For some months now I have found getting a full nights sleep is almost impossible.
I go to bed around 10pm and read for and hour, although that is increasing to an hour and a half, until the print becomes gobbledigook. I have a speaker under my pillow from a CD player, with soft music to send me to sleep. So I'm usually asleep by midnight, only to wake around 2am. I drop off again after about an hour and wake at 5am. I tell myself this is too early to get up and drift for another half an hour.
I'm working both physically and mentally during the day. One day this last week I was digging and planting for six hours one day and another day had grandchildren for ten hours. Other days were meetings and paperwork. So I do need my sleep at night. Or like today, by lunch time I have metal fog and a floppy body, but even then sleep does bot come.
(I have Hashimoto's and take T3 only,)
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beaton
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A friend of mine has similar problems and I bought him a sleep cd/mp3 (and headphones) from Centerpointe.com in the US. He says he now falls asleep really fast and mostly stays asleep too. Also takes Dr Stewarts Valerian + tea last thing. Worth a try.
Hi Beaton, Just to say you are not alone! I'm really struggling with sleep as well. I would gladly share a solution with you if I only had it. I've been on ndt for two weeks. Fingers crossed it will eventually help. Take care
Kitten just to add to my comment on your post..I didn't suffer with insomnia but was waking 3-4 times a night every night. Having been on NDT now for around 9-10 weeks I am now sleeping soundly until about 5am and even then managing to get back off again for another couple of hours. Also waking feeling refreshed which I hadn't for over a year. Stick with the Thyroid S long enough to give it a chance x
May I ask why did you change from Thiroyd to Nature Thyroid? Did Thiroyd not work for you? I'm asking because Thyroid S is supposed to be similar to Thyroid and both are produced in Thailand. US products are meant to be purer. Maybe I should be taking Nature Thyroid instead, especially as I already have them at home... hmmmmm
Only because I am a bit paranoid about taking stuff and because the manufacturer won't release the ingredient list for Thiroyd. I was doing well on it and won't rule out ever going back on it but decided to switch to Nature-Throid once I had a rough idea of what dosage I would need as it has such a good reputation. I know there are lots of people who have been taking Thai NDT for years and do really well on it. Just a matter of preference (and finances!!) I guess.
Sleep issues can be connected to adrenal issues and the circadian clock. Maybe have a look at Paul Robinson's website - rwt3.com Have a feeling you probably have already been there. If so then look at ....
Thank you so much Marz, Am I stupid or what ?? I have Paul Robinsons book. Read through a bit of it and decided to change my doses of T3. Now taken 20mcg at 2am 8am 2pm and 8pm. I still wake at 2am so take my tab. then it's back to sleep. OK not perfect but a lot better and it's only been two nights. xx
Well my GP upped the dose sometime ago because on 60mcg I was so worn out. I had to give up keep fit class as I was still shaking the next day. I couldn't cope with day to day living,ok in the morning but I just sat around the rest of the time, hence he suggested the keep fir class. Now I am getting through the day but still have to pace myself. I might try reducing the last dose of the day if things don't improve. x
Hi, I feel for you, I too get this at times as well.
I've just posted on another person's insomnia issue, so I've copied and pasted my answer for your reference too:
I too have had episodes of insomnia because of biochemical imbalances, it is so frustrating when we know we are so tired but don't get any sleep or that nice deep refreshing sleep we so desperately want.
What's worked for me is 5HTP. This is because it gets converted into serotonin (helps you feel relaxed), which then converts into melatonin (the sleepy chemical we need for quality sleep). You have to give it time to get into your system. Natural remedies aren't like synthetic drugs, they're not as strong like that and need time to do their work. Don't take 5HTP if you're on prescribed antidepressants. You can take 5FTP if you come off the antidepressants but dovetail them together, so as you wean off one you introduce the other gradually, so you're not going cold turkey at any point or over-dosing either. This will need guidance from your GP or other medical practitioner.
I've also taken melatonin in capsule form, this gets into the body fast, within 15 minutes and you feel the effect. It can be bought from the US, Swanson do a good quality product. But do check with your GP/pharmacist that it won't conflict with any other medicines you are taking.
Most of us are deficient in magnesium. Magnesium is a relaxant and helps our bodies make the natural chemicals our bodies need for quality sleep. I take at least 500mg orally per day, along with using magnesium oil spray daily and rub into my skin and take regular weekly magnesium baths (either Epsom salt - which is mag sulphate or magnesium chloride flakes). You need at least 600g of magnesium salts/flakes per bath. Make sure it's dissolved well into the bath water and bathe for a min of 20 mins. Do this daily to start and preferably before bedtime, to help your body wind down and relax. Adding some lavender essential oil for an added bonus.
