Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Hi jazzcat22. I totally agree. The SR and SC are helping and creating a new sleep paradigm for me and that has to be more healthy in a lot of ways. While my insomnia was triggered by a thyroid crisis in February, I think there are many circumstances which I may not even be aware of that are keeping it going. I’m sticking with CBT-I and so glad I found this forum. I got six hours last night and feel really good today. It was quality, uninterrupted sleep as well. I did have to stay up past my SW bedtime before I felt sleepy but I’ve also learned to be a little more flexible, listen to my body instead of the clock, and work with it instead of letting it cause additional anxiety. (P.S. I also eat nuts every day—best way to get healthy fats and a load of nutrients in a small serving.)
Hi Daf and jazzcat22. Thanks for the encouragement. In addition to just turning 77 years “young”, I’m a 24/7 caregiver for my husband who has dementia. It was hard when I was sleeping so it is really tough trying to keep up with it all with little or no sleep. One would think just the sheer exhaustion of my situation would knock me semi-unconscious every night when the opportunity for sleep comes around but it is just the opposite. I think CBT-I will eventually work and I need to just keep working the program and not worry so much.
I agree that the SC can be a problem in getting back to bed in time but I still think it is better to get up and go to another room even if it means less sleep overall for the night. I just need to not get quite so comfortable when in the SC mode.
Good morning all. It seems I can nod off anywhere except in my bed. After getting up twice for SC last night I fell asleep in the recliner in the family room and woke up when the alarm in my bedroom went off. This is not a good thing but at least I got a couple of hours of sleep. I had such a good night the night before last, I was a little surprised that I couldn’t fall asleep in bed last night. Strange thing, this insomnia thing. It’s been four months now and it seems relentless. Is anyone else concerned about what this lack of decent sleep is doing to our brains, our hearts, and other vital organs and functions? It is starting to get a little scary and opening up a whole new line of anxiety, worry, and stress to deal with for me. It is so nice to have this forum. Just being able to express thoughts and fears to others going through the same issues is helpful in itself.
Hi jazzcat22. What an optimistic and encouraging post that was. I can relate to so much of it. Especially the not feeling sleepy part and the miserable first week or two on the sleep restriction. I too can do okay on 6 hours a night. I got that last night for the first time in 4 months. Yesterday was my birthday so what a great a gift to get last night.
Steve, I had to loosen up on my SW too. I was being way too strict and anxious about it and it started showing up in my inability to fall asleep or get sleepy at all.
Hi Deb. Thanks for asking. I was doing pretty good on my SR and staying with my SW and then things went crazy and I stopped sleeping. i got so exhausted that I fell asleep for 4 hours one afternoon. I’m sure you can about imagine how that messed me up for a couple of nights. NEVER lean the recliner all the way back when totally exhausted. I paid the price for that little nap! I’m back on target now and extended my SW a little. I think trying to be so rigid with it caused too much anxiety which was probably why I fell off the SR wagon.
Dahlia, this is my challenge as well. I just can’t fall asleep. I’m tired all the time and functioning (if you can call it that) on less than five hours sleep a night and many times, no sleep at all. I’m a 24/7 hour caregiver for my husband who has dementia so I have to start getting sleep. I’ve tried all the otc stuff and herbal preparations too. None of them have worked and some made me really sick. I too find the strict sleep hygiene rules not helping much and making me stress about strictly adhering to them. I’m going to relax it a bit and give myself a bigger sleep window. I can do the same wake time every day and that makes sense to me but I’m going to start going to bed when I feel sleepy and not worry about the time. If I force myself to stay up past the time I get sleepy, my brain thinks I want to be awake and guess what?? No sleep!
Karen, I read, color in my coloring books, pay bills, do crossword puzzles, write in my journal, work on my genealogy project on Ancestry.com…….anything kind of quiet and relaxing.
