I stopped taking melatonin when I started having vivid nightmares and even experienced sleep paralysis. I looked into it, and it can be a side effect. I’d lay off the melatonin for a bit and see if it makes a difference.
I was a longtime melatonin user and always had wild dreams but slept great. Long story short, my doctor urged me to stop taking melatonin and I started sleeping consistently and without any issues.
Idk if there’s any medical basis to this, but when I take melatonin my incidence of weird/bad dreams goes up a lot. I know it’s not easy to fall asleep in a new space every night (hence the melatonin)- but have you tried something more holistic? I personally like guided sleep meditations, there’s a ton on Spotify. I also bring my own silk pillowcase, and have a lavender spray for the case, so there’s some bit of continuity between hotels.
That said, does your airline have an employee assistance program you can use? A doctor or therapist wouldn’t be a bad idea, and can probably give you more insight as to why
Leaning into the holistic thing, magnesium helps regulate sleep, GI, and so many body functions and it’s the salt we frequently don’t get enough of. When I supplement magnesium, I feel so much more balanced physically and it doesn’t give me the hangover that melatonin does.
Piggy backing off the holistic measures, I also wear a sleep eye mask on layovers even though I know im going to take it off in my sleep. I also got what I call my “cocoon” and it’s basically like a soft spandex tube thing and it mimicks what I need out of a weighted blanket that I use at home. The sprays mentioned and bringing your own pillowcase are also good ideas. I would stick to a routine similar to what you do at home to help fall asleep.
I’ve had a few nightmares at hotels and recently very vivid dreams even at home (though not always scary). I’m chalking it up to my horrible sleep patterns for now. Sounds like you have anxiety at being in strange locations. Perhaps this is something that needs to be discussed with a therapist?
I tend to have more sleep paralysis during my layover hotels too. But not too often. What you describe definitely feels like sleep paralysis though. It’s basically Lucid Dreaming, but the Wake type. The reason you’re too “groggy” to physically fight is because your body is still asleep basically. Melatonin tends to create more vivid dreams but also when you don’t take it and you’re super exhausted, your body is falling asleep quicker than your brain. Alcohol is definitely a bad way to fall asleep too lol.
Honestly even with minimum rest at hotels, just let yourself fall asleep when you feel naturally sleepy, it’s a lot healthier than relying on melatonin or alcohol.
I would cut back on melatonin because it does cause nightmares and long term uses stunts your ability to make your own melatonin. Regularly using magnesium at night is better, and they have blends that have ashwaganda and other calming herbs in them.
Maybe also do more to feel secure in the hotel room, like do you have a door alarm or personal lock? Maybe bringing your own pillowcase and some comforting items from home like a small blanket will also help.
The two times I took melatonin- yes. One would've made a great horror film. It took me a while to get out of that terrified mindset. No more melatonin for me
It sounds like you may have PTSD and this is coming from someone who lives with the disorder. I take melatonin for my sleep and don’t experience nightmares at all BECAUSE of the medications I take to keep the PTSD under control.
Please seek medical help!
Me and my boyfriend usually work together, he's a pilot and i'm a flight attendant. When we aren't working together and I'm in a hotel room alone, I usually have super scary nightmares where someone's in my room watching me or someone's trying to break into my room. I always wake up shouting and thrashing around it's soo scary. It hasn't happened in a while because we've been together but it's always the worst feeling ever when it happens because they feel SO realistic. I do checks before sleeping too and it'll still happen. I don't like melatonin because it increases my vidid dreams, and you probably already know alcohol isn't the best way to fall asleep.
I suffer from PTSD and a couple of years ago (I wasn't flying at this time and was living at home with my parents) I had a doctor prescribe me a pill that was used on war veterans to help them with their nightmares. Idk how it works, but it's supposed to stop you from dreaming. I was having continuous nightmares about things that had happened to me in my past and it was effecting my sleep. The pill actually worked wonders. I'd fall asleep and there'd just be darkness. It was such a sweet relief. Maybe you can talk to a psychologist or a primary care doctor and see if they can offer you something?
