Welcome to Fit to Be Real and a little extra.
Are you sleeping?
No.
Are you?
Are you having trouble sleeping?
Yes.
Well, do we have an episode for you?
Melatonin, baby.
You're such a good, like, QVC host.
I tried.
I know.
I tried that one.
Wait, her handle on YouTube was a side of Mayo.
Yeah.
And she used to talk about products, things that were in my bathroom.
I didn't buy anything.
I know you would review products because you wanted to be a host on QVC.
Well, I was given the advice to, like, create a bunch of videos and make catalog or a reference
for them to, like, look at.
So I was making them.
They're still up there because I don't have the information and password to take them off.
Take them down.
Go YouTube, Victoria.
You'll find singing videos.
Yeah.
And product reviews.
I think it's like V Mayo something.
It's not a side of Mayo.
A side of Mayo was like the series that I created.
Right.
And I actually found a jar of mayonnaise and superimposed the words.
A side of Mayo on it.
Enjoy everyone.
I was up.
I remember I'd be up in the attic.
I lived in mom's attic at the time and I had no idea what I was doing and I was using
a phone to record only.
Yeah.
Just my phone, like, facing me and it would pick up anyone on the driveway talking, which
was always mom and the neighbor and like loud belting voices.
And I'd be like, oh, my gosh, I got through how long of the video and I had to like stop
and wait for them to stop talking about the trash cans or like or the shared driveway.
Yes.
Or like if the trash truck came by, I'd be like, oh my God.
But I stole Seafit's.
Light.
Yes.
Stuff.
Right.
Light and the holder so that you could do it hands free, which was a new fangled thing
at the time.
Like a little tripod.
Yeah.
Like a tripod where it was hands free and you could video yourself with and make it look
professional.
Yep.
I remember that.
So when I'm thinking back to when mom and Vicki had all those jobs of like balloon animals
and wallpaper ring, it's like we had jobs of like making YouTube videos to be on QVC
and like just these random, random jobs that we had.
Well, before they were a thing like you're not just talking.
Everybody does that, but we were doing it before it became this like thing.
Right.
To have a YouTube channel.
To know how to do it.
Like you couldn't YouTube how to how to do YouTube.
You had to figure it out because it wasn't like a thing.
Yeah.
So anyway, that's not what we're talking about today at all.
No, but when you talk yourself in circles and create this anxiety, sometimes you can't
sleep.
And so that is what we're going to talk about today.
You missed your calling.
You're such a good segwayer.
I always bring you back.
I mean, you're so good at moving forward.
The train is moving forward and I'm like, wait a sec.
Wait a sec.
Stop.
Hold on.
We have to go back.
It's like when you're trying to pack the car and there's always one kid that's like,
wait, I have to go to the bathroom.
Yeah.
We have to pull back on the driveway.
Yep.
I'm that kid.
Yeah.
Well, let's get into it.
I'm Victoria.
Hey guys, I'm Carly and I'm tired.
And oh my gosh, I'm always tired.
Yeah.
We're going to talk about how we can fix that today or at least help.
Yeah.
It's not a complete problem solver, but it's definitely an aid.
For some people and then also it just depends on so many circumstances in your life.
So Melatonin.
What?
You can get it over the counter, but it's also something that we produce naturally in our bodies.
So that like tired feeling.
I was watching a video.
I'm going to link the video that I watched.
It was four minutes and 57 seconds, but really pulled me in because I was like, I can do that.
I can do that.
Yeah.
Well, you didn't do it, but I sent it to you.
So you can do it, but you didn't do it.
And I know you didn't.
We didn't talk about this, but I know you did my own research.
I didn't have time to watch your video.
I sent it to you at like 9 30 last night while you were in bed watching Bravo.
So you did have time, but it's okay.
Name them.
We digress.
Get a new one.
We digress.
That like constantly tired feeling.
A big proponent of that is creating light before you sleep and light as you sleep.
Right.
That is something I did not know.
That's why they say don't watch TV as you go to sleep.
Don't scroll on your phone.
The amount of sunlight or light that you get during the day affects your melatonin levels
and how you sleep.
Yeah, I didn't know that.
Yeah.
There's so many, so many room for activities.
What?
So much more room for activities.
We're very tired, clearly.
Very tired.
But yeah, so the circadian rhythm is really why if you wake up tired, that's usually
why you're off because there is something with the light.
You've had too much of it.
You didn't get enough darkness for the melatonin to really rise, which happens in the middle
of the night.
And then it really, it goes down in our system or decreases in our system during the day
when we're at the peak of just like activity and sunlight and stuff like that.
But you are not born with melatonin.
It's something that grows with you.
As a baby, you are not born with it.
It comes through breast milk.
Yeah.
Oh, okay.
And it comes through vitamins and it comes through like the placenta as you're like,
you don't have it.
Don't say placenta.
Sorry, placenta.
Ew.
Uh-huh.
Can't.
But it's something you gain as you get older, your levels rise as you get older and then
they fall as you get even older.
