To ask what you do when you can't get to sleep?

[WillBendTheKnee4Jon]

She asks while on her smartphone at 1 in the bastard morning

Fuck me I've tried everything I can but just can't drop off. I get maybe 3 hours during the day. It's starting to take its toll. I'm miserable. Dd is going through a very difficult time right now (waiting on a Cahms referral, the school are just now starting the process of getting her formally diagnosed with ADHD and Autism. I've had emergency meetings with the Senco officer and her teachers. Plus I had to get her an emergency appointment when she started crying and hyperventilating in class. Her teacher rang me in a panic) so as you can see I've plenty on my mind.
I was even prescribed a short course of zopiclone which had no effect at all. I'm stuck in a vicious cycle.

Lie, not like....

Basically - I was told by more than one person - if your mind doesn't want you to get to sleep - for whatever reason - then you won't get to sleep!

I often find if things are playing on your mind - write them down for a short time in a notebook. This I find works with me. Don't spend too long on it.

Getting up maybe doing some short chores - again don't spend too long on them and then camomile tea and maybe a small snack if you're feeling hungry and usually read a chapter or so of a book and then you should drop off. I was told and have tried it that warm milk with grated nutmeg gets you to sleep - also turkey but not tried the turkey!

Lavender oil is good also Origins Sensory Therapy I think it's called - peppermint. Ensure your bedroom is warm/cool etc.

Rescue Remedy Sleep does help too.

Running through mindless stuff like names with letters of alphabets has helped get me to sleep but can also keep you awake, also apparently when you're in bed and dropping off - if you try to fight that a bit - apparently it makes you drop off - tried it a few times, sort of worked. Relaxing every bit of your body etc - meditation sort of exercise - again can work sometimes can't.

I lie in bed and then purposefully and visually relax each part of my body from the forehead down. So forehead, eyebrows, eyes, cheeks, lips, chine, neck, shoulders etc etc

Or I listen to waterfall/rain/storm videos on youtube.

agreed with snacks - usually I try something like cheese bites (Marmite x 1 or Baby Bel x 1) and a couple of crackers or plain biscuits.

also for me - I do like a dark bedroom so have blackout curtains and minimal noise around me.

If we stay anywhere I take a dark eye mask and earplugs. I've known the adult DD of a friend have to sleep in completely dark shuttered room.

Also paracetamol has a sleepy affect.

God, I would love to know. 100% following.

For the past 5 weeks I've not slept longer than 2 hours in every 24. I'm on my knees with exhaustion.
Snappy, tearful, beyond frustrated, feeling extremely low and sometimes delirious.
As soon as I get into bed, PING, wide awake.

I've tried absolutely everything and no joy. My GP is reluctant to prescribe anything else but I'm going to make an appointment and beg for a knock-out dose of benzodiazepines. Doesn't help with my RA - no sleep = no chance for my body to even attempt recovery.

Sorry for hijacking your thread OP. But after taken 100mg of diphenhydramine last night and still being wired at 4am this morning I'm set to implode.

@MadameDD paracetamol alone most definitely isn't a medicine that induces drowsiness.

Also paracetamol has a sleepy affect

Not really. Codeine or co-codamol does.

LikeACowsOpinion and Limensoda - that's strange then because a couple of doctors have told me that 'paracetamol can help get you to sleep' but looking online it doesn't really say this...

I do have something else doctors mentioned - antihistimane tablets drowsy or non drowsy I've heard can help you sleep.

Limensoda - seeing as codeine co-codamol are only supposed to b taken 3 days in a row and no more than that, then that's a short term fix really in my opinion.

headspace app
insomnia cd's on amazon (mark bowden)
Glen Harold app

Take an amiltryptiline

When I was pregnant I found a very good think on YouTube to help me sleep, a mediated sleep thing. Since having my lo it's much improved but if I can't sleep I just count 1 Mississippi 2 Mississippi etc. It bores me enough to sleep at worst case by 3/0

@MadameDD I'd be concerned about the doctors you've been speaking too. If paracetamol was a 'drowsy' medication people would be falling asleep at the wheel of a car or whilst at work.

Anything that is that says 'non-drowsy' will not be knocking you into the land of nod - pharmaceutical companies wouldn't be allowed to manufacture them as such otherwise; imagine the implications.

Most medications that'll induce sleep can be habit-forming, just the same as codeine.

Tons of sleep music on YouTube, music and wave action seems to work best for me

Closing my eyes and visualising the word Peace over and over

Taking prescribed sleep meds from gp

Also, bedroom must be cool and dark

My sister just chimed in with trying a weighted blanket or throw.

