On the subject of (not) sleeping . . . how do you get up in the morning?

[MomOfOneFunOne]

I have long, long, long, been an insomniac. Only in the past couple of years has it been a problem: I can't get up in the morning and I'm tired all day. I'm desperate for a nap by around 2 but *if* I get a chance to lie down, I usually just rest and only rarely fall asleep.

 

It has been so long I really try not to be bothered by the fact that I can't sleep. I use that time praying, reading, listening to the news. However, as I'm getting older, I can't go w/o sleep and still function anymore.

 

My question for you is, how in the world do you manage to get out of bed in the morning (at a decent hour!) and remain reasonably energetic all day?

 

I would give just about anything to be able to do that.

[Garga]

Have you tried anything to help the insomnia? I only ask because my husband has had insonmia for 16 years and will. not. try. anything. to help it. (insert extreme frustration here.)

 

Over the past 16 years I've read soooo many different articles to him about different ways of dealing with insomnia and he hasn't done a single one.

 

So, I guess my point it, have you tried anything? There are 4 or 5 different things you can do to help insomnia that I can think of off the top of my head. (Not that dh has ever tried them!)

 

But what I've learned in my 16 years of reading articles and the like about insomnia, is that if one method doesn't work for you, then move on to the next.

 

My advice: keep trying until you find something to help you.

Edited December 12, 2008 by Garga_

[Kris]

How do you get up in the morning?

 

According to Sweetie, pretty grumpily. :D

[Peela]

I get up before everyone else so that I can have an hour or so to myself. Othersie I am anti-social and not nice to be around :)

Usually, i do that even if I haven't had enough sleep. I get pre-menstrual insomnia and will often wake extremely early for a few days, no matter what time I went to bed. I have learned to get up, and just organise my whole life so I can have an afternoon rest. Also, I try and go to bed earlier. I dont have any problem going to sleep- its just waking up very early.

[Lovedtodeath]

www.tapping.com works for everything. Try it!

 

I have started taking Melatonin. 100-150mcg gets me to bed a good 2-3 hours earlier. You have to be willing to go to bed within 30 min of taking it. If you fight through it, the adrenaline rush will keep you up forever.

 

In the mornings after sleepless nights, I picture DH doing his job after a sleepless night. He has no luxuries that I have at home. Epic ganoderma coffee sub worked really well b4 I was pg and breastfeeding.

 

Before I figured this out, I purposely kept the kids up late so that they would sleep in too.

Edited December 13, 2008 by Lovedtodeath

[Tammy]

but I go to bed late....so I (ok everyone in my house) sleeps late. It really isn't a big deal....I just go with what my body needs, LOL!

 

I really have no reason to wake up early.....I would be bored to death waiting for my kids to get up and entertain me, LOL!

 

.

[Karen in CO]

That is how I get up. I am a chronic insomniac. I am a light sleeper married to a heavy snorer (ear plugs have saved me). I also work shift work three days a week.

 

My youngest either knocks on my forehead or peels my eyelids open for me. My hubby makes me a pot of coffee if he is at work or brings me coffee in bed on the days I work. I also don't do early mornings. Morning for me is never before 8 or 9 (10 if the stars are aligned right, it is Sunday, and hubby managed to sneak the kids out of the house) - but that is due to my work schedule.

 

I also take Sonata. It works quickly, and has a short half life so that I don't have to decide before 1 or 2 am if I am going to be able to sleep that night. If one of the kids wakes up crying or sick, I am able to wake up.

 

Once I am up, I put on my happy face, get into my happy place and remember that life is too short to be grumpy in the morning.

[Colleen]

My question for you is, how in the world do you manage to get out of bed in the morning (at a decent hour!) and remain reasonably energetic all day?