Yes.
Yeah.
It's an ebb and flow if you will.
Ew.
But yes.
So yeah, that's why melatonin doesn't work for everybody because some people already
have high levels of it and then it actually has an adverse effect and it doesn't help
you at all.
And then some people are so low in their levels, like you really have to talk to a doctor.
I'm going to preface everything with you.
You just should talk to your doctor if melatonin might be something you want to navigate.
Navigate.
I, for your sleep cycle, 10 things I hate about you.
Oh, somebody.
Yeah, that's all 10 in one.
Somebody did come into class last night and call me a cool human.
A cool human.
And I was like, well, at least I'm not their favorite human because I still am nobody's
favorite human.
But I was a cool human.
What's up, B-claws?
They're appreciating it.
They're keeping it real.
You know?
I'm not trying to fabricate too much.
So melatonin is one of the most important hormones produced by our body.
All right?
It's a potent molecule that helps with regeneration, which is what you need to sleep.
Like that sleeping time is so important because your body and your cells regenerate and important
things happen.
Anti-cancer.
I know I saw that.
Anti-inflammatory.
Anti-oxidant.
And anti-aging.
It's not for anything.
It's anti-everything.
I know.
It's also, they're researching it with side effects for Alzheimer's and dementia.
Yeah.
Is that crazy?
Yeah.
There's just so much.
There's just so much information out there that everybody needs to know.
I think my favorite fact that I've learned with all this is that it's called the hormone
of darkness.
Really?
Yeah.
I did not know that.
Yeah, because it's, well, it's like a yin-yang.
It's produced during daylight, but it's needed in the darkness and it's at its highest in
the darkness, i.e. when we sleep.
So it's the hormone of darkness.
It's like my favorite.
You would.
I know.
I got really excited when I read that.
I'm sorry.
What?
What was that?
Nothing.
Continue.
Old friend.
What?
I don't know.
I'm really tired.
I need melatonin in my life.
I'm sleepy.
So there are a few ways to stimulate melatonin and melatonin production in our body.
One is actually infrared sunlight.
So like anytime you see like an infrared sauna or I've done that before or even have
like the handheld.
Remember when you used to get the FabFit box or something?
Yes.
FabFit?
No, FabFit.
You would come every season.
Yeah.
And they overcharged me and she got it for like two years straight.
It was really, really rough for me.
So fun.
I used to give half of it to you, whatever I got.
Yeah.
Like the infrared stuff.
She would keep all the really bougie stuff and then the stuff that was like supposed
to help in some sort of self-care way.
She was like, here, this stuff's trash.
Yeah.
Here's some face mist to keep your makeup on.
Here we go.
So infrared sunlight is when it's present in the sunlight, but absent in artificial light.
Okay.
So when it goes through the skin, this is a word I'm not a big fan of, penetrates the
skin.
Oh, I know.
It just feels very aggressive.
Yeah.
It activates when it penetrates the skin and activates melatonin.
So that's why people do those infrared masks before they go to bed?
Yes.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
People post about that on their Instagram stories all the time and it looks like they're
wearing a superhero scary, scary looking mask.
And I'm always thinking it's about clearing up your skin, but it's not.
It's about sleep.
Well, it is about the skin.
So another thing that that does is that it cleans off free radicals and inflammation.
So it says it depuffs you.
So like a big part of going to sleep, that's part of the process.
But, and I think that's mainly what they talk about in those posts.
It's never like melatonin.
But it produces.
Oh, that's so cool.
It's a melatonin.
I'ma get me one.
Okay.
UV light, also absent in artificial light.
And it does the same type of thing.
It's the production of circulatory melatonin in the pineal gland.
I listen when I listen to our podcast last week and you would not say that word.
I understand why because I would have made fun of you the rest of the episode like I
am today.
But like you have one.
Everyone has a pineal gland.
It's like the size of a little pea.
Stop saying it.
It's a real thing.
It's not like an imaginary word I'm making up to bother you.
It's bothering me.
So the things that suppress melatonin production, the things that we're all doing that will
stop the production so that we don't actually get a good night's sleep and go into REM
cycle and do all of the things that our body needs to do overnight is not enough natural
light exposure.
So like not going out in nature, not going outside, not getting actual sunlight on the
body.
So what would be beneficial for me is to get an infrared light mask because I know for
a fact I do not get enough sunlight.
If there was a projected you need X amount of sunlight a day to get a good night's sleep.
Oh, oh, oh, there's a time limit.
Oh, heck no.
I'm getting maybe 40, 40 minutes at most.
And that's just like one running car to car.
Yeah.
At most.
I don't even think you're getting 40 minutes.
How fast does it take you to walk from the door to the car?
And you're in a carport.
You're under a carport.
You have a carport.
Wait a second.
Yeah.
So that's bad for me.
Yes.
Even just like doing computer work.
Yeah.
Outside.
Sit outside and do it.
Oh.
Wait.
