow in the garden, it’s no wonder I often get this question whenever someone sees my hops plant. And before you ask, NO it does not have the same smoking effect as its closely related family member, cannabis.
The herbal part of the plant is the strobiles that hold the flowers and pollen that in turn contain lupulin, bitters, resin, and oil. The herb is used for calming: reducing anxiety, encouraging sleep, taming an upset tummy, and even helping to temper sexual desire. Keep this in mind when you are planning to use hops as an herb. If you have excess energy that could use balancing out, hops could be very helpful.
While you technically can eat hops, I wouldn’t recommend it due to its taste. The best way to enjoy the herbal benefits of hops is with tea.
Hops are quite bitter as a tea, and the flavour can be hard for some people to tolerate. However, their bitterness is actually a plus when it comes to digestion. Bitter herbs help to stimulate digestion, so you can use them to make homemade bitters and take ½ teaspoons before meals.
The hops plant is a wonderful herb to use in natural skincare recipes as well.Try infusing oils with hops to use in soap and healing salves. Hops’ calming effect works on the skin as well to reduce inflammation and help with both wrinkles and acne.
For anxiety and insomnia, you can try taking a hops tincture or making a dream pillow to fall asleep with at night.
Enjoy hops as a tincture to get the benefits without too much bitterness.
FAQ About the Hops Plant
When is the best time to harvest hops?
Hops are ready for harvest in late summer, usually beginning in mid-August through to September. You want the brines to be fully ripe, as they will not ripen any more once picked.
How do you overwinter hops?
Cut back a majority of the bines and unwind them from their trellis or structure. Leave behind 1-3 ft. of the bine, as this can help prevent crown damage. The plant will remain insulated and fed.
What variety of hops is native to North America?
Hops are native to North America, Europe, and Asia. Only the perennial hops, Humulus lupulus, is native to North America. The Asian annual, Humulus japnicus, is a naturalized weed found in eastern North America, though it is not native.
Are hops poisonous to dogs?
Yes, hops are poisonous to dogs. They can cause severe symptoms and dogs who ingest hops should seek a vet’s attention immediately.
Insomni occurs in 30% of the population occasionally, but 10% have chronic sleep issues. Add in chronic pain and you have a recipe for a disaster. What is painsomnia and can cannabis help? Painsomnia is a term describing how chronic pain can interfere with a person’s sleep. While painsomnia is not a medical term, it is used anecdotally to describe a common challenge experienced by people living with ongoing chronic pain.
Coined by Dawn Gibson and Dr. Ben Nowell, painsomnia is the painful lack of sleep affecting many. It can also cause already established conditions to worsen. In a case study, Gibson and Nowell explained just how some individuals are actually woken up by pain and have trouble falling back asleep.
“Painsomnia is a patient-generated term for the vicious cycle of pain and sleep deprivation or fatigue related to a chronic condition or its treatment,” they said. “Evolving from social media discussions, painsomnia is a shorthand description that helps people relate to each other in posts about being prodded awake by pain and being unable to find a comfortable position in bed or to “settle down” for sleep and rest. Anxiety and frustration about lack of sleep and its impact on functioning the next day often accompany patients’ painsomnia experiences and virtual discussions.”
Photo by PhotoAlto/Frederic Cirou/Getty Images
There is clear evidence for marijuana improving sleeping. Israeli scientists sought to better understand if marijuana could help chronic pain patients get find the rest they need. In their study, published in the medical journal BMJ, about half of participants were medical marijuana users and half were not. They found that in the short term, marijuana quickly helped insomniac participants in the 128-person study fall asleep through the night.
Studies have found that marijuana can be helpful in treating neuropathic pain (a specific type of chronic pain caused by damaged nerves).However, more research is needed to know whether marijuana works better than other options to manage pain. In addition, cannabis may ease certain types of chronic pain, including pain due to nerve damage and inflammation.
