My Lack of Magnesium Could be Causing my Insomnia? Seriously??
Fix Insomnia by just using magnesium as a sleep aid? Um, yeah…..okay.
For the better part of ten years I spent my nights wide awake and my mornings feeling drugged. OMG, I was sooo tired of being tired! I’d tried sleeping pills, OTC sleep aids, and some really weird natural remedies to get to sleep.
I really wanted a natural sleep aid that would work, without making me feel like I’d been out all night partying the next morning.
But could the reason I’d been spent the better part of 10 years cranky and sleep deprived because I was low in magnesium? That’s why five years ago when I learned about magnesium’s sleep benefits and decided I wanted to try using magnesium as a sleep aid.
Page Contents
- 1 My Lack of Magnesium Could be Causing my Insomnia? Seriously??
- 2 The Amazing Sleep Benefits of Magnesium
- 3 How do I Know if I Need to Start Using Magnesium as a Sleep Aid?
- 4 How to Take Magnesium to Sleep Better Every Night!
- 5 Other Ways to Take Magnesium to Help you Sleep Better
- 6 Magnesium = Better Sleep
The Amazing Sleep Benefits of Magnesium
KAL – Magnesium Glycinate 400, 180 tablets
Did you know that insomnia is the main symptom of a magnesium deficiency? Magnesium is needed by every cell of your body, all the way from a hormonal level to a muscular level.
I found out this is why I had insomnia for years. My diet and lifestyle had made me chronically magnesium deficient.
Taking magnesium every night pretty much eliminated my chronic insomnia. Aside from a night here or there, I was and am getting more sleep than I have in years.
I was sleeping better, but I also noticed other improvements, too. I was able to handle stress better and I didn’t have TMJ issues at night anymore. I felt like a new woman!
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Here’s just a few ways magnesium helps your sleep quality:
- Decreases cortisol, a stress hormone that keeps you awake, and if elevated over time can make your butt big!
- It’s a natural muscle relaxer.
- Helps regulate blood sugar. (Blood sugar dips and spikes make you wake up suddenly)
- Calms the central nervous system and starts the wind down process.
- Relieves restless leg syndrome.
You can see how easy it is for you to have insomnia if you’re not getting enough magnesium. Without it it just wrecks your whole night.
How do I Know if I Need to Start Using Magnesium as a Sleep Aid?
The National Sleep Foundation says over 40 million Americans suffer from insomnia. That’s a lot of cranky people! We’re all sleep deprived, and I think it’s partly caused by our magnesium zapping Western lifestyle and diet.
If you eat a lot of processed food, sugary desserts, drink soft drinks often, there’s a good chance you could be low in magnesium. If you take allergy or birth control pills, your magnesium could be deficient.
In fact, all of these actually SUCK magnesium out of your body:
- Carbonated sodas
- Coffee
- Alcohol
- Sugar
- Processed foods
- Stress
- Birth control pills
- Antibiotics
- Antihistamines
So you’re probably thinking, “I’m zen, I eat pretty clean and don’t take medicines, so I’m good!”
Um, maybe not.
Commercial overfarming has leeched minerals in the ground, which means it doesn’t make its way to fruits and vegetables. Another reason to eat organic I guess!
If you can’t sleep night after night and you can check any of those boxes, there’s a pretty good chance your magnesium is low and using magnesium as a sleep aid might be something you’d want to try.
How to Take Magnesium to Sleep Better Every Night!
First off, let me just say if you are taking any medications and/or have any major health issues, it’s best to talk to your doctor before you start taking anything over the counter, even if it is natural.
Take 400-600 mg about 30 minutes before bed.
Now that we have that little disclaimer out of the way, let’s talk about what and how you should take magnesium to help you sleep.
I am going to say something here, and if you take nothing else away from this post, please just remember this:
THE TYPE OF MAGNESIUM YOU TAKE MATTERS!
Magnesium works great as a sleep aid, until you buy the wrong kind and get diarrhea. Certain types of magnesium draws water to your intestines and acts as a laxative.
Trust me, I’ve been there, done that. You don’t want that.
To avoid diarrhea, you MUST use magnesium glycinate, magnesium citrate, or chelated magnesium. Using these types of magnesium as a sleep aid won’t give you the runs and you should notice an improvement in your sleep.
Unfortunately, most stores don’t carry any of those, except maybe certain health food stores. I buy mine on Amazon and I’m always able to get it at a really good price.
Magnesium Glycinate 400mg 180 tablets (Pack of 2)Solgar Chelated Magnesium Tablets, 250 CountNow Foods Magnesium Citrate 200mg, 250 Tablets
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Other Ways to Take Magnesium to Help you Sleep Better
In addition to taking it orally, soaking it in through your skin is a really good (and relaxing!) way to use magnesium as a sleep aid.
One of the easiest ways to do it, (my favorite way!), is by soaking in Epsom salts, which is a form of magnesium and isn’t actually salt at all. Also try a soak in other bath salts that are sleep inducing so your skin can drink up magnesium.
After you get out of your bath, I also recommend rubbing down in magnesium oil or magnesium lotion for sleep. All of this extra magnesium really helps you drift off to sleep effortlessly, and you won’t have to worry about gastric issues either.
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You can eat your way to sleep, too. Certain foods have uber amounts of magnesium, like molasses. Just one tablespoon contains 48 milligrams.
Knocking back a couple tablespoons of pure molasses is kind of sickening, and eating a couple dozen gingerbread cookies to get that one tbsp will get you nothing but fat.
But you can drink a gingerbread flavored molasses sleep tonic about an hour before bed to get a double dose of magnesium to help you fall asleep.
Magnesium = Better Sleep
It’s been about five years since I started using magnesium as a sleep aid. Do I still have problems sleeping? Occasionally. But I don’t have the awake all night, every night insomnia like I used to. What usually keeps me awake now is either because I can’t turn off my brain and sleep or I’m having trouble relaxing before bed.
If you have chronic insomnia, taking magnesium is a good sleep supplement to try. You can’t get too much magnesium built up in your body, so it’s safe to take every night for long stretches.
So quit being all tired and cranky. Try using magnesium as a natural sleep remedy and fix your insomnia naturally and permanently.
After this look into the sleep benefits of magnesium, read up on how long it takes for magnesium to work for sleep. Then, learn why natural sleep remedies you’ve tried in the past haven’t worked.
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