Okay.
Lack of darkness at night is another one.
No problem there.
If that, no, if you go to sleep with the TV on.
If you are scrolling through your phone before you go to sleep.
Yes.
That's what I was talking about earlier.
If you have light in your room in any, and then also if, you know, you don't have really
dark curtains or you're not pulling the blinds down, you know, moonlight in the middle of
the night coming through the window, it needs to be pitch black, which I am so understanding
more as I get older.
When people have those like blackout curtains or yeah, but I'm thinking of the holiday.
Oh, where her trick out California house.
It's like you press the button and shades open and then it gets like pitch black.
I want that.
Yeah.
I want that so badly.
We have a pretty dark room minus the TV.
The TV and the blue light and the phone is 100% a major problem for your melatonin production.
Yeah.
It's like not eating.
You're not supposed to eat like two hours before you go to bed due to the digestion.
Right.
No, no, say it again.
Digestion process.
Okay.
You're not supposed to look at the phone or have any light going through two hours before
you go to bed.
Sorry, everybody.
Her penis gland just totally malfunctioned.
I need to take a moment of silence for that.
It's still malfunctioning.
She's looking up at it.
I'm in shock.
That's what I hear when you say the word.
So I'm just saying what everybody else is hearing.
Do you hear that when someone's saying, I am a classical pianist?
I hear you.
Every single time.
I want to giggle.
I am a child who has children, but I'm a child.
I would like to say undeveloped.
That gland on me is undeveloped.
I can't stand you.
So there are melatonin capsules, pills, whatever that you can take and they're over the counter
because it's not something that is dangerous in the fact that a doctor needs to give it
to you or whatever.
You don't need a prescription or anything.
Thank you.
My God.
Words.
I'm not sure.
It's not great for everyone, just like we said.
Well, when I used to hear from other moms who had kids that was like, oh, we're going
on a long drive.
I gave my kid a melatonin.
I'd be like, in my unresearched, uneducated mind, I would judge and be like, oh, you're
putting your kid to sleep.
That's like a drug.
Why are you giving your, why are you drugging your kids?
But it's not actually what it is.
No.
And I know that now.
All those moms that I judged before, I'm sorry.
I don't judge you anymore and I never judged you to your face just in my pineal gland.
You just keep talking.
It's amazing.
But yeah, so there are side effects to taking melatonin or having high production of melatonin
and then taking more melatonin on top of that, which is why it's not for everybody.
But you can get nauseous and dizzy and high anxiety is one like it just messes.
It's a hormone.
Yeah, it's a hormone.
So too much of it.
Exactly.
So it messes with things.
You can be really irritable.
Maybe your melatonin's really hard.
Intense dreams or nightmares.
Oh, really?
Yeah.
I don't think I have any melatonin.
I don't, I don't remember my dreams.
I used to not remember them, but I used to wake up in the middle of the night crying or
screaming or talking because something bad is happening and I didn't know where I was
like that type of stuff.
I'm making a statement right now that I don't know if it's true or not, but I feel like
the more exhausted you are at night, maybe the less you remember your dreams because
you're in such a deep sleep that like you just don't remember them because I've done
that before too where I've like woken up and really thought that what I dreamt actually
was real or crying or whatever, but not in a really long time.
And I, you know what I mean?
So maybe exhaustion has something to do with, but then again, I've been so exhausted and
can't sleep because my mind won't turn off either.
So I'm just talking in circles here.
Yeah.
It's hard.
I think sleep is one of, that's why they do sleep studies.
It's like one of the hardest things to pin down as to why you either don't sleep or why
you don't sleep well or maybe why your REM cycle is off or your melatonin levels are
skewed, you know, it's really hard.
Well they have those watches.
Andrew wears his watch to record his sleep at night.
I don't like to wear my watch at night.
I also don't like to see how little I sleep because I feel like that'll ruin my next day
when it's like, oh, you hit REM for an hour and a half of the seven hours you were sleeping.
You only got an hour and a half of good sleep because you were tossing and turning.
I felt it.
I don't need to see it on my watch.
I'm good.
True that.
But so Mel, so those supplements we're talking, they have the potential to interact with medications
that you're taking.
So it is really important to talk to a doctor even though it's just a hormone.
It's not everything meshes together, especially when you're taking pharmaceuticals that aren't
naturally produced in the body or aid for that, whatever.
So people that really need to think about their melatonin intake are pregnant people
or breastfeeding people just like what you said.
Because it goes through the system.
Anyone with like a blood disorder?
Oh.
Yeah, that's a big one.
Depression, if you are prone to depression or high anxiety just because it aids into
it.
If you have seizures and if you are a recipient of an organ transplant.
And I think that's just because it's two different bodies.
But there are some medications and this is an important one.
Ladies, perk your ears.
Perk them.
Birth control pills, you should not take melatonin if you are on birth control.
Certain birth controls and melatonin do not mesh well.
So it is very important to talk to your doctor.
And you know what is interesting?
