Lack of sleep

Since summer last year i have been suffering with poor sleep and it is starting to spoil my life now. I always feel tired and need to have a rest in the afternoon, sometimes i might nod off for 15mins or so but not normally. I go to bed at the same time and am lucky if i get 5 hours, usually i wake at least 2 times within that 5 hours. I am just so fed up of it. Not keen on taking medication so havent been to GP but if it goes on much longer i think i will have to. I thought when i retired i would be lying in my bed until at least 8am but no, every moring i am up at the crack of dawn and you cant do anything for fear of waking the other half!!!!

I have recently joined and posted on chat forum ,is it the bed,. I can sympathise with everyone on this topic as I too suffer from insomnia and have tried nearly everything. I do take sleeping tablets and have done for a few years. I try to limit them to one tab several times a week but really, at some times it, s every night! Prisoners of war were deprived of sleep as a punishment! Tomorrow I will buy lemon balm as at the moment I have lavender in the bedroom and taking camomile tea throughout the day. Not working though, however to realise I am not alone in the wee small hours helps

Hi Shanna.
Lavender oil just inside each nostril! Have used it for years and it works every time.Not a particularly nice smell but worth it for a good nights sleep.

Ruby, you must get fed up to the back teeth at times like that. Not so much the being awake itself but the pain and discomfort you describe. Maybe the remedy suggested above would help but perhaps you could discuss first with your GP. I do hope you're asleep now after such a long day.

Take one 5-HTP tablet half an hour before bed. 5-HTP is a naturally occurring amino acid and chemical precursor as well as a metabolic intermediate in the biosynthesis of the neurotransmitters serotonin and melatonin from tryptophan. 5-HTP, short for 5-hydroxytryptophan, is a derivative of tryptophan, an amino acid that is present in high protein foods such as dairy products and meat. Whilst the body makes its own 5-HTP from tryptophan it is also able to use the 5-HTP provided by supplements. I recommend the Lamberts brand.

Also in the morning take a Lamberts Theanine & Lemon Balm tablet, L-Theanine is a fascinating amino acid that is present in normal tea and is believed to be responsible for that unique ‘nice cup of tea’ feeling. It has been shown to raise levels of GABA and alpha waves in the brain and this can result in a calming effect without drowsiness. As a result, L-Theanine is widely recommended by practitioners for those during times of stress and anxiety.

Lemon balm has a long history of use in traditional herbal medicine, primarily as a sedative and relaxant, with recent studies also showing it to be useful for improving attention and memory.

These products work,and are natural. Worth a try.

Yet another disturbed night. I went to bed earlier but then woke after an hour with twitching and shaking of my limbs, especially across my shoulders and my feet. I also feel like something is crawling under my skin, it is awful and lasts a while until it goes away again so I have come downstairs and come on here to take my mind off it. I am shattered but I can't even lie and close my eyes without wanting to scream.

I wish the Government could see people like me at times like this, when they insult people saying they are claiming and nothing is wrong. There are actually genuinely poorly people out there. And sat right here.

Anyway, enough self pity. I'll make a brew and with having you lovely bunch of wonderful people to chat to at this ungodly hour, it really does help. I might even have a frozen chocolate eclair.

Poor you, having little sleep is so debilitating. I can only add what others have suggested. I have been a poor sleeper in the past, often taking 2 hours or more to drop off even though I'm very tired. I still work full-time at 66 so I know that once 2am hits and I haven't dropped off, I then start panicking I won't get to sleep (so of course, I don't) and can see 5.30 on the clock before I drop off prior to the alarm at 7.

However, this hasn't happened for ages. Husband also suffers from poor sleep because although he can drop off, he has to keep getting up for a pee and sometimes just can't get off again. Dr prescribed him sleeping tablets which worked a treat but eventually Dr wouldn't prescribe any more because, of course, they eventually stop working.

We've hit on just the thing - a cup of hot chocolate at bed time and for me, I plug myself into my Kindle to listen to a story (current favourite is anything read by Emma Gregory who is a wonderful narrator) and I am usually asleep within 10 minutes! Can't believe it! The hot chocolate coupled with the audio story - which obviously helps to keep the mind going over stuff which can't be sorted until the next day anyway - has been a life saver!

Good luck - I hope you find something to help.

I had terrible trouble sleeping for about 10 years, not helped by my husband asking every night "Do you think you will sleep tonight?" I now really try not to think about it and do all the things like baths, sleepy tea (Clipper is good) reading and the radio, but what helps the most is slow yoga breathing and trying to list all the countries of Europe/states of USA/UK counties in alphabetical order. Rarely get to M. I am much better now I try not to obsess about it.

I used to wake up at all hours. I now sleep most of the night. Try this 1. Do not look at the time that will not help it will just wind you up. 2. I also visualise a white board / black board that is covered in words and in my mind I am using a cloth to wipe the board clean. I always drop off before the board is cleaned off.

I don't think Syndol has the relaxing ingredient in it anymore. It is now just paracetamol and caffeine or codeine (can't remember which!!). They banned the use of doxylamine which it used to contain but you can buy doxylamine from Amazon.

