Sleeping issues?

[Gina]

Hi Gwen and welcome for 4wt!

I will give you some advice that helped me. I went through that period about 15years ago. My was due to many issues that I had going on in my life. I would walk the floors and look at the clock and that drives you more crazy. I would go to bed much earlier that didnt help either. I just constantly dwelled on not sleeping. I tried ambien but I to was young and didn't want to get addicted to sleep medication, at the time all these side effects were not so well known with ambien.

Not sleeping made me feel like I was in a vicious cycle and I couldn't get out of it, like a mouse running through its cage. So one day I just stopped the ambien, and my phycian precribed a medication that was not addicting and relaxed me at night. I found out later on the problem was not me sleeping but I would get aniexty attacks where everything would pulsate in my body and my heart would pound and that is why I didn't sleep.

Try this do not look at the clock in your bedroom turn it away from you, when you are tired your body will sleep. Take a little benadryl before going to bed its not addicting and it has the same ingredients as the over the counter sleep aids. During the day keep busy and do NOT think about if your going to sleep at night. Eventually you will train your body to sleep, its very difficult and a horrible feeling, you will get aggiated and one feeds the other... It will pass , sometimes if I can't sleep I just get up and do something. The worst thing for you is to toss and turn and dwell on not sleeping, get up and do something to occupy your mind.

Are you having anixety attacks,? when this happens your body is racing and that feeling makes you not sleep. The other women gave you good advice, try some of them and learn to relax , before going to bed take a nice bath, put on some music and just let yourself drift . Do not lay there and worry about not sleeping, just to reiterate say if I don't sleep no big deal and don't think of anything you will see you will start sleeping..


Good luck!

[pearl]

gwen, i found that being on the computer right before bed made me stay awake. my mind gets hyped up with the computer. so i cut that out too right before bedtime and it helped.

Thanks Gina! I don't really think I have anxiety in normal situations, but I do notice that I get it if I've been laying there a few hours. I start to freak out. To the point that I run to the bathroom and look for something to make me drowsy because I'm at the end of my rope, ya know? That scares me because it kind of reminds of what happened to Heath Ledger. They say that guy just couldn't sleep and it really started to mess with him. I would never want to get to the point that I'm trying everything in my power just to fall asleep. Since I have used cough medicine to do it, I worry that I'm already starting to do it in a way, ya know? Maybe I should look into yoga or meditation like what was mentioned. If I could learn to relax my mind that might help.

Pearl, I have often wondered if that was the problem because I do get online if I can't sleep a lot. And reading and visiting various web sites does put a lot of thoughts into my brain.

[pearl]

gwen, if i rreally want to sleep, i do a "hot yoga" class, that is a yoga class in a 90 degree humid room. but i love heat and tropics LOL, i sleep like a baby on those nights!

I agree with Pearl. I find when I'm on the computer at night-it's not that I "can't" sleep-I just don't want to!!!

Maybe you should try reading a book instead? I used to read TONS. I'd read a few chapters each night, and then be tired enough to go to sleep. (see...being on the computer has even cut into my reading time, lol!)

I've never been one to take drugs-I've never taken anything stronger than Excedrin Migraine. I always worry that with drugs-the "cure" might be worse than the problem, but that's just me!

Or...you can always take Pope's advice, and get some "exercise". Probably make your hubby a very happy man!

Lol! That totally zonks him out, but it wakes me up even more! LOL

[HALEY]

i have a one year old son, that is teething, need i say more.
What sleep....