[ddillon923]

Hi everyone,

I am dealing with insomnia after a several-month period of eye issues (during which I also had insomnia). My eyes are totally fine now except that they are strained by fatigue. On days when there is something near adequate sleep they hold up all right but after a couple bad nights (and I have mostly bad nights) the strain and pain is pretty hard if I do my normal activities.

Martin, I know there are no harmful health issues caused by insomnia but this eye strain thing really makes it difficult for me to go about my day normally. What do we do if the lack of sleep makes it necessary to limit certain activities (for me, computer & reading, which are part of my part-time editorial work, alas). It’s hard for me to be okay with not sleeping when I anticipate this kind of facial pain (from the eye strain) and limitiation.

(I’ve been checked out for other eye issues, all is well.)

I was getting an average of 6 hours for a while there, with some better nights and some worse, but I had gotten to where I was rarely below 5. Then I started an antidepressant which knocked me out for nights for a week and then stopped knocking me out but still left me groggy. I got off of that. Now it’s back to the old trouble.

Right now I am waking with the birds just before dawn, around 5. I am going to bed at 10:30 or so but having trouble falling asleep. Last night I took a trazodone (mistake!) which didn’t work.

Ideas or encouragement, anyone? ACT is better for me than CBT right now. I’m generally resting in bed if I’m not sleeping and practicing with the anxiety (a la Claire Weekes). Initially I restricted my sleep window and that got me above 5 hours but didn’t get me any farther over several weeks, and I simply must rest my eyes, so I’m not restricting anymore.

[Martin Reed]

Welcome to the forum 🙂

Your eye issues sound very difficult. I am glad to hear that your eyes are OK, although they are still strained by fatigue. It makes complete sense this makes it harder for you to go about your days normally.

You are the expert on you. If you feel you need to limit certain activities, then you need to limit certain activities. What are the alternative activities you can engage in when you are unable to go about your day as normal — activities that reflect your values; who you are and who you want to be?

It also makes complete sense that you are finding it hard to be OK with not sleeping when you anticipate the obstacles that come with it and the pain that might show up. What makes you feel you need to be OK with all that stuff?

Your superpowers of self-awareness and self-reflection have helped you identify that, for you, ACT is a better approach to all this difficult stuff versus CBT.

You are practicing building skill in experiencing wakefulness with less struggle and making space for difficult thoughts and feelings (like anxiety) to exist and to come and go with less struggle. You know that the struggle only makes things more difficult.

It sounds like you learned something from taking trazodone. You also mentioned that taking it was a mistake — what made that action a mistake?

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