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I’ve dealt with insomnia on and off for as long as i can remember going back to early childhood but over the past two years its become worse than ever. I’ve been using Zopiclone almost every night and its efficacy has virtually worn off but i still take it and i’m on the verge of dependency. Ive used medication in the past but never for as long as i have in this current situation and i’m worried about creating a dependency problem for myself. Over the past 20 years i’ve been in therapy on a off for Complex PTSD (14 years therapy in total). During that time ive dealt with many issues such as overcoming an eating disorder and losing half my body weight, overcoming my dependency on drugs and alchohol and chronic social anxiety among other things. Apart from the insomnia I’m now super fit and healthy (drug and alchohol free, plant based diet, exercise everyday, walking, cycling, free weights, yoga and meditation).
I’ve recently gone back into therapy (two months) to help me deal with the anxiety around my insomnia and its helping with the anxiety but not with the insomnia itself. Weirdly i’ve never addressed my sleep issues in therapy before probably becasue i’ve been living with it since childhood. But its becoming so bad that I’m at my wits end, living on so few hours of sleep… I get maybe 2 or 3 hours a night and some nights i have no sleep at all. I live alone, no family apart from one adult son who lives far away and dont have anyone who really understands what i’m going through. I guess i’m still at the stage where i’m somehow functioning and i’m able to hide how bad things are getting. Its now 2am, i’m exhausted but i cant sleep so i’m out of bed and writing my first post. This is the first night of trying CBTI.It sounds as though you’re doing really well at working on the anxiety side of insomnia and that’s important since arousal is something that can perpetuate sleep disruption — so you seem to have the “C” part of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) covered!
This means there’s still the opportunity to address the “B” part — the behaviors that can perpetuate sleep disruption. So, doing things like allotting an appropriate amount of time for sleep and getting out of bed when being in bed doesn’t feel good might be the final part of the puzzle!
How are you getting on since you posted?
—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.
Hey Martin, Okay, this isnt the success story it was last weeek. I am now 4 and half weeks into the program and i was doing really well up until four nights ago but since then things have gone down hill fast. I had got to the stage where i was going to bed and falling asleep within 15 minutes, staying asleep for 2 to 3 hours and then waking to use the loo and then was able to go back to sleep pretty much straight away for another 3 hours. I must have been getting 5+ hours sleep a night. But for the past four nights i’ve had to get up for and hour or two in the night and then have only been catnapping for the rest of my sleep window. I’ve become so tired that i thought i would sleep better last night but it was the opposite. I didnt fall into a proper sleep straight away and needed to get out of bed after about 1.5 hours. I stayed up for about 2 and half hours. Evven though i was extremely tired i didnt feel sleep enough to go back to bed and when i did I still only catnapped until i needed to get out of bed in the morning. Right now i’m wondering if this is a common thing. Do people relapse during the program. Thinking about using a sleeping pill tonight becasue i’m so fuzzy and tired and not functioning very well. I dont know what to do with myself other than go walking or bike riding as if i sit down i start to nod off.
Ups and downs are completely normal, Susie! Since you were at the stage where you were falling asleep within 15 minutes and sleeping for five to six hours with only one interruption to use the toilet, there’s no reason to think that won’t happen again — you have proven to yourself that you’re capable of that kind of sleep!
It can be helpful to recognize that you can sleep like that, but to avoid the temptation to put pressure on yourself to sleep like that! As soon as we put any effort into sleep or strive for sleep, that’s when sleep becomes very difficult.
Usually, the best way to react to a few difficult nights is not to react since our reactions are often unhelpful and can perpetuate the sleep disruption. So, I would encourage you to avoid the temptation to change things by spending more time in bed or modifying your days in response.
The good news when it comes to daytime fatigue is that we can do things to reduce that fatigue — we can pursue enjoyable and enriching daytime activities! These not only reduce fatigue but they improve the quality of our days and help us recognize that we can still have good days (or at least experience some positive moments) after difficult nights. Walking or bike riding sound like a couple of great activities to me!
Since you know from experience that sleeping pills aren’t a solution, it might be worth exploring whether reaching for a pill would be the right response. As you know, after four difficult nights, sleep drive will be very strong — and this makes sleep increasingly likely. If you take a pill when sleep drive is strong and sleep because of that strong sleep drive, it’s easy to believe you only slept because you took a pill — and that can make it hard to regain sleep confidence!
You’ve got this, Susie!
—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.
Thankyou so much for your quick reply Martin! But I actually did take half a zopiclone last night becasue i was feeling desperate. A combination of distressing factors brought this episode on and i was desperate to get a few hours sleep becasue the anxiety was ramping up and i felt like I was falling into a bad place. But i still stuck to the program. And the pills dont really work any more anyway. I slept for 3 hours and then still needed to get up for 30 mins or so. Then i went back and fell in an out of sleep until it was time to get up. It was a night similar to how things were before they fell apart a few days ago. And this morning im back to feeling positive about the program and I’m still determined to stick with it.
Regards
Susie.The good news, Susie, is that the sleep you got after taking half a pill is still sleep you generated all by yourself — because no medication can generate sleep!
—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.
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