In dealing with painsomnia, both cannabis and CBD may help. There has been more research (with more needed) to understand benefits of cannabis especially around inflammation, chronic pain and sleep. In regards to CBD, there isn’t as much data, but inflammation can be treated with CBD.
Data shows CBD reduces the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, inhibits T cell proliferation, induces T cell apoptosis and reduces migration and adhesion of immune cells.
If you have someone suffering from painsomnia, talk to a healthcare professional. The American Sleep Apnea Association believes sleep is not only tied to health and work performance, but so much more.
CBD seems to be everyone and has some benefits. But it is difficult to figure out how much to take to manage the condition you are treating. Science says CBD can help with anxiety, insomnia and chronic pain. Like medical marijuana, it can reduce inflammation, including with arthritis. Other research identifies how it might how help with neuropathic pain, which is difficult treat. So what is the best CBD dosage for you?
While some companies have produced kits whichcan test one’s endocannabinod system, testing is not readily available to the general public or covered by insurance. This means your doctor or nurse cannot measure the amount of endocannabinoids present in your body like they can test for, say, deficiencies in Vitamin C or assess your cholesterol levels.
Like other chronic diseases (high blood pressure, headaches, high cholesterol), there is a certain amount of trial and error in to find the right mix. Most of the human studies use dosages anywhere between 20 and 1,500 milligrams (mg) per day. But it may take a bit to figure out where you are on the spectrum.
Start low and go slow. Start with 5mg of CBD and then slowly increase the dosage as needed until you feel the optimal effects. Most people find that 5-30mg of CBD represents the sweet spot that works best for them.
Be patient. Realize that it could take up to a few weeks of consistent supplementation to feel the effects from CBD. If you run into unwanted side effects, back off a bit and then try a slower increase. Also, the lower amount of CBD might be your ideal portion.
Like most medicines, you should not combine CBD with other substances, such as over-the-counter medicine or pharmaceuticals, without consulting with your health care provider. Also, leave at least a two hour window before and after consuming CBD in order to minimize the risk of any potential interactions.
CBD can naturally lower blood pressure and reduce the need for insulin in the body. So if you’re already on any medication for those purposes, be sure to work with your healthcare providers to keep an eye on their levels.
Pretty much everyone has heard of sleepwalking – and some of us even do it from time to time. But sleep cooking and sleep driving?
Engaging in such activities while not awake – a phenomenon known as complex sleep behaviors – can result from taking prescription insomnia medications, also commonly referred to as Z drugs. These medications include eszopiclone (Lunesta), zaleplon (Sonata) and zolpidem (Ambien, Edluar, and Zolpimist).
Z drugs can improve the quality, though not necessarily the duration, of sleep, according to research. But they can also pose serious risks by leading to bizarre complex sleep behaviors, including driving, cooking and eating while sleeping, the Food and Drug Administration warns.
The FDA has even had reports of people accidentally overdosing on other medications or shooting themselves while taking Z drugs.
Upon waking, people may or may not recall their complex sleep behaviors.
The FDA cautions that people could find themselves enacting complex sleep behaviors even on lower doses or after their first use, and that Z drugs could impair your ability to drive or operate machinery even the next morning.
The FDA recommends:
• Discussing the risks of taking a Z drug with your health-care provider • Reading the patient medication guide as soon as you fill a prescription for a Z drug • Carefully following dosing instructions from your health-care professional • Not taking Z drugs with other sleep drugs, including those available over-the-counter • Abstaining from alcohol use before and while using Z drugs since together they may be more likely to cause side effects.
The relationship between cannabis and sleep is still widely debated. Research has found that cannabis can indeed help with sleep, and many consumers who use cannabis will also attest to its more sedative effects that combat symptoms like insomnia. One study even found that people are increasingly turning to cannabis instead of over-the-counter sleep aids.