Have you had your cortisol level checked? My cortisol levels have been high recently and interfering with my sleep. My naturopath prescribed me 'L-Rhamnosus', which is a probiotic reported to bring down cortisol. Well, my sleep has been 90% better since taking it. I take it in powder form in water at bedtime.
Get all your medication checked. If you're chemically over-dosed in anyway from it, your sleep may well suffer. Only take what is absolutely necessary re prescribed medicines and try and opt for natural alternatives where it's safe to do so. So your system has a chance to balance again. It can help to go and see a fully qualified practitioner of naturopathic medicine/functional medicine to get a more holistic approach to your health if you can afford it. Mainstream doctors are great for treating acute health problems but the band-aid/symptomatic relief approach doesn't help us in the long run. The underlying cause still chugs along underneath all the synthetic medicines we take.
I so hope you find what works for you. I feel for your utter frustration. x
Check out the FREE Healing Hashimotos summit: healinghashimotossummit.com/
I've just watched one of the free pre-event talks you get given when you register and it's very inspiring and positive.
Thank you HEA72, will look into the points you have raised.x
I started taking 5-HTP and that helped my sleep issues. I take thiroyd and that didn't help my sleep problems. Its the getting to sleep in the first place that is the issue with me. I get tierd and then overtired and then just can't sleep. I have been quite lax in taking 5-htp the past 2 weeks and seen a real difference with my sleep.
how long have you been taking Thiroyd for? Assuming the your sleep problem was caused by hormonal imbalance, one would expect that taking thyroid hormones would help. I had some initial improvement with Thyroid S but then it disappeared...
Hi I have been taking it for about 9 weeks and now I have decided to reduce right down and add T3. It just wasn't doing enough for me and I was up to 6 per day. I still had a lot of hypo symtoms and I suspect I am one of those people who needs quite high levels of t3 and little to non t4. I just wasn't getting enough t3 from NDT and was still exhausted all the time.
thank you for your reply. I hope T3 will work for you. I have seriously considered T3 as well but I do need to wait much longer to give ndt a chance. My other symptoms are not to bad but I'm getting very little sleep and no deep sleep at all. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!
Thank you. I was the same as you but like I said it was the actual getting to sleep in the first place with me. Hopefully there will be an improvement for you soon once you reach the correct dose. Lack of sleep is just horrible.
This was my sleep pattern for years, along with an energy crash at 4pm every day. Since I started taking NDT, I sleep more normally, though my energy drops around 6pm now. If I wake up, It's now rare to be awake for hours.
Apart from medication, did you try any behavioral and cognitive therapies? If yes, then which ones? If no, then consult a doctor and begin your therapies immediately. treating insomnia boils down to regulating your body clock and sleeping habits. Medication is just a last resort to get you started. Do not depend on them as your only option, keep them as contingency.
A long term cure is always better than a short term relief. I'd suggest you to seek a psychotherapist well versed in cognitive and behavioral therapies that can cure sleeping disorders.
Thanks for your input. It so happens I'm familiar with CBT for insomnia (Colin Espie). I get quite exasperated when people suggest psychological therapy as a solution to the lack of hormones! I know you mean well but it's naive to think that CBT or any other form of talking therapy can regulate lack of thyroid hormones.
Hi and I am so sorry you are experiencing insomnia, it is so debilitating. Last year my young daughter suffered with terrible insomnia and we eventually found it was low cortisol. Have you had saliva cortisol tests done? Adrenal issues seem to go hand in hand with Hashimoto's and hypothyroidism - in fact I am not sure which comes first. We tried all of the sleep hygiene routines and even prescription sleep drugs (which I now know make matters worse as they lower cortisol). I would definitely recommend checking your cortisol levels and, as this can take a while getting results back, research 'sleep restriction protocol' as we also used this to help reset the sleep process. In short you restrict sleep to 6 hours a night to begin with and after each 2 weeks if you are falling asleep within 20 minutes you can add in another 15 minutes and repeat the process. We stayed up until 12am and slept until 6am. Even if exhausted you must get up at 6am. It works on building 'sleep pressure'. It was absolute torture to begin with but it helped. Once again though, the cortisol was the biggest factor. Wishing you all the best
Hi kitten I have been insomniac couple times with Hashimotos what I do is have a warm lavender and valerian oil bath and listen to a sleep app called calm I also have a oil diffuser in my room with lavender oil and valerian oil in it which helped as well also cut out caffeine not good with insomnia or Hashimotos good luck and hopefully . Also remember to put a little low Chemical soap in the bath so the oil can disperse and don’t nap during the day that makes it worse
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