Sleep

Ian_Davies

Not sure if this is the right area for this but I could really do with some help/advice.

One of my biggest flaws in this journey has been sleep which I have worked on but over the last week its got worse. For example I haven't been to sleep since Wednesday and while I would love to sleep my mind is so active, jumping from one thought to the next I can't seem to quieten it. When I do manage to sleep I'm so out of sync that I'll fall asleep at 4am for example and then want to sleep through to midday, not good.

I've reduced the water I drink early evening, am only drinking water during the day so no caffeine, my room is nicely blacked out. Hot baths are not an option unfortunately. I read a banana in the evening might help but not tried that yet.

Any tips or suggestions would be appreciated as I think it is definitely making it harder for me to break down my body fat.

suziecue20

When life has stressed me out and I find it difficult to get to sleep and keep waking up during the night I take a notebook and pen to bed with me. Every time a thought crosses my mind I jot it down so it doesn't keep churning round my brain.

tbilly20

suziecue20 wrote: »

When life has stressed me out and I find it difficult to get to sleep and keep waking up during the night I take a notebook and pen to bed with me. Every time a thought crosses my mind I jot it down so it doesn't keep churning round my brain.

This is a very good suggestion. I also try to take note of what I am stressing about or hyperactive over. If you still can't calm your mind, talk to your Dr about possibly prescribing something. There is always melotonin or Zzzquil for OTC solutions too.

Phrick

tbilly20 wrote: »

suziecue20 wrote: »

When life has stressed me out and I find it difficult to get to sleep and keep waking up during the night I take a notebook and pen to bed with me. Every time a thought crosses my mind I jot it down so it doesn't keep churning round my brain.

This is a very good suggestion. I also try to take note of what I am stressing about or hyperactive over. If you still can't calm your mind, talk to your Dr about possibly prescribing something. There is always melotonin or Zzzquil for OTC solutions too.

This was my first thought - although I will freely admit that it is because racing thoughts, inability to sleep (especially for days on end), and being fairly functional on ridiculously small amounts of sleep are my first warning signs that I'm ramping up into mania and need to contact my doctor (but I am diagnosed as bipolar). It wouldn't hurt to rule out anything medical, anyway.

That said I am hard pressed to buy the argument that lack of sleep or poor quality sleep equals lack of weight loss success and/or outright failure. Yeah, I'm one person and yes experts say sleep is important but here's my experience: I have lost 111 pounds, and I experience insomnia every single night. I take 150mg trazodone, 5mg valium, 1mg melatonin and 800mg magnesium at bedtime, and it nets me 3 hours of sleep, then I wake up and take a second dose of 5mg valium to *maybe* get 2 more hours. I nap most days to compensate. I've had sleeping issues since middle school, and since my bipolar diagnosis my doctors have thrown over 20 medications at just the sleep aspect of it! (And if you count the combinations of medications that number soars.) I do all the proper "sleep hygiene" things; I've tried biofeedback, neurofeedback, I've seen sleep specialists and done sleep studies. We've thrown literally thousands of dollars at it. All that, and in the end a REALLY GOOD night of sleep is 6 hours broken up in 2-3 chunks, and "sleeping in" is waking up after 2:30am - and I still managed to lose weight without issue.

michael_jordan7

Most nights I only sleep 5 hours or so, and don't feel tired during the day, I have accepted it as part of the new lifestyle I'm living.

JustMissTracy

I have the same issue, and it's only getting worse the older I get...I'm up now after 3 hours of broken sleep...

dawniemate

michael_jordan7 wrote: »

Most nights I only sleep 5 hours or so, and don't feel tired during the day, I have accepted it as part of the new lifestyle I'm living.

Me too....i think you get used to it! ! Plenty of time to sleep when I'm dead! !

RoxieDawn

Yep me too.. BTW my sleep tracker says that I wake up a lot and get very little deep/rem sleep but a good bit of light sleep that seems to be enough...

I feel fine, I have energy except my on my harder workout days may cause me to hit a wall. Afterwards I may need a 20 to 30 minute nap, but that is all it takes to get me going again..

I accept that I am the exception and not the norm..

Issues with the mind swirling around with thoughts, worries, etc.. for me is more serious sounding because if I lack sleep because of this, then diet, exercise or lack there of is important and me not being able to concentrate, exercise and eat right will cause serious brain fog will prevent me from carrying out normal life... this would warrant a doctor visit..

sheermomentum

Melatonin is a gentle over-the-counter sleep aid. Its also a hormone that your body produces to help regulate sleeping/waking cycles. You take it a little before bed-time. I would start there and see if it can help establish a regular pattern for a week or so. Not sure if this goes without saying or not, but turn off the tv and lay down at least half an hour before you want to be asleep as well. Pick up a book that you find distracting and absorbing, instead.

soapsandropes

When i am stressed I find that I don't sleep well if my body isn't tired, so exercise during the evening (not right before bed) really helps me). My BF loves melatonin, I tried it once but it made my already somewhat vivid dreams much worse. Having a routine helps. I try to go to bed at the same time, read a book (no screen time) for about an hour before bed. It also helps me to have stuff for the next day already prepared, lunch, clothes, anything that I need to take with me.

Ian_Davies

Thank you so much for so many really good suggestions. I will try them all, going to delay taking a more serious sleeping aid but will start with Melatonin and also visit my Dr. Notebook is ready and I'll do some exercise in the evening. No IT after 10pm.

I am really sorry to read so many of you also have sleep issues. I love that you have all over come the sleep in one form or another and that you are not letting it prevent you from achieving our shared goal of living a healthier life. Thank you for your advice and support, I really appreciate it.