Hi Karen. I’m also in my second week of SR. I have seen a slight shift but not much. It takes awhile of being consistent and persistent. My sleep window is 12:00-6:30 and I follow it but sometimes I am just not sleepy and have to stay up later or get back up once I go to bed if it is clear to me that sleep is not going to happen. Last night, I got out of bed twice and did not sleep until 4:00 this morning so I will be a zombie today. I’m still having a couple of nights where I sleep through my window and then followed by one or two nights where I get little or sometimes no sleep. Don’t give up because I truly believe this works. Rebuilding our damaged sleep drives can take some time.
Hi Paul. Definitely try CBT-I. Start with Martin’s two week free program. I’ve gone through much of what you are going through and started CBT-I program on my own before I found this website. It requires heavy duty commitment and strong discipline. The first few weeks are brutal but I am sticking with it and starting to see improvement. It is not a speedy process and requires patience and re-learning. I worried so much about going to sleep I would actually worry myself into a full blown panic attack. I’m past that now. I’m a nurse and you know how stubborn we can be! I’m not well yet but I know I will get there and now I know what to do if I relapse. I tried every OTC sleep aid available before I finally got sick and tired of being sick and tired and committed to giving CBT-I a try.
Martin, Thank you for the helpful feedback. The self-help workbook I’m using is very much in line with what you are saying so it is good reinforcement. I feel like I am making progress. I really like the forum. Everyone has such good comments and so willing to share experiences that really help get through this process.
Hi Deb and Steve. Thanks! It’s good to know I’m not totally losing it. I kind of had a mini panic attack when out of the blue I was wide awake after dragging through the day and trying to stay awake.
Well, good morning all! I was so tired I could hardly wait for my sleep window bedtime but when it came and the lights went out I popped wide awake. It’s 1:00 in the morning. I have a pounding headache from pure exhaustion. I’m having a cup of chamomile tea and have accepted the fact that I will be getting no sleep tonight. This is so crazy. How could I be fighting microsleeps for hours and then be wide awake when it is finally time to sleep. I was beginning to think this was starting to work but this is a real set back. I’m a little discouraged. My eyes feel like they have sand in them. I had three good nights of SR and thought I was on my way to a normal life again and now this. Are these set backs to be expected? I’m really strict about sticking to my sleep window and getting out of bed if I don’t fall asleep in a reasonable amount of time. My cats are not happy with me. They were asleep in the family room and I just woke them up. However, unlike me, they will go right back to sleep. 🙂
This program is brutal but it is starting to work for me. The first four days of SR were horrible with little or no sleep. I was so exhausted by the fourth day I couldn’t even focus my eyes or read. And then, I slept. My sleep window is 12:00 midnight – 6:30. Steve helped me straighten that out. I had one that was too long for SR to be effective. The last three nights I have stayed within my sleep window and have slept most of that time. I usually wake up a few minutes before the alarm goes off but this morning I slept until the alarm went off. But the really good thing is that I am falling asleep soon after I go to bed. My big problem was sleep onset. I just couldn’t get there. I’m going to stay on this schedule for a full two weeks and if I’m sleeping, will raise the awake time 15 minutes and see if I can slowly climb back up to 6-7 hours a night. I can always cut back if I need too but I would like to feel rested instead of being so dead dog tired all the time. Keep at it you guys and gals. I’m convinced this will work for most people but it takes time and incredible commitment to work through it. I’m far from being there yet. By the way one of the joys of retirement was not having to get up to an alarm so it’s pitiful to have to do that again.
Hi Steve. Thanks for the SW suggestion. I backed it off to 6:30 last night. Then I really messed up. I was so exhausted from my three days of no or minimal sleep I slept right through the alarm and didn’t even wake up until 8:00. I couldn’t believe it. I hate getting that exhausted. I made it to my SW bedtime but was almost propping my eyes open to fight off the microsleeps. I don’t know how much this will set me back but I will just move on and keep at it. Tonight will not be pretty after such an oversleep.
