How do I stop waking up in the early hours?

[LivingDeadGirlUK]

I keep waking up at 4am, its really annoying, sometimes I get another hour or so, sometimes I just toss and turn. Its been weeks if not months. I'm not particularly stressed I don't think.

What do I do? :(

Also peri here and having the same issue. I put my headphones in (got one of those that is a headband so it’s comfy) and listen to sleep meditation using the Insight Timer app.

I’m in the peri menopause (on HRT - patches and a mirena coil) and additional progesterone sorted it for me.

Sometimes I go to the toilet but yeah I am up for trying this too.

I don't think I have any other perimenopause symptoms but I am on the pill so don't have periods.

I've ordered magnesium, how long before bed should I take it?

I think I’ve tried nearly everything recommended for insomnia over many decades, in isolation, in combination, in desperation, and in conclusion my personal results are:

worrying about it or even running through various attempts to ‘fix’ or improve it, makes no difference whatsoever to insomnia so I thought well I can’t go from lc to nc so I’ll just have to grey rock the bollox which, despite the odd lapse in angry, fearful, frustration, I am getting better at, which leaves me more energy and enthusiasm for other things in life where I can make a difference

cutting out all the fun things makes little to no difference whatsoever to insomnia so I enjoy what I want when I want because life’s too short and nights are too long for no coffee, no cheese, no wine, no carbs, no whatevers, the added bonus is it annoys the fuck out of smug know-it-alls with plenty of sleep who keep trying to foist their boring menus on me and who will be mightily pissed off when insomnia really comes for them

witnessing sundown and sunrise makes little to no difference whatsoever to insomnia so I abandoned the panicked ‘omg must get outside/to a window’ twice a day and now actually enjoy them on my own terms for me without any pressure and if I don’t fancy it I can sit where I am under a comfy blanket

getting up and doing something throughout the night makes no difference whatsoever to insomnia but for sure makes me feel better because in the quiet I can pretend all the annoying fuckers of the world are dead

my cats are also highly impressed with the added 3am snack service they now receive

I take magnesium glicinate too, bioglan ,1 tablet or 1 and a half sometimes, i am definitely less anxious and even if i wake up in the night i will fall back to sleep. Before i started taking magnesium i was up st 3.30 every single night, i was exhausted by midday

Same for me and HRT has unfortunately not fixed it. Beware of magnesium citrate if you have a sensitive stomach. Glycinate is better but you could try a spray from Better You. I am 49 and have been like this for years.

The only thing that worked for me was learning (eventually) not to worry about it! Stressing is guaranteed to wake you up and keep you awake. I have headband bluetooth headphones and put on something spoken which works for me - some people prefer music so experiment. Then it's a case of telling myself that I'll listen for a while and then get up. 9 times out of 10 I go back to sleep.

I take mine about an hour before bed, I still wake up but can go right back to sleep and like a pp poster I listen to a meditation on you tube but I don't get past the breathing part before I'm back to sleep.

Don't fret. Get up and start your day at 4. take naps when you're tired. Sounds like your body is going through some changes. As long as you're not showing any other signs of serious illness, then I'd suggest going with the flow until it settles into a new routine.

I wish I could nap but work gets in the way!

Have you tried listening to audiobooks? I listen before I go to sleep (sends me off almost straight away - takes ages to complete!), but having the same issues as you, I just plug in and it sends me off again!

The Kalms night tablets help me. They are just valerian root which is meant to be natures sedative but they seem to help me fall back to sleep quickly if I wake in the night

If you want to try magnesium, magnesium citrate is more likely to cause diarrhoea than magnesium glycinate.

Have you tried listening to a soothing story? Something like 'nothing much happens'?

I by no means never wake, but for me no alcohol, exercise and avoiding anything but a tiny bit of caffeine are what helped. And then starting HRT.

I take magnesium as well, I never had any issues with sleep really but would find sometimes I couldn’t switch off at all or it would take ages to get to sleep or I’d get up for the toilet and couldn’t get back to sleep, since taking these I drop off straight away and if I do get up in the night I’m straight back to sleep.

A cool bedroom helps me as does an eye mask and loop earplugs. I can normally get a really good stretch of sleep that way as the slightest sound wakes me up so the sensory deprivation helps but they don't block out so much noise that I couldn't hear my phone ringing or the fire alarm etc.

If I'm struggling to drift off I listen to The Sleepy Bookshelf podcast as they read classic books in 1hr chunks and if you fall asleep the next episode has a recap at the start so it doesn't matter. They normally send me right back to sleep but if they don't I at least feel I've listened to some classic literature. I'm currently working my way through Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and it'll probably take me til Christmas to actually finish it 😀

Age 44, identical issue, no other perimenopause symptoms, HRT sorted it in a day. The relief was insane

Vaginal oestrogen should put a stop to that. It might be a sign you need a higher dose of hrt.

I gave up alcohol & caffeine which helped, but mine was only properly sorted through HRT.

Another one here with the same issues!

So it doesn't help when upon wanting to go to sleep at night all the different noise from neighbours!

I will be interested in reading what helpful comments you receive on here.

Same problem. HRT has not sorted it out (been on it since April). I get some nights 5 or 6 hours; a random 7 hour or (like last night) 3 hours and then no sleep. This is really frightening me, I’m worried about the impact on my health

Sugar keeps me awake, even more than I am already. I can't have anything sweet in the evening. I hoped HRT would help but it hasn't. No alcohol or caffeine for decades either. I will try the magnesium.

Snap.

I tend to lie on my back, totally still, arms
Straights, palms facing down. Then imagine I am at the beach, can hear the sea, and eventually drop off again. It was a technique I learnt in yoga.

And then the LHR planes start coming in and I get woken up again.