Insomnia - What works, what doesn't, for you ?

I can’t remember what it’s like to get in bed and sleep right through! I’ve also given up trying to find out what makes me worse or better as there are so many things….menopause and after - yes, needing a wee - husband with restless legs and who snores (now in his own room which has helped a bit), hypothyroid - yes (any anxiety will wake me several times a night), arthritis and muscle aches - absolutely. I do try and keep a routine and go to bed at roughly the same time. If I am awake I pick up a book and quite often that’s the best way to get back off again. Have tried meditation/listening to sleep music etc. these help too. If I’ve had a really bad run Nytol one a day from
the pharmacy is great but only for a couple of days.

When I was diagnosed and being treated for cancer, I took 5mg amytriptelene which worked well for getting to sleep. I also used the Calm App meditation for 10mins each night. I found tapping (Tapping Solution) sometimes helped too. Now that I am less anxious, I am finding sleep easier apart from the occasional night which doesn’t worry me.

My insomnia is hard, pain or medication not taken at the correct times doesn't help, but rarely sleep more than 2-3 hours. I used to be a solid 10 hour a night person, sadly no longer. Last week I stayed with my sister, ate completely differently and slept wonderfully well. Lots of fish, veg (al dente, in Buddha bowls), no coffee and loads of exercise, I easily slept 8 hours plus...bliss.

A doctor told me I was “true, no nonsense insomniac” and that I should be thankful that it didn’t worry me!

First of all, sympathy and respect to Esmay, and an urgent suggestion that she gets respite help You know how it is, if Social Services reckon you're coping, they leave you to get on with it MAKE A FUSS
On the subject of insomnia, I found Michael Mosley's recent BBC series helpful, especially the one about regulating your breathing . Suddenly it's 6 45 which was the time my alarm clock used ro go off before I retired at 62, 15 years ago. Perfect!

Magnesium is meant to help by activating the mechanisms that quiet and calm you. That said it's meant to be good for quite a few things so maybe try it for a few weeks

Nothing works... so I get up, run a load of laundry, cook, play games, read, write, do beading... then I rest for 30 minutes before getting on with my day. I try and get a siesta in, though - but this doesn't always happen. So... 4 hours' sleep at night, and maybe 1 hour's siesta...
..................................

When eyes are closed and sleep descends so sweet,

The demons of the night, they like it not.

They bid my Guardian Angels to retreat

And hinder their fine works with all they’ve got!


I try; I strive to be the best I can;

Yet strife and doubt beset me all day long.

Each wee success is but the flash-in-pan

Each tune a mournful dirge and not a song!


Each time I laugh, there’s bitter tears in store

For each success, a failure’s sure to come.

I will get less, for I dared ask for more…

I’m bound to fail, when all is said and done.


Welcome insomnia, wakefulness at night;

I cede my sleep – though not without a fight!

The new moon shines on my face in the middle of the night, this seems linked with waking up in the first couple ofç

Unfortunately, nothing works for me I was diagnosed with idiopathic insomnia when I went to a sleep clinic several years ago and I’ve had it all my life to varying degrees.
Over the years it has lost me relationships and has been truly debilitating…
Now
I’m retired, I don’t worry about it so much and I have the occasional zopiclone if I’m really struggling.
I don’t drink smoke, and I’m not overweight and take regular exercise. Unfortunately it’s something that I’ve had all my life and I’ve just had to learnt to live with it.

ESMAY Have you tried melatonin for your Dad for his night terrors? My husbands got Vascular Dementia and had the same, night after night keeping me awake until I went to the Doctors to ask for sleeping pills for me. Once I explained it was DH having these night terrors he was put on melatonin and now it’s much better.

Keffie12

I put on an hour long sleep meditation each night on my phone, off YouTube usually. I cover the phone, with a tissue or something lightweight and leave it on the side. I do that to minimise the light coming from it.

If I wake in the night which I do, I put it back on. It helps me to distract lieing there. Its a hell of alot better than counting sheep 🐑

I have had many of the sleep problems that others have described, until I discovered the ONE thing that worked! Like Keffie12 I use a meditation on my phone beside the bed. But I find the very best are by Jennifer Piercey; her Yoga Nidra one is my go-to favourite, easily found online. She also has several sleep meditations on the app, Insight Timer, which is free.
It has changed my sleep completely! The only thing that wakes me up now is my bladder ... and then I can play the meditation again and get straight back to sleep, rather than lying there awake.

I recommended it to a friend a while ago, and she kept saying that she would try it but didn't. Eventually she did, had the best night's sleep, and now is recommending it to everyone!

Very good luck OP!

