Delayed onset of sleep

It's definitely related to ADHD, but here is what has helped me a lot. (This advice is worth exactly what you pay for it, so...(grin))

I try to make sure I have had a busy day with both physical and mental activity. Usually right before I take my shower and go to bed I get on my exercise bike and ride for a little bit as it seems to get the fidgets out. I do read in bed and always have, but I pick things that are interesting but not so interesting I'll stay awake to finish it or get excited by the plot. (Being a biology geek, the current bedtime reading is on the histology of non-mammalian synapsids.) I read on a Kindle and honestly the whole blue light thing doesn't seem to bother me much.

I do get up on time and go to bed about the same time every night, and after a while my brain has worked out that okay, this is what we do. I need to do this to help decrease my migraine frequency, but it seems to have other good effects.

A weighted blanket helps. However, I'm a dual dx with autism, so it may be more that than the ADHD.

I don't use melatonin, but I have found that edibles help make my brain be quiet enough to go to sleep. I don't always use them. I can kind of tell as the evening winds down whether or not tonight is going to be a night for it, and I do find my rescue med for panic attacks also works, but as it is widely known to be addictive, I'm very careful to use it intermittently if at all.

Sleep is a struggle for me. I doing good if I get 4 hours. Better if I get 5 hours. Excellent if I get 6 or more hours.

I do have a mental illness. I don't want to use it as an excuse so therefore I need to work on habits that will contribute to a healthier sleep life. I think if I can get some suggestions that I can try, I believe I can find something that works for me.

I currently do a FPFH bible study first.

I have a sleep regimen that includes winding down second ... I like to meditate for a bit, use calm.com for a bit, breathe techniques to slow down a bit more, some days I like to color in child and adult coloring books, draw my own Mandolin pictures and color them, among many others ....

after winding down, I listen to music for a bit, very much in the realm of slowing down genres like classical or christian contemporary.

Then I lay down. It takes a while for me to drift to sleep. I will wake up after a couple to four hours ( I try so hard to roll over a fall asleep again) after waiting to fall asleep I get up and listen to music again ... sometime I can lay back down and go back to sleep ... while other times I'm wide awake.

Please ... if anyone can give me suggestions on other things I can do for winding down.

Nothing in preparation ... because I currently

1. darken the room where I seep
2. tune off devices before I begin the winding down step
3. avoid caffeine after 2p
4. no napping during the day
5. I try to consistently go to bed at the same time every night which is one to two hours after I get off work
6. take melatonin 5-10 mg
7. take magnesium glycinate 1000 mg
8. avoid alcohol
9. adjust temperature inside, noise inside and lights outside my window
10. avoid eating late
11. take a relaxing shower or bath with candles
12. I have a new mattress and pillow (2021)
13. I get plenty of exercise during the day .. I don't exercise right before bedtime
14. stop drinking liquids one hour before bed
15. I have been trying to eat foods that will help increase sleep time like bedtime teas, almonds, turkey and cherry juice (don't like the taste of cherry juice so I don't have this but maybe twice a year)
16. I have talked to my doctor (the suggestion here was to post in MFP) to see if I can get some other ideas from people in here
17. open to try anything not listed above

Thank you so much for reading and for any suggestions given!

Peace,

Melanie

All I can say is that I take 3g of melatonin 1/2 hr before bed. Rare that I have a going to sleep problem.

My take is this- sleep, like many things, responds to habit. melatonin can help you "set" your sleep cycle. After a week you can stop and see how it goes. I'm 66, but started having sleep problems with menopause 10 yrs ago. That's when my doctor told me to try melatonin. I still use it. My day goes so much better with a good nights sleep.

I’m a “night person”. I had a sleep study years ago and they said I had a “delayed sleep phase.” It was a problem when I had jobs where I had to get up early but honestly, I find it much easier to adjust my lifestyle and schedule. I just don’t force myself to go to bed earlier than I’m ready. A couple things that help are reading and just getting off screens. (Reading a real book, not kindle etc, will make you sleepy IF you’re ready.). Also music and binaural beat programs or guided imagery/hypnosis type programs. I will add that I had health issues and a sleep deficit for years and I was deficient in Vitamin B and Vitamin D. Getting my levels up—especially the Vitamin D —really helps. You have to stick with it for months if you supplement and do higher doses to get numbers to go up. I also have to watch if I wake up with less than 7 hours sleep—even if I feel awake and perky, it’s not enough, so I try to relax and stay in bed and drift back off if I can. I averaged 5 1/2 hours a night for a few years and it’s miserable. My health is much better getting closer to 9 now. I’ve tracked weightloss too and I will NOT lose if I sleep less than 7 hours. I just sleep late if I stay up late and don’t worry about it.

I like to read something I've read and loved before. Right now I am re-reading the "Dragonriders of Pern" series by Anne McCaffrey. I already know what happens, so I don't keep myself awake trying to find out. I've also been teaching myself Spanish over the last two years, so I try to spend half an hour reading in that language every night. That definitely makes my eyes tired!