SLEEP

[andyrrc]

Quick question.

Is a lack of sleep a cause of additional problems for COPD? How important is sleep in controlling it?

I try and get to sleep around 9pm as I have to be up at 4am to allow me to drive to Saudi office at a time where I can get away in the evening to miss the traffic

Unfortunately "she who must be obeyed" is a night owl and often stays up much later. So I tend to have two stints of a few hours sleep with a bout of coughing up mucus in between.

Should I try and sleep earlier?

[2greys]

All I can say is you get a litle more sleep than me, retire at 11:30 pm and get up around 4:00am, although I get off to sleep pretty quick and usually go straight through without waking in the night.

[andyrrc in reply to 2greys]

So not so bad then - I guess I don't need to slip the other half sleeping pills at 8 so she sleeps at 9 or upset her even more by sleeping earlier

I used to be the same as you when I worked in London late nights and early mornings - then the 2 hour commute

[Caspiana]

Hello Andy.

For many of us with chronic illness a good night's sleep is really hard to come by. I almost never sleep through the night. Loss of restorative sleep leads to fatigue be it mild or severe. I think there are adverse effects of too little sleep, for me just constant, badgering tiredness, lack of energy, lack of concentration and increased breathlessness. Which in turn really makes me feel worse generally. If I get six hours sleep I consider that a good night and function better. I don't know if you should sleep earlier but I definitely think cutting down or cutting back on sleep is not the best solution perhaps.

And waking up at four am.... I did that at my last job. 😢 It was torture. I'm sorry you have to get up so early.

Take good care of yourself.

Cas xx 🌻🌞

[andyrrc in reply to Caspiana]

Thanks Cas, I have been getting up at 4 am for almost 15 years with the exception of the time spent in Moscow where I was 15minutes walk from the office and the day did not start until 9am so got to sleep until 7:45am - absolute bliss

[Caspiana in reply to andyrrc]

Oh... I did it for two. My last job had me commuting for two and a half hours by train. I will never be so foolish again. 😕 But it was a great position. In a way I totally understand. I am on sleep medication and I'd really love to not have to take them anymore.

Do get enough rest Andy. It's really vital to our well being. xx 🌱

[Hidden]

Hi Andy

Are you waking up feeling still groggy, are you feeling sleepy throughout the day? If you are then you are lacking sleep..sounds like you need to sort out your cough and chest as well, do you have night time inhalers?

I suppose a sleeping med would make getting up at 4am quite difficult.

At what time do you get home? Because an afternoon nap would help.

Take care x

Fran

[andyrrc in reply to Hidden]

Always feel groggy for the first 20mins until I have imbibed my first coffee but feel tired most of the day, unless I am busy. Most of the time feel tired because quite often bored or not very busy.

Night time inhalers?

I usually leave work around 4 or 4:30 and then it is in the lap of the Gods what time I get home usually less than 2 hours later. But if the customs or passport system goes down or if it is school holiday or if there is an event on in Bahrain or if it is any other reason for the Saudis to travel to Bahrain it can take longer, my record so far 5 hours I suppose I could close the door close the office blinds to the open office and get a quick nap but not really advisable

Andrew

[Hidden in reply to andyrrc]

Well feeling tired most of the day may not be because you are bored..

Have you had that lovely sleep study for apnea etc 😃 you don’t want to give that a miss 😉

It was an eye opener for me when I reslised that I stopped breathing 67 times an hour and my oxygen went down to 80%!! Well I am a naughty girl because I haven’t done anything about it yet..

Night time inhalers..well I take my regular inhalers before dinner then if I feel breathless or tight at night I have to have 2 puffs of Ventolin and 2 puffs of Atrovent which lengthens the effect of the Ventolin apparently and that works for me.

Good luck with country hopping!!

Take care x

Fran

[chubby2x22]

Hi andy. My sleeping pattern has changed a lot. I am so tired and can't wait to go to bed about 8pm but then wake at 1pm. Told the consultant last week he thinks it's dropping oxygen levels. Now waiting for appt for test. Keeping positive don't want to go on oxygen. I'm such a mardy baby lol. Have a good day. Jane

[hypercat54]

Hi we all need different amount of sleep but the average is around 8 hours. I have heard that you need at least four hours sleep in any one block to you can enter rem sleep which is the most restful part of it. Without this we can be sleep deprived. x

[andyrrc in reply to hypercat54]

I guess the 4 hour block puts me in he sleep deprived camp. I rarely get a block of 4 hours 3 maybe thanks for the info

[mrsmummy in reply to andyrrc]

I get three, but can normally fall back to sleep for another 3 and very rarely I will manage 3x3.

[hypercat54 in reply to andyrrc]

I take a very low dose of mirtazapine to help me sleep but sometimes it is very difficult. Occasionally I have to resort to a large measure of vodka and coke to get at least 4 hours together! x

[andyrrc]

AH the good old remedy that I found in Moscow - trouble is I never mix it and I use a shot glass just like the Russians and it very easy to lose count. One minute there is a full bottle and the next its half empty. Cant remember how many hours I get after that

[Roseking2001]

The sleep cycle is 90 minutes which includes all the sleep cycles. You will then benefit from restorative sleep during this time. If you manage to get two or three of these in a night I am sure that is fine. I used to work waking nights but I usually managed to get a 90 sleep cycle in if the service users were all asleep which saw me through the night. If I slept less or more I felt bad! [edited by moderator]

[andyrrc]

I find that at weekends, when I can sleep in, I will be in bed for about 10 hours most of it sleeping but I really feel terrible when I get up. So I can understand you. My issue really is that I am always tired these days feeling like I need to sleep more but when it comes to exercise or walking I have absolutely no problem. at the weekends I go to the local Fort it has an 800m pathway, with some up and down gradients, around it and walk circuits. I can walk at around the track easily at 3 mph for an hour with no problems. I can climb the stairs at work from first floor to fourth floor again with not much issue (to the sixth causes issues with breathing and heart rate). But still always feel like I need to have a couple of hours sleep

[Donnahermon in reply to andyrrc]

Have you tried asking for a full blood count as I had similar issues with my sleep and fatigue during the day and lack of energy. Found out I had a severe vitamin deficiency . Which could be a contributory factor .