 

I take very, very little sleep, but I don't battle insomnia so I'm different from you in that respect. I just wasn't wired to need a lot of shut-eye, and I guess I've also trained my body to function well with the very minimum sleep. I just can't abide sleeping ~ or worse, lolling about in bed, awake. So even if I've only had a couple of hours of sleep, I just want to get up and go on with life, kwim? Not that my life is so terribly exciting; it definitely isn't. But hanging around in bed sleeping in the morning, while the world is up and at 'em, feels so unproductive and lazy to me. So I'm mentally motivated to get up.

 

I do hit a sleepy time in the afternoon (which is pretty normal for most people, regardless of how much they sleep), I resist the urge to snooze. I don't like naps. Napping seems to me like a waste of time and I inevitably feel worse when I wake up than I did before. So if I feel tired at that time of day, I go breathe some fresh air and get powered. I run quite a bit, too, so apparently I do have some energy reserves to draw on.

[Mekanamom]

I have started taking Melatonin.

 

I second the Melatonin. It is the ONLY thing that has worked for me without making me feel groggy in the mornings. I can still wake up during the night if the kids need me.

 

I can actually get out of bed in the mornings feeling rested since I started taking it.

 

Is your (the OP's) insomnia a problem with falling asleep or staying asleep? My problem was falling asleep, and the Melatonin has really helped with that.

 

YMMV

[Ellie]

Melatonin never helped me, nor did any other OTC sleep aid. I tried all the things that are supposed to help, and none of them did.

 

I finally had a sleep study done, and sure enough, I have mild sleep apnea. I've been using a CPAP for a little over a year, and that has made the biggest difference in my quality of life.

 

Also, I am hypothyroid. If I miss my meds for a couple of nights, I cannot sleep.

 

If you have health insurance which will cover a sleep study, I'd encourage you to do that.

[gardenschooler]

My question for you is, how in the world do you manage to get out of bed in the morning (at a decent hour!) and remain reasonably energetic all day?

 

I would give just about anything to be able to do that.

 

I'm not having the trouble with insomnia that I used to (and I attribute that to less screen time late at night), but I do have help waking up. If I don't have to be somewhere, and I just need to wake up for the day, I really need a live person to wake me up - sometimes repeatedly.

 

I spend some extended time first thing drinking coffee (I schedule independent reading for the kids then), take a shower, and I'm good to go. Sometimes I take a short nap after school, but usually not. I just have to be alert, so I am. It's not like we can start school mid-morning and accomplish everything we need to. I wouldn't want to do that, anyway.

 

I have found that no drugs whatsoever will ever have any lasting effect on me (especially not melatonin), and surprisingly, often a short nap helps me to relax more, enabling me to fall asleep more easily at a decent hour.

[Danestress]

I have had a long term problem with periodic insomnia. There are nights that I get a good night's sleep. But there are many many nights that I wake around 3:00 and can't fall back asleep. Since I usually don't retire until after 11:00, that's just not enough sleep.

 

ON those days, I get up, I get dressed, I put on make up, I make a "to do" list, and I just tear into the things in my life I need to get done. My theory is that maybe if I get those things done, I will feel a sense of accomplishment and will sleep better. Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don't. But when I haven't had enough sleep, I refuse to let myself even think about it. If it goes on for more than a couple of days, I do in fact become rather exhausted, but then I also get very strict about eliminating things that might interfere with sleep - no alcohol, no tv or computer time at night, clean sheets and clean room.

[elegantlion]

I have insomnia that I found was tied to heartburn. I started on Prilosec and have finally been able to sleep at night. So I'd rule out any underlying health issues first.

 

Also I do take lie down almost every afternoon. It's my siesta time and about an hour a day does me wonders. I don't always nap, but just relaxing helps. In the summer I put out the hammock. I consider it time to recharge my batteries.

[Karenciavo]

Exercise. I get around 5.5 - 6 hours sleep a night and when I don't work out I'm ready for a nap by midday. A good workout keeps me energized all day. My workout partner is going to FL for 6-8 weeks, I hope I can drag myself out of bed this winter. :001_unsure:

[PiCO]

I have long, long, long, been an insomniac. Only in the past couple of years has it been a problem: I can't get up in the morning and I'm tired all day. I'm desperate for a nap by around 2 but *if* I get a chance to lie down, I usually just rest and only rarely fall asleep.

