Chronic Insomniac

sarah307

Anyone else suffer from chronic insomnia? and I mean, SEVERE insomnia.

Cause I do. and I'm tired of it! It has negatively affected my life in SO many serious ways. Have you found the 'cure' for YOUR insomnia? What was it? How do you see insomnia affecting your weight loss?

Adequate sleep is soo important for basic functioning! but also super important for weight loss! Without enough sleep, I find myself wanting more unhealthy foods because my body/mind want that 'pick-me up' food.

What do you do when lack of sleep consumes your life AND your healthy efforts??? How do you stay on track when you just can't sleep/function as a human being ? LOL.

AmberBarrios

I use to suffer from Chronic Insomnia and I found that working out at night really helped for me personally.

dayzeerock

I've done three separate sleep studies...have been put on more medications than I can name, and they have even tried electrotherapy for mine, but NOTHING helps. I was THANKFUL that I got two hours of sleep last night (I have to wear a monitor when I sleep now), so believe me, I know what you're going through!

ColorfulSouls

You could try working out long and hard so you are exhausted at the end of the day. Or... have you seen a doctor? They could definitely help if your problem is that severe.

shamekao

I actually do suffer from chronic insomnia as well, but working out in the evenings has helped A LOT. I also take tryptophan right after my workout (before I even shower) and within an hour or two I'm fighting to keep my eyes open. Last thing I did (since I live in a large city) is I ordered a sleep mask to ensure that my room is completely dark and stopped watching tv in my bedroom at 9pm. I'm now sleeping a good 7-8 hours/night which is completely UNHEARD of for me! Good luck.

rankailie

I use to suffer from Chronic Insomnia and I found that working out at night really helped for me personally.

This is what started doing, I don't have insomnia though, I have DSPS (Delayed sleep phase syndrome). Basically my body is on a permanent 3 hour delay (like jet lag), but I've found if I exercise around 10:30 I can generally crawl into bed by 12 exhausted and sleep.

PlanetVelma

You could try working out long and hard so you are exhausted at the end of the day. Or... have you seen a doctor? They could definitely help if your problem is that severe.

This is what I try to do every day.....I never had a problem with insomnia until a few years ago, than I could only sleep a couple hours every night. My dr prescribed me Ambian (didn't work), Lunesta and a few other sleeping aids. I do take Lorzapam (?spelling?) on occasion - I was taking another sleeping aid, but it was for short term use only. My current dr took me off the old sleeping aid (I had been taking for over 2 years) and I take Lorzapam as a last resort (but I do miss the old sleeping aid, it would knock me OUT for hours!)

This is what I do now to help cope with my insomnia:

1. Go to bed and get up at the same time EVERY day (even the weekends). I do take naps on the weekend, but still try to get up/go to bed @ the same time every day. Yes, even Sat and Sun - my kids think I'm nutty.

2. No caffeine after 5pm

3. Work out like a maniac, or just try to do as much as possible to wear myself completely out. If I don't than I'm tossing and turning all night. Ugh! Some people can't workout in the evenings, because they're wide awake after their work out - not me, I can work out, cool down, shower and I'm ready for bed!

4. Maintain a routine - I try to maintain a regular evening routine (ie. Eat @ 5:30pm; workout @ 6:30pm; cool down & shower @ 7:30pm; glass of milk @ 8pm; turn off lights and watch evening news @ 8:30pm; and Turn off TV @ 9pm).

It took me about a year to get back on track and if I don't wear myself out I'll take a sleeping aid or get up and watch TV until I feel sleepy. My dr had also suggested that I ONLY sleep in bed and if I wasn't tired to get up and not to go to bed until I was sleepy (I do this sometimes, but I still have a TV in my room - which is against my dr's recommendations).

sarah307

oops.

sarah307

I've done three separate sleep studies...have been put on more medications than I can name, and they have even tried electrotherapy for mine, but NOTHING helps. I was THANKFUL that I got two hours of sleep last night (I have to wear a monitor when I sleep now), so believe me, I know what you're going through!

SAME HERE! what kind of monitor do you have???

sarah307

You could try working out long and hard so you are exhausted at the end of the day. Or... have you seen a doctor? They could definitely help if your problem is that severe.

haha, YES i have seen a doctor.

I have been to three different doctors in the past two years because of this!
I have been kicked out of two colleges because of my sleep issues!
i am on probation for work because of my sleep problems!

Nothing has worked!

veganbaum

1. No caffeine after 12 noon. I only drink black tea in the morning, but when I used to drink coffee I drank a lot of it. If you are a chronic insomniac, you should be careful of caffeine intake - it can still affect your body hours after drinking it.

