How do you go to sleep at night?

ChrisRS87

I used to put on music, just so I can clear my head and pass out. I don't need it anymore though.

My current problem is my arms twitch. By twich I mean full muscle spasm, which led to a black eye once. I'm afraid to let girls sleep on my arms lol.

callhimrodneyafterdave

bump

LinaBo

I had just managed to dial back my regular bedtime from anywhere between 1 and 3 AM, to before 12 PM (as early as 10:30 PM), when summer decided to finally show up. now it's so hot and humid that I have a hard time falling asleep, and I am back to crashing in the early AM again. It's not doing my energy levels any favours. I have to risk leaving the windows open a bit at night, because the oscillating fan doesn't cut it. The one thing I really miss about my otherwise crappy, basement apartment that I had in Toronto: central air!

leester

I work 12 hour shifts at night. I come home, clean up, lay down and am out. I only have so much time to sleep before the kids get home from school. Luckily I fall asleep quick. Sometimes I have to take Nyquil for my cough, I live in a valley and my allergies are terrible.

Capt_Apollo

i lie down and read. it is my me time and also my unwinding time. i'm usually in bed by 9ish, and i'll read anywhere from an thirty minutes to two hours, depending on how tired i am and how good the book is.

pixiechk201

I don't eat or workout after 8pm and no caffine after 3pm (it will affect me for hours), and usually stop the housework or other activities by 9:45. I lay in bed and watch Jon Stewart at 10 and relax in the dark and shut everything down by 11:00. God I'm like an old person!

DianatheRed

I am pretty spoiled...we have to have a cool (cold!) bedroom for my hubby to sleep, so I get snuggled deep into the covers. The hubby rubs my back for a while and then we talk. That is OUR time to catch up with each other. We usually get into bed around 10:00 and I drift off to sleep around 11-11:30. That said-I have never been able to sleep through the night. I wake up about 5 or so times. No reason in particular, just find myself awake. But that is an issue I have had since I was a baby, so I am used to it.

From the research I have done, I would say to make sure your bedroom is nice and cool, no television in the room, dim the lights throughout the house at least an hour before bedtime, have some kind of winding down routine so your mind clues into the fact that it is almost time to sleep, and keep a pen and paper nearby to write down any errant thoughts you have while trying to go sleep. Try that for a week and see if it helps!

lorettaasmith

I never go to bed before midnight. If I go any earlier, I will wake up and stay awake at some ungodly hour (i.e. 3:00 a.m.). No matter what time I go to bed, even if I have been reading literally all day for work, I read! That's the only way I can shut my brain off!

bigdaddycowgill

I'd love to responses to this too!

I also do the same, once my son is in bed, it's "me time"..and that is the only me time I get! So, I use it haha

This, and my son is a Type 1 Diabetic and needs to be tested every 4 hours during the night and sometimes needs injections. My usual routine is to have a couple drinks and doze off in my chair in front of the TV until 1 or 2AM, test my son, go back & resume the TV & doze off again until my wife gets up for work at 5:30, test him again, then get into bed until 7(9 during the summer while the kids are home). I have trouble breathing sometimes when I lay down, so sleeping sitting up helps. I wish I could take something like Benadryl, but I can't afford to sleep through testing my son. The alcohol helps me get to sleep, but not stay asleep for more than a few hours at a time. Very bad habits, I know, but I've been doing pretty much the same thing for 9 years now. I can fall asleep pretty much anywhere, anytime(I've fallen asleep within minutes after drinking a double Monster), so I grab short naps whenever I can...

Crochetluvr

Working out makes me tired...I do most of my workouts in the early evening. By the time 10:00 rolls around, I am yawning.

GodsGirl37

I read it makes me fall asleep

thedove34

Nights that I cannot sleep.. I meditate. ...it works instantaneously!

