For many years I've had both fresh and salt water aquariums. Like lots of folks, I've timed the lighting to stay on into the evening hours so I could enjoy the watching of the critters. For many years I've also battled sleep issues as well as depression. I spent years on Ambien until I made a trip to the supermarket in the middle of the night and bought a bunch of stuff that I have absolutely no memory of. At least one item I bought that night had something to do with fish stuff........canned squid in ink.......sort of an intro to my long sought solution to my sleep issues. A few weeks ago, I was at my wits end. Go to bed tired, wake up a couple hours later, toss and turn, doze off, wake up at 5. Tried everything, buy a new bed, buy new bedding. Buy different pillows. I was taking 4-5 Simply Sleep (basically antihistamine based sleep aid), and still no relief. Warm showers, warm milk, SleepyTime tea, I've tried them all. In a last ditch effort before heading to the doctor for another prescription something or other, I did some web surfing and ran across articles about blue light interfering with melatonin production, which trashes your circadian cycles. I read several research articles tying specific receptors in your eyeballs to different light wavelengths and sleep. Basically, we are wired to experience sunset (orange and red light) before dark to trigger natural melatonin production and the onset of sustained normal sleep. Same thing for waking. The presence of blue light triggers alertness and wakefulness. There are even software (f.lux) that can kill the blue light from computers and phones. What I've been doing for years is eliminating sunset completely. My brain was unable to transition from the "equatorial high noon" from the aquarium lights to anything resembling normal sleep, plus watching TV and surfing on tablets, phones, and laptop. So, again surfing around, I determined a plan of action. Mission : Eliminate blue light after 6:30pm and see what happens. For the last two weeks, I've run the lights on the aquariums (LEDs) to transition to blue at 5:30, and then off at 6:30. Bought some blue blocker glasses off Amazon, and some amber LED strip lights. Made up an amber LED backlight for the flat panel TV, built a couple of night lights for the bedroom and living room, and set about trying it out. Made no other changes in my habits. At 8:30pm, I turn on the amber backlights on the TV and the night lights. Put on the blue blocker glasses, and go about what I normally have done. Watch TV (colors are a little off but not bad considering the alternative), surf the web, etc. Hit the hay about 11.
The difference the first night was amazing. I actually slept through most of the night, though I still did a bunch of tossing and turning. The second night, I slept through till 7 am. I haven't done that in more than 10 years without medication. By the third night, I was sleeping soundly all night. Not waking, not tossing, not flipping pillows 20 times. I've also been feeling much much better. I'm retired, and arthritis and age are taking a toll, but I have to say I haven't felt this well in quite some time. I sleep. More important than anything, I sleep like a semi normal person. I don't know if you have the same challenge, or if it will work for you if you are suffering like me, but what I have now, I wouldn't trade for anything.
The difference the first night was amazing. I actually slept through most of the night, though I still did a bunch of tossing and turning. The second night, I slept through till 7 am. I haven't done that in more than 10 years without medication. By the third night, I was sleeping soundly all night. Not waking, not tossing, not flipping pillows 20 times. I've also been feeling much much better. I'm retired, and arthritis and age are taking a toll, but I have to say I haven't felt this well in quite some time. I sleep. More important than anything, I sleep like a semi normal person. I don't know if you have the same challenge, or if it will work for you if you are suffering like me, but what I have now, I wouldn't trade for anything.
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