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Well I consider it to be another relatively good night. I got about 4 hours and 20 minutes of straight through sleep with no wakeups that I remember. This is my fourth night in a row of at least 3 and a 1/4 hours of sleep and two of them were above 4 hours. Hopefully, I’ve seen the last of my sleep in the 2 hour range. I am still a little dizzy but that doesn’t surprise me as 4 and a 1/4 hours sleep is still way less than what I need but it’s definitely a start in the right direction. Still waiting for that 4.7 hours of sleep which will put me in the 85% SE level but I am close to it.
I am sleeping less than I was before SR but the sleep seems to be a little more consolidated. Tonight will be my 12th night. From what I have read, the majority of people sleep less than what they did before SR for the first couple weeks so I’m not worried. Before SR, I was getting about 4 to 5.5 hours most nights. But that was spread over an 8 to 9 hour period so it was very fragmented. For the first week of SR, I was getting about 2 to 2.5 hours a night. A little better this week but not much.
Hi Nao. So are you saying now that the course helped you? Because a couple weeks ago you made a post that indicated you weren’t sleeping that well. Now that you are finished, are you glad you took it? Just curious as I will probably be taking it soon and I hope it helps me get more sleep.
Actually, I posted this earlier this morning but it was awaiting moderation. It’s still tough Deb. Like I said, I only got 3 and a half hours sleep last night and when I went in to work this morning, I was dizzy and dead tired. Over the weekend I felt pretty good because I got more sleep and it was straight sleep. The only thing I can surmise is that last night’s sleep wasn’t a very deep one and so I didn’t sleep all that well. We’ll see what happens in the future.
I hope you are doing well. Did you get your fragmented sleep in order?
Two nights ago I was really tired after mowing the lawn during the day and so I slept more than usual. I slept about 4 1/4 hours and the nice thing was that it was straight. It took me a little time to go to sleep but once I did, I slept the 4 1/4 hours straight. Last night though. I had a bit of a relapse as I only slept 3 and a half hours. Still, three of the hours were straight through sleep. I kind of expected the relapse as I was sleepy when I went to bed but not as sleepy as I was Saturday night.So, there is no doubt that the SR is consolidating my sleep. And I am sleeping more than the first week I did SR, but I am still only getting 3 to 4 hours of sleep. Going to continue SR and SC. SC is tough in that when I now wake up, it’s usually 4 to 5 in the morning and I am too tired to read or watch TV. So I just sit in the dark and try not to nod off. I still find myself nodding off in the chair but when I go back to bed, I can’t sleep again. I wonder how long it takes to disassociate not being able to sleep from my bed? I wish for one night at least I would meet my SE of 4.7 hours. It would really give me hope that this is working. Thanks for reading those of you who do and thank you for your encouragement.
Thanks for the response Mac. No, I understand I don’t get to extend my sleep window. My question is this. Say I have a 5.5 hour sleep window. If I go to bed at the opening of the window but can’t sleep, I would still put down 5.5 hours allotted for sleep on Martin’s sleep diary since I went to bed at the appointed time. But if I wasn’t sleepy and so delayed going to bed for an hour after my SW opened, I would write in 4.5 hours allotted for sleep on the sleep diary. Correct?
I read one article where the woman sat on a hard wooden chair in front of the TV in order not to fall asleep. She said if she sat on her comfy couch or in her comfy chair, she would fall asleep. The hard wooden chair kept her awake until her SW came.
Deb/Mac – Can you help me with something? If you can’t go to bed at the beginning of your SW because you aren’t sleepy, do you reduce the “Amount of time you allotted for sleep” on Martin’s sleep log by the amount of time yo delayed going to bed? I would think you would but just wanted to check. That’s what confuses me a little because I am not supposed to spend less than 5.5 hours in bed but if I am not sleepy and have to delay my bedtime, I would be reducing that amount below 5.5. However, I’m reducing it anyway every time I practice SC and get out of bed because I can’t sleep. I was actually offered a free 6 week membership on Slepio which is why I delayed hiring Martin as my Sleep Coach. However, I am not happy with their program and was going to hire Martin right after their program ends in 3 weeks but I may hire him even earlier before the free membership ends. I appreciate them opening the course up to me free but not really happy with the support they provide.