ChaCha9904

I take melatonin randomly because I don't want to become dependent on it. But these late nights need to stop before I start school in August! I think I might try some relaxation techniques and relaxing music. Or liquor. Just kidding.

arathena720

Melatonin gave me very vivid and very bizarre dreams, I hear some other people have the same problem, so I guess just be aware of it if you haven't tried it yet It will make you sleep though

Me too. Even a half tablet was enough to give me night terrors. Plus it didn't seem to help me fall asleep any faster. But everyone's different. Tylonal PM works for me, but leaves me feeling a little zombie-ish in the morning, even if I wake up naturally without an alarm.

SueD66

at 8 pm i shut tv and computer off. I shut the bedroom door and read a bit of something and at 9 it's lights out. I like it dark as it sooths me. I never need an alarm clock, haven't in years. I'm up at 5:30 am. good luck and keep trying. I use to be a night owl working 2nd shift for years. Now i love morning.

jreeves628

I listen to podcasts until I fall asleep. It help me turn my brain off. If not I think too much about everything.

da1128

The generic Tylenol PM is cheaper and works better than the "brand name." Just a thought. I go to bed around 10:30 PM and my body clock wakes me up at precisely 4:30 AM, every day, without fail. I think it's because I used to drive 26 miles round trip to the gym early every morning before I went to work at 8:30 AM. Good thing I'm a morning person! Anyway, I read on my Kindle before going to bed. Once I hit the sheets, the TV goes off and I just lay in the dark and think pleasant thoughts.

bhankiii

The thing that works for me, and gets me a really good night's sleep is 30 minutes or an hour of good cardio an hour or two before bedtime.

stickwithme

bump

RedHeadDevotchka

Ummm, I go to bed wayy too late as well. But when I know I have to sleep, I will usually do quiet things before bed. I take a supplement sometimes, it's called GABA and you can find this in a vitamin store, it works. I like this bc it's more natural than other sleep aids. Also, melatonin, and 5 HTP help as well. I wouldn't take them all at the same time. I used to work at a GNC and several customers would come in for one of these 3 items to help them sleep.

mgraue82

I didn't read all the responses but, a nice hot shower/bath and a couple "Calms Forte" Sleep Aid by Hyland's (Walgreen's or Target or Walmart carry it) I have to take them and pretty much get right into bed though because you get drowsy fast! GOOD LUCK! The also have a "Calm's Forte" for the mind that won't rest and you can take "Valerian Root" for that as well, like if you're having trouble shutting your mind off at night.

mamagooskie

I go to bed around 11.....so to some people that may not be reasonable (I get up at 6am on work days) but I like to have a cup of tea before bed and light snack and I find reading or playing a simple game on my cellphone makes me soooooo sleepy.

Alex_is_Hawks

i don't...insomniac here.

CalJur

coitus. very relaxing.

kwoodson94

Sadly, I take some Tylenol PM an hour or two before bed - it's the only thing that works for me

This is the same thing I do, when I need it, I take only 1/2 tab. It surprisely works very well. I use it just to get back on track, 1 to 3 nights and then usually I am back in the habit. I also use it when I stay somewhere else. It is always hard to fall asleep someplace else. It works very well.

Dethea

I have insomnia, brought on by stress, anxiety, and depression.

The most important thing is to set a routine and stick with it every night. That way, when you start going through the motions of getting ready for bed, your body picks up on the cues and says "oh, I'm doing this this and this, it must be bedtime."
Do things to help you relax, like drink tea or read a book.
If you absolutely CANNOT sleep, go see your PCP. You might need sleep aids.

Tribbey143

And if all else fails, Tylenol PM.

yes lets get right down to it! haha love it!

Easywider

Poorly...So I just burn one down quick and pass out.

caraiselite

i sleep when i want to. i don't have a schedule.
ketosis keeps my insomnia (and anxiety and depression!) in check though. makes it easier to go to bed between midnight and 3, instead of staying up til 8 or 9 am.

KyliAnnHobson

I work crazy hours, so I get off at 3am most nights and try to be in bed by 4am and no matter what, I always get up at 10am at the latest (earlier if I want to get my run in before it gets too hot & humid). I usually read for 10-15 minutes before bed to unwind and I have no trouble falling asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow. I'd like to get more sleep, but it's just not possible.