[brighteyes]

Hi everyone,

Thought I'd introduce myself and try and keep it short (bet I won't!). Firstly it's great to find a place with like minded people to help and lean on with sleep problems. A bit about me…

I've always been a light sleeper but never had sleeping problems (maybe just the occasional crappy night if I'd had a stressful day at work) until I had my son 4 months ago. I had an overnight delivery and then in the days following during my hospital stay I couldn't sleep maybe half an hour to 1 hr per day. When i got home I was sleeping between half an hour to three hours a night. It seemed I had the baby blues but I did go and see a Psych who put my anxiousness down to lack of sleep which really all made sense. I did a few sessions of brain retraining to try and regulate my sleep pattern which seemed to help and I started averaging about 5 hours a night, which after reaching lows of half an hour is absolute bliss. About a month back I went through a stage of about 3 weeks where I was averaging about 7hrs/night and I thought the sleepless nights were behind me but it's reared its ugly head again.

I tend to be able to fall asleep and get about 3-4hrs until my son wakes for a feed and then I cannot get back to sleep. It drives me mad lying there awake willing my brain to shut down and go to sleep and I can't. I lay there thinking how can i care for my son so low on sleep. Before I know it the suns rays start to peak through the curtains and it's time to get my son up. I can sometimes catch up on the weekends when my husband gets our son up in the mornigns and I can sleep a bit more but I just want to put this crap behind me to be frank.

I should add, that I cannot sleep during the day. It's become impossible. Not because of my son I just don't know why. I used to be able to catnap when I was pregnant.

So that's pretty much me. I'm trying to avoid sleeping pills because I'm worried bout their effect or possible addiction. Just taking Natures Own Sleeping aids at the moment and sometimes camomile tea before bed. None of which really help with trying to get back to sleep at 4am after I've fed my son. Maybe I'll just hold onto that pipe dream of getting back to being a good sleeper and in time my son will hopefully sleep through the night (sooner rather than later).

Brighteyes

PS. Chose this username because I get told how I don't look sleep deprived but clearly am!

[AliDeal]

Firstly, congratulations on the birth of your baby, a life changing experience that would keep anyone up wondering how things are going to turn out for this very precious life. Having suffered from insomnia for 30 years, I know how frustrating it is when you can't sleep, and even more so when others give us “good” advice, so what I would like to recommend is a little caution.

Your life has changed dramatically, you are know responsible for another little life, this and the baby waking up during the night can seriously disrupt your sleeping and cause insomnia, if you can avoid taking sleeping tablets, that would be a good choice as one can become dependent upon them and normal sleeping patterns are harder to re-establish, give it a few more weeks – you could also consider taking Rescue Drops, I have found that they do work in stressful situations.

Good luck!!

xx

[Martin Reed]

Welcome to Insomnia Land, Brighteyes – and thank you for introducing yourself. You're not the only member here who has traced back their sleep problems to the birth of a child – hopefully one or two of them will chime in here with some additional support.

Have you spoken with a doctor about your lack of sleep? Not all doctors will immediately subscribe medication. Keep us updated and know that however your sleep progresses, you've always got the support of everyone here at Insomnia Land.

I look forward to getting to know you.

—

If you are ready to stop struggling with insomnia you can enroll in the online insomnia coaching course right now! If you would prefer ongoing phone or video coaching calls as part of a powerful three month program that will help you reclaim your life from insomnia, consider applying for the Insomnia Mastery program.

The content of this post is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or any other licensed healthcare provider. Insomnia Coach LLC offers coaching services only and does not provide therapy, counseling, medical advice, or medical treatment. All content is provided “as is” and without warranties, either express or implied.

[Jane]

Hello Brighteyes welcome to the forum.

Congratulations on the birth of your baby. As a mum of 3 myself, I know just how exhausting those early days with anew born are. It's no wonder your sleep pattern is all over the place. You really do have my sympathy. I remember when my youngest was about 3 days old. He just would not go to sleep. By 4 am I sat on the bad and cried with tiredness, and my husband FINALLY got up and took him downstairs so I could sleep. He woke me up 2 hours later!!! 😡

I know you said you can't sleep during the day, but when your baby is asleep during the day, make sure you rest, don't spend it doing housework. Stuff the housework, your more important. Once your baby starts going through the night without waking up for a feed, you may well find things get better, but in those early days, REST whenever you can and don't feel guilty. You've been through pregnancy and childbirth and you deserve a rest.

Lovely to have you here. Keep us up to date with how your getting on. 🙂

[brighteyes]

Thanks everyone for the well wishes and warm welcome 🙂

Alideal, thanks for the advice on meds, yep I am steering clear of sleeping pills. I'll keep an eye out for the Rescue Drops too. At the moment trying Swisse Sleep which seem OK. It time will tell.

Martin yep I've seen my doctor a few times about my sleeping. She was mainly worried I had post natal depression so referred me to the Psych who diagnosed mild anxiety but sleep being the main problem. So had a few sessions with her which helped a bit. We agreed to avoid meds, not least because at the time I was breast feeding and couldn't take anything. Funnily enough my doctor told me that 5hrs sleep is more than most new parents get and I should be happy. So I try suck it up but at the same time I know there's a difference between insomnia and baby caused sleep deprivation. It's probably a bit of both at the moment.

Jane good advice and maybe I'm putting too much pressure on achieving good sleep when it still is early days. And yes I only do housework when I'm well rested 🙂

[Nicole]

Hello. I always slept wonderful, including throughout pregnancy, but about 5 days after my daughter was born intense insomnia struck for the first time of my life. I also had no appetite and basically felt like I was losing my mind. I believe it was post-partum depression/anxiety for me and I called my old psychiatric nurse who prescribed lorazepam for sleep and paxil for the depression. My insomnia quickly went away and in 2-3 weeks the depression lifted. I was devastated because I could no longer breast feed because of the meds. I was also devastated because I had gone off my meds for my entire pregnancy, and was hoping to be done with them forever, but had to go back on them. It was a horrible experience. It sounds like your insomnia is definitely the result of childbirth. You didn't mention any other symptoms that would sound like post-partum depression. Maybe your hormones are just out of wack from giving birth. I admire your ability to do without the meds. For me it was not an option unfortunately. Hopefully your sleep will return to normal. If not, you might want to consider a small amount of trazodone. It is not addictive and is an old antidepressant that is used more for a sleep aid at small doses than for depression. Unfortunately I require a large dose to fall asleep, but most people don't. Please let me know if you have any questions. Best wishes.

[Author]

Posts