[Nikee]

Thanks Rala! :)/>

[Nikee]

Quote

Mostly, I noticed my arms got buff.

Really? Hmmm....getting rid of the flaps on my upper arms might be reason enough to give it try. :)/>

[sakotta]

:oo:/> Well this is about how I feel right now, because Im exausted and I can't sleep. I am throughly annoyed with myself because I feel like I should be able to just go to sleep. I have tried all of these things, and unless im completely entirely exausted myself to death, i can't seem to be able to sleep. I have tried the sleeping pills, and yes they eventually knock me out, if I take like four of them,but them I wake up with a major headache. I was on ambien for a while but found that i was addicted to it so doc. took me off it. I have tried boring books, radio, I think perhaps my solution might be just to get a night job at this point. I am more than willing to try any new suggestions so please keep writing :)/> Im glad to know that im not the only one with this problem.
sakotta

[Snickles4]

ugh, reading through here right now looking desparately for some way to help myself to get to sleep...
I've taken the happy-sleepy-time druggies... Tried the herbal "sleepy" tea... listening to relaxing music... Tried reading...

I NEED SLEEP!
Kelly

[Whitney]

boosting!

Jes, I haven't read the whole thing, but it seems like there are some good suggestions for sleep here, but it's also a "support for those who can't sleep" thread, which is different than the sleep tips thread you had in mind...

[tiedcherry]

I have trouble sleeping every night. I find myself seeing the man that hurt me for so many years. I have tried all of these things you recommend but none of them seem to work. As soon as I close my eyes I see the horror I went through. I don't know how to get it out of my mind. Do you have any other suggestions.

[forgottenhowtofly]

Ok I am posting here because I am trying to get my brain to wind down. I have already taken my Ambien CR. I have not had any soda or coffee since about 4 this afternoon. Not the caffiene usually affects me trying to go to sleep.

UGH!!!!!!!!!!! I just wanna say that insomnia sucks ass!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know that I have to get some sleep or I am going to look like hell tomorrow, and I have to go to church, and if you don't look perfect everyone will assume something is wrong. And then they will start asking all sorts of questions that I really don't feel like answering.

DAMN THE PRESSURE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Maybe that is why I am having difficulty falling asleep.....I am putting tooooooo much damn pressure on myself.

I am pressuring myself to be perfect.....like that is something new........GAWD!!!!!!!!!!! Ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok B-R-E-A-T-H-E!!!!!! In and out, in and out sssssllllllloooooooowwwwwwwwwwlllllllllllyyyyyyyyy.

Ok I am going to go back to bed and lay down and try to calm down. I am going to do some mindfulness stuff........

Wish me luck and lots of sleep.....please.....

fhtf

[Sassafras]

I know how frustrating it is. It is my longest last affect.

I defy sleeping pills so the best advice I've received is...

* exercise

* go on a walk in the evening to get out, be active, relax, and release some tension.

* ironically, a baked potato before you go to bed. Weight gain or sleep.... you pick :)/>

* keep all business out of the bedroom. Don't do your bills in your room or on your bed, no school work, nono computer, NOTHING. That way your body knows it is a place for rest and relaxation

* deep breathe for 20 minutes. This relaxes your body but also gets oxygen to all of your organs; reducing your chances of getting cancer.

* don't spin on things that you can change. If a situation is stagnant in your life than try not to dwell/spin on it. When something new happens regarding it, pick the topic back up but not until there is an update, the next step, progress, etc.

* we determine how our next day will be with the attitude we go to bed with about it the night before. If you think you will be tired and have a crappy day, chances are you will wake up with the same edge and kind of be stuck there all day. If you think tomorrow will be a good day and envision yourself waking up rested and happy... you have a better shot at looking and feeling rested and having a good day. I try this when I know there is nothing I can do about the amount of hours I get. the less stressed I am about it by accepting that I will live and be fine, the more rested I feel in the morning..

Just Sass posting AGAIN.

[adeline]

The way things are going for me... I should sign up for full time membership of this club! hehe.... :lol:/>

Cracking jokes alone when one hasnt sleep the whole night.... yikes...even the cock is crowing!!!!!!

Geez addy ... get a hammer and knock yourself out!

Adeline

P/S sassafras ...tks for the tips... guilty of lines 1 and 3 !

[Sassafras]

I feel for you Adeline. I know, for me, it can be SO frustrating.

Hang in there and keep your humor! :)/>

Sass

This post has been edited by Sassafras: 13 August 2006 - 05:01 PM

[adeline]

Thanks Sass!!!!!!!!!!!! Read all your post ! You Rock! Sorry I'm still here but continuing being upbeat? kekeke

Its 8.40am here now I am not a wee bit tired! Guess what I found some avatars and a beautiful quote to go with it!

I know .... Im driving myself crazy too! Mind if I take the passenger seat and you drive me to sleep? (That might work.... beats being crazy... :blink:/> !) :D/>

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n284/adelineho/cantsleep_pillowtoowet.gif

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n284/adelineho/sleepless_nights_tree.gif
"Cast me gently into morning, for the night has been unkind." - "Answer" by Sarah McLachlan

Enjoy Sleepless In Pandy's!

