Sleep problems

I've done the same as Woody, but mostly I seem to wake at 4am, last night I woke with leg cramp at 3 and had to get up and walk around...have been getting some cramp with trying to diet - in my feet - and I thought I had solved this by taking more calcium, maybe I didn't take one lot yesterday.
I get very tired of seeing the sun rise.........sometimes I can sleep again, sometimes not.

My problems are exactly as Woody's. 2 nights out of 3 it can be 3am before I finally drop off. Used to worry me, but not any more

I can go to bed feeling dead tired, close my eyes and 'ping' dont feel tired anymore and can then be awake until 2-3 a.m. This can happen several nights in a row and feel rotten in the daytime but then exhaustion takes over and I have a really good nights sleep to catch up - frustrating to say the least.

JessM - we've got a memory foam mattress and I had thought that it might be the cause of my hot flushes not getting any less as I get older. So it's interesting to hear other people say that the memory foam may be to blame. My hot flushes now only happen badly at night but it's quickly solved by throwing the duvet off for a while to cool off. One big plus of a memory foam mattress is that you don't have to turn it over, just 180 degrees head to tail, so none of that awful battling with it to turn it over. DH and I never get to bed at the same time, he "needs" at least 10 hours sleep a night he says and I manage to get by on around 6 or 7. I sometimes feel that sleeping is a waste of time - there's always something more interesting to do, especially now we have GN here

My Problem is RLS (Restless Leg Syndrome). Kicks in (excuse the pun) within ten minutes of falling asleep. I can FALL asleep - anytime, anywhere - but most nights I am up prowling about after half an hour. I have learned to cope by turning night into day. I put on washing, do ironing, read the paper whilst walking about and computer game standing up until the twitching subsides. Then back to bed and maybe up again in another half hour.

Since retiring, it is easier to make adjustments to my schedule, although DH has yet to accept that there is nothing intrinsically evil in late nights, lie ins and afternoon naps. However, the days when we have DGC from 8.30am to 5.00pm are very difficult for me.

I am an alternative therapist and everyone who comes to me for Reiki says they sleep really well after a half hour session. My sister doesn't sleep well and I once managed to knock her out for 14 hours!

Oh I had a lovely sleep last night. After 2 inadequate ones. Takes the edge off life. Had the bed to myself and wrapped myself in my microfibre blanket, cotton nightie, no sheet. Bliss. Brief intervention by police helicopter at 2. Surfaced at 6 and then back to sleep til 8.30. wonderful

had breast cancer so HRT no go area. C'est la vie.

No JessM not good for the hot flushes! Do you take HRT? It might help but ask your GP?

Oh right Seagran, thanks, this would not be a good combination with the hot flushes maybe... Topper presumably less sinky-inny

They can be quite hot and sweaty. Try to find a friend who has one and see if you can spend a night or two before you buy.

I got a memory foam topper before surgery on my shoulder. It made so much difference and my ageing mattress had a new lease of life.

Hard mattresses are work of devil. Hotels etc always seem to have them.
A bed salesman once told me that a woman lying on her side puts more weight on shoulder and pelvic girdles than a man - because we go in and out more. So we are therefore less tolerant of hard beds. Made sense.
I fancy having a memory foam mattress - but fear that this would make sleeping anywhere else all the more difficult in comparison... Anyone got one?

Thanks crimson. I'll try that.

Have you tried sleeping with a pillow either under your knees [if you sleep on your back] or between your knees [if you sleep on your side]. When I had sciatica for a while I tried it, and it helped me. It alignes your back better while you're asleep.

I don't think it's going to the loo that wakes me. During the day I can hold on for hours. I don't drink a lot in the evening, mostly 1 glass of water. I really think it's to do with getting stiff after laying in one position for a period of time and that wakes me.

I am up during the night every 2hrs or so due to the ongoing problem with the water work's for some stupid reason it's worse at night than during the day,
i don't drink so much in the evening but it make's no differance.So now I have a few ZZZZs mid afternoon to compensate,I should be back to normal (whatever
normal is)mid Sept when I have some more surgery,but not holding out to much
hope.