I've been on different medications in my life, not often, but I've been on birth control.
No one ever said, hey, this doesn't mesh with this.
You just have to sort of research it for yourself, right?
Yeah, I guess.
I was on birth control for my god, over a decade and no one ever told me anything about
it.
They were like, here, try this one.
Or try this one.
This one's not working for you, try this one.
Yeah, so I don't think I would have ever known that like a melatonin gummy that you
take at night doesn't really mesh with your BC.
I said BC like we're friends.
Yeah, it's not cool.
That was actually the most uncool thing you've ever said and you said penis gland earlier.
So I was really trying something new.
Like BC.
You know, a way to try something new is to not take a pause and then talk about how you
tried something new too.
Sometimes that negates the coolness, but you know, I digress.
So there are alternatives to taking melatonin.
We're going to keep moving on.
There are alternatives to taking melatonin due to all of those factors of like, hey, maybe
if you're taking some medications and there are medications, there's a whole list of medications
along with birth control that if you're taking them, you shouldn't take melatonin.
I'm not going to rattle them all off, but it's out there for you to look up for yourself
or talk to your doctor.
Just be very aware.
If you take medications every day for who knows what, be aware that it may not be a great
match, but there are alternatives for melatonin production that is not taking capsules or
gummies.
You know, you can take melatonin.
Carly would take a gummy.
I do.
They're so good.
Yeah.
Oh, you do.
Yeah.
I'm on and off.
Like I'm not a, if Andrew buys them, I'll be like, oh, hit me.
Oh, hit me up with that gummy before bed because it's like a treat.
It's like sugar.
It's like a gummy.
Yeah.
It's a waste of time.
It's got a little bit of sugar in it.
So I'm like, oh, it's like a kid's gummy vitamin.
I'm in.
Whether it works or not for me, I actually am not sure because I've never been that consistent
with it.
Well, that's probably why it's probably not working.
Right.
Consistency with anything is probably the way to go.
Yeah.
Also, now I want a Flintstone gummy.
No.
Remember the Flintstone jewels?
Yes.
But do you also remember the little white ones where you see pretend we're communion?
That was candy, Carly.
Oh, that was candy, but there were the little white vitamins.
That was a Neco wafer.
A Neco wafer.
Yeah.
I don't remember the white ones.
Yeah, you do.
They came in a big.
I do.
Okay.
They're little white circle hard, hard vitamins.
Some of them tasted horrible.
Like I had echinacea in it and some of them were had a little sugar in them.
Yeah.
And I was like, yeah, mom, I'll take that one.
And I remember popping echinacea pills.
Yeah.
Just popping.
Because I was like, let me practice.
Can I have another one?
And there's just like an herb in a vegan gelatinous capsule.
And mom was like, sure.
And I just was like, look, I'm so good at swallowing pills.
And mom was like, yeah, practice.
I mean, great.
I'm so proud of you.
It was going to help my immunity anyway.
It wasn't a bad thing.
And Carly was like, I can't, she would fight.
Oh my God.
My mom would have to open my mouth with her hands, pour water down there and a pill.
And I was like 15, 16 years old.
I still to this day have a hard time taking pills.
That's why, you know, I just do the crack.
Because you don't have to.
How's it working for you?
Well, when you call it the crack.
Yeah.
Okay.
It's working.
It could be anything.
It could really be anything.
And the alternatives I talked about 12 minutes ago.
Practice healthy sleep hygiene.
So it's basically creating a routine for your nighttime routine.
Not that doesn't just mean washing your face and doing the process.
That can be a part of it, but it has to be consistent.
It has to be finding a bedtime that works for you and that you can keep consistent weekly
and turning off the phones, doing all the things and keeping very strong to that.
To that routine.
That's something that I struggle with.
Avoiding caffeine, especially too late before you go to bed.
Even if it doesn't affect you, like for us, we talk about all the time caffeine is more
of a taste of like comfort than it is a boost in energy production.
So I like the other night during the Eagles game, I asked mom if she wanted a cup of coffee
and she was like, Oh, it's just so late.
And I was like, it's six o'clock.
It's just so dark out is what it is.
So we had a cup of coffee and wait, did you guys watch the Eagles game together?
Yeah.
You were in a car.
Oh, driving home.
Just making sure I must have missed that text message.
You were also definitely not invited.
So avoid caffeine, avoid screens in the hours before bedtime, phones, tablets, TVs, anything
with a blue light.
It just, I mean, we can't, I can't say it enough.
It's just not good for you.
I don't scroll on the phone.
I do watch TV.
Yeah.
So and I wear my glasses for that, even if it's just the TV, even if I'm a whole couch
away from it.
It just, that's what they say to do.
So I'm doing it.
I don't know if it's helping, but I'm doing it.
Yeah.
Okay.
So you enhance your sleep environment, so that's like, make sure you like your bed.
Make sure you like your bedding.
It seems silly, but make sure you like your blackout curtains and your mattress.
