Sleepless in Lawrenceville

Hi Beth, Just as an FYI, one of my husband's close friends got/ is seriously addicted to Ambien. I don't know specifics other than he had trouble going to sleep and got hooked on these medications. I'm sure these sleep aides help many people successfully, but I feel you need to know this as he's continuing to struggle (unsuccessfully) to get off these things.

Drugs are never the answer! Not true! Sorry Bill. Sometimes drugs are needed for various reasons. Here I am defending the medical profession again ... Thank god I am not currently defending the legal profession. Everyone in my family but me is in the medical profession, including psychiatry. I've had an earful my whole life. Drugs can be used to effectively treat many diseases. For instance, my antiobiotics and other meds just cured my bacterial sinus infection and asthmatic bronchitis. OK, that's obvious. Meds work if properly prescribed and used. End of report. Now, sleep aids for insomnia are not a "never" use. You must just be extremely careful. I know people that have become addicted to sleep meds too. I know people that use them infrequently and responsibly and successfully. If you have addictive tendencies or a past history, do not use them, to be sure. But they do have a limited purpose. Especially if they might save your sanity in the short term or during a crisis. I have stated my views that they are an occasional short term solution, not a "cure" to hard core insomnia. There are alternative treatments and I have detailed them. Many people have reasons to be up at night. It could be anything -- family troubles, illness, pain, depression, traumatic stress syndrome, horrific memories, marital difficulties, hormones, or something as simple as worrying about your children or the mortgage or a job issue. Insomnia can be "inspired" by virtually anything. Different treatments work for different people. For some people, just "going away in their mind" will not work, although it is a viable strategy. You have to take on the individual here. Telling someone they are "weak" if they use drugs is no good. Telling someone they are "weak" if they have insomnia is no good. (I'm not saying you did that, I'm just pointing out that it is highly counterproductive, as it is proven that many insomnia sufferers have low self esteem, probably because they are too snackered to think straight.) So let's fit the specific remedy to the individual person or problem and not over-generalize here. To each his own. Just like swimming, different strokes for different folks.

Rich, :thhbbb: you have a one track mind. :lolup: BUT...all kidding aside......lack of sleep is really starting to effect me. I need help/advice.

Do any of you have trouble with insomnia? I'm really having a problem with it on a regular basis. From talking with people my age (45) a lot of people seem to have the same problem. Any suggestions on how to overcome insomnia without drugs? :frustrated: Sincerely, Draculina Dearest Draculina: I truly believe that some insomnia is age or hormonally related. My obgyn told me last checkup that in the lovely period of life from 40-50, your body going to have difficulty sleeping. He used the word perimenopause. It's almost too horrifying to repeat. But he said it could last awhile. He gave me no good advice except to enjoy reading late at night. I have suffered intermittently from this dread Draculina thing since the birth of my last daughter. (I caught the bug while pregnant. OMG, that was awful. I'd be up until 5:00 am, and then my other two would wake up at 7:00 ....) Unfortunately, I have found that once you get in a bad cycle, it is difficult to break out of the cycle. For example, I was all hyped up and caffeinated for zones and couldn't sleep much. Now, I'm having trouble dozing off at a decent hour. You know, like before 1:00. LOL. If you don't want to take drugs, and I don't blame you, there are two things to do. You're probably doing the first, which is good sleep hygiene: (1) sleep in a cold and dark place appropriate for vampires (I had wooden shutters put on my windows and skylights to block out all conceivable light. It really helped): (2) do not read in bed (read in a chair next to the bed if possible); (3) do not stay on the computer at least 30 minutes before attempting sleep; (4) try a hot bath; (5) sleep alone for awhile (I know this could aggro the husband, but you gotta sleep. Plus, I find it ungodly irritating to have someone snoozin' away while I'm worried I may never snooze); (6) wake up and go to sleep at the same time every day; (7) try not to imbibe too much wine before bed, although it is a good muscle relaxer, so I often have some anyway ;); (8) NEVER EVER lay in bed hoping to fall asleep. If you're there more than 15 minutes, get out before you start freaking out and start the sleepy process over. (This is called the Bootzin Technique or stimulus control therapy.) Second, you can try behavioral therapy to change your sleeping patterns. This is very painful. I have only succeeded with this method once, about 3 years ago. You basically have to stay up as late as possible multiple nights in a row, kill your body into exhaustion so that it has no choice but to fall asleep. So, under this theory, you pick the minimal amount of sleep you need to function the next day, say 4 hours. Go to sleep at 2:00 am and wake up at 6:00 am. Or go to sleep at 3:00 and wake up at 7:00 (that's what I did). Do this for a few days. Move your bedtime up 15 minutes per day after a few days of total deprivation. Eventually, over time, you trick your body into going to sleep at the correct time. This is a very hard cure. Almost impossible. But it does work. Read two books: Desperately Seeking Snoozin' and the Mayo Clinic Guide to Insomnia. The first book will make you feel better and you will realize you are not alone. Both books describe the behavioral therapy quite well. Have you ever tried a sleep med? If not, you might. The very first time I had insomnia, I took ambien for 3 nights in a row and stopped. Then, magically, my body just fell asleep. I was cured for awhile, but then I got older and it recurred. Definitely not a permanent cure, but if you're desperate. I'm so sorry you're being a real Draculina. All I can say is that I know your pain. If a person hasn't has insomnia before, they can't understand how awful it is. From my questioning of many people, it is unfortunately really common among women our age. Hormones is a big cause. And also just the stress of being a busy mom, working, etc. Go read those books. My husband thought I was crazy to read them. He thought it would make me dwell on sleep more. But they actually made me feel better. And remember, we are used to swimming tired. And we can still swim fast without sleep. Of course, we might be unstoppable if we actually slept more. ;) Here is a prior thread discussing insomnia too. forums.usms.org/showthread.php Hang in there, Twin FAF Draculina

