Sleepless. (Page 1 of 2)

JJJ - My daughter with Autism has a difficult time turning her mind off to relax at night enough to get to sleep.  Melatonin works wonders to help her relax.  It's available in pill or liquid form.  It's not a "drug" but instead a natural item available with the vitamins in the stores (yup, even the Grocery Store Carries it, right by the multivitamins).  I've taken some when I've had a particularly revved up day (extremely stressed, after having insomnia for several days on end due to insane life circumstances not allowing my brain to shut down) and knew there was no way I was going to go to sleep.  It does help.  Try it, see if it helps you out at all.  It's not expensive.  It won't keep you asleep all night, but it'll help your mind go into relax mode which will maybe help you get some sleep.  Unlike a sleeping pill, it doesn't "knock you out".  You don't wake up feeling groggy even if you wake up a few hours later either.

You've got a LOT on your plate right now.  Way more than most of Chordie's members problems all put together.  Sleepless nights are only going to make everything worse.  Try something, you NEED sleep so you can have a clearer head to try to get by each day.  Of course, a good solid breakdown alone will also help.  You deserve a moment to feel whatever you are feeling, so you can get through this.  ((HUGS))
Amy

If you haven't been to a doctor about this, do it.  Lack of sleep will do strange things to your body.  Its a serious matter.

Great advice from Amy jjj,you got too look after yourself and stay healthy for your wife and family,you have alot on your mind right now.

JJJ - I work 24 hour shifts and don't usually get to sleep when I get home at 9:00am. By the time I do get to sleep I'm usually overtired and wound up at 10pm.   If I'm overtired, I'll use Melatonin as well, it works wonders and is natural and non-habit forming.  Also, I've used youtube videos found while searching for "sleep hypnosis" and "sleep relaxation" videos.  They are 30min to 3 hour videos that get talk you through meditation and relaxation, deep breathing and other techniques.  Best of luck.

First, let me say how sorry I am about your situation and your wife's health problems JJJ.  I can only pray that things get better for you.

As for your sleep issue, its not so much how much you get but how much does YOUR body need.  I was a shift worker most of my working life and know that everyone has different sleep needs.  I've always been one of those folks that could get by on 3-4 hours a day, but worked with guys that slept from the time they got home until it was time to go back to work and then slept through most of their days off.  (rotating 12.5 hour shift combined with a 45 minute drive each way).  Since I worked in the nuclear industry, being groggy from drugs was not an option. What worked for me was to make my bedroom as cold as possible (crank up the air in summer, open the window in winter).  I'd pile on the covers with just my nose sticking out and go into a deep 3-4 hour sleep that would get me through another night at work. It might not work for you but it wouldn't hurt to try it.  Good luck finding something that works for you.

DE

I'll endorse the napping suggestion.

At 56, the bladder won't let me sleep through the night any more, and although I conk out quickly, can't usually get back to sleep once I'm up even if it's 4:00 AM. A 20-30 minute snooze at noon, or just before supper (not after!) will fill in the blanks and allow you to feel rested. I read once that Winston Churchill rarely slept a night through in a bed all during WW2. He would nap in the car on the way to the airport, on a train, in his office, etc., and was thus able to be "on the job" when needed.

The worse thing about missing asleep is worrying about missing sleep ... that'll compound the problem. Just rest when you can, and your body will tell you what it needs.

It looks like alot of us get by on taking alot of naps,I do that a couple times a day as I only get about 6 or seven hours a night. I wake from them feeling refreshed.

jjj hope you get a good nights rest.

I agree with the power naps also.  Another sad story for me is I haven't been able to take a nap for 25 years or more, but I can lie down anddrift a little for 20-30 min, never actually falling asleep, but I feel as though I took a nap.  It does help.

JJJ you indicated some tough things going on in your life right now, thats a big problem for people but, make sure you don't have Sleep Apnea also, I did, and a visit to my doctor who ordered a sleep study proved that. I now use a Cpap machine at night and have very good sleeping results.
Good luck to you man, get help somewhere.    b

Good you need too do some catching up this weekend,goodnight