Adeline

[forgottenhowtofly]

Ok, I am trying to get back into my regular sleeping routine again.

I am going to try starting to get up at 6:00am to get ready for school. How exactly is this going to work if I am still up at 3:00am??????

Ugh!!!!!!!! Me thinks it is time to maybe talk to my P. This is like the 3rd night in a row that I've taken my Ambien CR and am still up hours later.

I have no idea what it going on, but I can tell you this, I am tired of it. In fact I am just plain tired, I just don't think I can go to sleep.

fhtf

[Sassafras]

Fhtf ~

I swear that I'm not playing tag with you or following you around this board. Sleep is an issue for me too! For my sleeping pills, I was advised that it would take a three weeks to a month to really get in the groove of them. When I first took them, I took a double dose and seven hours later... I went to bed. i was SOOOO frustrated. I continued to defy my sleeping pills and was prescribed three different kinds.

I think the stress and alertness deep down in our psyche is very powerful.

I bet once you get on that 6 a.m. wake up schedule, you will slowly adjust back to those hours. You will be exhausted from not getting enough sleep and may start passing out earlier and earlier every night? You never know.

I hope so, for your sake. I can say for me, I am uneasy about my sleeping habits/insomnia getting in the way of new responsibilities.

Hang in there...

:butterfly:/> Chocolate Sassafras :butterfly:/>

[phoenixrising06]

Hello to anyone else awake this am! :oo:/>

Sass, you said "I think the stress and alertness deep down in our psyche is very powerful." Amen to that.

That's the story of my life carrying over from last week. I had a period of insomnia...bad...back in May/June. Then things got normal for me, but now it is back. I'm stressed about a friend I haven't heard back from, two friends who have move stuff going on, my job search, school stuff, summer almost being over, therapy, my emotions, the dang brownies (downstairs) calling my name...

I've been considering sleep meds, but I'm not sure if that's the best choice for me. Sometimes my sleeping issues can toss me into bad migraines and getting too much sleep can do that sometimes. I'm going to start a yoga class in September that will hopefully let me learn some breathing and relaxation techniques.

Hope someone out there is sleeping.

PR

[Sassafras]

Phoenix ~

Well that somebody certainly isn't me. That's a tough call with your migraine's! My friend who was over in Iraq has to set the alarm for every 2 hours so that he doesn't get in dream mode and never gets into R.E.M.

If there is one thing that amazes me is our Psyche! I mean, we all have dealt with and continue to deal with serious levels of stress. But sometimes things get easier and you don't feel "so stressed" but &*^& if you can't sleep. There are so many days that I have thought... ya, ya, I know I am stressed but my body must be more wigged out than I can even know. It's wild. Our bodies are amazing... and frustrating.

I chose against the pills myself because a lot of sleeping meds, not only knock you out but they are anti-depressants. A lot of times our doctors prescribe them as sleeping pills for us, but wrongly diagnose us with "depression". I'm not saying by any means that we aren't feeling down, stressed, negative, pushed, etc. but it my counselor said it best: I wouldn't diagnose you with depression, I would diagnose you with anxiety. And she was right. I just figured that I was just a mess... that was my diagnosis. And the sleeping pills were starting to make me depressed and gain weight... which is depressing!

But she is right... our bodies are so on alert because such wrong and unnatural things have happened, that it goes beyond our conceptual mind... to the deepest part of our core...our psyche. I mean... we use like 2% of our brain. Our bodies are so complex and when faced with assault... we are just 100% thrown off and alert.

So, like in your position, your body is probably responding to conditioning. You probably have a lot of stress already, but it gets conditioned to that level and you sleep better. Then, you get thrown a little 'pinch' of life and your body and its stress level is too heightened.

I know that after I was raped, it is like every last thing i have ever experienced came up in full force and more intense than it was in the first place. Now, I thought to myself... isn't that a b****! lol (please forgive... I have a really bad sailors mouth 0:)/> ). Point is that our bodies are processing so much at such rapid speeds, from our fast paced world, to each and every experience in your life, to financial survival, to break ups, to assaults, to fear of the unknown.... everything... we just have no way of truly tapping into it all at once... which makes it hard to tell whether today's stress is going to keep you up vs. last week's. That's also my reasoning for how things just pop up out of nowhere after years and smack us in the face. It never goes away... it's weird.

So I find that even if I can't sleep normally, I try to keep my body in a relaxed state as much as I can the rest of the day to compensate. Your yoga idea is a great one. Tai Chi has been AMAZING for me. I think exercise, breathing, keeping your body very relaxed, and trying to have patience with the process are the true keys.

BUT HEY.... I'M STILL UP... so what do I know? lol I'm stubborn though... I fight sleep sometimes.

You sound like you have a lot going on! These are the times you need sleep the most, ya know?

:butterfly:/> Sass :butterfly:/>