Insomnia

[sunapart]

I have been suffering for 30 years with insomnia, it’s so terrible I fear to go to bed at night. I have tried all the obvious things but nothing help. I will appreciate it if anybody know of a miracle cure to help me to get to sleep. Many thanks.

[Hidden]

If you discover a miracle cure, could you share it with me please!

[Roessner541]

I take 1 melatonin a day and it puts me out might take a few days to get in your system but it is over the counter. With the vitamins or you can order on line.

[Hidden]

Hi sunapart,

I'm glad to say that unlike your 30 years of insomnia, I only joined the world of insomniacs relatively recently (in my old age), but I do know how frustrating it can be. Sadly, I don't have any cures for you, but I have my own strategy and that's not to fight sleeplessness. I find that only makes me more awake, more frustrated and even angry. Also I suffer several kinds of insomnia, from not being able to get off to sleep when I go to bed, waking after an hour, and waking in the early hours (often because I need to go to the loo).

I've tried all of those 'sensible' and 'recommended' cures that medical professionals are apt to throw at you and have discarded them all as useless.

Instead, if I waken at any point during the night, I give myself only 10 minutes to try to drift off again, and, if I can't, I get up.

What I do after that varies. One of my favourites is a cup of tea and a few rounds of a mundane computer game, but on a really bad night, I might even mix up a cake batter ready for baking in the morning (I don't try to bake or cook in any way, in case sleepiness overtakes me). It's whatever floats your boat really; anything that takes your mind away from from the annoyance of being awake.

If it's an issue with going off to sleep in the first place, I like chanting! No, not me, but to listen to, (usually on YouTube, because that's for free), and I like the ones that are the most repetitive. Buddhist ones tend to be calming as well as repetitive, but Gregorian chant can also be very good. I just lie still with the lights off and after a while the repetition lulls me off. It doesn't ensure a whole night's sleep, but gets me off to a good start.

I don't let myself worry about being tired in the morning. Luckily as a retired person there's no work to rush off to. I won't take early morning appointments for anything unless I absolutely must, so that if I need an extra hour in bed, I can safely and comfortably take it, and I've learned not to be at all guilty if the world's going about its business and I'm not up yet. After all, I've just done my own night shift!

[sunapart in reply to Hidden]

Lovely reply thanks, I will certainly try and get up after 10 minutes. Usually I get up after an hour and play a few computer games, not the ones that I have to think about. I am now on bay leave water. Have been told to drink it first thing in the morning and just before bed. Before bed make me go to loo every half hour so taking it earlier. No help so far. I will stick it out for a bit longer. I think it’s all in my head and I will never be able to change that unless my husband take a hammer to my head and knock it all out. Haha. I will let you know if I ever find a cure.

[Hidden in reply to sunapart]

Hi sunapart,

Thank you, and please do share any little secrets you may come across that help!

With regard to the melatonin debate, there is a non-prescriptive form of tablet available over the counter, but MAS_nurse is 100% right that the one which might help is only available on prescription on a very limited basis. I guess that most herbal types of remedy might be worth a try, but in my opinion most of them only help to empty your pocket. The one that I know which is definitely not available here but did help me a little was making a tea from the leaves of a soursop tree, local to the the Caribbean, when I lived there. So why not give your bay-leaf 'tea' a fair trial? Sometimes these old 'wives tale' remedies have some truth within them.

Best wishes, and please keep me posted!

[MAS_Nurse]

Hello sunapart,

Welcome to this community. As you have begun to find, folks here are only too willing to come alongside and support one another.

Insomnia is a complex issue especially once it becomes a long-term, chronic problem. You are not alone in your experience as most people will experience a period of insomnia in their lives, and for some it may become chronic. There are no 'miracle cures' I'm afraid, but there are ways to manage and reduce its impact, and it often requires a multipronged approach, commitment and perseverance. There are a myriad of reasons why someone develops insomnia, and if caught early enough can be prevented from becoming a long term issue. You may remember when yours started, what the triggers were such as, work-related stress, bereavement, sleep apnoea, trauma, diet and lifestyle, side effects of medications etc. Insomnia becomes a habit, and a vicious cycle ensues. It has a strong psychological element to it, as well as physiological, often the anxiety of not being able to sleep feeds into this cycle. The pattern of insomnia maybe difficulty in falling asleep, waking up during the night and not being able to get back to sleep, waking up in the morning tired and unrested.

A few years ago the BBC ran a series of programmes from Papworth Sleep Clinic, investigating some difficult cases of sleep problems. One of my abiding memories, was that the medical team took quite a strict line with some patients, in helping them to break the pattern of habitually poor sleep patterns by regularising the times they went to bed and got up.

Sleep hygiene is a term used by healthcare professionals to help create a good sleep environment. Here are some links to really good, useful information to help you begin to think about how to address your insomnia and where to get more help.

sleepcouncil.org.uk/

sleepcouncil.org.uk/wp-cont...

papworthrssc.nhs.uk/sleep-s...

nhs.uk/livewell/sleep/pages...

If you live in the UK, Melatonin is not widely available, and is only licensed on prescription for a short period of time for those aged 55 years or over: nice.org.uk/advice/esuom2/i...

Other medications e.g. Zopiclone (a benzodiazepine), again is prescription only for very short term no longer than 7 days, and doesn't actually give you deep stage sleep or address the underlying problems. Some herbal remedies containing Valerian may help, however, ultimately, any medication (pharmaceutical or herbal) are not miracle cures. The underlying issues really need to be addressed and as I said previously, required a multipronged approach.

Hope this helps.

Best wishes.

[sunapart in reply to MAS_Nurse]

Thank you very much for your time to reply to my problem. I will certainly look at the links you’ve included and hopefully I will find something to help my problem. Regards.

[Cas70]

Dear Sunapart - I have been the same until recently. I have bought Jacob Hooey Cannabis Oil from Holland and Barrett - it is now legal for medicinal uses. This oil is only the flower of the plant. Two drops under my tongue and I drift off. No bad interaction with other drugs, non addictive and natural. Look it all up on line to reassure yourself and give it a try - good luck.

[sunapart in reply to Cas70]

Thanks for the information, I will certainly look into this,

[5855]

Hi , my mum with he Dementia suffers terrible with sleep patterns especially in winter , when it's dark a 4pm she'll go to bed , and be muddled the next day , she was great on Zopiclone but they would only allow it in 2week cycles so that was no good as it just started working and then they stopped giving it her , I was lucky we had a really good Doctor who explored every Avenue , got in touch , With Dementia Doctors and Sleep Therapy Doctors and they recommended Trazadone and they were originally an Antibiotic but had a bad side affect of sleepiness, so now it's used more for that , It took about a month for it to really settle Mum and she only gets about 5hours sleep , but she's more lucid now in the daytime and still goes to bed early but she seems more rested ,

[sunapart]

Thanks for that, I will explore that route. I am on 1mg Lorazipan down from 5 mg. Doctor want me off the pills but at a terrible cost to my health.

[5855]

Also are you on Donepezil, Mum was on 10mg nightly and the longer she was on it she seemed to go downhill , Luckily our Doctor realised when they started her on it she was 1 1/2 stones lighter and 2inches taller and they usually change them after 2-3 yrs if it seems they're making her worse or no longer working, anyway they dropped the did 25mg 3months ago and after about 6weeks she is more lucid in the daytime and taking an interest in things again and more often we can have a chat , she eats more as well ,and every 6months for the past 3 yes she has a blood test and calcium injections to keep her bones healthy and strong x

[5855]

Sorry Sunapart posted on wrong page x