Hibernate Sleep Aid Supplement Review

Hibernate is a sleep aid supplement from Huge Supplements. It contains a variety of ingredients to promote relaxation and sleep, including melatonin, passion flower extract, HTP-5, valerian root powder, and GABA.

Huge Supplements was nice enough to send me a sample of this product to try out and review for all of you. This was the second sleep aid supplement I’ve been sent to try out, the first being Transparent Labs Sleep Aid.

After trying both, I’d have to say I prefer Hibernate. It has more noticeable effects and seems to make me sleepy more quickly than the sleep aid from Transparent Labs, though I did enjoy both products. I ended up including Hibernate on my list of the best supplements to take at night for recovery.

The full review is below, along with a link where you can check out Hibernate from Huge Supplements.

My Experience with Hibernate Sleep Aid

I’ve taken Hibernate on over 10 occasions now and I’m pleased to report that it has provided me with consistent results. It does make me sleepy and makes falling asleep easier. It’s something I’d recommend checking out if you’re in the market for a sleep aid.

Flavor

My tub of Hibernate is the peach mango flavor, which I think is the only flavor currently available. It has a very pleasant immediate taste, followed by a somewhat “plant-y” aftertaste. I suspect this is caused by the valerian root powder.

This flavor took a little getting used to, but I don’t even think about it anymore. I gave some to my girlfriend to try and the aftertaste didn’t bother her at all, even on her first sip.

As can be expected, personal flavor preferences will vary. It’s a sleep aid supplement, not a snack. I think it’s fine. 🙂

Effects Compared to other Sleep Aids

Over the years I’ve used a variety of different sleep aids: melatonin, Benadryl (diphenhydramine), Ambien (Zolpidem), NyQuil, and other random stuff from CVS.

In terms of noticeable effects, I’d say Hibernate exists in the sweet spot between lighter sleep aids like melatonin or Benadryl and heavier stuff like NyQuil or Ambien. After I take a scoop of Hibernate, I start feeling noticeably more tired/groggy within 30 minutes.

As far as helping me stay asleep goes, I didn’t notice much difference. I usually wake up at least twice during the night and this remained true on nights where I took Hibernate. When I did wake up during the night, I don’t think Hibernate helped me fall back asleep any faster – it seemed to make little difference at that point.

Taking Hibernate didn’t make me groggy in the morning. I’m a morning person and I didn’t have any trouble getting out of bed. This is a plus for me, as some heavier sleep aids can leave me feeling kind of cloudy in the morning. This was not the case with Hibernate, which was nice.

Recommendation + Tip

Overall, Hibernate definitely makes falling asleep faster and easier and I expect to use the entire tub. I would recommend it to those looking for some help falling asleep.

Tip: Start off with 1/2 a scoop. That works well for me and increases the number of servings to 50, which is a solid value for Hibernate.

Hibernate Ingredients Label

GABA (3 g)

GABA is a neurotransmitter that is critical for the regulation of depressive and sedative actions in the brain as well as general relaxation. It also can enhance the metabolism of growth hormone.

GABA is also included in some pre workouts like Dark Energy to help take the “edge” off of higher stimulant doses.

3 grams is in line with anecdotal dosage accounts.

Kanna (1 g)

Sceletium tortusoum is a traditional herb that was commonly chewed prior to stressful events that required focus, such as hunting. While there is limited scientific evidence around the claims of relaxation and stress reduction, preliminary research is generally supportive of these claims.

1 gram of pure sceletium tortusoum would be a massive dosage, so I suspect some percentage of 1 gram is the effective ingredient, though I am not sure how much. A little Kanna goes a long way, which anecdotal evidence suggesting doses as low as 16 mg of dry leaf can be effective.

L-Tyrosine (1 g)

L-Tyrosine has been shown to boost cognitive performance in stressful environments.

1 gram is a very solid dosage of L-Tyrosine for achieving any anti-stress effects.

L-Theanine (1 g)

L-Theanine is a somewhat sedative amino acid, noted for promoting relaxation and pairing well with caffeine.

1 gram of L-Theanine is more than enough to get any anti-anxiety & relaxation benefits.

Mucuna Pruriens Extract (98% L-Dopa, 250 mg)

Also known as Velvet Bean, mucuna pruriens extract is a traditional herbal supplement with minor dopamine increasing and cortisol reducing effects, among other things.

One of the more reliable effects it has is a noticeable reduction in Parkinson’s Disease symptoms, though that is not relevant here.

I’m not sure if the dosage included here, 250 mg, is sufficient for stress reduction, though to be honest those effects are quite minor anyway. This ingredient is far from the star of the show here.

Valerian Root Powder (225 mg)

Valerian Root Powder is an herbal supplement known for reducing stress and making it easier to fall asleep. The magnitude of these effects are relatively small.

225 mg is lower than the standard dosage of 450 mg.

5-HTP (150 mg)

5-HTP is a precursor to serotonin and can increase serotonin levels in the brain. As serotonin is the neurotransmitter often linked with happiness, this has earned 5-HTP quite a bit of attention.

It is important to not take 5-HTP is you are taking an SSRI, as this can induce a deadly surge of serotonin known as serotonin syndrome.

150 mg is lower than the standard dosage of 300 mg.

Passion Flower Extract (150 mg)

The variety of passion flower extract included in Hibernate, Passiflora incarnata, has been associated with anxiety reduction and insomnia treatment.

Again, the dosage here (150 mg) is somewhat lower than standard dosages, which range from 260 mg to 1,000 mg. It’s worth noting that these dosages were taken to reduce pre-surgery anxiety, which is a different use case than simply falling asleep at the end of the day.

Melatonin (3 mg)

Ah yes, good ol’ melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone that is naturally produced in the body in order to help induce sleep.

3 mg is a very standard dosage of melatonin.

About Kyle Risley

Kyle Risley founded Lift Vault in 2016 to make finding great powerlifting programs easier. Since then, the site has grown to include hundreds of programs for strength, bodybuilding, Olympic weightlifting, and more. He currently lives in Massachusetts and continues to compete in powerlifting.