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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Feeling broken from chronic insomnia

51 replies

Intohellbutstayingstrong · 26/02/2019 03:06

Have posted about this before.
Back and forth to GP
Two hours sleep tonight
Two hours last night.
Some nights zero sleep
Tried EVERYTHING
Just broken from it all

OP posts:
Decormad38 · 26/02/2019 03:30

Is there an obvious reason e.g young child or just complete fucked up sleep pattern?

Original poster
Intohellbutstayingstrong · 26/02/2019 03:35

Just a completely fucked up sleep pattern. has been going in for so bloody ling now.

OP posts:
mimibunz · 26/02/2019 03:37

Acupuncture? I’m thinking of trying it for my menopause related insomnia.

Autumn101 · 26/02/2019 03:38

Sympathies, insomnia is terrible and affects your whole life.........

Have you tried CBT? I was in a terrible way with it a few years ago and that together with some short term medication really helped. I’d got in such a tense, anxious mess over it. It helped to break that cycle of negativity over nighttimes.

I still get bouts of insomnia now so it hasn’t cured it completely but it’s nowhere near as bad

MrsTerryPratcett · 26/02/2019 03:39

Tell us what you've tried.

Original poster
Intohellbutstayingstrong · 26/02/2019 03:47

Ive tried meditation, sleep hygiene, sleep music, CBT, sleeping tablets , temazepam, not going to bed early no matter how tired I am from lack of sleep, all the usual over the counter pills and potions....... I'm desperate.

OP posts:
Kahlua4me · 26/02/2019 03:58

Acupuncture, or another alternative therapy if you don’t like that one, would be my next option. Craniosacral therapy, hypnotherapy etc.

What about sleeping in another room in the house for a while as it may take the pressure off getting into your own bed.

Is there anything that triggered the insomnia to start with?

ssunniebear · 26/02/2019 05:18

How about lying with your eyes closed and an interesting podcast. If i try to stay awake i am much more likely to drop off

swingofthings · 26/02/2019 05:24

How long has it been going on, when did it start and how old are you? Do you struggle falling asleep first ulin the night, sleep OK until you wake up and can't get back to sleep or do you feel that the quality of the sleep you do get in poor too?

Is your life stressful (in addition to the stress of getting on with life sleep deprived)?

Mixedbags · 26/02/2019 05:30

Do you work? If you don’t mind me asking what type of job is it if applicable? How many hours? Do you have children, age if them and you? Are you stressing about other things?

SecretProfile · 26/02/2019 07:01

I’m with you on this ....I get a few hours sleep most nights. I’m constantly fatigued. I get to the point where I’m so tired I’m agitated - I think it’s the cortisol (stress hormone).

Snugglepiggy · 26/02/2019 08:03

You have my absolute sympathy .It's hell.And only the other night out with friends I lost my temper with DH when he made a silly comment after a few drinks and I was driving ,and felt so upset and a complete idiot but it was sheer exhaustion ,and yes probably the stress hormone.I often feel agitated.
But podcasts have made a huge difference.Nothing too interesting like a drama,but something factual eg history or nature does it for me and I lay there and eventually drift off.Have you tried CBT ?It's meant to help with intrusive thoughts.If I get worse again I will give it a go.

CoolJule43 · 26/02/2019 10:15

Ask your GP to refer you to a sleep clinic.

They will test you for Sleep Apnoea, measure you for a week with an Actigraph watch to determine exactly how long you sleep for and your oxygen levels at all times. They may do Lung Function tests.

You need to go back and get this sorted if it is severely impacting on your life.

bluetongue · 26/02/2019 10:19

You poor thing. I’ve been there. Temazapam got me back on track but I see you’ve tried that Sad

When mine was at its worst I had to take some sick days off work as I absolutely couldn’t function. I also remember at 3am wishing I knew where to get some weed as I was willing to try anything and I’m normally very anti drugs.

RhymingRabbit · 26/02/2019 10:22

Mine was linked to anxiety so a short course of the minimal dose of sertraline (about 6 months) worked for me. I also cut out all caffeine, cut down alcohol and sugar. Used a magnesium spray and made sure all of my levels were correct - iron, b12 and thyroid. It took a month or two but soon settled down and now I sleep as well as anyone with two children. I hope you get into a good pattern soon - it really is hellish.

