Hey Mike - Reading always does the trick for me !!

Do some research on melatonin which is available in health food stores and the vitamin section of some drug sections of larger chain stores. Works well for some people.

Also try to not drink anything containing caffeine at least 6 hours before you try to sleep.

mike - i feel for you. Keep bedroom very cool - i set up a very small fish aquarium (no fish) - the sound of the water helps me to relax. melatonin is ok - but not all is safe - read in bed and listen to soft music.

mike - go to www.intelihealth.com and do a little research. em

Mike, I have a chronic sleep disorder and haven't slept through the night since 1974! I totally feel for you today, since last night my tooth wouldn't let me get any sleep at all. I hope this root canal wasn't a waste of money. I understand your not wanting to take medication but for most people, they really just need to reset their internal clock. That's why there are sleep medications available. If you get one of the new formulas like Lunesta, it might help you to get back into the right rhythm. Also, if depression is keeping you awake, you might be masking the problem with home remedies. Maybe you need to talk to a counselor.

The suggestions by the other members are very good and work for many people. You need to find what works for you. By the way, 4 hours is often plenty of sleep for a young man. Everyone is different and I used to function quite well on 3 or 4 hours of sleep. The question is "how do you feel?" If you aren't very tired during the day, then don't worry about sleeping. If I felt okay, I wouldn't care if I ever slept, but sleep is important to reprogram your brain. If you are stressed out, then using various relaxation techniques is the best thing. Get some tapes or CDs as Emily suggests. Eat foods containing tryptophan, like turkey. Try making an infusion of chamomile tea. Valerian root works for many people, but it tastes awful so it's often taken in capsule form. Celery juice is also a remedy for insomnia. Stay away from alcohol. It might knock you out at first, but if you have trouble sleeping, it will then keep you awake all night when it wears off. Lucky's suggestion, which sound like the simplest, is actually one of the best methods to get tired. It used to work for me a long time ago. I'd fall asleep with a book in my hand. However, if you can't concentrate on reading, it might exacerbate the insomnia. Sometimes I'll get online at 3 in the morning to surf the net or go on boards, and it's a bad idea - at least in my case. My mind gets stimulated by information and begins to race, so it keeps me awake even longer. The bottom line is that every sleep problem is different and finding the cause is the key to finding the cure.

Sorry to write so much, but I probably could write a book since I've tried just about everything. One more thing..all jokes aside, sex works for many men. It releases tension.

When ever I find it hard to sleep I because of some everyday stressers, I will force myself to stop thinking about them and instead think about what I would do with a big Megamillion win. Usually before I came divide it up among family and friends or spend a few million, I'm asleep.
But, the tryptophan is also a great solution. I use turkey bacon and do a BLT.
Good luck, I have been were you are. It can actually make you feel sick after awhile.

I like the suggestions of valerian + reading. Hops is good too. Valerian and hops are readily available, cheap, non-habit-forming. A technical or boring book is the kicker. One thing I do not do is get up and do normal daily things like watch TV or go on the computer.

And of course, the old standby (for tryptophan), a glass of milk.

Rick, I was going to mention that. The old "warm milk" suggestion is not just an old wive's tale. However, many people have a lactose intolerance and milk gives them gas. It's important to eat too much protein at night too. Protein is a brain stimulator, so that's why it's better (if someone is a meat eater) to have a burger for breakfast. Sugar is also a key factor in sleeping.

The only reason I suggested you seek counseling, Mike, is because I've been reading your posts for a long time and you sound as if you are ready to jump off of a bridge. Since you have small children, it's important to keep your cool and remember that, no matter how crazy everything gets, they're only little people who need love and support. If they yell & scream, they're not brats - they're just kids. I'm only talking from experience. I was physically, verbally & emotionally abused from a very young age, probably since I was old enough to walk. Parents don't always stop to look in the mirror and realize they had problems way before they had children and so they often blame the children. It's normal for little children to act out.

mike, this is something I do...will take a couple of days to get the hang of it but it works...
first, lie flat on yr back and close yr eyes.Your arms should be comfortably placed not to far away from the sides of yr torso. Your feet should be roughly 12-18 inches apart.... Try and breathe in a calm and regulated fashion. slowly start to blank out yr surroundings. you must keep yr eyes shut at all times. the body must try and relax. Just pretend you are letting go of something very heavy that you were carrying....just breathe easy.......this bit will take you a few days....after which.....step 2 is to do the same but instead of just blanking out the surroundings try and slowly blank out all thoughts.....I'm very hyper by nature and this bit of Yoga does wonders for my sleep.......I hope it helps you.

Good suggestion from shalini. I don't know if you ever got into self-hypnosis, but that is the start. I have a couple tapes that guide you into the relaxation process shalini is describing. For years I would go to sleep listening to these tapes and rarely heard the end of them.

I worked nightshift for 12 years and i found a numbers of things i had to do to feel tired enough to sleep one thing i did was put dark curtains on the windows so little if any sunlight comes thru. While at work i didn't drink anything with caffeine in it at all after lunch time. Only drank water when i was thirsty. If you smoke remember nicotine is a stimulant also consider not smoking when you get home.

ok now your home from work and it's likely that you are not tired if you haven't done anything physically demanding at work. try doing about twenty push up's then take the hottest shower your body can handle drink some camomile tea. And hit the sheets, clean ones feel good against the body after a shower and should get you in the mood for sleep. you have to mentally block out all the noise. have the wife keep the kids quite until you fall asleep or at least calmed down. I know this is a big problem area cause i had little kids then too and they love daddy and want to spend every waking hr with me too. But there have to be rules and a little bit of quite time won't hurt them.

No matter what you have to get in the habit of not waiting for the sun to come up. Where in fact if you see it then you set up a chain of events that all humans have and that's is it's time to get up and start doing something. If your in a situation where when you come home it's already sunup then coming into the house into a dark area should solve some of the problem. Or get one of those things you put over your eyes until you get in the habit of falling asleep.

thanks everyone for the suggestions!!!

i enjoyed reading these.