To ask why cant I sleep?

[Nosleepandcranky]

I do sleep, just not enough. I can lay awake for hours trying to sleep, then when my alarm goes off in the morning, i am so tired, or I will drop off almost immediately, then either continuously wake through the night or wake at stupid o'clock in the morning, sometimes both. I never feel awake, I always feel tired, I think its due to sleep (or lack of) than my diet. I look forward to a lie in at the weekends but always wake early (This morning i woke at 6,45, earlier than i do in the week for work) i dont go on my phone once im in bed, and i do try and read but my eyes feel heavy, so think bingo...im going sleep, then ping, eyes wide open again! Any tips/advice please?

Aye, 41 was around when I started getting insomnia, and I think it is menopause-related (my menopause, as in periods stopping, was age 51).

I learned to get up after half an hour or so, as suggested above, but I used to do housework like dusting or ironing, until I felt tired. Or I'd read a book. Nowadays I often stay in bed and listen to radio 4 on the iPlayer radio app, so I can catch up on serials or one-off dramas, documentaries etc.

I did get to the point where I didn't mind the insomnia - once you see that you can cope when tired, it sort of takes the pressure off - and coping when tired on a daily basis is all the evidence you need that you can do it.

I now go to bed about 8pm, go to sleep about 10 (I read or listen to books for a couple of hours), and wake properly at 6 (earlier in summer, later in winter, never later than 6.30). I spend maybe 2 hours total in the night awake, compared to about 4 hours awake in my 40s - and I wouldn't be going to bed until about 11 then. I really think this is age more than anything else. Maybe it's why I found the lack of sleep easier to cope with than the lack I had when being woken by baby constantly.

I didn't bother with HRT - didn't need it for anything else, and after a while I came to rely on my night-time cleaning for keeping the house ok!

@Snog, Nope, my periods are to the day, always have been, but maybe Illnip to the doctors just to check.

Thanks everyone, ill give everything and anything a try, hopefully something will work soon

What's an average nights sleep?

If its a night that takes me hours to drop off, maybe 4 hours, If its a night where im waking through the night, its hard to tell, but maybe an hour or 2 in between wake ups.

And how long has this been going on for?

It feels like forever, lol, its been going on for about 3 months or so now.

I am menopausal and have accupuncture for insomnia. It has not been a complete 100% cure but has made a difference in that I don’t wake up in the early hours now.