I have PMR which is painful. During the day I mostly distract myself, but at night I am often in a great deal of discomfort. My answer is to go to bed only when I am so tired that I can't stay awake; that way I manage to go to sleep and the pain of turning over in bed doesn't properly wake me up. If I do have a very bad night then I sleep when tiredness overtakes me in the day.

Oh for the days when I slept the minute my head touched the pillow. I could go camping or sleep in dirty hotel rooms and never noticed.

Now I don't sleep before midnight and wake 7 hours later. Some nights I'm still awake at 3a.m.When there have been 'words' with the family about some trivial thing, that can keep me awake all night.

I always have nap after lunch usually listening to Radio 4 and then for 30-40 minutes. it is very refreshing. Sadly my last cup of tea is at 6 p.m. A later cuppa would keep me awake.
As to DH he snores and has his own bedroom so I can always read if I'm awake.

That's another thing I've tried to do...because I have access throughout the day to both a loo and a kettle I drink too much and go to the loo too often. I'm thinking of switching to teacups instead of mugs as well because I sometimes have a mug of water on waking and then a mug of tea, followed by a mug of coffee when I get to work. Also planning to sip lots of water throughout the day. Also have a rather salt free diet; healthy in some ways but the body does need some salt, I guess. Then again, I get a bit worried that there might be another problem [I am a worrier...]

Ah I wondered when we would get onto this subject. I think for older people 6 hours is often a good night's sleep. There is no industry standard. It is how you feel in the morning that counts i suppose. I would count any night in which i had 6 hours of continuous unconsciousness as a good one.
One thing that has helped me is to restrict fluids after 7pm. The other thing is to try to build up bladder capacity. it is easy to get into the habit of weeing rather frequently in the day and that can carry over into the night. I used to follow the advice given to Edward V111 when he became king, when he asked an official for advice on being King. "If I may suggest sir, never miss an opportunity to take the weight off your feet or to pass water" . If you do the reverse and try to hang on a bit longer your bladder does become less irritable and more tolerant of fullness.
I got into a habit of waking myself up with an anxious thought as i was dozing off. Very irritating. Hypnosis helped - but you need a good therapist not someone who has done a short course. Or practicing relaxation. If you are waking up fretting then one of these is worth considering.
OK - the other sleep issue is coping with the sleep issues of OHs . MY DH gets twitchy legs. I'm talking every minute or so. Other people snore... Nowadays I sleep in the back bedroom quite often and that helps. ALso i can have the exact amount of bedding that suits my dodgy post menopausal thermostat. 1 sheet and 2 fleece blankets...
(oh lord, DH also has a taste for listening to miserable dirgy female vocalists. How much more of this one....how much more...)

Same problem janthea..not sure if I wake up because I want to go to the loo or whether I go to the loo because I wake up [I've always been a light sleeper]. Either way I'm really tired all the time. Drinking decaff tea and reducing the amount I drink [I do make a lot of cups of tea and coffee throughout the day]. Perhaps it's time for another detox. Like you I can't stop thinking about things. Got a feeling the internet doesn't help, because there's always something I want to look up. I find the instantly available knowledge somewhat addictive.

I think I've got used to it now. It's probably because I'm thinking of things I have to do at work, sorting out things for holidays with grandchildren, etc. My mind just keeps running on.

Also I do suffer with arthritis and aching back, which probably get stiff when I'm asleep and wakes me up.

I'm sleeping better now than I was a year or so ago because I've finally been prescribed an asthma medication that works a bit on me (I'm 'allergic' to the commonly used preventers — awkward blighter syndrome again ) but I rarely sleep right through without waking up at least once. Better than five times though.

Could it be a health thing in your case, janthea? I hope you get some relief soon.

I sleep much better if I go on my exercise bike for half hour at about 7.30.

I got it from Decathlon. Was about £140. Its really good and doesn't take up much room in spare bedroom. got a telly in there to watch whilst on it)