My problem was a combination of thyroid and adrenal issues

I've had this problem on and off for years, and the doctors don't do anything but prescribe anti-depressants and sleeping pills, but there are solutions. My problem was caused by a combination of thyroid and adrenal issues resulting in elevated cortisol at night. Depression can also be a problem with thyroid/adrenal problems, but anti-depressants don't fix the problem, they just put a band-aid on the symptom. There are supplements that may help (may just get rid of the problem and help you feel great all over!), and since sleep is critical to your healing your thyroid/adrenals, solving the sleep problem will help you get better. Some supplements that may help include:

GABA

Melatonin

Kava Kava

Valerian

L-Tryptophan w/ Vit B6, Niacin

Inositol - especially good for middle of night awakening

Magnesium

P5P (Vitamin B6 pyridoxal 5 Phosphate)

While you may be able to induce sleep naturally with herbs and supplements, or by using sleeping pills, the goal, as with any health issue, should be to identify the cause, and remedy it. To achieve a better hormonal balance naturally, if you are high estrogen and low progesterone, these natural substances may help (they may also help other hormone-related symptoms, such as hot flashes, bloating, tender breasts, cystic breasts, etc. And remember, men are increasingly afflicted with hormonal imbalance issues due to the prevalence of endocrine disruptors in our environment and foods, which may result in low testosterone, high estrogen, thyroid and adrenal problems, just like women!

Calcium d-glucorate

DIM

Maca

Ashwaghandra

Schizandra

Natural progesterone

Pregnenolone

DHEA

You can take several of these together to work to balance your hormones, for instance I take all of the above in combination when balancing. Once balanced, I can cut several of these out of my daily scheme.

Also, many of us are low in iodine, and I supplement with iodine/iodide tablets twice a day. It has helped my thyroid heal and completely healed my fibrocystic breasts!

Chamomile tea with 1 -2 teaspoons of good honey before bedtime may help. Apparently, it helps you sleep through the night as middle of the night waking can be caused by a drop in blood sugar. It did help me.

These products are available at online or at many local health foods stores. Iherb customer reviews are most helpful in learning more about each supplement.

As for the obesity, I did a cycle of hCG, and lost 35 lbs. in just over 40 days! I have several friends and family that have also had great success with hCG, some losing over 150 lbs. and it helped them decrease their insulin, and made their arthritis better. Pretty amazing...