INSOMNIA - Suggestions? Advice? Help?

[paltatomate]

I've suffered from I sonmis si ce I was two (or at least that's what I'm told). What I remember is hating payama parties because everyone fell asleep and I was lying awake in someone's bedroom staring at the dark ceiling. In away it never bothered me.much, not even later when I was at boarding school (or prison, yes did that, too). Don't know why it's become such an issue in the last past years. Maybe because my job demands to at least pretend to be online at a certain time to see that my coworkers do their job.

Anyway, my mom suffers from the same problem and her life is different as is her circadian rhythm (I'm a morning person, she likes to sleep in) and she swears on zolpidem.

I tried teas, oils, melatonin, hot milk, alpras (they do make me want to sleep though not for long) , some sleeping pills thay completely mess up your sense of taste, visualization tapes, classical music, rearranging the bedroom, tiring myself out during the day, reading boring stuff...

Nothing really helps.

Anyone with a super creative new idea?

 

[OceansState]

Ive been having insomnia the past month or two, I think its related to stopping drugs. The only sleep I seem to get is when I'm laying on the couch late night with a movie on, lights off volume low. Its not good sleep, ill start a new movie then all of a sudden wake and the movies almost over, so ill look for a new movie and the same thing happens. Broken sleep but its better than laying in bed. If I try and go to bed its not happening, I'm restless, mind wont shut off, cant get comfortable.

 

[paltatomate]

Same here. I think all this movie/series binging makes things only worse, buy at least they keep me in bed. And eventually I do fall asleep. Been trying to find out what's keeping me from sleeping, some people say it's worries or other kind of thoughts. Or anxiety. In my case it's more avoiding the boredom that comes with doing/thinking nothing.

 

[Eryximachus]

Best advice I have: don't get on benzos or z drugs!

 

[paltatomate]

Best advice I have: don't get on benzos or z drugs!

G good advice, though I won't be able to avoid the benzos.
I try to keep my intake under control, low doses and breaks.
I had a prescription for sleeping aids, but never really liked them. My doc was happy to leave with me with the benzos (not for sleeping, but they help with that).

 

[mauve]

G good advice, though I won't be able to avoid the benzos.
I try to keep my intake under control, low doses and breaks.
I had a prescription for sleeping aids, but never really liked them. My doc was happy to leave with me with the benzos (not for sleeping, but they help with that).

Have you considered sedating antihistamines like promethazine or diphenhydramine?

 

[mauve]

I've suffered from I sonmis si ce I was two (or at least that's what I'm told). What I remember is hating payama parties because everyone fell asleep and I was lying awake in someone's bedroom staring at the dark ceiling. In away it never bothered me.much, not even later when I was at boarding school (or prison, yes did that, too). Don't know why it's become such an issue in the last past years. Maybe because my job demands to at least pretend to be online at a certain time to see that my coworkers do their job.

Anyway, my mom suffers from the same problem and her life is different as is her circadian rhythm (I'm a morning person, she likes to sleep in) and she swears on zolpidem.

I tried teas, oils, melatonin, hot milk, alpras (they do make me want to sleep though not for long) , some sleeping pills thay completely mess up your sense of taste, visualization tapes, classical music, rearranging the bedroom, tiring myself out during the day, reading boring stuff...

Nothing really helps.

Anyone with a super creative new idea?

Oh I just read you've been dealing with this since you were a toddler. That's a long time to have a sleep disorder I don't know what to suggest other than seeing a Dr and getting some scans or tests done. Even trying to find a specialist sleep clinic...

 

[paltatomate]

Have you considered sedating antihistamines like promethazine or diphenhydramine?

As someone who suffers from allergies from mild to anaphylactic (EpiPen), I have an assortment of antihistamines. It never occurred to me to use them as as sleeping aid. But now that you mention it, I've jeard of people who do that.

 

[mauve]

As someone who suffers from allergies from mild to anaphylactic (EpiPen), I have an assortment of antihistamines. It never occurred to me to use them as as sleeping aid. But now that you mention it, I've jeard of people who do that.

