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Hello Sailguy. I am sorry to hear that the only ‘solution’ you are being offered is sleep meds.
Sleep rituals aren’t usually helpful because they are another way of putting effort into trying to sleep. As soon as we try to sleep, we make sleep more difficult.
What kind of rituals are you employing?
When you go to bed at 10:00 PM, are you sleepy enough for sleep? If not, it’s usually a good idea to wait until you feel sleepy before going to bed.
You didn’t mention whether you have a regular morning out of bed time. Do you have a set arise time, or do you get out of bed at a different time every day?
On a typical night, how many hours of sleep do you think 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.
Welcome to the forum! I am happy to hear you have started counseling to help address your sleep issues. Are you going through a course of CBT-I with your counselor? It sounds as though you would benefit from CBT-I techniques because they help address the thoughts and behaviors that perpetuate insomnia.
I would also add that waking during the night is not unusual — but if you are finding it hard to fall back to sleep, there are techniques you can implement to improve this and help you fall back to sleep when you wake during the 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.
Welcome to the forum and I am sorry to read about your struggles with sleep. From what you have described, it sounds as though you have formed a strong association between the bed and wakefulness, worry, and anxiety. This is perhaps unsurprising when we consider all the negative experiences you have gone through when in bed.
So, you can be feeling very sleepy (or wake from sleep) but when you get in bed or realize you are in bed, you become highly alert and anxious because you have learned that the bed is a place where bad things can happen.
The good news is, there are a number of times when you have managed to get your sleep back on track. So, this is evidence that you are capable of sleep and that it’s very unlikely anything is wrong with your biological sleep system.
You mentioned that you have sought medical advice. Was cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) mentioned or suggested at any point?
I think this could be very helpful for you because it helps address the learned association of the bed/bedroom as a place of wakefulness and worry and helps you relearn to associate the bed with relaxation and sleep. It also helps address any behavioral issues that may be making it harder for you to get your 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.
Welcome to the forum and I am so glad to hear that you are ready to improve your sleep without medication. We are all capable of sleep, and so we are all capable of sleeping without medication.
It sounds as though you already have some good ideas on techniques that can help you relax and prepare for sleep.
Can you tell us a bit more about your sleep? When do you normally go to bed, when do you normally get out of bed, and roughly how many hours of sleep are you getting on an average night? Is your biggest challenge falling asleep or falling back to sleep after waking during the night (or both)?
—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 and I’m sorry to hear about the symptoms you are experiencing.
You mentioned that you have had sleep studies done but they all came back as normal. In that case, how did you get your hands on a CPAP machine?
If the problem only occurs when you wake after 5:00 AM I am wondering if you are experiencing severe sleep inertia. Do you currently follow a regular sleep schedule? Apart from the daytime sleepiness you have described (which can be a symptom of sleep apnea) and the symptoms you experience when awakening after 5:00 AM, how is your sleep otherwise?
—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, and I am sorry to hear about your struggles with sleep. Are you currently being treated for PTSD and/or your sleep issues?
—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 and I am sorry to hear about your ongoing struggle with sleep. It sounds as though you would benefit from a few techniques to restore your sleep drive and calm your racing mind. Before I can offer some suggestions, can you tell me a bit more about your sleep at the current time?
When do you currently go to bed, when do you get out of bed to start the day, and roughly how much sleep do you get on an average 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.
Hello Davy — I am not sure I understand your post, can you clarify?
—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.
Good to hear from you again! A sleep window of 11:00 PM to 6:00 AM (seven hours in duration) suggests that you are averaging around six-and-a-half hours of sleep at night. Does that sound about right?
Are you also making sure that you get out of bed by the same time every single day?
If you regularly struggle to stay up until the start of your sleep window, you may benefit from shifting it a little so it starts earlier in the night (and ends earlier in the morning).
—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, Pillow — and I don’t think you will find one person here who doesn’t share the same aspirations as you!
Home remedies do not cure chronic insomnia. Instead, look for a treatment option that is supported by evidence — such as cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I).
You mentioned that you feel anxiety when you can’t sleep because you know the next day is going to be brutal. A bad night of sleep can definitely make the next day more of a struggle — but how well we sleep actually has less of an impact on our day than we usually think.
Think of it this way — have you ever had a great night of sleep but had a bad day? Have you ever had a bad night of sleep but noticed a few good moments during the day? If so, see this as evidence that the quality of your day is not entirely dependent on the quality of your sleep. Being aware of this can reduce the power of sleep-related anxiety.
—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 Nick, and welcome to the forum. I am sorry to hear that you have been told by doctors that you cannot be cured of your chronic insomnia — because that does not sound accurate. Did your doctors give you a reason as to why they felt you could not be cured?
—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 your contribution, Seaman — and I appreciate that you feel let down by the medical community. Medical doctors do not receive much in the way of sleep education during their training — so when they see patients who struggle with sleep, they may not know the best course of treatment to recommend.
Sleeping pills are not the answer. They do not cure insomnia and they come with a number of potential side-effects. They are also not intended for use much beyond a couple of weeks. If you are currently taking prescription medication, do not make any changes to your medication regimen without talking to your doctor first.
A far better alternative to sleeping pills (and the American College of Physician’s recommendation) is cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I). CBT-I is supposed to be offered as the first treatment for adults with chronic insomnia but unfortunately, this rarely happens.
This is down to a combination of a lack of awareness, and a lack of availability of CBT-I practitioners.
—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.
If you are a morning lark it’s little surprise that you are finding it hard to stay awake until the start of your sleep window. You may want to discuss advancing the sleep window with your therapist while retaining an appropriate duration. So, instead of 11.40 PM to 6 AM you try 10.40 PM to 5 AM (as an example).
In your last post, you described conditioned arousal to a tee — and this is very common among people with chronic insomnia. In effect, you have learned that the bed is a place for worry and wakefulness rather than relaxation and sleep. So, when you get in bed you feel anxiety rather than relaxation.
Before you had insomnia, you did not have this association. The association was learned, so it can be ‘unlearned’ — and this is done by using the bed for sleep and nothing else. So, when you aren’t asleep you get out of bed.
If your anxiety is related to sleep and the bed, then getting out of bed when you are awake will actually help alleviate this anxiety over time — because it will retrain your mind to associate the bed with nothing but sleep. However, it does take time and consistent implementation of stimulus control techniques — and this certainly is not easy, especially for the first couple of weeks.
—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 Cammie, and welcome to the forum. I am sorry to hear that you have been struggling to fall asleep for the past few years and that your doctor’s suggestion was to try trazodone. Did your doctor happen to mention cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I)?
In the United States, primary care physicians are encouraged to recommend CBT-I as the initial treatment for chronic insomnia because it is more effective than sleeping pills and doesn’t come with any of the side-effects associated with sleeping pills.
When you do you normally go to bed at night, when do you normally get out of bed to start your day, and roughly how many hours of 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.
Hello and welcome to the forum. I am sorry to hear about the pain you are experiencing and your disrupted sleep.
Unfortunately, I don’t think we have any back and muscle pain experts here. Did anything unusual, stressful, or out of the ordinary happen eight months ago at roughly the same time you experienced this problem?
When it comes to your sleep, can you tell us a bit more about your current sleep pattern? When do you lie down to sleep at night, and when do you get up to start your day in the morning? Roughly how many hours of 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.
