Insomnia

If I let my natural body clock work I would get up all bright and breezy at about 5.30 have a sleep for an hour at 1.00 and the go to bed at 7.00 pm. But life doesn't work that way.

I do feel for you Newquay.

.....Yep, it is (a lonely occupation during the night) but unfortunately it's very common.

My words of wisdom, for what they're worth is that you shouldn't feel guilty about having naps during the day, maybe we should all just stick to our own sleeping pattern and sleep when we need to. Some of us need to sleep during the daylight hours - so what?! and then if we're awake during the wee small hours - so what again.

Sleep is an elusive commodity, we can't live without it but our bodies will advise us when we can no longer live without it...be it 2.00pm or 2.00am...

There was a thread on here once where a lot of us chatted online throughout the night...until gradually dropping off at various times, to re-emerge at a later time. Perhaps we should revive it....

Yes newquay a bit lonely when you know others are a kip.
Until this year my DH said I could fall asleep standing up in a snow storm!
But not now alas , The dreaded menopause has seen to that.
Like tonight I will stay up till my eyelids start to droop.
If I've had several bad nights on the trot I will take 2 piriton (drowsy variety) it sometimes helps.
Eventually I crash out,it can be anytime of day.
Being on here GN doesn't help as screens make it worse (affects brain apparently)

I don't have any problems sleeping, but I do wake up at 430 every morning . I know what time it will be, before I even look at the clock. I am a morning person, so I can really enjoy that quiet time before the world stirs. However, if I don't have a 'little sleep' which I very rarely can, I am nodding off at 9 o'clock. I must be excellent company

Not sleeping properly is miserable, I've struggled for years. I've never really recovered from the lethal combination of the menopause and waiting up for wayward teenage daughters! My mother was a long term insomniac and I've always been determined not to let it dominate my life in the way that she did. But I must admit it's harder as I get older to get up and live life to the full and with a smile after a lousy nights sleep. Boots version of piriton can be a life saver!

Here's an article I read about sleep. I went through a really bad spell of insomnia part way through the menopause. I worried about not getting enough sleep, but apparently we've all been doing it wrong. It's an interesting read. here it is

Grannyqueenie I'm glad I'm not the only one taking piriton (or version of) when desperate for some quality shut eye

Well here I am posting at this time of the morning because I now can recognise the signs of an imminent sleepless night! The one sure fire way of eventually dropping off for me is to read sitting up!

I have a bad habit of dropping off late evening while watching TV then waking at about 1:30 or 2. The act of getting ready for bed has me awake and unable to drop off for ages ?

I'm normally bad with my sleep but since my dad died last week it's been even worse, probably normal when dealing with grief and stress. I feel twitchy though, which is the worse thing, like something is crawling on me, and twitching out on my nerve ends. I've taken some Kalms but not the night ones, just the blue ones but not helping. I am hoping that once the funeral is over that it will calm down a bit. So I do have to sleep during the day or else I would be even more ill than I already am.

My deepest sympathy to you Rubylady. Be kind to yourself and catch up on your sleep when you need to.
On a personal note l've not had a good night-again.
Finally came up to bed just before 1am. Took 2 Amitriptyline. Was woken at about 4am by arthritic shoulder pain so took 2 paracetamol. Have now woken with alarm at 7am and DH has brought us a cup of tea.
Had to set alarm as I have an extra choral rehearsal at 10am. Tiredness doesn't help the voice
Will probably feel v tired this afty- will try to resist a nap by having a walk but will succumb after eating early evening.

I often wake at about 3 am. If I can't get back off, I go downstairs and make a cup of camomile and honey tea. I read for a while and go back to bed when I start to feel sleepy again. It works for me.

I have suffered from insomnia for many years.
I can be extremely tired, but as soon as I start the getting ready for bed ritual, I am wide awake.
I always have a read in bed until I feel sleepy.
If that doesn't work, listen to a relaxation app. Just lying there with eyes shut listening to soothing words or sounds can help. At least you are resting.

Cognitive behavioural therapy recommend you get up and do something, tried it once but the house was cold and bleak. Thought I would rather be snug in bed

Also listen to the radio if I can't sleep. LBC for those of you who can get it is an all night talk radio programme discussing current affairs. You can phone in if you wish, but just listening is enough for me.
Early morning waking is another problem for me too. Sometimes I can nod of again, but usually the brain starts whirring into action.

