[niccynicole]

I’ve had trouble my whole life falling asleep. I get bad anxiety as soon as I lay down. The last couple of months have been the worst nights of sleep in my life. I’m exhausted. It takes me at least 2 hours to fall asleep. Sometimes longer. The only thing that seems to help is prescription medication. I’ve tried staying up later, but then I just stay up 2 hours longer than I would have. I’m a very scheduled person, so I like to go to bed at the same time every night to ensure I get a good 7-8 hours of sleep. And when sleep doesn’t happen, my mind races for hours. It’s a vicious cycle.

[NWSleepy]

If you cannot do Martin’s course, I recommend you keep reading this forum, listening to his podcast, and use the Veterans Administration free app called — CBT-i Coach. These things have helped me immensely. Good luck!

[EileenG]

I had the same issue as you did. I tossed and turn, got in and out of bed, and was up for hours.
The rare times I would fall asleep, I would then wake in the middle of the night, or very early in the morning, not able to fall back to sleep. This lasted for almost 4 years! I believed if I didn’t take something to fall asleep, I would never sleep. What helped me was to get all over-the-counter as well as prescription meds out of my house. I was psychologically dependent on them. I know it is a scary thought to get rid of them all, but I found this was the only way I would be able to fall asleep on my own, and stay asleep. After a couple of weeks of no supplements, I started falling asleep almost every night on my own. And it helped me rid the stress I felt every time I got into bed. I now look forward to going to sleep!

[Martin Reed]

Welcome to the forum @niccynicole! I am so encouraged that you tried staying up a bit later — this does usually require a little longer than a few nights to bring about any meaningful improvement in sleep, but if combined with a consistent out of bed time it can help build sleep drive, make it easier to fall asleep, and overpower that anxiety at the start of the night.

You mentioned that you are a very scheduled person who likes to go to bed at the same time every night to ensure you get a good seven to eight hours of sleep. However, it seems that this current schedule isn’t working for you — you don’t seem to be getting seven to eight hours of sleep at night — so might a different schedule be worth a try?

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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.

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