2. No light in my room of any kind. I have a type of blackout curtains, no clock, no tv.

3. Clean eating. The cleaner I eat, the better I sleep. I also try not to eat close to bedtime as that affects my sleep as well.

sarah307

You could try working out long and hard so you are exhausted at the end of the day. Or... have you seen a doctor? They could definitely help if your problem is that severe.

This is what I try to do every day.....I never had a problem with insomnia until a few years ago, than I could only sleep a couple hours every night. My dr prescribed me Ambian (didn't work), Lunesta and a few other sleeping aids. I do take Lorzapam (?spelling?) on occasion - I was taking another sleeping aid, but it was for short term use only. My current dr took me off the old sleeping aid (I had been taking for over 2 years) and I take Lorzapam as a last resort (but I do miss the old sleeping aid, it would knock me OUT for hours!)

This is what I do now to help cope with my insomnia:

1. Go to bed and get up at the same time EVERY day (even the weekends). I do take naps on the weekend, but still try to get up/go to bed @ the same time every day. Yes, even Sat and Sun - my kids think I'm nutty.

2. No caffeine after 5pm

3. Work out like a maniac, or just try to do as much as possible to wear myself completely out. If I don't than I'm tossing and turning all night. Ugh! Some people can't workout in the evenings, because they're wide awake after their work out - not me, I can work out, cool down, shower and I'm ready for bed!

4. Maintain a routine - I try to maintain a regular evening routine (ie. Eat @ 5:30pm; workout @ 6:30pm; cool down & shower @ 7:30pm; glass of milk @ 8pm; turn off lights and watch evening news @ 8:30pm; and Turn off TV @ 9pm).

It took me about a year to get back on track and if I don't wear myself out I'll take a sleeping aid or get up and watch TV until I feel sleepy. My dr had also suggested that I ONLY sleep in bed and if I wasn't tired to get up and not to go to bed until I was sleepy (I do this sometimes, but I still have a TV in my room - which is against my dr's recommendations).

Thanks for all the input.

Yes, I wake up at 615 on the weekdays and wake up at 515 on sunday and saturday.. (for school and work) So I wake up at the same times. Usual sleep for me is 0 - 3 hours. SOMETIMES 5 hours if i am lucky and then i feel like a million bucks. but then the next night, i won't sleep at all.

I do all the things you said above! Working out has really helped me also! but i guess it's just not enough! I will try to workout EVEN HARDER and see how that works, again.

and yes, i have tried all the medications basically and my doctor and I are just going down the list again of the medications i've already tried to try them again..

*I actually have been taking sedatives in the MORNING every day for like 3 months and that has helped a little bit. because for some reason, they are super delayed on me and so i take them in the morning. I actually log my sleep every day on www.yawnlog.com which keeps me aware of how i am sleeping and what i did that night so i can see what patterns work, etc.

it's a very helpful tool. and i have noticed that for ... May = I slept 3 nights adequately. for June = 7 nights adequately total. and for July = 5 nights total.. so I am getting better. I guess it is just a long process.

thanks guys - anyone have suggestions on how to keep on a healthy diet when not sleeping???

*oh and also - I haven't had caffeine in over 4 months because it wires me up so much! So i just gave that up all together for sleep reasons

rankailie

Just want to say, are you guys sure you're suffering from insomnia?

Most sleep phase disorders, especially delayed sleep phase are misdiagnosed as insomnia. If left to your own devices, and you can go to sleep when your body wants, do you sleep well and for 8 hours? IE your body wants to go to bed at 3 AM, if you're allowed to do that and sleep 7-8 hours fully would you do that easily without effort or medication?

Its important to know the difference because you treat a sleep phase disorder differently then insomnia. You can often brute force through insomnia but a sleep phase disorder won't respond often to brute forcing it. No amount of routine or sleep hygiene will help it.

As an example, I have a three hour delay, I can, with exercise, exhaust myself till I go to sleep, but my body doesn't actually start restful sleep until 3 hours after the average person, no matter what time I go to bed. So when I wake up at 8:00 its like a normal person waking up at 4 AM in the middle of REM.

I tend to crash sleep occasionally on Saturday to make up for it.

If you think it may be a sleep phase disorder see a doctor that specializes in it there are a couple things you can do and special medications for treating it.

PlanetVelma

Do you workout in the early AM or in the evenings? Maybe change the time that you work out, I would try increasing the intensity and see if that helps.

Have you tried cleaning your bedroom and making it a "sleeping oasis"? My dr suggested that to me at one point - I probably looked @ him like he was a loon. lol It does help to some degree when I keep my bedroom tidy. I have thought about removing the TV because sometimes I keep my fiance awake (and vice versa). He suffers from insomnia as well (woohoo, lucky us!).

