Okay, so I haven’t tried glycine yet.
To be fair, my life’s been so busy that the only time I spend online now is when I’m writing for you guys. Other than that, I’m either in my clinical rotation that starts at 6 A.M. every morning, working out, sleeping, or adulting. And, as part of my adulting, grocery shopping is obviously on that list. Now, back when I had a life (and money), I’d make that outta-my-way trip to Wegman’s to get the gourmet level lavender infused fancy sleep aid stuff. But now, I’m all about convenience. I hit the closest grocery store to home (Food Lion), get my run in, and fall asleep while it’s still sunny. Only problem? It’s really flargin’ hard to sleep when the sun isn’t. Lucky for me, the slumber gods were watching over me last trip I took down the sleep aid aisle. There I was, wading through a sea of packets containing chemical laden tablets, and there it was. Surrounded in a halo of angel glow, was something I’d not seen previously: a packet that read “Drug-free sleep aid”. What’s more – it was a quarter of the price my bougie Wegman’s go-to.
Naturally (no pun intended), I flipped it over to read the ingredients:
Sure enough, stuff like lemon balm, chamomile, and even my fancy azz lavender were all in there.
And they were coupled with just the right dose of melatonin, too. (So many companies go overboard with too much of that stuff and it can mess with your system.) On the one hand, I was apprehensive about trying something new so early in my clinical rotation. What if there were weird side effects? What if it took too long to have an effect and I was still groggy in the morning? What if I slept through my alarm? They’re all legit concerns. But, to be honest, about now, my bigger concern was how groggy I was becoming in the morning thanks to the fact that I couldn’t fall asleep on command – and wasn’t getting more than a handful of hours before my alarm went off. So, I took these chewables home, crunched one up before bedtime, started binge watching the OA on Netflix, and – like clockwork – I started getting super snoozy within half an hour. Maybe not even that. Mind you, it wasn’t that druggy feeling you get from pharmaceuticals (or even some strong azz sleepytime tea like Yogi makes; that stuff is no joke).
It was just a sweet, peaceful, need-to-sleep feeling that I appreciated.
(And none of the usual urinal wakeups I have about three times a night, urging me to wake and purge my bladder…)
So, that’s great and all… but what about dependency?
That’s my other concern I always have. (Am I gonna get the shakes and scratch my jugular out the second I run out?) Yet, fast forward to a week of using this stuff nightly, and I got my answer. And I was pleased. I went through my usual Friday night just fine without needing my new snooze inducer. Granted, a glass of wine was involved. (Okay, maybe a glass and a half…Get off me.) But I didn’t feel any of that same cracky, antsy sort of feeling I’ve ever had when my body’s becoming dependent on a chemical of any kind. So, there you go. If you’re tired of dishing out dollars for delta waves and buying overpriced organic sleeping tablets from your gourmet grocer, then don’t. These cheap badboys from your local Food Lion or CVS will get the job done just as well – if not better – and save you tons of money.
(Which you can put toward that Friday night glass of Cabernet you’ve earned…)