What do you do when you can't sleep?

[CagneyDog]

No, i don't think it is restlessness. Benadryl works..I've tried it once, but I agree it's unhealthy.

Bahhh, I need to take my mind off it before I go lay down else I obsses over the fact that I can't sleep


Edit- Do you think there is anything a doctor could do about this. Sleeping Pills I guess?

[.sarah]

I have this problem, but I was prescribed migraine medicine last year that helps you sleep, so this only happens now when I forget my medicine ... which seems to be a lot lately

I don't do anything about it, I just deal with it. My mom has the same thing, so I figure it's hereditary in my case. Sorry I can't help.

[.sarah]

Edit- Do you think there is anything a doctor could do about this. Sleeping Pills I guess?

Yeah, there are prescribed medicines for things like this. It's worth a try, IMO. I would be at the doctor for it if my migraine medicine didn't help me sleep.

[CagneyDog]

I don't really want to resort to that but I guess I might have to.


I just don't understand, I've been extremely stressed out before and I have been able to sleep fine. I'm kind of worried....

[CagneyDog]

Thanks, I'll check it out

I managed to get a couple hours of sleep today, so I'm feeling a bit better

[RICHARD]

You can always tune into CSpan and wait until Barbara Boxer, Dianne Feinstein or pretty much any California politician comes on..

But you want to be put to sleep, not bored to death....


Find a copy of Patricia Garfield's Creative Dreaming.

It's a great book, I read it years ago and still can put myself to sleep in minutes.

[CagneyDog]

Has anyone had Nyquil before?

It was awful. I'd rather not sleep! But then again, they work for my mom....They do work though. I only took it once, and I felt like I was drunk or something...they can be dangerous though. My mom took one, and got up to do stuff, and she passed out and hit her head on the floor!

Is this how you feel when you take any kind of sleeping pill?

[Daisy and Delilah]

I've seen those relaxation tapes/discs at Target and Walgreen's. I have one of those Febreeze Scent Story thingies that emits a scent according to the disc you put in it. They have a relaxation disc you can get. I have that one. It's lavender and a few other things. Nyquil is for colds, flu, etc. and it has alot of alcohol in it supposedly. Most people get knocked out with it right away but using it just for sleep might not be a good idea. I don't know too much about it. The most important thing is to get your mind cleared as much as you can. Pleasant thoughts will usually allow you to sleep very comfortably. Anything you can do to get your mind in a calmed state will be the best route to take. I can't tell you how much I sympathize with you and again, good luck in conquering this problem. I'll be cheering for you

[Nomilynn]

Apparently when I can't sleep I go on PT It is 4:30am here and I am wide awake. I did the same thing last night and ended up having to take Benedryl. My doctor told me that Benedryl is a safe *occasional* sleep aid but I can't get my mind to shut off. I've just made lists of all the things I have to do tomorrow, I've emailed the people I have to be in touch with, etc etc but now my mind wants it to hurry up and be tomorrow so I can get all these things done. The stupid part is I will be so tired that I'll fall asleep and get nothing done during the day.. :S I wish I knew how to break this pattern.

[BitsyNaceyDog]

Justin often has trouble sleeping too. He usually watches TV for awhile, that usually helps him, but not always. He usually drinks a glass of milk before bed, almost every night. I don't know if that helps him or not though.

I almost never have trouble sleeping. When I do it's when I don't wind down before going to bed. I have to get everything else done, clean up the kitchen after supper, take the dogs out for their last walk, put my birds, rodents, reptiles to bed. Then I sit on the couch with the dogs, cats, & Justin for awhile and watch TV. That relaxes me and I can fall asleep easily after that. I wouldn't be able to sleep with out watching TV to wind down first.

If I can't sleep after winding down then I lay in bed and take really deep breaths and listen to my breathing, that relaxes me and clears my mind. This will sound silly, but I've done this since I was little- if I still can't sleep I lay in bed and imagine myself somewhere wonderful, like laying on the beach in Hawaii, or sailing with my favorite celebrity. Use your imagination and do something you'd love to do but probably never will, basically just day-dream until you drift off into a night-dream. Sounds silly, but that's how I'd fall asleep as a kid.

Another thing that helps me if I have something bothering me is to write in my Live Journal, if I don't want anyone to read it I keep it private, just writing it down helps to get it off my mind. If I have a lot of things that need to get done on my mind I make a ta-da list, then I don't have to worry about that until the next day.

[slleipnir]

I'm the same way. Lately I've been having the same problem. I don't know the cause, but sometimes I get so tired that I sleep during the day. I find that I sleep to late in the evening, that it affects me sleeping at night. So I bare with it, nearly die, but I sleep really well. (although I'm tired anywya....)

However, I don't know what to do in your case. Stupid idea, but when I was really stressed, I had these CDs that would relax you. It was a person talking about different calming things. I find it relaxed me and helped me sleep.....

[moosmom]

I get out of bed and go read. Reading usually makes me sleepy very quickly. Either that or I'll knit a little.

I have trouble sleeping too. They say it's got something to do with menopause. Like Karen said, using Benadryl to sleep or using sleep aids is really not a good thing to do. Do you drink soda with caffeine in it at night with dinner or anything?? That could be it. Chocolate too, that has caffeine in it. You might want to check with your doctor.

[Flatcoatluver]

Like Karen said, using Benadryl to sleep or using sleep aids is really not a good thing to do. Do you drink soda with caffeine in it at night with dinner or anything?? That could be it. Chocolate too, that has caffeine in it. You might want to check with your doctor.

I never thought of it I will have caffene in the afternoon. I will try and just drink a sprite and see how I feel the next day thanks

[Anita Cholaine]

I'll lie down and be pretty tired but it's like I'm too tense to fall asleep.

That's exactly what happends to me! It could be stress for me, and that at night I start thinking about lots of different things, and I can't just relax... The worst is that the next day, I feel so tired...

When I can't sleep, I listen to the radio in a very low volume, or I read. That usually works, but maybe I should try some of the things you guys sugested...

Good luck with it... I know how awful it is....

[CagneyDog]

Thanks everyone. I took the Nyquil last night and I slept for almost 8 hours, which is the most sleep I've gotten in a while. I'm hoping I don't have to take it tonight though, because it made me feel pretty gross in the morning.

I'm going to find one of those relaxation tapes today.