 

It has been so long I really try not to be bothered by the fact that I can't sleep. I use that time praying, reading, listening to the news. However, as I'm getting older, I can't go w/o sleep and still function anymore.

 

My question for you is, how in the world do you manage to get out of bed in the morning (at a decent hour!) and remain reasonably energetic all day?

 

I would give just about anything to be able to do that.

 

When I read your thread title, I was going to say I just get out of bed and buck up. Stay up all day, and I can sleep the next night.

 

BUT- it sounds like you have a chronic problem, which is a LOT different than not sleeping a night or two. Lack of sleep long-term can cause a lot of problems. If I were you, I would read up on insomnia and try some natural remedies first. If nothing worked, I would get a sleep study done to find the problem. You really can't go on like this indefinitely!

 

I have a friend whose husband had insomnia due to mild depression. It became a vicious cycle- no sleep led to worse depression, depression led to worse insomnia. He ended up having a complete breakdown before he was diagnosed. Took him years to recover. The moral of the story is- get this taken care of.

[Janna]

My mother has been an insomniac since I can remember. As a child, I can tell you that it had a negative impact on me, so I encourage you to seek some help, as you're doing. Of course now that I'm grown and I see she still struggles with this, I'm no longer upset by it. More troubled than anything because it's been somewhat dangerous for her to be this way.

 

Anyway, after years of trying something, anything, to help, her biggest help so far has been Ambien, *with* a glass of wine (don't know that I recommend that :eek:). She only takes a half of a pill (which if you've seen them, they are super tiny) but it helps her. I will say that it does have some side effects - sleep walking and overeating. Unfortunately for my mom, those two go hand in hand so in the morning she wakes up to a kitchen with empty potato chip bags or dishes on the counter that she doesn't remember doing (and as kids *we* were blamed). It is long been a source of frustration for her because she struggles with her weight. Unfortunately for her, she hasn't yet found a win-win solution.

 

I do remember as a kid though, not having my mom roll out of bed until sometimes 11am and just be so out of it until about dinner time. It was highly disappointing as a kid.

 

My heart goes out to you and others who struggle with this issue. She says her father was this way, implying that it's genetic. While I am a night owl (and married to one too. He, like Colleen, just doesn't need much sleep. Going to bed early, sleeping in and napping are huge wastes of time for him and actually prevent him from functioning at his best :confused:), I have been able to consciously change (with enormous effort) to get up earlier in the morning and get to bed earlier. Therefore I do not believe that I have this same issue as she does because I have seen and continue to see that it's just simply out of her control - her thorn in her side if you will.

 

:grouphug: I hope you find a suitable solution!

[Peela]

 

I take very, very little sleep, but I don't battle insomnia so I'm different from you in that respect. I just wasn't wired to need a lot of shut-eye, and I guess I've also trained my body to function well with the very minimum sleep. I just can't abide sleeping ~ or worse, lolling about in bed, awake. So even if I've only had a couple of hours of sleep, I just want to get up and go on with life, kwim? Not that my life is so terribly exciting; it definitely isn't. But hanging around in bed sleeping in the morning, while the world is up and at 'em, feels so unproductive and lazy to me. So I'm mentally motivated to get up.

 

I do hit a sleepy time in the afternoon (which is pretty normal for most people, regardless of how much they sleep), I resist the urge to snooze. I don't like naps. Napping seems to me like a waste of time and I inevitably feel worse when I wake up than I did before. So if I feel tired at that time of day, I go breathe some fresh air and get powered. I run quite a bit, too, so apparently I do have some energy reserves to draw on.