Basically have your room be the calming place that you need to fall asleep in.
It's like your sanctuary as cliche as like annoying.
Some people think that is, I probably, it's a sanctuary.
Yeah.
You know, I hate stuff like that, but I do know that the feeling I get every time I
get into my bed at night is like complete joy.
I love my bed.
I know, but you have four humans and two dogs in it and you never sleep well because
it's too packed.
Because I love my mattresses great.
My pillows are great.
The feeling of knowing I am not getting out of bed again until I have to go to the bathroom
four times in the night because I chugged water because I didn't drink enough water
during the day.
Yep.
But that is my, I do love my room when it, when it doesn't have all those things in it.
The humans stop saying humans.
I'm saying species because I know you don't like it.
Okay.
So yeah, underlying health concerns, you should address them.
You know, go to the doctor.
If you're not feeling well, do something about it.
And that's a big part of sleep because if you're, it's going to mess up your physical
and mental health, right?
You have something going on and you're not feeling well.
And you're like, I don't know why I'm not feeling well.
It's been about a month.
I'm not feeling, do something about it.
Yeah.
You're not sleeping.
Not sleeping is aiding in your immunity, not being able to fight off whatever it is that's
making you not feel well.
And then in turn, your mind is running and it won't stop.
And now you're anxious and you're not sleeping because of that, whether you think you're not
or not, that's the top of the thing.
So they all have kind of a cycle effect.
And then the last one is that if you have insomnia or if you have those anxious brain
patterns where like at night, you're fine all day and then you get in bed and you're
so relaxed and then all of a sudden every thought you've ever had in your entire life,
you need to solve those problems right then and there.
Raising my hand right now.
Or start worrying about them even though it doesn't matter.
Try cognitive behavioral therapy.
Oh, what?
Yeah.
I thought we were talking about gummies.
Go to therapy.
Talk it out so that your brain doesn't talk it out for you at night.
Isn't that amazing?
That doesn't have sugar in it.
It could.
I used to go to therapy and it was next to insomnia cookies.
Oh, that's right.
We always knew when Victoria came back from therapy because she'd drop off some cookies
at our house for the kids.
Quote unquote for the kids.
I would get a box of 12 so that I could have one and be like, here, I got these for the
kids.
That's right.
Oh, Victoria went to therapy this week.
Carly would be like, stop bringing them to my house.
Oh, they're so good.
There are ways to increase your melatonin that are very self-carrish, are very free, and
are also a very trial and error process because not everything's going to work for everybody.
However, everyone needs melatonin.
Just like working out and just like eating healthy.
If you don't do it consistently, you won't know if it works for you.
I think that's one of my things.
I never take the gummies long enough for them to work or to see.
Do their job.
Yeah, exactly.
It's just like anything else.
If you don't do it consistently for 30 to 60 days, you won't feel any difference.
You won't be able to tell.
Or if you do it for five days and then you skip five and then you start again, you know
what I mean?
You've got to be consistent with it.
My biggest trial and error was taking the TV out of my room when I moved here.
Did it work?
I never put my TV back.
It doesn't work when I'm on the couch for too long because I know there's no TV in
the room.
Then I get the blue light because I'm still here on the couch.
However, I used to go to sleep watching Lawn Order SVU in my face as close to my bed as
possible as if that was going to be a good night's sleep for me.
Exchange SVU for Bravo of women just yelling at each other on screen.
It's like, yeah, let's get a good night's sleep.
As much as I know you love Bravo and I love crime shows and all that stuff, that seeps
into the brain like sponge.
It's just... I mean, there's a whole study.
I thought about this yesterday when I was watering my plants.
Shut up.
So many things I want to say.
You're supposed to obviously have nice sunlight and water your plants, but also you're supposed
to talk to them and have positivity around them so that they grow, i.e. just like humans.
We're all basically just plants, right?
But they did a study that two different ways.
They had a person singing happy songs and saying, I love you and look how pretty you
are a plant, blah, blah, blah.
Then they had a person saying absolutely horrible, mean things to plants.
And then having music for one room of plants that was positive and negative music.
Like rap or... I think it was even some podcast, like true crime podcast, like things that
were saying just horrible things.
Yeah.
And the plants that were not getting positivity were the water didn't matter.
They were just dying.
They were drooping.
They were rotting, all the things.
And it's the exact same.
I thought about it yesterday because it's been a minute since I watered my plants and
they were telling me that it's been a minute because they all looked really sad.
And so when I was doing it, I was like, I'm so sorry.
I'm so sorry.
Oh my God.
I love you all.
You're so beautiful.
Nice and green.
Like I was saying all the things.
Why are you putting me next to the plants when we do this?
I'm hoping they fix you.
Because there's so many that they will just rub off on me.
The one above you is really brown if you haven't noticed.
Oh it is.
But she's kicking.
My bad.
But it's just something I thought about yesterday.
So it's interesting that we're talking about it today because it was not connected, but
it's very true.