I”ve bought a weighted blanket and i find that this really helps.
I have also bought Melatonin abroad, as it is available over the counter, but only on prescription in the UK. That helps too.

I have been a poor sleeper since my first child was born nearly forty years ago now. I’ve tried lots of natural remedies over the years and fine tuned my sleep hygiene habits, such as no screens for two hours before bed, no caffeine, same bedtime and rising times every day, etc. I’ve always had back trouble too, and my pain consultant kept telling me how important sleep is for the healing process, and offering me medication, mainly for nerve pain e.g. amitryptline or gabapentin. Which I consistently refused as I was all too aware of their side effects having been a medical secretary for the past 20 years.
Eventually he suggested a low dose of mirtazipine- normally an anti depressant at 30g or 40g, but found to be effective at low dose 15g to help sleep problems. I reluctantly agreed to try them, and bingo, it worked! Can’t believe I’m now getting good quality sleep for about seven hours. I DO wake a few times for the loo, but go back to sleep immediately. I’ve now cut the dose to 7.5 mg and it still works. Yippee!!

I take Inulin, a prebiotic to help with my IBS and a welcome side effect is that I sleep so much better. It’s a powder made from lettuce root which you can mix into any hot or cold drink. Take it about an hour before bedtime and hopefully you’ll get a good nights sleep. Word of warning, start with half a teaspoon and work up to a teaspoon as too much too soon can have a laxative effect.

Like others, I too can't sleep in the couple of nights leading to a full moon. Once it has passed, I sleep like a log. I've been like that all my adult life so nothing to do with menopause (and that was a long time ago now!)

I used to be able to get off to sleep within five minutes, sleep until the alarm, accidentally drop off during Midsomer Murders in the 20:00-22:00 slot, go to bed and repeat.

That all stopped after Cancer/Chemo/Radio ten years ago, and my anxiety about it began to impact every part of my life.

Within the past year, I decided that as I could still drop off in front of the TV (but, like others, become instantly awake as soon as I got into bed) that I'd defy all the normal advice about electronic devices inthe bedroom - none of it worked - and I now get a regular 7-7.5 hours a night.

I watch a dvd of Frasier, the same one every night. If I'm still awake at the end of it, I go back to the beginning. I've never watched it through more than once. Mostly, I'll surface halfway through track 2 or 3 and think, "Wow, I've been asleep after all!", and that reassures me so much I drop off again.

I put on an hour long sleep meditation each night on my phone, off YouTube usually. I cover the phone, with a tissue or something lightweight and leave it on the side. I do that to minimise the light coming from it.

If I wake in the night which I do, I put it back on. It helps me to distract lieing there. Its a hell of alot better than counting sheep 🐑

I have a fit bit grannijacq1 …my rem sleep is about 40 minutes!

I ageee with another post… once you realise your sleep allotment is going to be 4 broken hours …learn to live with it! 🤷🏻‍♀️

Nothing has worked so far …even 3 sleeping pills!!

I think the main thing is not to get too stressed about insomnia. Waking often during the night is hard-wired into people as a safety mechanism (apparently) from when we were hunter-gatherers. Generally the body gets as much sleep as it needs, though all those TV doctors and articles about links between lack of sleep and various illnesses make everyone very stressed about it, exacerbating the insomnia. I have a Fitbit which records sleep each night and the various levels of sleep - deep sleep, light sleep, REM sleep and being awake. I find this interesting - and surprised at how little 'deep sleep' I get each night!

I try not to fret if I have a poor night, I get up and have a hot drink and a biscuit, read for a bit and if I still don’t feel sleepy I just accept it. Some nights I have 4 hours sleep and that’s it. Last night my restless legs started again (seems to be when I have done too much walking?), I tossed and turned from 10 to 12, had a hot drink and read until 4, slept until 7.45. Luckily being retired I don’t have to worry about work, if it happened when I was working it was far more annoying.

Taichinan, full moon has always had an effect on sleeping for me as well as my grandma and mother. Our bodies are made up of lots of water and, just like the moon's gravitational pull on the tides, I imagine it also has an effect on us.

I have high cortisol all day and into the evening - the stress hormone although I am not knowingly stressed! I've had it tested in 2009, 2013 and 2022 - always the same. In 2013 I went GF and then slet well for 7 or 8 years but the insomnia came back 18 months ago when I had to go on the anti-oestrogen pill after breast cancer. I take a Zopiclone about twice a week.

Insomnia and I are old friends, sometimes I fall asleep easily sometimes it takes me hours sometimes I don’t sleep at all. When I am having difficulties I read my kindle or just get up and watch netflix. Either way, I have stopped worrying about it, it is what it is