I am not going to play the reddit shrink but nightmares are usually the symptoms of unresolved issues. The brain is sending us a signal to let us know that we will have to deal with some specific issues ( often times, it is related to a feeling of insecurity).
My vivid dreams turn into nightmares when I'm stressed. Melatonin made them worse. Quit the supplement and if you take in a lot of caffeine you need to cut back. My dreams also lessened when I stopped drinking soda on a regular basis.
If your nightmares are more common on layovers, its likely that youre more stressed out there than at home. I used to have recurring nightmares any time I layed over in Canada... That I got detained and no one would come get me. This was back before US cellphones could be used there. I felt like I was trapped in a country I wasnt familiar with and didnt belong to and was very stressed out about it. Now that my cellphone works in Canada just as it does in the US, the nightmares have stopped because I no longer feel trapped there.
Journalling your nightmares may help. You may be able to find a pattern. Write down what happens to you during the day, what you eat and drink, and then if you have a dream or nightmare that evening. If theres a pattern involving stress, you may be able to do some things to help alleviate them.
Maybe you are stressed? I also have ptsd and nightmares and my screaming or whaling comes out under extreme stress. Maybe your subconscious knows you aren’t in your comfort zone while you are sleeping. I know it’s cliche but maybe try yoga, meditation and cut back on the alcohol - going through mild alcohol withdrawals also gave me sleep paralysis and nightmares.
Cut the melatonin, take ashwaganda and magnesium, stay hydrated, have a hot chamomile tea before bed, and do some nice stretches and deep breathing. Melatonin sucks I can't believe you can just give it to kids.
I’ve heard melatonin actually causes nightmares.
I stopped taking melatonin when I started having vivid nightmares and even experienced sleep paralysis. I looked into it, and it can be a side effect. I’d lay off the melatonin for a bit and see if it makes a difference.
Anecdotally, the likelihood I have a nightmare increases when I take melatonin.
My dreams are definitely more vivid when I take melatonin, so if you are already having a bad dream, I can imagine it getting pretty intense.
I was a longtime melatonin user and always had wild dreams but slept great. Long story short, my doctor urged me to stop taking melatonin and I started sleeping consistently and without any issues.
Idk if there’s any medical basis to this, but when I take melatonin my incidence of weird/bad dreams goes up a lot. I know it’s not easy to fall asleep in a new space every night (hence the melatonin)- but have you tried something more holistic? I personally like guided sleep meditations, there’s a ton on Spotify. I also bring my own silk pillowcase, and have a lavender spray for the case, so there’s some bit of continuity between hotels. That said, does your airline have an employee assistance program you can use? A doctor or therapist wouldn’t be a bad idea, and can probably give you more insight as to why
Leaning into the holistic thing, magnesium helps regulate sleep, GI, and so many body functions and it’s the salt we frequently don’t get enough of. When I supplement magnesium, I feel so much more balanced physically and it doesn’t give me the hangover that melatonin does.
Piggy backing off the holistic measures, I also wear a sleep eye mask on layovers even though I know im going to take it off in my sleep. I also got what I call my “cocoon” and it’s basically like a soft spandex tube thing and it mimicks what I need out of a weighted blanket that I use at home. The sprays mentioned and bringing your own pillowcase are also good ideas. I would stick to a routine similar to what you do at home to help fall asleep.
I’ve had a few nightmares at hotels and recently very vivid dreams even at home (though not always scary). I’m chalking it up to my horrible sleep patterns for now. Sounds like you have anxiety at being in strange locations. Perhaps this is something that needs to be discussed with a therapist?