Conversely, otherstudies suggest the opposite, that cannabis use may impede sleep in some circumstances. Ultimately, it’s a complicated topic that seems to involve a number of variables, and like a bulk of cannabis research topics, our knowledge on cannabis and sleep is still growing.
Though a recent study published in the journal Behavioral Sleep Medicine offers further proof that cannabis could help to improve sleep, specifically for consumers experiencing moderate anxiety who use cannabis the same day.
Examining Cannabis Effects on Sleep for Consumers with Anxiety
Interestingly enough, anxiety and cannabis tends to be another contentious and complex topic. While cannabis is widely known to potentially increase anxiety and related symptoms, research suggests that — once again — this can be a complex topic involving a number of variables.
Specifically, THC is known to increase anxiety at high doses, while CBD and/or low-dose THC tends to help reduce anxiety. There are also individual factors, broadly how one person may respond to cannabis as it pertain to anxiety versus another, that can come into play.
Researchers note the varied evidence for both sleep and anxiety in the study abstract, along with the various outcomes pertaining to specific cannabinoids.
“Cannabis is increasingly used to self-treat anxiety and related sleep problems, without clear evidence of either supporting or refuting its anxiolytic or sleep aid effects,” researchers write. “In addition, different forms of cannabis and primary cannabinoids delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) have differing pharmacological effects.”
To investigate the relationship between cannabis use, anxiety and sleep quality, University of Colorado-Boulder researchers examined a cohort of 348 adults with mild-to-moderate generalized anxiety symptoms. Subjects were instructed to consume either cannabis flower or edibles dominant in THC, CBD or combined equal ratios of both THC and CBD.
To follow the progression of each participant through the experiment, individuals in the study completed daily online surveys for 30 days.
A Growing Body of Literature on Cannabis, Sleep and Anxiety
The study ultimately found that when participants reported cannabis use on a particular day, they also reported better sleep quality the following night. Researchers also noted that moderation analyses found better perceived sleep following cannabis use for respondents with higher baseline affective symptoms.
The study also noted that respondents who used high-CBD edibles reported the highest perceived quality of sleep.
Another recent study similarly examined how cannabis affects anxiety and sleep, looking to compare outcomes among patients prescribed cannabis-based medicinal products (CBMPs) for generalized anxiety disorder, both with and without impaired sleep.
The research noted an association between CBMPs and improvements in anxiety, along with improvements in sleep and health-related quality of life. Similar to the CU Boulder study, those with the most severe baseline anxiety were most likely to experience the highest clinical improvements in anxiety upon the final 12-month assessment.
A similar study from 2023 found that CBMP prescriptions were associated with “clinically significant improvements in anxiety.” The study also noted improvements in sleep quality and quality of life at 1-, 3- and 6-month time points.
Looking more closely at cannabis and sleep, particularly same-day cannabis use, another recent study conclude that cannabis use is associated with “same day improvements in self-reported sleep quality, but not pain or depressive symptoms, although sleep improvements occurred in the context of increased frequency of cannabis use, raising the risk for cannabis use disorder.”
It is wildly fun and often in the moment. But did you know it is also good for you? Maybe it is the perfect way to start the new year
It is fun and can be on the spur of the moment. Some have sex to have a people, most have sex because it is fun – especially with the right person. But a little info, here are 5 ways steamy sex benefits your health. An unexpected perk to something already enjoyable!
Here are 5 ways in which sex improves your life overall:
The leading cause of death in the US could have a very simple solution. Statistics show that men between the ages of 40 – 70 who have sex twice a week show an incredible 50 percent less risk of developing heart disease. It makes sense, since sex burns from 70 to 100 calories per half hour and it also reduces stress, anxiety, and frustration.
Builds Your Immune System
A research that observed over 100 students discovered that those who had sex twice a week had a better immune system, having a 30 percent increase in their igA levels, an antibody that protects them from outside bacteria and germs. When it comes to women, sex also promotes their health and fertility.
