Sleep! Or lack of it,

[Dougall]

I had a sah on the new years eve,

My recovery has been fantastic. Im a lucky lady.

My problem is sleep. Im shattered but my sleep pattern is rubbish.

I sleep for about 5 hrs then Im wide awake but exhausted at the same time.

If that makes sense. How long will this last? Will it ever get better?

Ive woken at 2.30am before and got up because I just cant get back to sleep.

Very long days. Have medication of gp, not sleeping tablets though.

Im I the only one or are there others out there?

Can you recommend anything?

Thanks

[bikerlifestyle]

my sleep patterns are awful too and know exactly what you mean about being wide awake but exhausted, i rarely get to sleep before 2 am but can be awake within a few hours, occasionally my body says i have had enough and i crash out for 12 hours but sleep is difficult most nights

[Dougall in reply to bikerlifestyle]

You would think that we would be asleep more than we are awake wouldn't you? Especially with what our bodies have been through. Its hard isn't it?

[SAMBS]

bad sleeping patterns also - I know I should not stay on the computer late at night - but I do. When I go to bed though I read my kindle or a book whih usually eventually sends me off to sleep - have you tried reading in bed?

[Dougall in reply to SAMBS]

I do read every night, I always have, took me a while to get back into it though. Does make me tired but hit and miss if I fall asleep. Sometimes thoughts just whiz around in my head.

[Boo40]

Ditto....terrible sleep pattern, did just sleep when my body wanted to, no matter what time of day, but got into the routine of sleeping most of the day and waking all night?

Went to Drs, got some sleeping tabs as I was going out of my mind, now instead of taking them every night, I take one probably once a week or two weeks if I need a good rest.

Some times I self medicate (Alcohol) but found that thats great for getting to sleep, but not so good at waking me up if need the loo!! Plus it never really rests you, so back to square one.

A good nightime routine is good, and as Biker said, I'm usually awake till 2am even when I am in bed.

Also NO coffee after 4PM...eating cherries can help natural sleep before going to bed, and the usual hot chocolate I found to be very good in getting me to drop off..

[Dougall in reply to Boo40]

Tea has that effect on me! Makes me wee a lot as well. I think I just have to be patient and hope that in time I will get my sleeping pattern back. Hope you do too!

[SAMBS in reply to Dougall]

i have found that any drink taken with caffeine/milk in it before bedtime has me waking up in the night to go and have a a wee.

[B_S_A]

I feel your pain. I get so tired, but I can't sleep.

No sleep=seizures, so it's becoming a problem.

[Dougall in reply to B_S_A]

Im very lucky, so far no seizures. Hope your sleep pattern gets better,

more sleep= less seizures.

[iforget]

Horrendous sleep pattern here too... am working on it but no luck so far

[Stardrop]

I found having a quiet hour or nap in the afternoon perked me up and I didn't get so overtired which made me worse. I've progressed over the last 2 1/2 years to being able to fall asleep in seconds and have a decent sleep, but still get very tired especially on busy days. The Art of pacing is very important. Also used relaxation tapes.

[Dougall in reply to Stardrop]

Sometimes I can nod of during day, sometimes I cant, even though I'm proper tired but I worry if I do have a nap in afternoon, will it come of my nights sleep. Then I think the more I worry about lack of sleep the less i will get.

[Stardrop]

About a year after I listened to a Dr Hilary Jones CD every night with earphones as I laid in bed. Just the sound of his voice sent me off within the first 5 minutes. It sort of programmed my brain to shut down and stop thinking which was a big problem at bedtime. I still woke up at 5am to start with, but it has gradually slipped up to 6.30. I got the CD second hand off the net for about £3.

[bikerlifestyle in reply to Stardrop]

i have downloaded a few android apps to my tablet and listen to those, sometimes they help but mostly they may my brain more active as one sound is like a cave echo with water and my imagination runs wild and i cant sleep ( but thats better than the alternative of my brain running wild having to deal with negativity and overthinking and over analysing )

[Dougall]

Thanks everyone. Just good to know I'm not on my own. We can all relate to each other.

Its just gone 6am and I've been awake for over an hour!

I do hope that we all go back to our sleep patterns before our 'episodes'.

Take care.

[WonderingWanda]

my sleep has definitely been helped with melatonin. I take a quick acting 3mg and a long acting 2mg tablet.

As others have said sleep hygiene is important. I go to bed 9.30 every night. I read a bit but do t look at my phone after 8pm. No drinks after 7pm. No alcohol at all.

The biggest help for me was knowing that laying awake but relaxed was almost as good for my fatigue as actual sleep. That way I don’t lay there panicking that I will be tired. Just knowing that and relaxing often means I fall asleep again anyway but if I can’t I say to myself how lucky I am to be awake at this time of morning as it’s supposed be a great time for meditation anyway. So often I meditate then. It’s even better for my brain and often I will then fall asleep. Guided meditations are all over the place to get you started

Over the past year this has gradually made my sleep better and better and sometimes I even sleep all night again!!

It’s miserable to lay awake being frustrated. So try the tricks above and give it a go.