What you ingest right before you go to bed has a big factor to how you're sleeping.
So as you're saying that, just imagine that study with kids.
You feed one really healthy.
You talk to it positively.
You tell it the best things and then the other kid, you give it horrible food and you tell
it how horrible it is and you make it listen to nasty things and horrible life situations
and what happens.
That's what happens.
That was the smartest thing I think I've ever said.
Because that in life is what makes me sad.
Like that you can, but if I can put it together like that with your plant idea, that would,
she's so angry.
I appreciate you dumbing it down in plants for me.
But it's so true.
I mean, there's like a meme that was circulating for a while that was like, I just need to
be watered and fed and told that I'm pretty.
Yes, I saw that.
And it was like a plant because it's just, that's all that anybody needs.
And I think we would all sleep a little bit better.
I agree.
But melatonin is definitely something that is individual in terms of hormone production,
just like you said.
Yeah.
So it's not one size fit all.
Especially like our aunt.
Yeah.
What's up Vicky?
If you're listening to this, I don't know if you still do.
No, she does.
Well, what's up?
I think she'd be okay telling us that she has horrible sleep.
She needs to do the, we've talked about her and her sleep.
Right.
Oh yeah.
The blindfold and in her own bed, burrito wrap to a specific, burrito wrap, to a specific
tuck in and like all of the absolute necessities to get one good night's sleep.
Right.
But she listens to our podcast while she's getting sunlight on her walk.
Because if she doesn't walk for an hour a day, her sleep is very much affected.
I think it's 10 minutes before noon.
Oh, but there she is, ladies and gentlemen.
I'm pretty sure it's like a 10 minute before noon, which is important before like, I don't
know why, but it's important.
It's seven hours before midnight.
She walks to get that sunlight and then she walks two miles in the snow without shoes.
And you know what?
I do remember her saying it is different when with a Sunday and a overcast day.
It's a different sleep at night when that was like for sure working for her.
Yes.
I don't know if it's still her pattern.
I don't know if that's actually like the key to success for her sleep, but because
everything changes.
Everything changes.
Yeah.
And that's a big thing.
Like even if you have not been a good sleeper your whole life, like you can still try to
find ways that maybe it will be the perfect formula for you.
Yeah.
And I think Vicki's still trying.
And I think as you get older, the melatonin decreases and not think I know this for a
fact.
Your melatonin production decreases as you age.
And that's a big factor as to why we're not sleeping as well as even in our 30s and 40s
and 50s.
Now, tell me if I'm wrong.
You're wrong.
Okay.
Most likely, you're a penis.
That's the answer.
There's so many, there's like 11, 12, 13 things I hate about you, but we're not talking about
that.
That was last week's episode.
I think it's becoming more popular.
And I don't know if this is a COVID related thing.
I think it's becoming way more popular to go out for a walk, to get sunlight because
so many people were stuck in their homes.
But now that we're out of COVID, people are still doing it.
And they're still getting outside for that 20 to 30 minute walk a day.
And it's really important to them.
And I, from what I hear and what I see, feel like it's very much on the upswing of people
getting out of their houses daily to take a walk to get sunlight.
I am not one of those people.
And I will get there eventually.
Walk your dog.
What?
You want to walk them?
People with dogs tend to just be happier for lots of reasons, but you have to exercise
the dog for the heart to stay healthy and for the animal to stay healthy.
So you get out there and you also in turn are keeping yourself healthy.
But tell me, do you think I'm right?
Is the trend continuing with the walkie-nimmer said I was right?
I understand.
I can't just open the door and let my dogs out in the grassy area or that we have made
for them.
But am I right?
Yeah.
I hope so.
I know that this was a huge trend.
I mean, they were calling it hot girl walks, whatever you want to call it, but people
were getting outside.
I don't know if it's still trending.
I hope it is.
I feel like every time I'm out, there's so many people out walking, especially in the
nicer weather.
Yeah.
I mean, I'm sure it goes back down in the winter, but I don't remember.
And I also don't remember anything pre-COVID.
My mind sort of goes blank.
But that people were walking as much or making sure they got their sunlight.
Maybe that's research.
They were told it's better, and so now they're doing it.
It just wasn't talked about for mental health or anything like that before COVID.
I think everybody was cooped up for so long that nobody wants to be indoors as much.
It just feels like very PTSD to be confined as much.
I don't know.
You might see me start walking a lot more with my infrared mask on.
So if you see me honk, beep, beep, two, two, beep, beep.
I would love to see that.
The problem is you go out, you do that, but it's at like 5 a.m. and it's pitch black.
Great.
So I'm not getting the sunlight that I deserve.
Well guess who is the captain of their own ship?
The penis clan.
Of the melatonin seas.
So here's why we were talking about this today.
I'm tired.
It took us 40 minutes to get to the point, but we're here.
I'm tired.
And I'm constantly waking up tired.
Yeah.
It doesn't matter if I get myself into bed at night, the honest to God that never happens.
I'm not going to lie to you.