Can Offer Pain Relief
Sex is also an amazing natural pain reliever, helping out with migraines and menstrual cramps. A survey that was conducted in over 1,000 people showed that 60 percent of them believed that sex relieved their headaches, even those who had a migraine attack during the act itself. Women also find relief from their cramps with orgasms. This happens due to the contractions of the uterus when an orgasm happens, releasing endorphins and providing temporary relief.
Sex also produces dopamine, an endorphin that provides a feeling of euphoria and helps with pain management.
It’s well known that sex makes people sleepy and this is due to several things: the production of prolactin, a hormone that’s closely related to sleep, and also the release of oxytocin, a hormone that reduces stress. Sex also makes you physically tired, so the summation of all of these things can only mean good things for your sleeping habits.
Ward Off Cancer
Physical exercise and immunity boosts are important when it comes to fighting off cancer, but research shows that sex can help in preventing some of these diseases. Researchers from the National Cancer Institute believe that sex is good for the prevention of prostate cancer, keeping things moving down there for men, and helping in the elimination of harmful substances.
Revolutionary “Neuro-Skeletal Geometry” Methodology Promises a Drug-Free, Painless Approach to Treating a Range of Psychological and Physical Ailments
DALLAS, November 20, 2023 (Newswire.com)
– A groundbreaking methodology, “Neuro-Skeletal Geometry” (NSG), developed by Dr. Francis X. Murphy, is transforming the way healthcare professionals approach a wide range of psychological and physical disorders. This innovative technique emphasizes the vital interconnection between the skeletal system’s configurations and the nervous system’s natural function. Detailed insights into NSG are available at DallasWellness.com.
NSG divides the skeletal system into upper and lower configurations, assigning specific priorities to each, guiding practitioners towards targeted action. It incorporates physical, psychological, energetic, and nutritional elements, offering a comprehensive approach to health and well-being.
Clinical data reveals NSG’s remarkable impact on a spectrum of conditions, including anxiety, sleep deprivation, restlessness, impulsive behavior, vocal and motor tics, poor attention span, hyperactivity, repetitive thoughts, compulsive behaviors, numbness, loss of balance, memory loss, and depression. This analysis is backed by complex scientific principles, yet its implementation is elegant, painless, and drug-free.
Dr. Murphy’s pioneering work has garnered attention and intrigue from the fields of physical medicine, neurology, and psychology. He insists that the key lies in the energetic work, restoring the body’s frequency and energy field, often resulting in immediate bodily impacts.
Quote from Dr. Francis X. Murphy: “The essence of Neuro-Skeletal Geometry is in its simplicity and its focus on the body’s natural energy. We’re not just treating symptoms; we’re addressing the root causes in a holistic, non-invasive way. The results we’ve seen are not just surprising; they’re a testament to the power of this methodology.”
NSG’s success is not just in its results but in its approach, challenging traditional medical treatments and offering a new perspective on health and wellness. Dr. Murphy’s work continues to captivate the medical community, promising a new era in the treatment of complex psychological and physical disorders.
About 35% of American adults don’t get enough sleep, according to the CDC. If you are chronically sleep-deprived, you may have tried many solutions but still find getting sufficient sleep to be an elusive health goal. Raising my hand here, because I’m in the group and prescription sleeping pills are a non-starter for me. Have you considered CBD gummies?
Cannabidiol (CBD) gummies may help people relax, stay calm, and get better sleep. That being said, definitive clinical substantiation of the sleep benefits of CBD gummies isn’t yet available. However, ample anecdotal evidence suggests CBD gummies are effective in helping people stay asleep, more so than assisting them in falling asleep. And that’s me, I can fall asleep easily, only to wake up 45 minutes later — a cycle that repeats multiple times each night.
Based on varying product quality, people can have different reactions to CBD gummies for sleep. The list below includes five of the most recommended CBD gummies that are specifically formulated to improve sleep.
