# ZMA- really do anything?



## IHI (Nov 19, 2017)

See folks say it “helps them sleep” or “helps them sleep better”. Ever since i can remember, even as a kid, sleep for me never comes easy, and i cannot remember but twice in my adult life ever waking up feeling “refreshed” like i slept well. Many years ago doc set me up for a sleep study. Told techs dont expect much, you have about a 3-4hr window once i knock out before im up, and once im up, im up, there is no falling back asleep because my brain just goes a million miles a minute thinking about stuff.

test went as i expected, laid there 2hrs before knocking out, then 3.5hrs later im asking to be unhooked so i can leave. They made me lay there 2 more hours thinking id crash again, but never happened and no data could be gathered to say anything definitive, so ended up with a CPAP just to cover that base. Tried to use it for 3months and never helped, hose made it worse jerking me awake actually. Docs tried 5 different sleeping pills/aids and i do not like the side effects so those were all short lived.

anyhow, yeah i should just buy the ZMA and try it, but wanted real world feedback if y’all had experience with it.

exhausted and crashed at 9pm last night, 1:34am eyes wide open  so laid there till 2am this a.m. and said fug it, went down and hit elliptical and did some stretching and core stuff to pass the time before i head to work in a lil bit- gets frustrating but its my normal, and I think being on gym supps  aggrivates it obviously, so it is what it is.


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## BRICKS (Nov 19, 2017)

How much caffeine are you consuming during the day?  Alcohol?


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## PillarofBalance (Nov 19, 2017)

Probably not but **** it. Even if it's placebo it still does the job. 

But you should explore other possibilities. You mentioned your mind racing. That's typically a measure or expression of anxiety. Deal with that and see what happens.


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## Bro Bundy (Nov 19, 2017)

Eat a edible and pass out like a man


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## BigSwolePump (Nov 19, 2017)

I tried it a few years back and didn't notice anything different. Bricks hit a good point above. I actually had to cut caffeine completely out in order to get myself to have a decent nights sleep. Maybe this could help you too.


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## IHI (Nov 19, 2017)

Always had anxiety issues, real bad all the years i owned my business- i lay awake planning the next days work by the minute, then the next day based on what my mind figured out just prior, etc....until i fell asleep, wake up and it was immediately back to planning/troubleshooting lol.

last night went to a BBQ  joint for dinner, had a crown and Dr Pepper after work, then 3 beers at restaurant. Was in bed about 2 hrs after last beer so that prolly didnt aid last night.

may explore the caffine thing, coffee at wake up pre workout then thru mid morning at latest, then just water the rest of the day or milk with supper or shake before bed.


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## Jin (Nov 19, 2017)

BigSwolePump said:


> I tried it a few years back and didn't notice anything different. Bricks hit a good point above. I actually had to cut caffeine completely out in order to get myself to have a decent nights sleep. Maybe this could help you too.



6 months of ZMA pre-TRT in hopes of getting my test levels up naturally and helping with recovery. No noticeable effects, no increased test levels.


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## MrRippedZilla (Nov 19, 2017)

IHI said:


> Always had anxiety issues, real bad all the years i owned my business- i lay awake planning the next days work by the minute, then the next day based on what my mind figured out just prior, etc....until i fell asleep, wake up and it was immediately back to planning/troubleshooting lol.


I have a similar mindset when I'm all tunnel vision on a goal and have found practicing mindfulness to be hugely beneficial. You acknowledge the thoughts that occur in your mind, accept them with no further analysis, then push them away. Repeat. 
Meditation and cognitive behavioral therapy strategies also help by making you focus on something else (not anxiety provoking). 

Zinc and Magnesium are beneficial if you have a deficiency, otherwise both would be useless. A zinc deficiency in our community is rare, a magnesium one is possible (second most likely deficiency after vit D) so that may be worth experimenting with if more direct measures are difficult to run with.