I want to be in bed at 9, and if I come home at 8, 8.30, it's just not happening.
Even if I'm home like last night, I had off technically at night.
So my day, my work.
Why are you quoting?
Why are you doing quote fingers?
Because I did not sit down until 10 p.m.
So I did not have to be at sea for them work, but I got done it for a clock, and then I
kept getting things done that you two of them were house related to make sure I got what
I needed to get done for my own peace of mind in the house.
One of them was folding seven loads of laundry, but I did not sit down until 10 o'clock on
my couch.
And I was like, oh, I guess the day's over.
So I don't get into bed when I want to get into bed, but I try to do the things that
I can do.
I love my bed.
My bed in my room is a cave.
There's nothing.
There's no reason to be in there unless I'm sleeping or getting changed or whatever.
So I'm doing pieces of the formula, but I'm not doing all of them.
And I'm just waking up tired.
And the next day, I wake up and my eyes are tired already.
And it's not even that they're puffy, but my eyelids are tired from trying to keep my
eyes open.
But I've only been up for an hour.
So I just was like, I haven't taken melatonin supplements or tried to do that.
But in researching all of this, I don't think that's going to work for me.
You don't.
I'm not doing a routine.
So you can't just take the, it's just like, yeah, you can't just take the gummy and be
like, I hope this is a magic pill.
Exactly.
You've got to take the gummy, turn the lights off and close your eyes and go to sleep.
Yeah.
Like you can't just take the gummy and then watch TV till 2am in the morning and be like,
why didn't I, it didn't work.
Are you swallowing the gummy?
What are you taking the gummy?
Can I talk about this?
You know, I can't swallow pills because I'm on the crack.
So I, I definitely, sometimes I take two gummies and I'm like, I'm just not, I'm not, it's
not working.
Half the bottle is gone.
She's like, they taste so good.
It's my dessert.
The only reason the crack is funny is because you're so wrong about it that it's clearly
you have no idea what you're talking about.
Crack is whack.
But it might not work for you because if you're not doing ABC and D then E is not just going
to be magic.
It's like when you're trying to lose weight, but you're going to the gym 70s a week, two
a day or two hours at a time, you're crushing it, but you're eating whatever the heck you
want.
Yeah.
It doesn't matter.
You know, so I am serious about trying to fix my sleeping pattern.
One of them is getting rid of the dog.
She doesn't help me.
So yeah, get on that.
But see in 15, 20 years.
Yeah.
But yeah, I just want to, in looking up like, okay, melatonin, maybe that's the key for
me.
There was, it was interesting to learn about it because it's not something I know about
it, but I have no knowledge about it.
So that's why I wanted to talk about it today.
And hopefully if you are also someone who is like battling nighttime with your own self
for no other reason, it's not insomnia.
It's just like, no, not getting rested sleep.
I know for me, I need those two hours between nine and 11 to like have my own time.
Yes.
I can see my kids in my view and they've got masks on because I make them wear sleep masks
because my TV is on.
So why are you doing it?
Because I need that time to just do my zone out to my TV and like have my own time.
So you need to wear blue eyeglasses or I need to cut it down by half and just do 45 minutes
of my own time so that because I know that I need sleep more than I need the housewives
of Utah.
I know what you're going to do though.
You're going to cut down the TV and then you're going to open your phone.
I know.
And that is the same thing.
You don't know me.
It's literally the same thing.
No, but I don't watch my phone.
You scroll through your phone.
I scroll, but I like to zone out to a show like modern family.
Like I will watch that.
I will watch that before I went to bed last night and I fell asleep with, let's see, this
is so bad.
I fell asleep with the air pod in my ear because the air pods go in my ear so my kids can't
hear the TV.
Oh no, no, no, no.
I know.
I need to, I need, I'm just like you.
Maybe the Malatone and didn't work for me because I'm not doing the other things and
it's not just a magic sleeping pill.
Yeah.
They say, I think about it all the time.
I walk the dog with the air pod and then I come in and if the podcast isn't over, I
keep it in my ear and I, you know, I don't know what else, whatever I'm doing, I just
keep it there.
But they say it's just as bad as having the phone up to your ear.
Oh, I know.
I get mad at Andrew for it every day.
He lives with them in his ears, walking around the house and one of my biggest pet peeves
is when I see something and I'm like, hello.
And he's like, and he hits the air pod.
And he's like, wait, what?
Sorry.
Cause he's listening to something, but I can't see the air pods in his ears and I'm talking,
thinking he's going to respond.
He's like, say it again.
I'm like, oh no, no, no, no, no.
I'm not saying it again.
Figure it out.
I'm like, what is this penis gland?
How are you married?
How are you still married?
Cause he's like, I'm listening to your podcast.
Bullshit.
That's a lie.
But yeah, no, that's just as dangerous.
I mean, everything's going to kill you.
Right?
So, figure it out.
Yeah.
Figure it out.
No, I just, it's, it's.
The formula is pretty easy to do.