I find listening to podcasts of Desert Island Discs distracts my brain just enough for me to drop off to sleep.

I tried the Nytol you have to ask for at the chemist.
I also try the breathing thing,in for 5 seconds hold for 6 and breath out for 7'and repeat about 6 times.I don't know why but it does sometimes work!

Shanma commiseration from yet another insomniac!
We recently bought a (very expensive!) new bed which has helped enormously. It helps with aching joints and muscle pain and also absorbs DH's twitching and movements caused by his nocturnal loo trips. I always used to be awoken by his thrashing around and vice versa but now all is much improved thank goodness. I would not have been happy to have invested so much for it to have made no difference. The only problem we do have is that because it is so heavy we need to have help to move the mattress!
I also use lavender spray on my pillow and diffuse lavender oil in the bedroom. I read, have chamomile or liquorice tea and sometimes go for a night time wander. In the summer wandering around the garden in the quiet at 4am was really lovely. Not something I will be doing in the winter though!
Being retired does change everything as it is possible to live with just sleeping when you can and 'making up your mind that it doesn't matter'. Different ballgame when you are working sadly. Relaxing about it all is probably the key to it all.
I have listened on some of the above links and don't think they would work for me somehow. Some of those sounds really are pretty weird and even startling! Not conducive to sleep for a scaredey mouse like me!

I have a very bad cold right now and it's hard to sleep even with sleep aids. So last night out of desperation, as I am sleeping in the lounge, I grabbed my DGD's Violet cuddly toy and pressed the foot for baby/toddler sleep lullaby music. It starts with a voice saying:

Five minutes to bedtime... snuggle up!

I don't think it was the music (which works for DGD for nap) but it was thinking about her that sent me off finally!

HAVE A LOOK AT THIS

www.saga.co.uk/magazine/health-wellbeing/wellbeing/sleep/insomnia-techniques?utm_source=newsletter-23Oct16&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Print%20Newsletter

After years of sitting up till 2/3 am then sleeping or a couple of hours and waking with no energy. I gave in to napping in the afternoon to make up for the loss of sleep during the night. Blood tests showed a lack of certain vitamins B12 was especially very low.I now take a quality vitamins and have 6/7 hours undisturbed sleep. May not work for all but maybe for some of you.

Take a 'Syndol'. Take one a night for a few nights, good for the headache but an excellent relaxant.
Available over the counter.

Ha ha. Don't eat The Sleep Spray. I didn't word that very well.

www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2016/03/12/simple-4-7-8-breathing-trick-can-induce-sleep-in-60-seconds/

Try eating a banana and Herbal Sleep Spray from The Body Shop.

Same here joanne, I tend not to stress about not sleeping. As you can see, still up. I tend to go in cycles and as I'm due for my period then I think my sleep is affected more. I have been having shaking episodes and last night was bad, so I got up and came downstairs and put the tele on while having a sleep on the settee. I sleep wherever I can, whenever I can because my conditions are made worse by being tired. I get the restless leg thing and my feet are ballooned up too regardless of taking water tablets today. I give up with it, give in to it and go with the flow of it.

If you work from home, does it matter what time you work? Do you have to be available during normal working hours or could you work at any time?
My normal "day" these days is from noon to 4am, i find I do loads more during the night when it's quiet.
A few years ago I went to my GP with your problem. He told me to learn to relax and if I could do that, it was the next best thing to actual sleep - and it was. I didn't feel tired even with very lttle sleep and I didn't stress about not being able to sleep.

Shanma....Like you, I would go to bed at 11PM and be wide awake at 4 am every day, then doze off around 8am until mid morning; enough to upset my whole day's routine. Nothing helped until a friend gave me two tips: She told me that sleeping with a full stomach can disrupt sleep, so no eating/drinking after 8 PM, except water or non caffeinated tea. The other tip was to enjoy a nice cup of Chamomile tea right before bedtime. Now and then I still toss and turn for awhile, but the Chamomile tea routine is very relaxing. Most days I get a good nights sleep and don't wake up until 6:30 am.

I have to avoid tea or coffee after 6pm, also cola, chocolate drink or even Horlicks, which is supposed to make you sleep. And I dare not eat a chocolate from lunchtime onwards. I find chamomile tea is great and I'll nod off 15-20mins after drinking it. I wouldn't be without it.

Hope this doesn't repeat as haven't read every post. Try thinking of anything from A-Z i.e. female names, male names, towns, flowers. Also a yoga tip, relax the body starting with feet & working upwards, ankles, calves knees etc feeling as though each bit is sinking into the mattress as you go. The big thing is to concentrate deeply on each thing & not let the mind wander. With the A - Z I rarely get to the third list. I also have a radio with headphones - even fell asleep listening to a Clinton/Trump debate! Insomnia is a terrible thing - but not getting upset about it is probably helpful I think. Commiserations to all who suffer!

I really do recommend the Magnesium Relax. I have no connection with the company, I am not on commission and several friends and a couple of 90 year old relatives have tried it all with noticeable benefits, I really cannot stress enough it is worth trying......

I am not a pill popper, am very sceptical and tried it in desperation as my nights were so very dreadful. It has to be worth a try?