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Welcome to the forum, Phyl — and I am so sorry to read about your long-term struggles with sleep.
You mentioned that you were diagnosed with insomnia in 1976. Before this diagnosis, what was your sleep like? Were you struggling with sleep before 1976?
You mentioned that you feel very tired and fatigued but rarely feel sleepy. At the present time, what is your cue for going to bed? Do you go to bed at a certain time, or do you try to wait until you have a sensation of sleepiness?
Can you tell us a bit more about your current sleep pattern or habits? When do you normally go to bed at night, when do you normally get out of bed to start the day, and roughly how many hours of sleep would you say you get on a “typical” night?
I know you have sought a lot of advice about insomnia over the years, but I think it would be prudent to ask this anyway — have you tried implementing any cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) techniques?
—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.
Welcome to the forum, sleepwell. As mentioned by Sleepless in SSB, you can’t set a time for sleep — you should only go to bed when you feel sleepy enough for sleep. Going to bed before you are sleepy only leads to more time in bed awake, makes sleep more of a struggle, and can create/perpetuate sleep problems.
—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.
Here are a few ideas on things to do in the evening, before your sleep window, that might help keep you awake:
* Choose clothes that you can wear the next day
* Make your lunch
* Marinate or start to prepare food for dinner the following day and store it in the refrigerator
* Gather old bills and statements and shred them
* Organize collections: photos, old letters, wine, books, or other items
* Catch up on laundry or folding clothes
* Polish your shoes
* Iron or mend clothing
* Do some stretches
* Go for a walk
* Give yourself a pedicure, manicure, or facial
* Sweep or mop the kitchen floor while no one else is there to walk on it!
* Sort out junk mail
* Play solitaire (with cards)
* Call friends who live in other time zones
* Clean out the refrigerator
* Make a grocery shopping list for the week
* Create a detailed menu for dinners
* De-clutter your coffee table, dining room table, kitchen countertops or desk
* Create a list of activities that you’d enjoy doing on weekends and vacations
* Work on photo albums or scrapbooks
* Choose one or two drawers to clean out (in your desk, kitchen, bathroom)
* Organize collections of CDs or DVDs and choose some to donate or sell if you no longer enjoy themI hope this gives you some ideas!
—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.
Welcome to the forum, shaner37. Since your insomnia began relatively recently, as long as you don’t try to compensate for lost sleep by doing things like going to bed early, napping during the day, staying in bed later than normal, canceling plans or calling in sick to work, your sleep should get back on track by itself.
How are you getting on at the current time? Any improvements yet?
—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.
Welcome to the forum, knackeredagain. First of all, can you tell us more about what you mean when you say you never feel sleepy? Does this mean that if you didn’t get even one minute of sleep for the next 30 days straight, you would still not feel sleepy?
If you can describe a typical night, I may be able to offer some suggestions/guidance. What time do you usually go to bed at night, when do you get out of bed in the morning, and roughly how many hours of sleep do you get?
—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.
Hello ceedceed. Can you tell us a bit more about your sleep, or lack of it? What is a typical night like for you? When do you go to bed, when do you get out of bed, and roughly how much sleep do you get on a typical night?
—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.
It sounds as though you are on the right path, yawning. How are you getting on? Any updates for us?
—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.
Great to hear that you’re getting out of bed when unable to sleep! Are you following a sleep window? If so, when do you normally go to bed and when do you get out of bed in the morning to start your day? How many hours of sleep are you getting on a typical night?
—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.
I am 99.99% certain that the reason you were able to sleep away from your own bedroom was due to conditioned arousal — and this is best tackled using CBT-I techniques.
Browsing the web when in bed is more to do with sleep hygiene than a CBT-I technique — and sleep hygiene doesn’t fix chronic insomnia. So, I just want to double-check — have you tried CBT-I techniques such as following an appropriate sleep window and getting out of bed when unable to sleep?
If so, how long did you implement these techniques before determining that they weren’t helpful?
I think it would be constructive to focus on this because I have yet to come across someone with chronic insomnia who implemented CBT-I techniques correctly and consistently for at least eight weeks and didn’t get their sleep back on track.
—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.
Thank you for the update! It’s one thing me always telling others about how effective CBT-I is over the long-term but it’s quite another when someone posts an update and reports that they’re still sleeping well six months after finishing a course of CBT-I!
How long had you struggled with insomnia for, before you enrolled in my coaching course?
—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.
It sounds as though you are on the right track, Warrior! Please keep us updated with your progress!
—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.
Hello Sallyann and welcome to the forum. It sounds as though you would really benefit from observing a regular (and appropriate) sleep window as a first step towards making your sleep a bit more consistent.
Unfortunately, when you experience a really long period of sleep after a night of minimal (or zero) sleep, you reduce sleep drive to such an extent that sleep the following night becomes almost impossible. As a result, you repeat the cycle of poor sleep followed by lengthy sleep followed by poor sleep, etc.
Another problem with not keeping a regular sleep schedule is that when you get out of bed at a different time every day, your body clock doesn’t have a strong morning anchor. This is needed because the body clock has a natural tendency to drift. If we don’t make sure we’re out of bed by the same time every day, and when we perhaps combine this with going to bed early, we end up going to bed long before our body is ready for sleep. This leads to anxiety and less sleep.
Finally, I urge you not to take sleeping pills contingently since this constantly reinforces the incorrect assumption that you are incapable of sleep without a pill and that any sleep you get after taking a pill is sleep that only happened because you took a pill. I talk more about this in the video below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnOZ8BrYeno
—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.
Hello Jodi and welcome to the forum. I am sorry to hear about your struggles with sleep — have you experienced this before, or is this something new that only started four nights ago? If it started recently, do you know what triggered the initial sleeplessness?
—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.
Thanks for sharing your experience, impendia — as suggested by @jazzcat22 this is a classic sign of conditioned arousal. In other words, you have learned to associate your own bed with wakefulness rather than sleep. So, as soon as you removed yourself from that environment, you were able to sleep.
Have you tried implementing CBT-I techniques such as stimulus control? Stimulus control will help you relearn to associate your own bed with sleep and, therefore, improve your sleep over the long-term.
—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.
Welcome to the forum, Worrier — and I am sorry to hear about your almost 50-year struggle with insomnia. First, let me reassure you that you are capable of sleep and that you have not lost the ability to sleep.
What made you decide that your sleep goal is to get six hours of sleep? When do you currently go to bed at night, when do you get out of bed in the morning, and how many hours of sleep do you get on a typical night at the present time?
—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.
