Insomnia

[H-30]

Wondering if anyone else can relate or offer advice, i had quite a bit of insomnia during my second tri, it went and has now returned at week 30, when i do finally drift off the baby wakes me then keeps me awake. I'm absolutely exhausted, my husband is pretty shattered too as he tries to sleep on the couch so i'm not kept awake additionally by him snoring, i'm averaging on just a couple of hours and emotional with it. I was expecting this when the baby gets here not weeks before lol! Any advice? 

[Tlove]

I am 27 weeks and wake up hungry if I haven't had a bedtime snack, most nights I end up going into the kitchen at 3am and staying up for a bit before going back to sleep. I try to eat hummus or cream cheese and oat cakes before going to bed but doesn't always work. I sometimes take a nighttime tea as well, seems to relax me. They say that exercise and fresh air helps but this is getting harder as the weeks go on. I see the lack of sleep as practice for when the babies come but it's really not easy. And now I have a cold so it's even worse! Are you able to get day time naps in to make up for the lost sleep?

[H-30 in reply to Tlove]

Hi there Tlove thanks for your reply- it must be irritating for you to wake up to have a midnight snack!! I've had Hyperemesis Gravidarium throughout so eating isn't really something that i need to wake up for! Its a shame because my husband was really looking forward to going out for weird food requests at 2 am! 

Yes i do try to lie down to nap but it seems no matter how tired i am i can't drift off, or the baby is really really active and kicks for what seems like hours on end!  

Yes, i said a similar thing yesterday about it being like practice for when the baby does arrive in a few weeks, so frustrating though when there's still stuff to be sorted when i've no energy.

[Tlove in reply to H-30]

Maybe try the walking in fresh air. I had a longish walk yesterday and slept really well last night, only a few trips to the loo but otherwise a pretty good sleep. I'm lucky that the babies (expecting twins) seem to follow my patterns and don't bother me at night. I guess that might change as they get bigger though! The worst for me at the moment is one of them digging a body part into the top of my bump, really hurts at times!

It is really hard to sleep though when you've so much going on in your head as well. When I wake up sometimes I feel like my mind is racing and then some stupid song will pop into my head or random thoughts about stuff. I wonder if meditating could work to declutter the mind.

Also I think there are various positions you can try during the day to try and get baby to move position. A little pregnancy yoga may help - even just going on all fours and doing a little cat stretch is supposed to help. It is really frustrating though as everyone tells you to bank your sleep now!

[Tlove in reply to Tlove]

Oh and what is it about husbands - I barely have time to turn the light out before he's sound asleep and snoring!! Really annoying.

[H-30 in reply to Tlove]

Hey meditation is a really great idea! yes its like i'll drift off and my brain goes " oh you're falling asleep!" jerking me awake haha! I'll definitely try the cat stretch thing too.  Lol here's hoping that your babies carry on being considerate sleepers I'll try to get out more regularly for walks as well.

Oh what a 'mare for you, with them being twins it must be especially hard for you to find a comfy sleeping position! 

Yes with the banking sleep thing!! My husbands doing that fine lol!! 

[Tlove in reply to H-30]

There's an app called headspace that is 10 minute meditation per day. I did it pre pregnancy but haven't tried it recently. There are also YouTube videos. Someone recommended one to me, I think The Honest Guys maybe. I must take a look myself!

[H-30 in reply to Tlove]

That's really great to know! i used to use the Whispering Voice video's on YouTube but they're not really hitting the spot anymore, I'll listen to your suggestions tonight  

[roxannacar]

Any particular reason why you wake up? I used to keep gaviscon next to my bed as that was an issue, and if I got restless legs got out of bed, walked around house till it settled. Unfortunately there isn't much else you can do. Maybe use one of those long snuggle pillows. 

[H-30 in reply to roxannacar]

Hi roxannacar, thanks for getting back to me, oh man can i relate to the restless legs(!) i haven't got one of those long snuggle pillows but i have two pillows under my feet which seem to do the trick  

In a nutshell when i'm trying to drift off or just about to the baby wakes up and decides to do a couple rounds of boxing, or the insomnia will keep me awake, or if we're sleeping together (which we obviously prefer to do) the husband snores- so i'm stuck in this cycle of almost drifting off then being jerked awake, drifting off again then being jerked awake. honestly some night i could weep with it. I didn't think that there was much i could do about it but its a comfort to know that other ladies are suffering with similar pregnancy issues during the night  

[KellyTrip]

I would like to say a had a remedy but I don't! I agree with the Gaviscon! I had heartburn so used that and propped myself up in bed. Sometimes I just couldn't sleep but unfortunately I don't think there is much you can do!

[H-30 in reply to KellyTrip]

Heartburn is a pain in the neck, luckily as i have about a zillion pillows it doesn't really bother me at night. If it does in the day a glass of milk or some peppermints seem to do the trick. 

Lol thanks for the good wishes with wanting to give me a remedy. It's terrible  that  still today there's certain things that can't be solved

[KellyTrip in reply to H-30]

yes! I suddenly loved milk during pregnancy! Hated it before. Really helped. I did find that my pregnancy pillow made me a bit more comfortable!

[H-30 in reply to KellyTrip]

Lol strange isnt it? we used to go through 2 pints a week...now we go through a gallon week!! plus water has never and i mean never tasted so good!!