Good for you on giving up caffeine, I tried and failed. I need my daily coffee and iced tea. lol Have you tried Chamomile tea? I'll make myself chamomile if it's not broiling outside and it does help.

What about acupuncture therapy for insomnia? Some insurance plans will cover referrals for acupuncture it's just a matter of pestering them. I'm going to acupuncture for my migraines right now - it's....interesting and different. lol Not sure if I like it or not, it's just weird having to relax with 20 needles in my body. lolol I'm trying to keep an open mind right now and go from there.

As for how to eat healthy when you're sleep deprived, hell if I know. LOL When I don't sleep well, I crave every fatty/fried food in a 40 mile radius. Sometimes I just get chocolate milk to help with the cravings and have it with my healthy pre-packed lunch.

sarah307

Just want to say, are you guys sure you're suffering from insomnia?

Most sleep phase disorders, especially delayed sleep phase are misdiagnosed as insomnia. If left to your own devices, and you can go to sleep when your body wants, do you sleep well and for 8 hours? IE your body wants to go to bed at 3 AM, if you're allowed to do that and sleep 7-8 hours fully would you do that easily without effort or medication?

Its important to know the difference because you treat a sleep phase disorder differently then insomnia. You can often brute force through insomnia but a sleep phase disorder won't respond often to brute forcing it. No amount of routine or sleep hygiene will help it.

As an example, I have a three hour delay, I can, with exercise, exhaust myself till I go to sleep, but my body doesn't actually start restful sleep until 3 hours after the average person, no matter what time I go to bed. So when I wake up at 8:00 its like a normal person waking up at 4 AM in the middle of REM.

I tend to crash sleep occasionally on Saturday to make up for it.

If you think it may be a sleep phase disorder see a doctor that specializes in it there are a couple things you can do and special medications for treating it.

Nope, mine is definitely insomnia.
I have not slept more than 7 hours in a longgg time.
My usual nights on average are around 0 - 3 hours.
but no positive sleep changes affect it.

sarah307

Do you workout in the early AM or in the evenings? Maybe change the time that you work out, I would try increasing the intensity and see if that helps.

Have you tried cleaning your bedroom and making it a "sleeping oasis"? My dr suggested that to me at one point - I probably looked @ him like he was a loon. lol It does help to some degree when I keep my bedroom tidy. I have thought about removing the TV because sometimes I keep my fiance awake (and vice versa). He suffers from insomnia as well (woohoo, lucky us!).

Good for you on giving up caffeine, I tried and failed. I need my daily coffee and iced tea. lol Have you tried Chamomile tea? I'll make myself chamomile if it's not broiling outside and it does help.

What about acupuncture therapy for insomnia? Some insurance plans will cover referrals for acupuncture it's just a matter of pestering them. I'm going to acupuncture for my migraines right now - it's....interesting and different. lol Not sure if I like it or not, it's just weird having to relax with 20 needles in my body. lolol I'm trying to keep an open mind right now and go from there.

As for how to eat healthy when you're sleep deprived, hell if I know. LOL When I don't sleep well, I crave every fatty/fried food in a 40 mile radius. Sometimes I just get chocolate milk to help with the cravings and have it with my healthy pre-packed lunch.

I reallyyyyy want to try acupuncture. but can't right now b/c of money reasons. I often wonder if i would benefit from it - needles don't bother me, but sitting still does. I can't even sit still enough to do yoga most of the time - thanks/ i will have to look into that more.
I have tried working out at different times. My schedule is so crazy that right now I have been working out in the evenings. because I get so wound up at night and can't calm down - i have to anyways! and morning workouts used to work for me... but now they do not.

DeBlue

I've been there and it continues to be an issue off and on. When the insomnia started I cut back to no caffeine after noon. When that didn't work anymore, I have eliminated it entirely - no coffee, no diet colas. I find if I drink water with lemon instead in my favorite coffee mugs, I'm not missing it.

I also will get up and exercise if I can't sleep. My neighborhood is well lit and safe, so I'm known for trolling the streets with my dog at odd hours of the night. It usually helps me to walk a mile or so and returning to bed, I'm usually able to sleep.

Other times it is racing thoughts that get my brain going in circles that rob me of sleep. Reading or watching television can help shut down the mad-mind and let me drift off.

Insomnia is the most frustrating thing - may we both keep experimenting and find ways to overcome. Good luck!

rankailie

Nope, mine is definitely insomnia.
I have not slept more than 7 hours in a longgg time.
My usual nights on average are around 0 - 3 hours.
but no positive sleep changes affect it.

One thing you can try is taking a small dosage of melatonin about 1-3 hours prior to when you want to go to sleep, and I'll caveat this with the note that a small subset of people suffer from nightmares while taking it.

