Chronic Insomnia

[Readingandrighting]

Anyone else?

What to do?

I’ve tried everything I can think of: guided meditations, sleep tea, magnesium at night, no caffeine in the evening, breathing techniques.... it’s starting to feel hellish.

Anyone tried anything that worked?

Thanks

@ProfessorPootle No harm in some anti-histamines. Valerian works for me sometimes too. I must buy more of it as they say it needs to build up over time. Thanks.

@Readingandrighting

Yes every night. No side effects. They don’t work as well as they used to but still get me to sleep in less than an hour.

I’ve been an insomniac for years, went to see my GP about 5 years ago and she prescribed me Phenergan, it’s an anti histamine that makes you drowsy, it’s the only thing that’s worked for me. I take 25mg each night. Without it I’d be awake for 2/3 days and nights. You can buy it over the counter in some pharmacies in the UK.

Thanks @Bathbrush & @Twanger6

Sympathise with you @Readingandrighting. My dh died 4 years ago and ever since then my sleep has been shot. I've tried everything you've mentioned (except hypnosis) and nothing has worked. A few things that haven't been mentioned on thread ard Kirkland Sleep Aid. It's prob much the same as the one a night Nytol and although it no longer works for me it did at first. Same with sominex. And a friend recommended Nightnurse but I couldn't get past the revolting taste.

Those of you who have Zopiclone - are your gp's happy to prescribe it indefinitely? My Gp prescribed me three courses but won't give me any more.

Things that have worked for me after trying many many other things:
Weleda Avena Sativa drops
Zzzquil antihistamine (a friend got them from the states, not sure if you can get them here)
CBT - in my case it's mostly stress/anxiety related and as you say, the anxiety just about going to bed stops you sleeping...
Moving to a different bed or the sofa - apparently it's what Winston Churchill used to do and has worked for me too so if it was good enough for him

Hope you find something that works, you have my sympathies, long term insomnia is just life destroyingly awful.

Thanks @Menaray

Thanks @DiscoJanet

I actually can’t believe it’s happening again tonight. I know I’m on my phone now but before this I did everything right: yoga, breathing, magnesium, audio book. I did have a glass of wine & perhaps I need to give up booze but god it’s persistent.

What dose of amitriptyline are people taking to sleep? I have this prescribed for another issue but have suffered insomnia for years. Wondered if it was worth taking extra to see if it works.

In a lot of countries you can get doxylamine over the counter. It's an old type anti-histamine used as a sleeping pill. You can order from French online pharmacies or in largish quantities from the US.

OP I have had chronic insomnia in the past. The things that work for me is having a Magnesium B6 supplement, morning exercise for at least 30 minutes daily, and (the best) listening to Hypnotherapist Andrew Johnson’s Relaxation apps. These are truly excellent and I need to listen to it every night, but it works!

Sympathies, OP, chronic insomnia sufferer here too. Related to anxiety and depression, and for a while perimenopause as well. Lots of great advice on the thread, much of which I follow as well.

One more tip that might help with the ruminating is to listen to very gentle and non- threatening audiobooks or podcasts when you wake up in the night - it gives the mind some to focus on rather than the thought-cycle.

There are some specific apps and podcasts; I generally listen to a book that I’m very familiar with and that doesn’t have many sudden loud bits, as those are a pain if they arrive just as you’re dropping off! I use the sleep timer on my audio book app / BBC Sounds app.

Ah, just read posts properly, you’re already trying audio books. Re alcohol, I had to stop completely during perimenopause as even a small amount completely buggered up my sleep and gave me palpitations. I don’t miss it.

Phenergan is pretty good, but leaves me a bit groggy for a couple of hours. I didn’t get on with Zopiclone.

Have you had access to counselling for the thought patterns?

Can I join you on the insomnia bench? Had it for years and years. Probably about 25 years in total. It comes and goes, but usually hang around.

Random stuff I’ve found helpful in the past...

• getting up and going somewhere else to read a book
• upload Insight Timer which is a very boring name for a rather brilliant app which has loads of meditations on there to deal with every eventuality. I use a couple in the ‘sleep’ section, and there are a couple to get you back off to sleep. One starts of with ‘Oh you poor love... let me help you get back to sleep’

• Kirkland sleep aid but use with care.
• melatonin
• the old fashioned Piriton
• Zopiclone.

I probably take one of those twice a week, so my body doesn’t become used to them.

Can someone point me in the direction of CBD oil please? I’d like to give it a go, but it’s sooooo expensive.

On the rare occasions I get 7-8 hours sleep, I wake up incredulous and think ‘ Wow. Is this how people feel every day?’