"I've also heard that calcium is supposed to help with sleep. Maybe that was why they used to suggest drinking warm milk." I have heard this before and I believe Beth has tried it before. I think it is a myth, a total myth, just like melatonin or whatever. If you are in dire straights, this stuff won't help. Insomnia resists anything mild. :2cents: Now, I do believe that higher serotonin levels would help you sleep, so maybe potatos help that way. But increased serotonin probably helps everything.

Beth: I rarely have sleeping issues and I have very good reasons to never sleep. When my mind over comes my ability to sleep, I go sailing. I love sailing but sailing is any fond memory to re-run: fun, racing, relaxing, a party with my college brother, a long talk/walk with the love of my life... It doesn't matter. On other occasions, I remember husband/wife active times... again doesn't matter. Bottom line: let go... to somewhere you really want to be and you will fade away. Drugs are never the answer! Like I said (you'll just have to believe me) I have reasons to never sleep; so if, I can anyone can.

Do any of you have trouble with insomnia? I'm really having a problem with it on a regular basis. From talking with people my age (45) a lot of people seem to have the same problem. Any suggestions on how to overcome insomnia without drugs? :frustrated: Sincerely, Draculina Beth, I am a hardcore member of the Insomina Club; I think I started it all by myself a long time ago. I can go to sleep but I can't stay asleep. Now sometimes we have power outages here (more often than I want), so when that happens our UPS beeps to save our computer, the heat starts climbing, and I have to get out of bed and rearrange my nightstand to hold two battery fans. Now, given that this does awaken me and I have to practically rearrange the bedroom, no wonder I can't go back to sleep. Seriously, I have been having this problem for years even before we moved to this island. I am also light-sensitive. Intense exercise doesn't seem to be enough for me, so I do take Tylenol PM regularly. I'd rather sleep than not sleep. I find that when I don't get to sleep enough, I have a tendency to also overeat the next day. Maybe we need a Support Group?

Any suggestions on how to overcome insomnia without drugs? :frustrated: Sincerely, Draculia Yes...;) hehe

Make sure you have good sleep hygenie. Go to bed everyday (even weekends) at the same time, and no matter what get up at the same time (this one is hardest). Make sure you have a routine that you follow before you actually go to bed....ie., brush teeth, let out dog, wash face, etc... Don't go to bed until you're truly tired...so if that's 1 am...so be it, but remember you have to get up at the same time everyday. If you lay in bed for more than fifteen-20 minutes without falling asleep get up and do something, but nothing active. Watch a soothing movie or TV show, or read....dont' work on anything (unless you can pinpoint that as your cause of stress) or do anything active. Try not to eat or drink anything within an hour of wanting to go to sleep. Last..DON"T THINK ABOUT SLEEP. If you lay there thinking about how much you want to sleep it makes it that much harder. You may want to look for causes too. Could it be environmental? Are you depressed? Eliminating whatever is making you anxious or new could help get you back into a new cycle. :smooch: p.s. I found not having a clock helped me. I would just lay there and look at the clock and think..I have so many hours til I have to get up..that's 6 hours...etc. But if you just turn your alarm clock around so you can't see it, that seemed to help.

Rich, :thhbbb: you have a one track mind. :lolup: I was going to suggest a hot tub...why, what did you think I meant? Um I've been told avoid coffee/tea...which I'm sure you do. Try giving yourself a foot massage focus on the toes and falls of your feet and the top of your feet just below the toes. this is all connected to your head and shoulders etc. It should help ease stresses. Other than that try not to be thinking about too much stuff. There are many resources on the web for this. I know they all say it's a bad idea to lie awake in bed. Better to get up and do something read, or listen to soft music to help you relax. I feel for you. Are you perhaps over doing the comeback a little bit? Have you given yourself a good chance to get over your recent illnesses and worries for you daughter. That can all add up Beth. I definitely reccomend some "Beth time" massages etc.