Home77 · 26/02/2019 10:46

My DH has this..

I have heard of this technique, where you stay up late and then don't sleep intel after say 1am and then slowly bring it back. Bit weird I thought but it meant to help. I'll try find a link

Home77 · 26/02/2019 10:49

Exercise during the day can help but not too late in the day too, and early morning light.

swingofthings · 26/02/2019 10:56

I get to the point where I’m so tired I’m agitated - I think it’s the cortisol (stress hormone)
This and this again. Insomnia is harrowing but it is made worse by people not fully understanding how it affects you.

My OH will not understand or accept that the more tired I get, the harder it is to get to sleep, that you get to the point when just to function at minimal level, you've got to use every bit of energy you can drill and that doing so evolves raising your cortisol and adrenalin levels and this in result makes you hyper, so you find yourself both utterly drained and hyper at the same time.

It becomes a vicious circle that looks impossible to break. Whrn you try to reduce the hyperness by doing everything to relax, you struggle even more with everything so become even more reliant on sleep to you going. Thrm you don't get the sleep and you've got yourself even further down the spiral.

It is no surprise sleep deprivation is used as a form of torture.

SheeshazAZ09 · 26/02/2019 10:58

Don't eat heavy meal in the evening eat main meal at lunch and something small and light in the evening as early as poss and definitely before 7 pm. Then go to bed 9:30 pm. No computer/ipad/iphone screen time 2 hours before bed. OK to read non-heavy book/magazines. Massage feet with sesame oil before going to bed. Turn off internet at the router before going to bed. Don't allow TVs in bedrooms and don't watch right up to bedtime. Give up caffeinethat means no choc and no coffee or black tea. At all. If you are a total coffee addict, only drink it in the morning. Get some magnesium spray and spray it on your legs before bed. It's a natural tranquillizer. "Better You" is the brand I use.

All these are things I've had to do myself. I have had to 'work' at being able to sleep OK.

Bumbalaya · 26/02/2019 11:00

How about changing your life in a very dramatic way? Are you tied to the area you live in? Could you just up sticks and move to a completely different place and adopt a whole new diet, set of friends, lifestyle?

swingofthings · 26/02/2019 11:22

All these are things I've had to do myself. I have had to 'work' at being able to sleep OK
No offense but I've done all this (and more) for over 6 months now (some more than a year) and my sleep is no better whatsover.

Reading OP's posts, it sounds like she has too and is the reason she is posting.

Each time I mention insomnia, I'm being told the same and when I say I already do all those things I either get that I am probably not or that I need to continue as its, not been long enough.

Being told that I have to 'work' on those things confirms that the person giving advice most likely hasn't experienced sleep problems as severe.

stopgap · 26/02/2019 11:53

I’m also a chronic insomniac. I’ve tried Ambien, Trazadone, Advil PM, valerian, magnesium etc etc, all with varying but minimal amounts of success.

I am now taking .5mg of melatonin, GABA, 5-HTP and L-Theanine. Honestly, the melatonin plus relaxing amino acid combination is working like a charm. I am getting 7 hours a night of unbroken sleep, and I have been a light, atrocious sleeper since childhood.

I’m in the US, and know that you need a prescription for melatonin in the UK. Contrary to what you might think, the smaller doses are much more effective.

Also, I’m only eating between the hours of noon and 8pm per day (I’m insulin resistant and it helps) and have cut out my one cup of tea a day.

Sockmonster23 · 26/02/2019 12:02

I swear by Acunpuncture. Its amazing. Look it up if You haven't already. Best of luck. I hope it gets sorted soon.

RockinHippy · 26/02/2019 12:02

My 16 yo DD is like this, possibility that she's on the spectrum, but insomnia is linked to her other health conditions too.

We've tried absolutely everything over the years & some helps, but not much. The most help has been from a SAD lamp & a weighted blanket. The weighted blanket is new, but have seen a big difference in how relaxed she is in bed when using it. She doesn't jump out of her skin any more if I sneak into her room with clean uniform etc & she reports a much deeper sleep, even if she does still wake occasionally through the night.

They are expensive & I just wish I had bought one sooner, but I got ripped off when I tried a few years ago. I bought this one on Amazon & it's been amazing