Most antihistamines prescribed now for allergies are non-sedating. It's the first generation ones that are such as promethazine and diphenhydramine.

Although I've come to learn something over the years and something I've been told in detox is that there is no such thing as a sleeping pill

 

[paltatomate]

Oh I just read you've been dealing with this since you were a toddler. That's a long time to have a sleep disorder I don't know what to suggest other than seeing a Dr and getting some scans or tests done. Even trying to find a specialist sleep clinic...

According to my doc (the good one who unfortunately died in 2020) it's connected to my condition (Asperger's). I have been prescribed stuff from Melatonin to Zopiclone, but nothing really worked. For different reasons. Thos last doc finally told me to just accept it, because at some point I do get tired and want to sleep. And then it works. But at that time I could work whenever I wanted. Now I have to supervise people and they both are very 9-5 weekend off kind of persons and somehow I felt I had to adapt to their schedule. Which made the whole insomnia thing a problem again.

 

[Flynnal]

According to my doc (the good one who unfortunately died in 2020) it's connected to my condition (Asperger's). I have been prescribed stuff from Melatonin to Zopiclone, but nothing really worked. For different reasons. Thos last doc finally told me to just accept it, because at some point I do get tired and want to sleep. And then it works. But at that time I could work whenever I wanted. Now I have to supervise people and they both are very 9-5 weekend off kind of persons and somehow I felt I had to adapt to their schedule. Which made the whole insomnia thing a problem again.

You have the same problem I do. I only sleep when my body tells me to. Otherwise I'm a night owl. I might as well have ADHD it's that bad.

 

[paltatomate]

You have the same problem I do. I only sleep when my body tells me to. Otherwise I'm a night owl. I might as well have ADHD it's that bad.

Have you been tested for ADHD?
I was and I do not have it. But I remember my Psych 101 professor tell that that there's morning bird (lark) persons and night owls, and that's okay.
I seem to be both. But then, around 4 in the afternoon I turn into a zombie for 3-5 hours (varies with seasons) unless I have a lot of positive outside stimuli.

 

[Flynnal]

Have you been tested for ADHD?
I was and I do not have it. But I remember my Psych 101 professor tell that that there's morning bird (lark) persons and night owls, and that's okay.
I seem to be both. But then, around 4 in the afternoon I turn into a zombie for 3-5 hours (varies with seasons) unless I have a lot of positive outside stimuli.

Yes I was tested. I was diagnosed with having ADHD comorbid with autism spectrum disorder. Unfortunately, the dexamphetamine that I was given had this horrible side effect of keeping me awake and making it very hard to fall asleep.

 

[paltatomate]

The curious thing is that until a few years ago, I never cared much about not being able to sleep. I just did stuff and eventually I was tired enough to go to bed.
Then something (imposed routine maybe) happened and though I don't have to get up at certain times anymore, somehow I keep telling me that I have to. So it's basically just me and some implanyed, obsolete idea of how and when I should function that's causing me problems.

Unfortunately, the dexamphetamine that I was given had this horrible side effect of keeping me awake and making it very hard to fall asleep.

Does it help you otherwise?

 

[Flynnal]

The curious thing is that until a few years ago, I never cared much about not being able to sleep. I just did stuff and eventually I was tired enough to go to bed.
Then something (imposed routine maybe) happened and though I don't have to get up at certain times anymore, somehow I keep telling me that I have to. So it's basically just me and some implanyed, obsolete idea of how and when I should function that's causing me problems.


Does it help you otherwise?

Gave me more motivation, I could walk for twice as long, and had better focus. I didn't have as much intrusive thoughts but I still had them. I don't know how it would have panned out had I insisted on taking them, but for some reason they just didn't allow me to sleep. Perhaps I should have taken one at night just to see if they did. They say you need to re-dose 3 times a day with this stuff, but I took one pill in the morning and could focus for most of the day. But when it came to sleep, it was difficult - and I was also taking mirtazapine 60mg per night, so I'm unsure if that made sleep more difficult whilst taking the dex. I never discussed that with my psych.