Weird sleeping

Sounds pretty normal to me i bunny hop through the night for instance last night I went to bed half ten straight to sleep awake 12 a few word games on the iPad back to sleep for another two or three hours then awake then back till 5.30
I don’t worry about it at all I just accept that my sleep patterns have changed over the years
Try and take it for what it is the more your worry the more it will seem a problem

I got some herbal sleeping tablets (available without prescription) and took them for a few days. This broke the pattern that I’d developed which was very like yours.,

I used to sleep like a log but since retiring I guess I'm not so exhausted and my sleep pattern has changed. I go to bed late, about midnight, sleep 4 hours the I'm awake for 2 thinking about all sorts of problems real or imaginary. I guess it's the old anxiety, eventually I go back to sleep at 6 and wake around 8. I've had some health worries recently but I thought all this was in the past now. Then I start to think about the future, heard of so many sad stories about friends and neighbours, also worry about family etc. Perhaps will try herbal sleeping tablets as I don't really want more medication, being on some already for other conditions.

I sleep well for the first 3 hours then toss and turn for the rest of the night . I have limited my coffee in take to cups a day , increased my water in take . I also take primrose oil capsules and vitamin b12 . Now I am getting a more rested sleep . I hope things improve soon .

I have the same problem. DH has no problem sleeping and I sometimes move into another bedroom to read. I seem to catnap through the night and then am often falling asleep in the early evening. I am suffering from a bad knee at present and that seems to wake me up - I then spend ages trying to get my leg into a comfortable position by which time I am wide awake. I agree we seem to change our sleep patterns as we get older. The primrose oil and B12 sound as though they are worth a try.

I have difficulty in getting to sleep, then once asleep have very vivid dreams, not nightmares, but when I waken I dont know if it has been real or not, its a weird feeling, and sometimes I dont think I have been asleep at all but looking at my clock I have of course.Getting older does have its problems!

As we get older our melatonin levels change. This is the sleep-prompting hormone.
The first three or four hours sleep of the night are the most significant and your new pattern suggests a LOT of cortisol in your system.
Can you allow yourself a new relaxing bedtime routine: e.g. stop watching TV at least an hour before you go to sleep; have a warm bath, hot milky drink; phone switched off or left in another room; read a book for half an hour before your light goes out...

Must be our age, hormones etc as my friends and I all say the same thing and it happens a couple of times a week. I read, listen to “chill music” etc sometimes it works, sometimes I just give up and get up !

Thank you all for your suggestions. I will definitely be giving them a go. I do have some melatonin tablets, has anyone tried them?
It is quite reassuring to know that many people have the same issues. I sometimes long for the time (long ago) when I put my head on the pillow and did not stir until the morning!!?

My grandson has to take melatonin to counteract the medication he takes for ADHD , it does work very well , I have taken on occasions, and it works for me . I have discovered that eating a couple of kiwi fruits an hour or so before bed time helps sleep as it is rich in serotonin!

I have an odd sleep pattern too. I go to sleep immediately, then wake up at around 3 am. I try to go back to sleep but usually end up reading for an hour. Some nighst I am up 4 or 5 times to go to the loo. I would give anything to sleep all night.

I wake up after a couple of hours' sleep and can't get back to sleep if I go to bed too early, so my advice would be to try going to bed an hour later.

Are you tired all day because of this change in your sleeping pattern?

If not, don't worry about it.

I can't help wondering if there is something worrying you, or niggling away at the back of your mind? In my experience that causes me to lie awake at night. The cure is to identify the worry, and solve the problem.

I have the same problem inishowen some nights only one visit to the lavatory other nights as you say four or five. I have accepted the fact that I don't sleep as well and don't stress about it now. I read for a while then back to sleep, repeat through the night.
Fortunately my husband & I have separate rooms so nobody is disturbed.

I’m afraid it is common problem as you get older I have found. I usually turn on the radio and set it for thirty minutes by which time I have nodded off again.

Are you doing enough physical activity during the day? I find it's the best way to get a good night's seep.

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I can't complain about the odd blips I have now and again as I mainly get 6-8 hours sleep most nights. Nine times out of 10 it's hunger so I have a couple of rich tea biscs.

I think it’s more about acceptance, if you start worrying about it it becomes a big old problem, just accept that just as your boobs droop, and your bum is less peachy, and your skin less elastic, your sleep pattern may change
Every once in a while I will have a night where I don’t sleep a wink but I refuse to let it worry me i just accept it as one of those things and I don’t feel any tireder the next day

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Reported

The older we get, the more erratic our sleeping patterns.

Your current sleeping pattern, Nanmarch is much like mine, although I usually manage three hours before I wake. I read or have the radio on quietly under my pillow so I am listening, but not listening, and usually get back to sleep.

It is annoying when this starts. I used to be capable of sleeping all night, on the proverbial clothes line, boasted of my capacity to sleep anywhere any time, but no more.

Providing you are not dead tired during the day, enough to possibly impair your driving capacity, I would just roll with it, accept this is what happens as you age. Do that and acceptance of a disturbed sleeping pattern can actually mean you sleep better.

There was a health program on tv yesterday evening and a gravity blanket was mentioned. People seemed to like it. It is weighted and seems to be comfortable. I don't sleep well but this blanket is quite expensive so I doubt if I will buy one.

I sleep between two merino blankets, one underneath and one covering me and I just go " unconscious " all night.

It’s not your overall hours that matters as much as how much deep sleep you get . We fluctuate between deep, light and rem sleep all night with periods of (hopefully) brief wakefulness. I wake up once most nights to go to the bathroom but sleep reasonably well with the odd bad night. I find I need the bedroom very dark and use blackout blinds and also like it very cool so no heating on in bedroom and window open or fan on in summer