40mg melatonin 1 night

[daughter-Advocate]

Dad accidentally took 40mg of melatonin last night (4 pills, 10mg each). He thought they were pain killers.

Ugh.

He already has insomnia, severe sleep apnea, neck and back pain + nerve pain. Is 40mg of melatonin in one night life threatening????? Should I be concerned? He's moving. But complaining of stiff neck and neck all day so wondering if it's the extra melatonin causing the flare up or not related and 40mg is still ok?

[Patrickk]

I use to take 45mg melatonin a night in three 15mg doses. Didn't really feel anything I thought so I quit -- no difference -- I continued to take 1mg just to see. After couple of weeks I thought I could feel a small effect. My understanding is that if you overload the melatonin receptors, they shut down.

[daughter-Advocate in reply to Patrickk]

Thank you, maybe we can alternate the dosage

[Bastian7]

According to WebMD, an overdose of melatonin is very unlikely to be life-threatening, but will cause side effects such as headache, dizziness, nausea and drowsiness. It may also interact with other meds.

I used to take 1 mg for many years, and it's been almost a life saver. Now I have developed tolerance and not even 10 mg does anything for me. The recommended dose for adults is around 2-8mg (WebMD). For me 8mg would have been far, far too much to start with, and I've been an insomniac all my life.

[daughter-Advocate in reply to Bastian7]

Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry to hear this. Have you found a sleep routine/regimen that helps you? Are you sleep deprived?

[Bastian7 in reply to daughter-Advocate]

Thanks. I've tried all the sleep hygiene tricks, the only one that makes a difference is practicing relaxation techniques.