Premium Jane CBD Gummies have 25mg of CBD from broad-spectrum hemp plant extract. In addition to CBD, Premium Jane infuses its Mango Berry CBD gummies with CBN, chamomile, GABA, and melatonin, all of which are ingredients favored for improving sleep. The standard dose is one or two gummies one hour before bedtime.
According to Premium Jane, “experts suggest that a combination of CBD and melatonin…
March 16, 2023 – More than one-third of people with inflammatory bowel disease report trouble sleeping, with moderate or worse insomnia. And the more severe their insomnia, the worse the disability related to their IBD, a new study finds.
Poor sleep is common with IBD, says lead researcher Alex Barnes, MD, a gastroenterologist and clinical lecturer at Flinders Medical Centre in Bedford Park, Australia.
The link between insomnia and IBD has not been studied enough, Barnes says. But insomnia in people with other chronic health conditions has been linked to a poorer quality of life.
Barnes and colleagues did an online survey of 670 people with IBD in Australia. They found that clinically significant insomnia was significantly tied to active IBD, belly pain, and significant anxiety and depression.
Diagnose and Treat
The study findings suggest people with IBD be screened for trouble with sleep, Barnes says. In the study, people had clinically significant insomnia if they scored a 14 or higher on the Insomnia Severity Index.
Once identified, “treatment for insomnia is readily available – cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia – through psychologists or even in the form of smartphone applications,” Barnes says. Seeing a sleep specialist is another option and should be considered especially if someone has significant insomnia while their IBD is mild or in remission.
When to See a Sleep Specialist
Asked when insomnia might be serious enough for a person to see a sleep specialist, Jocelyn Cheng, MD, a spokesperson for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, says the first step would be to confirm the person has insomnia. This means ruling out another cause of the symptoms, which could include sleep apnea, poor sleep hygiene, or restless legs syndrome.
Once insomnia is confirmed, it is important to decide if it significantly impacts a person’s quality of life. This can include attending fewer social- or work-related activities or having a hard time driving, making appointments, or running errands, for example.
If no other reason can be found for the insomnia, or if your quality of life is significantly impacted, a sleep expert is a good idea, says Cheng, who is also senior director of clinical research-neuroscience at Eisai Inc.
The finding in the study that more severe insomnia – more trouble falling asleep, staying asleep and/or waking up too early – is linked to worse IBD symptoms aligns with evidence from other studies, Cheng says.
Insomnia could be a learned behavior from when people with IBD have flares and have trouble sleeping that gets carried over to times when IBD is in remission, Barnes says.
Multiple tools to identify insomnia exist, Barnes says, and it would be worthwhile to come up with one specific to IBD in the future.
Due to its many amazing properties as well as a more hospitable legal environment, in recent years the popularity of CBD has exploded. It went from being used by only 6% of adults in 2018 to 26% of adults in 2022.
Many of these people use CBD for its ability to soothe and to enhance sleep. In fact, 42% of those who consume CBD are using it to help them sleep better.
One of the most popular CBD products for improving sleep is CBD sleep gummies. Learn more about the best CBD gummies for sleep below!
What are CBD sleep gummies?
CBD gummies are gelatin or pectin-based edibles that contain CBD and other natural sleep-supporting compounds. These gummies provide the soothing properties of CBD without any of the psychoactive effects of THC.
In addition to helping people relax, CBD can also alleviate the symptoms of ailments that keep you tossing and turning. For example, research suggests that CBD may reduce stress and pain.
How do CBD sleep gummies work?
CBD gummies are ingested orally and then broken down by the digestive system. The CBD is then absorbed by the bloodstream and bonds to CB1 receptors and CB2 receptors that are part of the endocannabinoid system (ECS).
The ECS helps maintain physiological balance by regulating various functions including inflammation, hunger, and stress. Through regulating these systems, the endocannabinoid system tries to maintain balance in the body.