I really feel for those who suffer ( I shouldn't say but I can sleep on a knife edge, anytime, anywhere

My Dh on the other hand never feels he sleeps well enough.

I do have the odd night where sleep is elusive and I do just give up, I either get up , get a snack and a drink and come back to bed to read, or in the summer when the weather is warm ( hopefully) I might get up do some crafting , read or just watch the night out of the window.

I think not sleeping can be a repeating cycle. You cant sleep , so you worry about not sleeping and then you cant sleep because you're worrying. I take afternoon naps and find them the perfect pick me up, then if that means I go to bed later I do.

I've given up living to the clock and now ( apart from appointments) I live to my own body clock.

I'll see if I can revive my old thread 'Can't sleep - won't sleep'. It was a meeting place for GN insomniacs and many lively discussions took place at 3.00 in the morning, with a few overseas users who could chat 'real time'. I used to feel guilty if I had crawled off to bed at 1.00am to sleep - leaving the hardier souls chatting through the night.

It is very lonely in the wee small hours, feeling your'e the only person in the world still awake, if that's the case come along and have a natter later.

I think I managed to get over about 3:30 and up again at 8 for the dog. So tired today, especially after a week long visit from DCs and DGCs. Love seeing them but 8 extras is hard work.

And over Easter there were 15/16 for most meals. Today and yesterday it is piles and piles of bedding to launder and trying to get the house back to normal. Toys and baby things everywhere. I should be tired enough to sleep....but didn't.

I have a huge sympathy for the non-sleepers of this world. I too go to sleep at around 11, wake up for the shipping forecast and world business news, and then, thinking I won't ever go to sleep, find it is the morning. I would suggest, like VICTORIA08, the radio, very very low and the world service.

It would be good to have Gransnetters to "talk" to during the night Boheminan but I avoid screens-I thought they were supposed to keep you awake?
Like you Collgirl1 put Radio4/world service on. I HATE hearing the shipping forecast-I know it's a valuable service "to those in peril on the sea"-but it just reminds me of how long I've been awake.
Oh Nanaandgrampy, I heard someone on a chat show once who was an insomniac and the host said he could sleep well. The insomniac said "if I'd said I were blind were you say you had 20/20 vision? Lol!

Bohemian I've just posted on the other thread that's running. Was wondering if HQ could set up a permanently open thread for insomniacs, rather than trawling through loads of threads to find the right one. That way, chats can continue, especially if the same people are awake. Just a thought!

What keeps me awake is being near to a noisey pump at night, but thankfully that is only a few days a year, one being now. When we lived in the city we also lived not far from industry, such a difference from the quiet Kent that I used to know.

If not, so far I seem to get to sleep well, just put my mind on one subject and keep it there, so the brain quietens down, or listen to the noise that you can hear outside, if it isn't noisey!

Good idea MiniMouse can we start it tonight, it's going to be a long one.

the original thread's "anyone else awake" - I'll bump it......

hildaj, I was going to post a link to the very same article! I've only caught up with this thread tonight and as soon as I started to read it, I remembered that article and was going to find it and link it. But you got there first . It is indeed an excellent and very interesting read.

I'm just about to go and have my first sleep....

So good to be able to link up with other insoms. Not that I'm happy you're struggling too, of course, but I'm sure you understand my meaning.

Anyway, I find circulating small bits of 'helper tablets' throughout the week does make a difference for me- , eg, about a half a Piriton, a third or quarter of a Kirkland Sleep Aid (those are very strong & I get them from the US), a third of a Nurofen Plus and sometimes just a paracetamol. This way my body doesn't get too used to any one drug and I keep the amounts each night as low as poss. The amounts may well need to go up as I get older however....I'm 55.

I also ensure my bedroom remains dark - particularly important in spring and summer - with use of blackout blinds and thick scarves all around the edges!

As to screens, computer goggles that black out much of the harmful white / blue are very handy in last two hours or so before bedtime, or whenever.

My OH has struggled with Restless Legs Syndrome for many years but now it keeps him awake when he wakes to go to the loo. He's 69. We have sleep apart for years because although the RLS and accompanying kicking, and banging of arms on the mattress, in his sleep didn't wake HIM up in those earlier years, it was a lost cause for me.

I would love for him to be able to sleep better nowadays, but very hard to find a cure-all for RLS symptoms. He knows he's not alone, which is something!