Feeling desperate - 4 hours sleep a night

[MumQuack]

It's been a lovely Christmas Day but somehow at the moment I am surviving on 4 hours sleep a night. I've suffered with bad sleep for years but these last few weeks have been particularly terrible. It might be a combination of it being the lead up to Christmas etc but I'm worried I'm getting into a pattern I won't be able to get out of. I have tried most of the tricks. The latest I've tried is the non herbal Nytol. It worked a treat for one night and then I was back to waking at 3am on it! My pattern is usually - go to sleep at about 11am and wake at 3am ish. 9 times out of 10 I don't go back to sleep! I work in a job where I see clients all day. As you might imagine, this can be a nightmare, but somehow I get through it. Does anyone else have a similar pattern and I love to hear how you cope? Thanks in advance xxx

Ok so I think I might be the worst sleeper in here! No one else?

I'm having problems too. I think it is down to a mixture of anxiety and stomach issues (something like silent reflux). Last night I went to bed at 11.30 but was still tossing and turning at 1.30 then finally dropped off. I usually manage 6 hours which I cope with ok but there are nights when I only manage 4.5 to 5 hours. Do you drink or smoke or eat late in the evening?

How old are you? Sometimes disturbed sleep is a gift the peri-menopause brings!
The herbal Nytol works quite well for me, but I use sleep/hypnosis apps on my phone to send me back off when I wake up (which I always do now). Buddhify has some very soothing voices,but there's loads on youtube or as downloads.

Titsywoo no I don't smoke or eat late in the evening.
Shotgun - I turn 40 this year. When I wake at 3am I'm usually drenched in sweat (sorry). The GP has run tests and apparently everything is normal at the moment.

Ps I mean I don't smoke at all! Usually don't even drink tea/coffee after about 3pm either.

It sounds like you need to go back to your GP if you are waking up drenched in sweat every night.

Yes I think I will return to the GP, but it's a bit frustrating as the tests results are normal. The night sweats have been happening for about a year

Have you got good pyjamas and bed clothes/retro bed making?

I get night sweats when paraddoxically i am too cold or my shoulders arent covered and are getting cold..its like my body has an 'ok lets heat this fucker up' procedure that end up leaving me too hot afterwards..

Anyway.. my sleep tips are..ypu tube mediations..curtain around bed (darkness warmth and muffles sounds) make sure bed is made and comfortable before sleep and lots of layers on top so warmth is constant sauna in the day beforehand,
passive muscle relaxation meds.. and a slowly ciming on light that i can rely on so that i'm not tginking 'williwakeupwilliwakeup'

I find that if the house is tidy padding around at 4am can be quite relaxing, but if its a tip..better to stay in bed and relax...its apparently normal in winter to go tp bed earlier..have some night wakefullness after 4 hours ..then sleep again...

feet in hot water before bed might work too...

What are passive muscle relaxation meds?

No coffee after 1pm. And no more than one coffee in a day. And is a 30min walk a day possible. That might help.
Listening to a podcast lying down with earphones might help you drop off once you've woken up. The Archers back episodes, something like that.

sorry..passive muscle relaxation meditations...on youtube..

really trying to think all my deep muscles into relaxation works..eventually. .i usually have to listen a couple of times..but its amazing how back arm shoulder leg hip muscles are all just a little tense all the time and how thinking very hard about them relaxing can switvh them off..

Any links scary? (Sorry to hijack, OP). I'm always looking for good sleep-inducing sounds.

Sympathies. I average four hours - in fact that's good for me. I take lots of exercise (at least 90 mins dog walking a day), don't smoke, don't have caffeine after lunch etc but nothing helps. I sometimes find listening to old Desert Island Discs episodes help - the combination of talking and music can be soporific....

Thank you for all the helpful tips. Glad to hear I'm not alone ...

Pretty much the same sleep pattern here. Massively amplified when drinking. Almost certainly peri menopause for me as I am mid forties. No advice but I am definitely trying some of the hypnosis and YouTube tips. You are not alone OP.

Thanks Coper

Feel your pain. I'm bad at the moment so probably get 4 hours. It effects everything and then at the weekend I'm falling asleep at 9 pm. I've gone to various experts and they put me on a sleep restriction plan based on the time you need to get up in morning.

For me it meant 7 days a week going to bed at 12pm and up at 6am. If you wake up, need to get up, watch tv and when sleepy go back to bed. This is the part I always find hardest to do so I've stopped sticking to the routine which isn't good. Just found it so hard to stick to. Oh an no naps allowed

I have periodic times of very poor sleep, often at certain points in my cycle and much worse if I've had a drink / been out in the evening. 3am wake ups are very familiar...

I've been trying the 4-7-8 breathing technique to get back to sleep, and I think that does help. Probably the relaxation / meditation would be similar: I think developing a routine response that leads to sleep is the key for me i.e. I don't focus on (and fret about) getting back to sleep per se, instead I focus on doing the breathing exercise and letting sleep come in it's own time IYSWIM.

Have you tried booking yourself in for regular massages and acupuncture? It worked for me when I had terrible insomnia.
But I would definitrly go back to your GP with night sweats. Try a different GP

Are dehydrated? I get night sweats and insomnia if I'm dehydrated. How much water do you drink?

oh dear I feel for you

I have horrible insomnia and had it for years, but I don't get night sweats so I would imagine what you have is related to that?

for the record I use doxylamine succinate - only take 1/2 the dose. It's also anti histamine but the one in Nytol just makes me feel really ill.

If I wake up at 3 and can't sleep, I take quarter of the dose but that's unusual, my problem is going to sleep initially.

after years of insomnia, I've learned to ignore the experts so if there's an option to nap to feel better, I take it. Also sleep restriction just made me dangerously wired.

hope you get something sorted.