 

 

Oh, to have your energy levels, Colleen :)

 

I realised recently that I used to have lots of energy..before I had kids. Now my blood pressure is so low the doctors don't know how I get up without passing out, and my iron is anything from very low to just low, even though I take supplements, eat meat, and don't bleed heavily. Ive tried everything. So, I just rest when I need to. But sometimes I long for enough energy to go jogging in the mornings.

[Lovedtodeath]

((((Peela))) What you must go through! Please read From Fatigued to Fantastic and/or see a naturopath.

[Peela]

((((Peela))) What you must go through! Please read From Fatigued to Fantastic and/or see a naturopath.

 

 

Lol, I am a trained naturopath. As I said, I have tried everything :)

I will check out the book though, thanks.

In a way its only registered recently that it's not normal to be like this- well, not normal for other people-its normal for me. I am otherwise completely healthy!

(btw, if I take lots of pharmacy strength iron pills I can get my iron up, but its not a long term solution as I don't want to take them all the time. So I try different things).

[Janet in Toronto]

I'm not sure that you are looking for solutions to the insomnia, or perhaps you have tried everything already.

 

But, in any case, these are the things that have helped me when I've struggled with insomnia. (My type of insomnia is awaking in the middle of the night and then not being able to fall back to sleep. I have no trouble falling asleep at an appropriate time.)

 

Things that help me stay asleep:

- taking Magnesium supplement just before bed. Mine is actually a Calcium/Mag/Vit D combo.

- falling asleep to meditation/nature sounds music. Like I said above, I don't typically have trouble falling asleep. But for some reason when I listen to this kind of music while I fall asleep, I stay asleep. I think it has something to do with brain wave patterns...I looked it up some time ago but forget exactly what the rationale is for this tip.

- wearing socks. In the winter my feet tend to get cold and the socks help me stay nice and toasty.

- blackout shades on my windows and a cool room temp. I get some light from street lamps in my neighborhood and really need the space to be black.

 

If I wake up, I go downstairs with my book, lie on the sofa with a single light on and read. This really helps me to fall back to sleep within 30-45 minutes, even if it means spending the rest of the night on the sofa. Lying in bed in the dark does not facilitate falling back to sleep. NEVER put on the TV or computer.

[Lovedtodeath]

Lol, I am a trained naturopath. As I said, I have tried everything :)

I will check out the book though, thanks.

In a way its only registered recently that it's not normal to be like this- well, not normal for other people-its normal for me. I am otherwise completely healthy!

(btw, if I take lots of pharmacy strength iron pills I can get my iron up, but its not a long term solution as I don't want to take them all the time. So I try different things).

ROTFL! Just goes to show that not everything can be cured! Here are some more.((((Peela))))

[Tree House Academy]

Unfortunately, I need TONS of sleep to function. If I don't get 8-9 hours a night, I am worthless. My kids still sleep up to 11 hours at night, so I try to get in bed at a reasonable time and go only after I feel tired (not one of those who can say, "okay, 8 o'clock is bedtime" and just go to sleep unless I am tired). Insomnia is new to me and happens mostly when I start taking Lexapro. I am just starting to sleep through the night again and I have been on it about 7 weeks. :( It drives me bonkers. My dh is a chronic insomniac and most of the time, it shows. He will be sitting on the couch and suddenly start snoring. There is no waking him up either. He sleeps so very little that his body actually forces him to sleep at times. It is hard to watch, but like a pp said of her dh...my dh will do NOTHING about it. :(

[Tree House Academy]

Oh yeah....I have noticed that if I wear socks and sometimes even thermals when I go to bed, I sleep much better. My body can NOT be cold and sleep. If I get too hot, I can always peel off layers. This definitely helps me sleep.

[Lovedtodeath]

My dh is a chronic insomniac and most of the time, it shows. He will be sitting on the couch and suddenly start snoring. There is no waking him up either. He sleeps so very little that his body actually forces him to sleep at times. It is hard to watch, but like a pp said of her dh...my dh will do NOTHING about it. :(

 

Aren't you tempted to slip something into his food sometimes?:lol: