Sleep Week - post to win prizes! ?

I have been sleeping much better during lockdown as I don't have to get up early. I used to get up at least once every night to go to the loo but have now stopped drinking coffee in the evening. I have a cup of Twinings sleep tea after my evening meal and now I am sleeping through!

I sleep well during the week when I'm up at 6am for work usually fall asleep around half 9 10o'clock I wear earplugs and I have sleepy stories podcast playing in the background although I can barely hear it I prefer it to silence it's just annoying when I wake at 6 at the weekend when I could sleep in a bit longer

I wear my Fitbit to bed and am always interested in the findings especially as I have only very rarely got a "Good" nights sleep. Usually my sleep score is "Fair". Its fascinating to see just how many times I wake during the night - even times that I'm not aware of.
My problem is either having trouble getting off to sleep or waking up to visit the loo in the early hours and then awake for a long time afterwards.
I keep a Rescue Remedy spray, a pillow spray and a roll-on relaxing pulse oil on the bedside table. These certainly help when I really struggle to sleep - (although its wise not to confuse the pillow spray and the Rescue Remedy in the dark.)

I do 10k steps per day and do everything recommended to assist sleep, no electronics, no caffeine or alcohol etc however, my sleep is totally erratic. I keep to the same bedtime 10.30/11 and some nights I am still wide awake at 2am: Other nights I go straight to sleep and then am wide awake about 3am and stay awake for a couple of hours. It just exhausts me. When it gets too bad I do take a phenergan but obviously I do not want to become reliant on pills.

If the light disturbs you try an eyemask - it helps me :-)

I have a routine that appears to help. I try to be in bed, showered by 10.30 pm because I like to read. I try to switch off my light at midnight, turn over on my right side with my hot water bottle close to my back and I am usually asleep before I can count to 10.

I usually get up a couple of times to go to the loo but straight back to sleep. Not working and no major worries have helped I think.

I sleep like the dead: nothing disturbs me once I am asleep. As soon as I get horizontal, I’m asleep within minutes. If I knew why, I’d market my tips and make a fortune, but I’m inclined to think it’s just luck.

I enjoy a hot chocolate an hour before bed - currently have a white raspberry chocolate - delicious and works well

I find it very hard to drop off to sleep even when I feel tired then when I do fall off to sleep I'm waking up 5ish and finding I'm laying awake for an hour before I drop off again then have to be up for work its can sometimes be quite draining

I used to sleep well. Then I had two babies and haven't slept all that well for nearly 40 years.

Sugar affects me. Poor quality chocolate, sugary drinks, caffeine etc keep me awake. My sister could eat anything and drink whatever she wanted and sleep like a baby.

Covid has knocked my sleep pattern out even more. I have found that falling asleep watching Poirot helps a lot. I usually manage to watch a whole episode. There's something about the brilliance of the production and acting that soothes me.

I know it's probably the wrong thing to do but it works.

I sleep quite well but have to get up a few times to go to the loo which makes it hard to get back to sleep. I have tried cutting out coffee but it does not help. I try to think about something nice before I go to sleep because if you have got a lot of things running through your mind it makes it harder to drop off

In general, I don't sleep very well. I think it's mainly to do with my medication that gives me night sweats - some nights worse than others. I generally get too hot, waken up, throw duvet off, go back to sleep, waken up because I'm too cold, pull duvet back over. This goes on for most of the night. I drive my DH bananas because the duvet usually gets thrown over him then he gets to hot. I'm kind of used to it now as it's been going on for so long.

Unfortunately, even though I have between 7 and 8 hours sleep at night I sometimes wake up feeling exhausted!

I fall asleep usually o.k, but I am lucky if I manage to sleep for 4 hours straight without waking up for a moment at least a couple of times. I don't drink nor do I snore. I am sure it will sort itself out, I have decided not to get too concerned as stress won't help.

The lockdown has been a blessing in some ways. The lack of traffic definitely helps me sleep, but when it's too quiet I start to feel sleepy during the day.

Only in the last two years have I experienced lack of night time sleep. I get about 5 to 6 hours of quite restless sleep a night with lots of thoughts going through my head so I can't relax. Also a trip to the bathroom in the early hours doesn't help either!

I don’t drop off easily but take a sleeping tablet but still wake up. It plays havoc with my daily life especially work. I have tried everything to help.

I'm not a great sleeper, it can take hours for me to fall asleep. I'm also a very light sleeper so wake up as soon as the birds start tweeting in the morning.
This is not helped by a snoring husband and a cat that jumps onto the bed multiple times during the night. Send help !

I can be a light sleeper and wake easily. I find it easier to drop off if I am relaxed. A lavender bath before bed can help.

Ive always been an insomniac. I never used to worry about it and could function very well on about 3 hours. Now there is all this health information and I heard lack of sleep could leave to dementia, it has now become a big issue for me and I often only get 1-2 hours or none at all. I have tried everything. It really didnt worry me till I heard all these health scares.

I am the same, but no cat! Once spring is on the way I know my poor sleep will be even worse due to lighter mornings and birdsong

What causes a bad night? For me, it's when I have something on my mind, something stressful...like my recent house sale, purchase and move!
How to sleep better? I've learned over the years that there will be times when sleep simply won't come, times when my brain is buzzing with questions, worries etc. At times like these, I reassure myself that my brain will come up with solutions ....and, come morning, it often has. I also tell myself that one sleepless night isn't the end of the world. I focus on relaxing physically, bit by bit. When morning comes, I really don't feel too bad, even when I've had no sleep at all. The next night, I tend to sleep like the proverbial log.
And what to do if you find yourself wide awake in the wee hours? Again, I focus on relaxing physically...and relaxing mentally tends to follow.

I have found my sleeping pattern has change dramatically since lockdown, although I follow the same bedtime routine I am often awake into the early hours of the morning. I rarely get 7-8 hours sleep.

I usually does not wake up when sleeping, but do not rest properly as still tired in the morning

I usually sleep very well, on the few occasions I do wake I have BBC sounds on my phone and I choose a story or drama to listen to. I seldom hear the end.