Sleep problems make the days hard to get through

DeadMoney

Hi, I am a 23yr old male and I have had problems with getting to sleep for years now since my early teens. I have sort of accepted the fact that I am not one of those people who can switch off easily and have gotten used to my weird sleeping patterns. Lately though it has started to get me down as when I have had an awful night's sleep I feel almost depressed the next day. I am a student and I guess I have a pretty active lifestyle between work and college. The thing is for me, I just find it extremely hard to switch off at night despite the fact that I may be exhausted. Most nights it will take me 1-2 hours lying in bed before I actually fall asleep and if I wake up throughout the night it can take some time to fall back asleep again. Its so annoying because some nights I sleep great and in turn I feel great the next day. Then the following night or a few nights later I will have an awful nights sleep and I am right back to feeling miserable. My weeks seem to go by like this with me getting maybe 3-4 good nights and the rest bad.
I am also a really light sleeper so the slightest noises will keep me awake if I am concentrating on them which I usually find hard not to do. I have never tried sleep clinics as I just assume that they will not be able to help me too much as they can hardly give me valium to get to sleep. Am considering trying to get some help now though as I feel my sleep problems are actually making my life miserable at times. Has anybody had any success with sleep clinics?

Fergal C

Some suggestions;

• Avoid tea, coffee and any other caffeine late in the afternoon and evening. Might help to eliminate it all together. I try not to drink tea or coffee after 3PM.
• Keep regular sleeping patterns - get up and go to bed at the same time every day. Not easy I know but it can help greatly.
• Have a bed time routine.
• Reading in bed before going to sleep, works great for me.
• Don't oversleep or spend too long in bed.
• Remember that drinking alcohol can have a negative effect on your sleep.
• Making a to do list for the next day, before you go to bed can help. It helps you to clarify what you are going to do the next day, so that you are not thinking about it when trying to sleep.
• It can be difficult to sleep after eating certain types of foods. Cheese or fruit can keep me awake.
• It can be difficult to sleep after a big meal, but a very light meal can help some people.
• A cup of hot milk before going to bed can help.
• Set an alarm for the morning, so you know you will wake up on time, rather than worrying that you will sleep too late. Plus get up when the alarm goes off.

Implementing some of the above have helped me change from being a poor sleeper to a good sleeper. The suggestions above are just that, suggestions. I've no medical qualifications and if you are concerned with your sleep you should seriously consider seeking professional medical advice.

Good luck with it.

smelltheglove

I suffered terrible from this for years, my worst stage was when I was 21 I had my first baby, she never slept through the night so I may have had the opportunity of 3-4 hours every night but the insomnia left me with little more than 4. I'm afraid to say I never found a cure to the insomnia, but when I was feeling really really bad on days that I had to work I would take a couple of pro plus in the morning to get me through the day. I still do it the odd time now. My doctor at one stage suggested a sleep clinic but I just couldnt bring myself to go, that was mainly due to my sleep paralysis more so than the insomnia. It is a lot lighter now than it used to be.

Whenever I find it hard to sleep now though I read a book, I could be reading an hour but its better than twisting or turning or else I put the laptop beside the bed and play a light movie, a couple of nights ago I got to sleep in the first 30 mns of Love Actually. I find it a lot easier to sleep when my husband is home with me, when he is not home it would take me a good 2-3 hours to sleep.