Approach Phenergan with caution. It gave me bad palpitations.

[quote E1ffelTower]@Readingandrighting you can get a kindle app on your phone. But I’d suggest seeing your doctor and asking for promathazime hydrochloride (phenegen) it’s an anti histamine based sleeping tablet so you can have it long term unlike temazapam/diazepam. Also suggest buying melatonin off the internet.[/quote]
Hiw do you buy melatonin on the internet , please? I also want 5htp, both unavailable here.

I had aggressive insomnia triggered by a traumatic event which started in my late 20s. Tried everything, not going to bed till X time, sleep hygiene, milky drinks, herbal concoctions. Nothing helped and it got worse and worse. Felt like I was in a nightmare. In the end I found an insomnia forum, cant rem the name of it now, but anyway most of it was people in the same desperate situation as me. I never took sleeping pills, just felt like that was the wrong answer for me. Anyway, I found a few people on there who'd 'cured ' it, same thing as me, desperate sitch, triggered by extreme stress, ended up with intractable insomnia. The approach they all took was refusing to keep servicing the anxiety. No more searching for answers or nighttime rituals. Stop all of it. Thinking about how I was going to sleep became a total occupation for me by this point. The basic philosophy behind it was acceptance. Its shit but basically youre not in control of sleep. You can't make your body do it. The only thing you control is lying down and switching the lights off. The rest isn't your 'problem'. If you dont sleep, you feel shit, thats about the size of it. But its not your task to worry about sleep. Basically you shift your focus to the day, what you are in control of. I was naturally quite suspicious of how easy it seemed. It took time shifting my focus, dropping all my rituals but it just.....worked. I started sleeping again. If I lay down and worried I wouldn't sleep, I'd have a little thing I said to myself, paraphrasing 'This is all I can do, the rest isn't up to me '. Dont get me wrong, I still have issues with sleep when stressed, I still get the anxieties, but its never taken purchase again. I hope this helps, I remeber what dark days they were. The stress and the inability to escape from it. X

Oh, when I was still recovering one thing I found was listening to audiobooks meant I wasn't lying there frustrated.

I agree, acceptance of the situ goes a long way towards at least living with it, or beating it entirely.
It would be good to know @supercali77 which forum it was.

Another chronic insomniac. Woke about three thirty last night, needed a wee and could not get back to sleep afterwards.
I am on 25-50 mgs of amitriptyline (has caused weight gain but I would rather be fat and sane than thin and totally mental, two to three nights of no sleep and I lose touch with reality) melatonin and a sleepy antihistamine.
Had a sleep study done in November (my third) the follow up consultation seemed to have the consultant and the psychological person not entirely happy. They seemed to think that because of how much I go nuts without sleep that the programme they have might not be suitable for me. Not heard anything further, I am not too bothered to be honest, was jumping through hoops so I can continue on Zopiclone. I take half a tablet on a very infrequent basis, but when I have a couple of bad nights (4-5 hours) on the third night I take the zopiclone which seems to help me reset.

Thanks for all of your responses and tips. I really appreciate them.

On the rare occasions I get 7-8 hours sleep, I wake up incredulous and think ‘ Wow. Is this how people feel every day?

This is just so so true!

I didn't have much time earlier but I really want to respond to you all because this thread has been a bit of a lifeline the past few days. I slept a little last night with the help of an audio-book. Thanks for suggesting them because they really are better than podcasts. It didn't work at first but I just persevered. I then woke up with a jolt to one part of it and turned it off. I still didn't get to sleep until around 3am but it was progress on the night before.

I'm determined to tackle this in 2021 as it's been going on long enough.

Chronic insomniac here too 💓
Its an awful condition to suffer with, I used to be on a I but put on over 2 and half stone over a year which I'm still struggling to lose.
I'm on a lot of meds due to chronic pain and my conditions including daily antihistamines and a morphine patch. Still struggle to sleep.
Anxiety plays a big part in my insomnia I think but anxiety meds always make me feel disassociated. Feel like I can't win whichever way I go.
Its depressing not getting sleep, the feeling lying there whilst the whole household is sleeping. I got up the night before last and just sat in the living room reading, then ended up in bed all day yesterday feeling awful.
I've just bought a weighted blanket and last night I actually got 7 hours sleep. I'm hoping it will help again tonight but we shall see.

Thanks @Wallywobbles
There seem to be a lot of anti-histamines to choose from. I don't know what kind of anti-histamine it was but I took one in Spain once and I honestly had the best night's sleep ever after it!

**used to be on ami.