And by small I mean like 200-500 mcg (micrograms).

It takes 3-4 days to start having an effect sometimes, but it does work.

http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2001/melatonin-1017.html

You can do this for a few weeks to see if it'll help you sleep better. I was personally in the subset of people who get nightmares but it did work otherwise.

suzycreamcheese

im an insomniac. I do several things to help.
i sleep with earplugs and got a massive superking bed so im disturbed as little as possible.
I dont drink anything with caffiene after 4pm
dont/cant drink most alcohol as most of it will keep me awake all night long.
red wine is the only exception to this, and i find 1 glass or a maximum of two, actually helps me sleep. More than this and im awake all night.
weed - yes contraversial, but a little smoke of this knocks me out better than most sleeping pills, and with no groggy feeling the next day.
sleeping tablets. I get zolpidem/zopiclone and temazepam on prescription, but i try not to take them as if i take them more than 1 or 2 days in a row, they stop working.
I try and get to bed as early as i can. usually between 10 and 11. If i go to bed much later, it all goes pear shaped. I figure if i go at 10, and give myself an hour to fall asleep naturally, then i can have a smoke at 11ish, and if that doesnt work, i can take a sleeping pill at 12, and ive still got enough time to sleep a decent amount as im usually up again at 6.30

ive tried most of the natural remedies available.
Melatonin did nothing.
5htp was great for my anxiety, but unlike most people, it made my sleep worse.
lavender, milky drinks - meh.
nytol - nothing -
herbal nytol, made me feel more groggy the next day than ANY other sleeping tablet ive tried, including double dosing the temazepam. eurgh.

sarah307

Nope, mine is definitely insomnia.
I have not slept more than 7 hours in a longgg time.
My usual nights on average are around 0 - 3 hours.
but no positive sleep changes affect it.

One thing you can try is taking a small dosage of melatonin about 1-3 hours prior to when you want to go to sleep, and I'll caveat this with the note that a small subset of people suffer from nightmares while taking it.

And by small I mean like 200-500 mcg (micrograms).

It takes 3-4 days to start having an effect sometimes, but it does work.

http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2001/melatonin-1017.html

You can do this for a few weeks to see if it'll help you sleep better. I was personally in the subset of people who get nightmares but it did work otherwise.

thanks! Yes, i have tried melatonin in the past and it did nothing.
I actually have been trying it again the last couple nights and haven't had any luck. Only two hours of sleep the past three nights.. with taking 6-10 mg of melatonin ..starting at 2 pm
I will keep working on it - and yes! I get crazzzy dreams after taking melatonin

PlanetVelma

im an insomniac. I do several things to help.
i sleep with earplugs and got a massive superking bed so im disturbed as little as possible.
I dont drink anything with caffiene after 4pm
dont/cant drink most alcohol as most of it will keep me awake all night long.
red wine is the only exception to this, and i find 1 glass or a maximum of two, actually helps me sleep. More than this and im awake all night.
weed - yes contraversial, but a little smoke of this knocks me out better than most sleeping pills, and with no groggy feeling the next day.
sleeping tablets. I get zolpidem/zopiclone and temazepam on prescription, but i try not to take them as if i take them more than 1 or 2 days in a row, they stop working.
I try and get to bed as early as i can. usually between 10 and 11. If i go to bed much later, it all goes pear shaped. I figure if i go at 10, and give myself an hour to fall asleep naturally, then i can have a smoke at 11ish, and if that doesnt work, i can take a sleeping pill at 12, and ive still got enough time to sleep a decent amount as im usually up again at 6.30

ive tried most of the natural remedies available.
Melatonin did nothing.
5htp was great for my anxiety, but unlike most people, it made my sleep worse.
lavender, milky drinks - meh.
nytol - nothing -
herbal nytol, made me feel more groggy the next day than ANY other sleeping tablet ive tried, including double dosing the temazepam. eurgh.

Great advice! I am glad I'm able to manage my insomnia better than my fiance, he's tried EVERYTHING - sleeping pills are only short term solutions for him. He does claim that if he gets a little "lovin" that helps him sleep. LOL I think he's full of it most of the time when he says that, lol, but whatever it takes to get him to fall asleep. HA!

I never tried melatonin, but that was because I was too paranoid about the crazy dream part. My fiance won't try melatonin for the same reason.

Back to the acupuncture, if you have health insurance, start calling your insurance co and see if they cover acupuncture. If it's not, than start asking around @ your work if they over different insurance plans and see if you can find one that covers acupuncture.

Another thing you can do is call around to some of the places that practice acupuncture and see if you can get a free consultation - sometimes they'll work with your financial situation. Something to consider.....I know what you mean about the yoga, it took me a loooong time to be able to sit still long enough to do yoga.