Cats are just silly sometimes arent' they? I've been sleepless for a few nights, so I feel your yawning!

Meletonin has to be taken just before bed time ( around a half hour) every night for least for 5-7 days before it begins to work. Then once it takes effect you no longer need to continue taking it.

A single tablet won't work as it's not like a sleeping tablet. You need to take it for a few days to get your body's meletonin levels to balance out in order to get you sleepy.

Some people have to take it longer than a week, but it's not meant for prolonged long-term usage.

I suffered from insomnia for years and meletonin, when taken correctly helped me immentsely. Hope it works for you.

I was reading up on it before I bought it, as it's not freely available here and I wondered why. I didn't know that it had a cumulative effect, didn't see that mentioned anywhere, but even if it takes a few days to start working I'll be happy if /when it finally does work. I hate waking up all the time, but don't want to take sleeping pills. Thanks for letting me know it worked for you, that's very encouraging.
I'm such a night owl but during the week I can't afford to be, as I have to get up at 5.30am on workdays. I'm hoping that this will help me adjust my normal circadian rhythm as well, so that earlier nights and mornings become more do-able. Last year I bought a clock radio with a lamp in it, and the lamp comes on ever so gradually, starting about half an hour before the alarm, so that by the time the alarm goes off the room is light and your natural serotonin levels are elevated from the light, meaning it's easier to wake up. Now I just need to work on the other side of the process.

There's also the food route that you can go. Foods rich in tryptophan (Tryptophan is an amino acid which is a natural sedative) such a spinach (fresh or frozen) egg whites, broccoli raab, aspargus, mushrooms....you've got yourself the makings of a healthy omlette. Eating more of these foods might help in conjuction with the melatonin.

Here's a website listing foods higher in tryptophan.

http://www.med-health.net/Foods-High-In-Tryptophan.html

That made interesting reading, thank you. I have cashews as a snack when I first get home from work, while breakfast is usually an apple and morning tea is a banana; have to work on the night-time meal and see what I can do.

Ha, if you stick anything on my cats they will go nuts running into things and spinning around trying to get whatever it is off of them. Hope you get some good sleep soon; my son hadn't slept more than 2-3 hours a night for days and was so exhausted and frazzled and snapping at everyone and everything; I finally convinced him to take his lorazipam (sp) which the dr prescribed for his terrible anxiety but he was refusing to take it. But two days ago he was just so hysterically tired he finally agreed to start taking them again and boy, he's slept for two days straight pretty much. Hopefully it will even out and he'll get adjusted to taking them again, but he needed sleep so badly; he was starting to hallucinate faces in the ceiling again, sigh.

That's what I expected, but no, Ziggy just went about his business. One strange kid.
I'm glad that Daniel finally took his meds and got some sleep - should help with the anxiety too.

Ahahaha. A little golden crown. And no brain!

How did the melatonin tablet work? I am curious about those and whether they help with jetlag at all. I've heard they can...?

Apparently they have a cumulative effect and take a couple of days to kick in. I can say that I've been yawning within half an hour of taking them, for the last three nights, so that's a start! Still find it hard in the mornings, but it's been freezing cold so that doesn't help at all. I'll let you know how I get on over the next few days.

Interesting. Thanks a lot. They do sound like they might do the trick, then. I hope they work for you!