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## stonetag (Nov 19, 2017)

It seems I was always jacked on caffeine, whether coffee, or five hour energy, or the like. I was having some issues falling asleep so I decided to cut all caffeine sources out except my trusty coffee, and turns out my woman was brewing decaf 50% of the time, we had a little discussion about that! My point is that cutting all the other shit out did help my sleep, that and a cpap and I sleep like a rock.


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## stonetag (Nov 19, 2017)

Bro Bundy said:


> Eat a edible and pass out like a man



A lot of folks have jobs that having THC in your system would mean kicking cans down the road with no job.


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## Seeker (Nov 19, 2017)

stonetag said:


> A lot of folks have jobs that having THC in your system would mean kicking cans down the road with no job.



Yeah I'm unfortunately one of them. I get randomly tested and I just recently had to update my background check


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## Bro Bundy (Nov 19, 2017)

stonetag said:


> A lot of folks have jobs that having THC in your system would mean kicking cans down the road with no job.


No amount of money is worth my privacy


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## snake (Nov 20, 2017)

Been there and done that. It did zero for me, and a friend of mine had the same results. 

Zolpidem is my go to knock out drug. Doesn't keep me out but gets me asleep. Age+children+stress= fuuked up sleep.


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## IHI (Nov 20, 2017)

snake said:


> Age+children+stress= fuuked up sleep.



Literally lol’d 

Got Trazodone and it took a bit to dial in (pill pre stress relieved for full dose 150mg, 1/2 dose 75mg, or other side 3- 50mg) but 1/2 pill seems to work for me without bad grogginess the next morning. Bad side is you wont bust a nut, so you need to relieve the stress before taking, then for me anyways, 30minutes after taking im out. Half pill wont float me lights out all night, but better than nothing. 

Been using nyquill or nyquill zzz and they help put me down, but the groggy is what turns me off of this kinda stuff, especially with a.m. workouts.


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## bvs (Nov 20, 2017)

Not necessarily suggesting this but it might be something to look into. Seroquel XR 100mg gives me great sleep and I've safely taken it for years without having to increase the dose to get the same effect


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## Jin (Nov 20, 2017)

bvs said:


> Not necessarily suggesting this but it might be something to look into. Seroquel XR 100mg gives me great sleep and I've safely taken it for years without having to increase the dose to get the same effect



You're not taking Seroquel for insomnia


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## John Ziegler (Nov 20, 2017)

Back when I was pill ng it up with the xanex regularly 

ran out of them and took a seroquel because it was all that was available 

that shit made me feel awful


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## bvs (Nov 20, 2017)

Jin said:


> You're not taking Seroquel for insomnia



I'm taking it for depression and insomnia. It was prescribed by a psychiatrist. It's also more widely prescribed as an anti phsychotic but dosing for that starts at 700mg


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## Gibsonator (Nov 21, 2017)

mark wahlberg says it does
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bbvv0JKj77s/


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## IHI (Nov 21, 2017)

Gibsonator said:


> mark wahlberg says it does
> https://www.instagram.com/p/Bbvv0JKj77s/




His branded stuff too i bet (didnt watch it, but since its celebrity endorsed id better buy two cuz its cool


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## Spongy (Nov 21, 2017)

I'll be honest with you, I had great results with ZMA.  Maybe it's placebo but i get a euphoric feeling in a very minor way and sleep well.  Melatonin, benadryl, etc make me wake up wanting to die...  now maybe it's because i don't have a history of sleep issues, but I just wanted to put my opinion in.  FYI, I'm alcohol free for a couple years now and that may be the biggest difference.  Alcohol will absolutely wreck your sleep of it's a habit.


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## IHI (Nov 21, 2017)

Never been a big drinker, ill go months between alky beverages, but usually when i do partake, i make up for lost time lol. Just the other night i was craving my Crown & Dr. Pepper so i stopped and grabbed a bottle, then wife wanted some BBQ at a restaurant way out of our way so we never go but every few years, so that night was waaay out of my norm.

ive tried melatonin when i worked 3rd (really ****ed me up- 5hrs a day sleep average, 2hr after i got kids off too school, then a 3hr pwr nap before work- rinse and repeat for 5yrs 
but that stuff didnt help me none unfortunately


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