Is anyone else having trouble sleeping?

I fall asleep ok then wake up a thousand times during the night. I miss that good old sleepy feeling. It never comes.

Even after I wake up during the night, I used to feel sleepy and was so glad it was not time to get up yet! Not anymore, I could get up and do laundry but I know lack of sleep will make me sick so I just ly there and rest and will drift off. It is all kind of mediocre. If that even makes sense!.

How about you?

Lynn, do you have trouble falling asleep, or staying asleep?

Hot baths before bedtime work miracles for me. They make me totally relaxed. Why not give that simple remedy a try?

You are right though, sleep deprivation is the worst. If it goes on for too long you should call your doctor.

I had the problem of waking through the night after being in a car accident. The doctor put me on a sleeping pill and told me to use it for the same period of time I had been having trouble sleeping. He said that my body had to relearn a healthy sleep pattern. It made sense to me. I tried it and it worked. Now I think you can get over the counter medicine that works just as well.

I'd advise you not let it go on too long without at least mentioning it to your doctor because the longer you live with it, the longer you have to take the medicine.

Sleep tight!

Lynn,

I've read that it's most often anxiety that wakes us up in the night even when we're tired. I hate prescriptions, but I'm with Dotsie on a temporary sleeping pill to retrain your body.

Also maybe exerciswe would help. And the hot baths sound gooood under any circumstance.

Something I learned at a spa was that if you take a really hot bath and drink hot camomille tea while submerged in the hot water, you'll sweat a lot and sleep like a baby. I've done that and got a great night's sleep.

Good night. Sleep well.

smile

Is this just a recent event? Did you sleep well before? If it's a temporary thing you can take chamomile tea before bed. That can help you sleep. You an also fill a small pillow with certain herbs that will help you stay asleep and keep you from waking up so many times.

Instead of an OTC sleeping pill, you might want to consider taking some Valarian instead. It's an herb that does the same thing w/out the "medicine head" feeling.

Have you recently gone through a stressful period? (Like the stressful holiday events!) If so, you might be having anxiety while you sleep. You might want to try and keep a notepad by your bed. When you wake up, if something comes to mind, a reminder to do something the next day, a worrisome problem at work, etc. Write it down on the notepad. You can also try and write your thoughts down before you go to sleep and see if that helps as well. It's a way of VISUALLY putting aside your stress for the evening.

If this is a long term recurring event, then you might want to talk to your doctor and have a sleep study done. You might have sleep apnea. The waking episodes might be your body "gasping" for air, pulling you out of your REM sleep. This can leave you feeling tired and listless during the day.

Hope this helps.

[ January 08, 2004, 05:22 PM: Message edited by: Vicki M. Taylor ]

I can really relate to this topic. Have had trouble sleeping most of my life. I've read that it's depression that keeps one from falling asleep and anxiety that wakens you in the night.

I've found that Tylenol at night helps. Also, a banana at night also helps. The banana must be somewhat ripe. The potassium in it helps to calm the mind and body.

As the others members have mentioned, exercise in the early evening also helps.

Hope this helps. If the sleeplessness continues, seeing a doctor might be necessary.

Let us know how this goes for you. This is an important issue for us all.

Ann

Somewhere around menopause our requirements for sleep actually begin to decrease if that means anything to anyone here.

I also have read that it's depression that keeps us from going to sleep and it's anxiety that wakes us up during the night.

Still a believer in chamomille tea.

smile

Every night I take three ibuprofens. I guess the anti-inflammatory benefits are what helps me. I wake up with such soreness if I don't do that.

I saw a report on CNN not too long ago that said regular users of ibuprofen are less susceptible to Alzheimer's. Whew! For once, I was doing the right thing.

Donna

Try stretching before going to bed. Also, a mug of warm to hot milk (whole works best, imo) will put you off to nod land. Before I tried hot milk the thought put me off. After I tried it, I found not only did it work but I enjoyed it.

Stretch after getting out of bed. Stretching is very helpful with soreness, flexibility, etc. A nice thing to do for yourself.

Lynn, sleeping any better these days?