Yeah.
It just, it's a matter of doing it.
And you need to cut out the distractions.
That's all.
But it is interesting.
It is interesting that melatonin is something that we create for the darkness in the sunlight.
Yeah.
Podcast could have been over after that sentence.
I'm sleepy.
So for your real tip, let's get into tips.
So for your real tip, it's doing one of the nighttime routines to make your room your
sanctuary.
So for me, I already have the mattress that I love.
I just actually got a new topper and it's been a game changer.
I have the sheets that I love.
I have, you know, whatever.
I am going to actively draw my shades.
I have shades in three giant windows.
They're almost ceiling to floor windows, which is fantastic, but not at nighttime.
So I don't necessarily close them so I can see the stars and like the trees outside.
And I don't know why I just, I don't put it apart in my routine.
So I'm going to actively be shutting them and pulling them down every single night and
see if like darkening my room even more.
Even the moonlight is the only thing that's brightening my nighttime like sleep.
Right.
I'm going to, I'm going to add that into it.
And if not, I will get black light curtains, blackout curtains, blackout curtains, blackout
curtains to, to aid in that as well.
But pick one thing.
If your bed's not your favorite, change it.
If the sun and the light is part of your problem, change it.
If you need a little bit more of a sunlight UV infrared wake up, get that alarm clock.
Right.
Do something for your bed situation to help your melatonin production, which is going
to be overnight.
Okay.
I like that.
Thanks.
And now for your real extra tip of the week.
It's called nighttime is the right time.
Oh my God.
What does nighttime is the right time mean?
It means that for my birthday, Victoria, Victoria got me this really new thing that
I never heard of, it's a sleep aid.
It's called moon brew.
And if you're anything like me and you need that end of the night sort of sugar gummy
or that sugar hit or like a dessert, this is hot cocoa in water and it's magnesium.
It's a sleep aid.
It actually does not have melatonin in it, but it aids in your sleep.
It has rachy mushrooms as you're like calming aid.
It's an alternative to melatonin and it's basically a sleep aid that helps you calm
at the end of the night, which I love because to me it's like a dessert.
You just heat up hot water.
You put one scoop of this cocoa powder in.
And what I do is I add a little of my oat milk creamer.
So because I don't use almond milk, I use the water, the water, and it just gives it
that little bit of extra like creaminess.
And it is so delicious right before bed while you're watching all the things that you shouldn't
be watching and you should just be doing it in the pitch black of your bedroom.
But I love it.
It's a great, again, alternative to melatonin if that's not your thing or if you see melatonin
is not working for you.
But they do say, which I'm in my second week of it every single night, 60 days to see a
difference if it helps with your sleep.
So I'm on my way and I am going to do it every single night because I want to see if this
is helping me and it makes you wake up refreshed.
Well, you need to purchase more because I gave you one month of my three.
I know.
So for 16 days, you're going to need to buy more.
But they sell it in three bags for that reason because they are one month supplies per one
scoop per day for each month.
And I am not consistent with it, but I love it.
I love it.
It doesn't have any added sugar in it.
No.
And that's the best part.
It's no added sugar.
It's a superfood.
It's got a lot of vitamins in it.
It's great for right before bed and I'm a big advocate for it.
So get the rise coffee that we talked about, the mushroom coffee.
Get this magnesium superfood cocoa before you go to bed.
It'll be good to go.
You're feeling good.
Yeah.
You're feeling great and you're set.
And that is, like she said, a melatonin alternative.
There's no melatonin added into it.
The calming is the magnesium and the reishi mushroom.
So it is 100% natural, which I'm a big fan of these days.
Yeah, except when you add the oat milk creamer with a little bit of sugar, that's not natural.
That makes it a little less natural.
You don't have to do that.
That's just my...
You're always a little bit off, you know?
So it's on par for you.
So it works.
It totally works.
But yeah, just as a little cap, melatonin is a hormone that we make and it is the hormone
of darkness.
You make it during the day so that you use it at its highest point at night and really
get that good sleep.
So it's that circadian rhythm, that cycle that we really need to keep functioning and
keep moving.
Don't you want to feel good during the day?
And if you can prepare yourself all night long and set yourself up for a good, refreshing
day, wouldn't everybody do that?
Yeah.
But doesn't that sound like an amazing plan?
It sounds amazing.
Get a good night's sleep so you can have a great day.
Yeah, it really does.
Oh my God, I want that.
Yeah.
Too bad we don't do it.
So what we do do though, is we hope you're always remembering that you are fit to be
real and always allowed to be a little extra.
Extra.
Name them.
Extra.
For legal reasons, we have to tell you that this podcast is meant for entertainment and
educational purposes only.
We are not healthcare professionals.
For all of your health, wellness, fitness and self-care needs, please refer to the medical
professional in your life.
Your primary care physician, your therapist, a certified coach, whoever it may be.
And then let us know what they say because I guarantee we need to know what to do.
Okay?
Okay, bye.