Sorry to hear you were sick Mac. Did you have to take antibiotics? If you did, does that throw your sleep off? Hopefully you can get back on track soon.
I thought I’d post an update of my SR. There were some good things and bad things about last night. I was falling asleep in my chair and had to get up and walk around to make my SW of 11:45. However, when I did get into bed, it took me an hour to fall asleep. I am still having the problem though of having “buzzing” in my head (parasonomia?) just as I drift off to sleep that brings me back to the awake stage. Yet, this never happens when I nod off in my chair. When I did get to sleep though, I pretty much slept straight through for 3 hours and 45 minutes. Then, I honestly completely forgot about SC. When I did remember it, it was close to the end of my SW so I jut got up. So, on the plus side, I did get more than the 2 hours plus that I have been getting and it was a deep sleep. The bad side is that it still takes me a long time to fall asleep even though I was just falling asleep in my chair before my SW started. Also, I am nowhere near yet of filling up my SW with sleep. I figure my SE was 68% last night. I know, I know. Time will take care of this. Just have to keep at it.
Hi Martin. I just came across this thread while researching something else and I have a question for you. This self-monitoring that you mention, is that the same as a parasomnia, such as a hypnic jerk? Sometimes when I am drifting off to sleep, I start hearing a bunch of static that pulls me back to the awake stage. It’s not as violent a sound as someone who experiences Exploding Head Syndrome but it is tough to get back to sleep after it happens, just like having a hypnic jerk. I know that hypnic jerks and EHS are not worrisome as they don’t cause any physical harm or damage so I presume CBT-i could still be used? (Especially since extreme fatigue can sometimes increase the chance of experiencing EHS, I think using CBT-i to increase sleep could reduce the chance of experiencing it.)
If you can’t afford the paid course yet, I strongly urge you to sign up for the free course. I went through that and it’s a good course. The only thing is that it doesn’t have a coach like the paid course does. But if you have the perseverance, you can do it.
No problem John. Yes, vivid dreams can be the result of benzos (Xanax) as well. You probably just picked up a viral or bacterial infection somewhere and it is adding on to your anxiety. Try to stay calm knowing that you don’t have some incurable disease. All of us here went through what you are going through. Insomnia is tough but you can beat it with the right treatment.
Hi. Have you ever taken Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia? If so, did you take it online or with a professional sleep therapist? It is a lot of work but it is the only thing that will help chronic insomnia.
Hi John. I’m sorry you are having that tough a time with your sleep. First, let me assure you that you do not have sporadic fatal insomnia. You must have researched that on the internet because when I cane down with my insomnia, I was convinced I had that same exact thing. I even asked my doctor. Second, as Roy said, you have not lost your ability to sleep. It is just being overridden by your anxiety. A lot of us, such as yourself, had our insomnia triggered by a medical condition. Unfortunately, while the trigger may have disappeared, the insomnia remains. We are similar in other ways as well as I have taken both Ambien (didn’t work for me) and Xanax (worked but gave me a poor sleep plus the addiction fear). The reason you may be tired during the day is that all anti-depressants, such as Lexipro, have the side effect of causing insomnia. That’s why doctor’s sometimes prescribe a second medication to overcome the anti-depressant and help you sleep. Your anxiety is also pumping up your arousal system interfering with your sleep. Also, your crystal clear dreams are probably also being cause by the anti-depressants as that is another side effect of them. With all of the side effects, that’s why a lot of people do not want to tke medication for their insomnia. I know what you mean about the dizzyness and disorientation. I also suffer from dry eye syndrome from the insomnia.
As for what to do, I agree with Roy that you are so full of anxiety right now, you need to sign up for Martin’s paid course or take his free course. I took the free course and it is very well put together but in your case, you have so much anxiety, you may need a coach to help you along with the program. Martin’s paid course can do that for you. I have to warn you though, neither the paid or free courses are easy. You have to put a lot of effort into it. Since you only have had your insomnia since March, it is really short term and that works in your favor. Good luck whatever you decide to do.