LikeACowsOpinion - one or two general practitioners in my GP surgery did mention paracetamol having a sedative affect and make me slightly sleepy. I'm not a medical practitioner, just passing comments made from them. also years ago, white noise was also a comment made from one GP, like a fan etc.

The non drowsy antihistamine comment was also from one GP and she said - but I'm not a medical professional - that this would help me drop off to sleep slightly.

Maybe they're not as sleep inducing as per medication which is unsafe to drive with because they do make you very sleepy.

I have actually taken mild and stronger sleeping tablets and whilst I can't deny they work - I don't like the thought of getting hooked on them nor the fact I have to rely on them to get to sleep and/or side effects.

Long term I think most people should look at either internal or external factors affecting one getting to sleep, staying asleep or waking one up, or if there are stresses like OP says which would make it harder to get to sleep. Yoga can be great too at helping one get to sleep especially the meditation part at the end.

I use this breathing technique...
Deep breath in to the count of four
Hold breath for 7 seconds ( if you can... or less ... up to you)
Long breath out through mouth to count of 8.
Really works for me. Husband claims it’s terrifying.

@MadameDD complain about those GPs. They're talking rubbish.

As I say, I'm at the stage of having to rely on prescription strength tablets after trying everything else and sometimes they don't even do the job.

Definitely try all alternatives first but paracetamol and other non-drowsy medications do not have a sedative effect - if you find that it works go you then great, but I'd imagine that's the placebo effect.
'Non-drowsy' medications in the majority contain caffeine - so will definitely not have the desired result.

Feel for you op. I know this sounds weird but earplugs work for me. Just the foam ones in a blue box you get in Boots. Basically I stick them in and its like they block out the world and I can go to sleep.

Oh and something elce that helped me. Don't have a day time nap unless you can not live on without it. You need to set your body clock, so try to go to bed at the same time every night and set the alarm for the same time every morning. If you don't sleep, you wait till the night.

Also found writing down all appointments, things to remember, even shopping lists 2 hours before bed helped. Literally clears my head. Then I say, right. Nothing else to think about or worry about now. Hope you get this sorted op.

Thank you all. There's some truly fantastic advice on this thread.

I finally fell asleep around 10.30 and woke at 2.30. It means more of the same tonight though. I tried holding off but it was no good. I made myself a brew and when I opened the fridge I had no idea what needed until I turned and saw my tea. That's weird.
I have the Glen Harrold apps but they're just not cutting it at the moment. Normally I don't get to the bit where you visualise your body from head to toe. I bought melatonin when I was desperate during my last horrific episode but it didn't help. The paracetamol thing made me wonder. In one of my favourite books the author says that her mother would sedate herself with aspirin. This was in the 30s/40s so maybe the ingredients were a lot different back then.

Watch ASMR videos on YouTube. Works everytime.

If I'm really restless then I might have a walk up and down the drive. I don't sleep well at all. I really should do night duty. I'm always awake

Hi, I dont know if anybody has mentioned it an i've said it on here before, but many sleep problems are caused by a magnesium deficiency. It's not something many GPs seem to be aware of. Holland and Barrett does a great magnesium supplement made from natural sea salts. Take three capsules an hour before bed and see.

Also, get up and go in to another room and read a book if you can't drop off. A really boring one. My GCSE chemistry textbook used to do the job. I'd be sleepy within minutes. It's really hard to actually get up and do it, because so often you're thinking "i might drop off any minute and this will disrupt that". But it does help. Also, valerian root, the tincture not capsules. Alfred Vogel i think? 30 Drops before bed x

Read
Masturbate, either ethically or with some porn
Sometimes give up and just get up and smoke and have a drink and a wander around
Then back to bed and read again

If still have problems the following night I’ll take something to help

@MadameDD "seeing as codeine co-codamol are only supposed to b taken 3 days in a row and no more than that, then that's a short term fix really in my opinion."

I take 30mg codeine/panadol for pain associated with RA, and have for years. I have queried this with both my doctor and pharmacist, and have been told that so long as I don't exceed the dosage, it's fine.

I do, however, have frequent blood tests for for liver, etc functions because of other medications I take.

I put a 15 minute timer on my audiobook. Normally I'm asleep within that time (as I can't overthink anything as I'm listening) but sometimes it takes me resetting the timer. I've genuinely never had to reset it twice more than a couple of times. Generally the first 15 minutes calms my thoughts enough....but I have to remember to put on my audiobook. (Fantasy or historical fiction...I don't listen to crime books in bed.... )