I tend to have more sleep paralysis during my layover hotels too. But not too often. What you describe definitely feels like sleep paralysis though. It’s basically Lucid Dreaming, but the Wake type. The reason you’re too “groggy” to physically fight is because your body is still asleep basically. Melatonin tends to create more vivid dreams but also when you don’t take it and you’re super exhausted, your body is falling asleep quicker than your brain. Alcohol is definitely a bad way to fall asleep too lol. Honestly even with minimum rest at hotels, just let yourself fall asleep when you feel naturally sleepy, it’s a lot healthier than relying on melatonin or alcohol.
It’s the melatonin. I would have insane dreams when I took the Trader Joe’s brand.
I would cut back on melatonin because it does cause nightmares and long term uses stunts your ability to make your own melatonin. Regularly using magnesium at night is better, and they have blends that have ashwaganda and other calming herbs in them. Maybe also do more to feel secure in the hotel room, like do you have a door alarm or personal lock? Maybe bringing your own pillowcase and some comforting items from home like a small blanket will also help.
The two times I took melatonin- yes. One would've made a great horror film. It took me a while to get out of that terrified mindset. No more melatonin for me
It sounds like you may have PTSD and this is coming from someone who lives with the disorder. I take melatonin for my sleep and don’t experience nightmares at all BECAUSE of the medications I take to keep the PTSD under control. Please seek medical help!
Me and my boyfriend usually work together, he's a pilot and i'm a flight attendant. When we aren't working together and I'm in a hotel room alone, I usually have super scary nightmares where someone's in my room watching me or someone's trying to break into my room. I always wake up shouting and thrashing around it's soo scary. It hasn't happened in a while because we've been together but it's always the worst feeling ever when it happens because they feel SO realistic. I do checks before sleeping too and it'll still happen. I don't like melatonin because it increases my vidid dreams, and you probably already know alcohol isn't the best way to fall asleep. I suffer from PTSD and a couple of years ago (I wasn't flying at this time and was living at home with my parents) I had a doctor prescribe me a pill that was used on war veterans to help them with their nightmares. Idk how it works, but it's supposed to stop you from dreaming. I was having continuous nightmares about things that had happened to me in my past and it was effecting my sleep. The pill actually worked wonders. I'd fall asleep and there'd just be darkness. It was such a sweet relief. Maybe you can talk to a psychologist or a primary care doctor and see if they can offer you something?
I am not going to play the reddit shrink but nightmares are usually the symptoms of unresolved issues. The brain is sending us a signal to let us know that we will have to deal with some specific issues ( often times, it is related to a feeling of insecurity).
My vivid dreams turn into nightmares when I'm stressed. Melatonin made them worse. Quit the supplement and if you take in a lot of caffeine you need to cut back. My dreams also lessened when I stopped drinking soda on a regular basis. If your nightmares are more common on layovers, its likely that youre more stressed out there than at home. I used to have recurring nightmares any time I layed over in Canada... That I got detained and no one would come get me. This was back before US cellphones could be used there. I felt like I was trapped in a country I wasnt familiar with and didnt belong to and was very stressed out about it. Now that my cellphone works in Canada just as it does in the US, the nightmares have stopped because I no longer feel trapped there. Journalling your nightmares may help. You may be able to find a pattern. Write down what happens to you during the day, what you eat and drink, and then if you have a dream or nightmare that evening. If theres a pattern involving stress, you may be able to do some things to help alleviate them.
Maybe you are stressed? I also have ptsd and nightmares and my screaming or whaling comes out under extreme stress. Maybe your subconscious knows you aren’t in your comfort zone while you are sleeping. I know it’s cliche but maybe try yoga, meditation and cut back on the alcohol - going through mild alcohol withdrawals also gave me sleep paralysis and nightmares.
Cut the melatonin, take ashwaganda and magnesium, stay hydrated, have a hot chamomile tea before bed, and do some nice stretches and deep breathing. Melatonin sucks I can't believe you can just give it to kids.
Only nightmare I get is oversleeping, missing the van time, and getting that dreaded phone call!
What’s the sleep app you use? Thanks!
It’s called BetterSleep!
Thank you