If Melatonin Isn’t Addictive, Why Can’t I Stop Taking It?

Link to the original article on self.com

Melatonin has become the choice du jour of sleep aids, with research finding its use has substantially spiked in the past couple decades. And it’s easy to understand why: Beyond being an accessible over-the-counter supplement, it has also gained a glowing reputation as relatively safe and low-risk—a far cry from its habit-forming prescription counterparts. As is widely touted, it’s a hormone your body naturally makes. And yet, you probably wouldn’t be here if it was always as easy to stop taking melatonin as it is to start.

If TikTok is any indication, plenty of people are struggling to shake their nightly melatonin habit, and studies suggest more folks are also turning to higher doses of the stuff. You probably don’t want to feel like you’re reliant on any pill or potion to doze off—but the truth is melatonin is just not a great sleep aid: There isn’t much evidence that the supplement can really help you fall asleep any faster or stay asleep any longer.

A 2013 meta-analysis investigating the effects of melatonin found that, on average, it reduces sleep latency (the time it takes to fall asleep) by seven minutes and increases sleep time by eight minutes—which isn’t nothing but isn’t a huge shift either, Deirdre Conroy, PhD, clinical director of the Behavioral Sleep Medicine Program at the University of Michigan, tells SELF. (Where melatonin has been shown to help is in instances when you’re trying to sleep at odd hours—due to work shifts or jet lag from changing time zones, for example—and in the treatment of circadian rhythm disorders, Dr. Conroy adds.)

So if melatonin is a natural hormone that doesn’t do much for sleep disorders like insomnia, why might you feel like you’re hooked on your nightly hit? Below, experts explain why the supplement can be sneakily hard to quit and how to kick the habit for any reason.

If you’re regularly struggling to clock six to eight hours a night, with melatonin or not, Dr. Conroy recommends seeing a sleep medicine specialist if you can. Depending on your situation, they can offer a variety of insomnia treatments including CBT-I, a therapeutic technique that research has shown to be more effective than medication. It works to tame the anxious thought spirals that can leave you staring at the ceiling all night while also shifting your behaviors in a sleep-promoting direction.

The idea is to shed that feeling of dread that can creep up when you anticipate a bad night of sleep. Of course, that’s easier said than done—which is why Dr. Martin has one more tip: “When people are getting off melatonin, I suggest they take the money they’re saving by not buying it anymore, and do something nice for themselves.” A manicure! A dinner out! Really, anything goes. As she says, “Reward yourself for doing the work.”