Insomnia!

DHR

DHR

DHR

Soldato
Joined
30 Apr 2003
Posts
3,476
I've battled for years with not sleeping well, particularly when I'm anxious, paranoid or stressed about things.

This is my fifth night this week I've gone to bed at 11pm, not felt like I've slept because my brains going crazy and ended up wide awake at 2am. Give up at 230am, go downstairs, make a camomile, drink it and try and reset.

I try to not have any screen time when I'm like this for obvious reasons but I end up trying to distract myself with projects so it does happen.

I'm particularly wound up and down about work situations at the moment and it feels like everything is doomed, it happens to everyone I get it. I just wish I could at least get a decent night's sleep. Nothing worse than already feeling at risk, then going into work the next day not feeling like you can do your best because you're tired.

Sometimes I think 3 hours a night may just be enough for me.

What do you do to cope with situations like this?
 
I guess this will get closed, regarded as medical thread.

Do you drink caffeine?

I can be similar, no choice but to go through the day without sleep and crash next night, it can really take it out of you.

Often wanting to nap also.

Doctor can prescribe pills for a very short term. Otherwise you can look at doing exercise, lots of it during the day and try and knock yourself out.
 
I used to have trouble sleeping before as well and would just think and waste time trying to nod off.

Have you tried watching something boring on youtube to help you sleep? I put a tablet on the pillow next to me and watch something on there and usually i am out within 10 minutes.
 
Ah sorry, feel free to close if need be. It's not a cry for help so no worries!

Knocked off caffeine years ago, worked pretty well and I sleep better in general. I could do with more exercise won't lie, never found anything I'm interested in plus time is generally limited with work too, I've seldom had a lunch break over 15 mins for 2-3 years.

I've sometimes used to time to do mundane stuff, couple of emails, read some docs/articles that don't float my boat just to do something with the time.

Like you say, strategy wise it's just a case of crashing, does mean I end up losing more evenings and weekends to it which is a cycle that'd be good to break.
 
I don't really have insomnia - the odd night aside when either I have to get up earlier than usual or some other reason my mind just won't switch off but one thing I find is that "normal" working patterns don't work with my sleeping :( when I'm off on holiday for 2 weeks or longer I quickly fall into a good sleeping pattern a bit offset to what people normally sleep and get slightly under 8 hours of good quality sleep but it doesn't fit around working either a 9-5 or evening/night shift :( a lot of the time I get poor quality sleep because I'm outside of anything my body "wants" to do and I can't force it to sleep [properly] on demand hah.

Having fun at the moment as we have builders in - the noise kicks off at 8am and with working nights and by the time I'm wound down and ready for sleep I'm rarely in bed before 6am.

EDIT: Something that for some reason works about 50-60% of the time for me if I can't sleep is ~150ml of warm milk with a teaspoon of honey stirred in - doesn't always work but definitely does around half the time. (Apparently when I was small a little whiskey also worked according to my very Irish gran!).
 
From a quick google it seems unless your inability to sleep is due to tryptophan deficiency the science doesn't support it helping but still.
 
DHR said:
I've battled for years with not sleeping well, particularly when I'm anxious, paranoid or stressed about things.

This is my fifth night this week I've gone to bed at 11pm, not felt like I've slept because my brains going crazy and ended up wide awake at 2am. Give up at 230am, go downstairs, make a camomile, drink it and try and reset.

I try to not have any screen time when I'm like this for obvious reasons but I end up trying to distract myself with projects so it does happen.

I'm particularly wound up and down about work situations at the moment and it feels like everything is doomed, it happens to everyone I get it. I just wish I could at least get a decent night's sleep. Nothing worse than already feeling at risk, then going into work the next day not feeling like you can do your best because you're tired.

Sometimes I think 3 hours a night may just be enough for me.

What do you do to cope with situations like this?
Click to expand...

i have it all the time, only found out i have autism recently which does not help...... but helps explain my mental brain going rapid when i try to sleep, cuddling cats or a dog helps me drift off :)
 
Find myself reading kindle and sleeping at about 8.30pm then getting up mega early, but I don't fight it, just go with what my body wants, only doing 2 to 3 days work a week though, so no pressure worrying about been too tired for work
 
Have you been to the doctors about your anxiety? Maybe tackling that might help your sleep.

I am better with getting to sleep now but I always wake feeling like I've only had one hour. Mine turned out to be to do with my thyroid but I found routine made a big difference. I.e. I'd read for maybe an hour in bed and try to do it at the same time each night. I've gotten out of it recently (as I finished my book:D) and I can feel the difference because now I'm getting distracted with social media and then not going to bed until 11pm.

Have you also tried listening to some music ? If I get really bad with not being able to switch my mind off things then I listen to a playlist I've created it and just focus on the words etc
 
Really helpful thanks all, yes I drink but generally only at weekends now and I'm fairness this last two months specifically I think I've only had 4-6 pints of beer, I've seen from my mi band previously how much it screws your body clock up.
 
I'm surprised this isn't a big fad, artificially putting people to sleep by whatever method. It's surely going to happen, I'd certainly sign up for it. Some kind of sleep pod thing.
 
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