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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to ask how you all sleep

42 replies

nikon1968 · 28/11/2011 18:02

Posted this elsewhere got no response

I can get to sleep in about ten minutes when I go to bed which could be 9pm, 10pm, 11pm or midnight.

The prob is I always wake up somewhere between 3am and 4am and I can never get back to sleep.

Any ideas that will help me?

OP posts:

FabbyChic · 28/11/2011 20:01

I sleep like a baby when I have no worries, I have a three bed house but sleep on the sofa! In my pjs and sometimes dressing gown if it is cold.

RetroMuff · 28/11/2011 20:14

I have the same problem. I can get to sleep instantly but always wake for a couple of hours about 4am. Then the alarm goes at 6.20...

I can't wait to retire so I can sleep when I want. I'll snooze in my comfy chair with my feet up in the middle of the day and watch telly & read during the night - bliss.

Chandon · 29/11/2011 11:21

so how did you sleep last night, OP?

4aminsomniac · 29/11/2011 11:58

House is quiet, I can do whatever I like, usually read a book or surf..... being awake at night isn't a problem, is it? Its only if your day is adversely affected that you have a problem. Adjust your mindset, you may find you don't have a problem but an opportunity!

valiumredhead · 29/11/2011 13:49

Are you drinking enough water during the day? sounds mad but somehow really works!

GiserableMitt · 29/11/2011 14:04

What about alcohol? A few glasses of wine (or whatever) can really screw my sleep up. I go to sleep no problem but I wake up about 2am and that's it for a couple of hours. I\m up at 5.25am anyway so I can do without this 'break' in my sleep.

Original poster

nikon1968 · 29/11/2011 16:24

I slept like a baby until 3am.......................woke up and that was my sleep done for the night.

I am knackered I am sat on the sofa now and I could sleep for a week.

I am so tired in the day [and it is getting worse the longer it goes on] that it does affect my day.

mmmmm drinking water...might give that one a go.

Been on the internet and I am going to download some ''white noise'' my oh thinks i am mental but I will give anything a shot.

Oh and GIS I dont drink much so its not that....

Thanks for all your interest and help.

OP posts:

PostBellumBugsy · 29/11/2011 16:34

I am knackered every night by the time I get into bed & I sleep solidly for about 7 hours.
My mother suffers really badly from insomnia & one of the things she does to break a pattern like you are describing is to go to bed at 11pm & set the alarm for 6am and get up then. For the first few nights / days it is hell because she continues to wake up at 3am, be awake for two hours & then drift off at about 5ish, only to have the alarm go at 6am. However, after 3 days, she is so utterly exhausted that she sleeps the whole night through again.
Might be worth a try?
She also has a theory that your body can get muddled in the winter, because we use artificial light nearly all day long. She tries to be in the natural daylight as much as she can in the winter.

StepAwayFromTheEcclesCakes · 29/11/2011 16:41

buy boots sleepeaze tablets one at bedtime gives me a full night sleep and I used to wake in the early hours. alcohol, even a bit can mess up the sleep pattern a lot. if you are not drinking, not stressed and feeling tired the rest of the day then try a course of iron tablts maybe you are run down. if you are not tired then maybe that's just how much sleep you need so try going to bed later

lesley33 · 29/11/2011 16:48

nikon - do you sleet in the day at all?

Original poster

nikon1968 · 29/11/2011 17:15

No I don't sleep in the day [I wish ha ha ]

don't really want to take tablets but might have to.

Tonight the plan is.

Drink water only from now until bedtime.

Take a bottle of squash to bed with me. [in case i am sugar deficient during the night]'

I have downloaded 'white noise' onto the ipod. [in case i wake up]

And last thing is I am going to try and sleep with the window shut.

OP posts:

Shodan · 29/11/2011 17:38

Two things I can think of, each as mad as the other (probably). Sometimes the mad things work though...

A friend of mine had exactly the same problem as you. He was recommended one of those ionic bracelets and gave it a whirl. He reckons it works a treat and he's sleeping like a baby now. However- he lent me one (I have a different kind of insomnia- the kind where it takes hours to get to sleep) and I haven't noticed any difference. Might be worth a go if you can find a cheap one or maybe borrow one.

The other thing I was wondering about- is it habit, perhaps? And if so, would it be worth doing the wake to sleep thing that 'they' recommend for babies? Where you set your alarm to wake you a little before your normal waking time (you'd have to check how long before).

See. Told you they were both mad. But,if all else fails, you could give them a go.

signet2012 · 29/11/2011 17:40

Im terrible. Sometimes can fall asleep at the drop of a hat when I get into bed. Then spend all night sleep walking, sleep talking, wake up as tired as I was before I went to bed.

Other times Im clock watching all night until 5/6am then have to be up for work at 7.30!

drives me mad.

I dont drink tea or coffee after 7. Stick to same bedtime routine, bed for midnight, get up roughly same time each day, get exercise, drink water, no alcohol, dont have a TV or mobile in bedroom except for when on call.

Makes no difference. Yaaawn

StepAwayFromTheEcclesCakes · 29/11/2011 17:53

think the boots tablets are herbal so not quite as awful as drugs from GP (i think) they helped me get into a better routine as I think I got used to waking early. don't drink squash just do water, I have a bottle of fizzy water by my bed at all times. also have a notepad so if something seems to be preying on my mind I write it down and this helps me forget about it. I also have my Ipod touch by the bed so if I really cannot get back to sleep I can open a book on it and read in the dim light without waking DH up.

Original poster

nikon1968 · 30/11/2011 07:18

UPDATE.....................

Last night I went to bed at 9.30 as I was so tired.

Only drank water from about 5pm and drank a glass half an hour before bed.

Took water to bed with me and closed the window.

Listened to the 'white noise' for 10 mins [then battery went flat!]

Settled down to sleep ....dropped off quickly.

I woke up at some point but blocked the clock with some books so do not know what time it was.

I must of slept some more as I remember my dreams.

I woke again looked at the clock 3.45am .......AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!!!!!!!!!

Stayed awake and got up at 6.45 to let the dog out. [Dog does not understand there is a teachers strike on so we could have a lie in...]

BUT

I feel better this morning so must of caught up a tad on my sleep.

I will keep to the same routine and get some new batteries today.

OP posts:

south345 · 30/11/2011 07:27

I go to sleep easily around 9 then get up around midnight to turn off tv that dp has to have on to get to sleep, I get back to sleep easily then, about 2 I wake up needing the loo and last night was still awake at 4.30 so i got up and had a bath at least then I could stay in bed for an extra half hour as i'm shattered when its time to get up. Then ds2 decided to get up early this morning!

lljkk · 30/11/2011 09:34

There was a thread on MN way back when people were polled how many hours sleep/night they get; overwhelmingly it was about 6 hours. Exactly the same as OP, but usually more like midnight-6am.
You sound pretty "normal" to me, OP, just different timings.

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