Hi Nick,

The troubles I have falling asleep have gotten much better over the last year. A year ago, I had a lot of trouble falling asleep and staying asleep and would wake up several times each night - it was awful!

Now, I generally fall asleep within a half an hour to two hours after going to bed.

Aside from time, and just getting better cognitively, which has reduced my anxiety levels a great deal, I think the number one thing that has helped me to fall asleep each night is to wake up at the same time consistently every morning.

I tried taking 5-HTP, which my acupuncturist told me is tryptophan, but it didn't seem to help at all. But I do think it's worth trying because I'm pretty sure it's helped a lot of people.

Nowadays, when I have trouble going to sleep, I usually try to meditate to relax. I've also used the trick Starr uses to relax each part of my body, starting with my toes and moving through each part until I get up to my head. Or I eat a light snack, like a yogurt cup, or some cheese or beef jerky. (Sometimes, I'm hungry and I don't realize it and then putting something in my tummy makes me sleepy.) When none of that works, I get out of bed and read a little bit of something light in another room and that usually does the trick.

I know there are other sleep aid medications out there. Tell your physiatrist about the trouble you had with the newest one you tried and see if they can give you something else.