[Bluesky]

I had insomnia now for 8 months, it all started from a bad night sleep with my new girlfriend at the time.
The following night I worried it would happen again and it did and then that was the start of it all.
From what I have researched and been told by professionals the aim is to not think about not sleeping but the anxiety takes over so easier said than done….this is where I am with it trying to find ways to relax and not think about the nights sleep ahead but so far everything I tried has failed….I would love to hear if anyone has nailed this and found ways to take their focus on other stuff pre sleep to allow them to sleep.

Also when I really struggle to fall asleep and it becomes early hours I often find myself getting really frustrated and angry which makes it worse dropping off, does anyone have ways to get back on track to calming down and getting to sleep….I’m not a great reader before that’s mentioned.

[Patrick2392]

Hi Bluesky, I empathize I’ve punched quite a few holes in the wall at 3 am in the past 5 months. I’m not a fan of getting up and reading in the middle of the night either. One thing that has worked well for me is when I’m in bed awake for awhile I try progressive muscle relaxation while still laying in bed. I keep doing it over and over again, if you keep doing it and focus only on the exercise it is somewhat meditative and becomes boring. Has helped me calm down from the frustration and trail off relatively well.
Also don’t beat yourself up about being angry or anxious, forgive yourself. I’ve found a good mantra is “expect nothing, appreciate everything”.

[Bluesky]

I really struggle finding something early hours to focus on to go back to sleep I just almost resign that I will not get any sleep whatsoever then I usually drift off about 3/4 am

[Deb]

Hi Bluesky – My insomnia started just like yours, with one bad night. I had it for 9 months. I discovered ACT for insomnia and it cured it. I am now insomnia free for 3 weeks. Check out the thread “ACT for insomnia” for other people practicing ACT and whose sleep is improving. The focus of ACT is on learning techniques to calm down our anxious/frustrated/angry minds so that the body takes over and then we naturally fall asleep. The best resource for this method is the book The Sleep Book by Dr. Guy Meadows.

[Martin Reed]

Being told not to think about sleep when you are living with chronic insomnia is not very helpful — so I am sorry to hear that was the advice you were given!

Can you tell us a bit more about your current sleep pattern? When do you normally go to sleep at night, when do you usually get out of bed to start your day, and roughly how many hours of sleep do you get on a typical night?

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