Trouble sleeping

[SleepyRain]

Hello everyone, 

It's nearly 3am as I'm posting this. I'm finding it hard to go back to sleep as I was woken up. In general I find it hard to sleep these days at night. I can sometimes nap during the day to catch up but yeh issues at night. 

The usual too much on my mind, sometime I'm aware I'm thinking and sometimes I'm not. I just want all my problems to disappear or for myself to disappear. I know it's impossible.

I've tried calming/relaxation exercises and staying away from 'screen' before heading off but nothing seems to work. Anyone got any ideas? I'm just tired of being tired and everything else I guess.

Thanks,

SleepyRain

[resistor]

Hi Sleepy. Sorry to hear you are having trouble sleeping, I can relate how awful that is.

I can suggest some ideas, but I must warn that not all ideas are possible, or work for everyone. Sometimes multiple solutions need to be combined, it all varies per person and requires some experimentation.

• Avoiding screen time like you already said is great, try increasing the duration. If you stop screen time 1 hour before bed, try 2 hours.
  • Also combine this time with reading a book, journaling or listening to relaxing music. The idea is to distract your brain so that it does not fill with bad thoughts before sleep.
• Get some exercise during the day.
  • If your body is a little tired it becomes easier to fall asleep.
  • Walking is an obvious choice, but if you don't want, or can't go outside, consider getting some exercise bands (these rubber miracles are used by doctors during physical rehab and use no-impact motion), but they sure can flex your body.
  • Another choice is stretching or yoga, you can find many resources online or in books on these alternatives to exercise.
  • You need to experiment with how frequently to exercise, try three times a week
• Talk to your GP. Our brains release melatonin at night to regulate our sleep cycles. Your GP can prescribe melatonin supplements that will help your brain into its sleep cycle.

[SleepyRain]

Thanks for the reply resistor,

I'll try my best and look into the things you mentioned, especially the exercise.....I really need to get back into it.

[Eagle Ray]

Hi Sleepy Rain,

I just thought I would share that exercise is one thing that seems to help me with sleep when other things may not be. I was sleeping much better on particular medication (hormone meds, not sleep meds) and I had to reduce that medication due to side effects. So my sleep is starting to be affected again and I was awake most of last night. So I really empathise. But I have found on days where I have been able to exercise, which for me is usually walking, I do sleep better. Generally the more I’ve been able to exercise the more I will sleep.

Another thing I have used is listening to a podcast which I put on as I go to bed. It is something about the sound of human voices that starts to put me in sleep mode. I think it’s comforting somehow, like having company. It also distracts me from my own thoughts if they are overactive. So I rarely get to even half way through the podcast and I’m asleep. The important thing is having a podcast that you know doesn’t end with something like noisy ads that wake you up again. I have a few ones I listen to that don’t have that and they are voices of people I find easy to listen to. I know others here have mentioned things like sleep stories and audiobooks they listen to that help them sleep.

I hope you can start getting some good sleep soon 🙏😴

[ABC01]

Dear SleepyRain,

Other posts have given great suggestions, the one thing I keep being told myself,as I do have troubles myself with sleeping or falling asleep. 

Try not to nap. I know how hard it is to fight when you are so tired, but if you nap to catch up during that day, it messes up your sleep pattern for nights. Or how long you can stay asleep at night.

The frustration of not being able to sleep is a horrible cycle that repeats on itself and then your mood gets affected by it.

Another thing you could look into is sleep hygiene products. If you don’t mind lavender, places like The Body Shop ect, have ranges designed to help promote sleep through use of products and have been proven to work by various sleep associations. I use the shower gel at night and it does have a relaxing effect. But I do like lavender.

Another thing I have had for years is a sleep sound machine that has sounds that include specific frequencies that induce different types of sleep. Not just nature sounds. My one is from Sound Oasis. But there are many others out there. And I also recently saw a light for sleeping. Dodow Sleep Aid, that shines a light on your ceiling and you breathe along with the light and it is supposed to help your breathing so you relax and fall asleep.

Another thing I found out recently too, blue light is in many regular light globes, there are many sleep stores that sell non-blue lights that help to create an environment to go to sleep and keep you that way,say if you have to get up and go to the toilet at 3am. Regular lights can wake you right up if you have to turn on a light at 2am and makes it harder to fall back to sleep. 
I am not endorsing any specific companies,just what I personally know of, so there is many options to try and see if they work. Research on reputable companies is best before you try.

I hope you find solutions that work for you soon,

all the best

ABC01

[Eagle Ray]

Those are such interesting ideas for sleep ABC01. I hadn’t heard of Dodow Sleep Aid before so I just looked it up. It’s a bit like the principle of co-regulation where two humans are attuned and in sync which has a healing and calming effect on the body, like a parent breathing peacefully when holding a baby which settles the baby into a peaceful state. I was reading about the cardiac coherence they mention. I did some equine therapy in 2021 and they include something called heart coherence in working with the horses which I think is a similar thing. I would be interested to try the Dodow device myself as I’ve always had trouble going to sleep.

Kind regards,

Eagle Ray 

[ABC01]

Dear Eagle Ray,

Yes,it is incredibly interesting to find what has been specifically made to help with sleep.

I found it interesting that the type of lighting plays a big role in how our mind reads things. And how Blue and Green light can have a waking and alert type of stimulation to them. And that this light is in lots of household light bulbs and of course devices.

The Dodow light is an interesting one and how you have explained it makes sense. As an adult if you are calm,so are children or pets around you. So if it can create a calm rhythm for you to focus on, sleep may come more naturally.

I guess it is trial and error. I find a lamp at night more relaxing for my body to unwind,then the room rooftop light.

Anyway, I hope everyone is getting some better sleep. Or falling off to sleep.

ABC01

[Whatsinaname]

Something I was told many many years ago from a therapist that has helped me was that although your mind can't sleep your body still can. I understand it's like a placebo effect as it essentially helps my mind calm down to think "Even if I don't get to sleep my body will be rested for tomorrow", which in turn helps me fall asleep, it still continues to help me till this day. 

Smell and sounds are important to me too, not always but I really enjoy "Happy and Calm" from perfect potion and the sound of rain on a tent (very specific I know). More often than not I don't need these but when I know my day is a mess I love to put the happy and calm on.

[Eagle Ray]

Hello Sleepy Rain, resistor, ABC01 and Whatsinaname,

It’s good to read all your sleep ideas. I’m like you ABC01 and find lamplight more calming before bed than the ceiling light. And Whatsinaname, I think that’s a really good idea to say to yourself that even if you don’t go to sleep your body will be rested tomorrow. It takes a way the worry about not sleeping which in itself allows the body to relax and go to sleep. I also find the sound of rain on a tent restful too. I have a CD of rainforest sounds that includes sections with rain which is calming.

May we all have good sleep 😴☺️

[SleepyRain]

Thanks for the replies everyone, there is definitely good ideas here and I'm trying some of them to see which works best and get myself in some sort of consistent routine for better sleep. 

I know many others have the same issues so obviously not one way is going to work for everyone, but I hope this post finds others who have sleep troubles and maybe they can find something here that works for them. 

Goodnight all 😊