Sudden, severe insomnia – please share your stories!

[HotToast]

I've suddenly started suffering from really terrible insomnia and I really need to chat about it and hear some other experiences!

It started 2-3 weeks ago with frequent waking in the night and early morning waking – but I was at least still getting some sleep so although it was frustrating, it was manageable, and I told myself it was a little phase that would pass. Then suddenly it got dramatically worse and for the last three nights I have gone to bed, only to lay wide awake literally all night long until morning, feeling strangely wired, although desperate for sleep, if that makes sense. The only sleep I've had has been after about 6am, when I've finally managed to drift off for an hour or so.

I am feeling seriously alarmed by this. There is nothing going on in my life that could account for it and I haven't suffered from insomnia before really apart from a blip in my teens. The only thing that I can think that would be causing this is changing hormone levels – I'm 42. But I don't have any other signs of peri yet. I spoke to a doctor on the phone this week and he wasn't particularly helpful. He dismissed the idea that it was hormone related because my cycles are still regular (but what else could it be?!) and said to try over the counter meds for a couple of weeks to see if that sorts it. I've tried Nytol – which doesn't seem to work – and have just started taking a magnesium supplement; too early to tell if that will help.

My question basically is, has anyone experienced a similar sudden onset of insomnia? If so, how long did it last and did you find the cause? What if anything helped? Should I press my GP on the hormones thing? I don't know what to do and am starting to panic. I have two DC (8 and 6) and I really can't function on an hour's sleep a night. Help!!

I had this. Doctor couldn't figure out what happened but I suspect that it was hormonal. It happened after I stopped breast feeding. It actually triggered a period of aggravated depression (which I never had before or since). My lovely GP gave me zopiclone but it didn't work. I ended up having to take a low dose anti-depressant which did the trick after a few weeks. I also completely focussed on sleep hygiene - completely cut out caffeine, no scrolling my phone in bed, no alcohol late in the evening, no exercise late in the evening.

I found that the anxiety about insomnia and trying to find the cause of it made it worse. Once I kind of accepted it it got better. So instead of lying in bed thrashing about, I would put on a relaxing audiobook and tell myself I would just lie here and enjoy the time to relax.
I hope you get some sleep soon.

@80schildhood thanks so much for replying. Interesting to hear how you got it sorted. Really helps to hear as I am starting to spiral into worry about what could be the cause. Easy to get into a viscous cycle! How long did it last for before you got on top of it?

You need to google Daniel Erichsen. The sleep coach school.
You had a trigger of a sleepless night, now its your brain protecting you from a perceived threat by keeping you awake. No amount of sleep efforts will solve this. You just need to let go and not fear being awake

My doctor laughed when I suggested insomnia was caused by peri in my late 30s. Finally got hrt years later and surprise surprise I sleep wonderfully now! Nothing else worked - no caffeine no booze no devices, took magnesium, all sorts of supplements. I spent a fortune in Holland and Barrett. Nothing worked until hrt. You have my sympathy, insomnia is hell. Try another doctor!

Yes it's peri it's horrendous, same experience started suddenly. At it's worst I went 4 nights with no sleep at all, tired but wired feeling. I did have other peri symptoms though. I started HRT and it gradually settled although I still have the odd night of no sleep certain times of the month. My sympathies it's awful I had no idea insomnia was part of menopause. When it was bad I did have to use zopliclone from gp for a few nights and then nytol which sometimes worked but not always, there was no other way of getting through it. Hope you get it sorted soon.

@Musicofthespheres Oh, interesting! I will look it up, thanks so much.

@chickenbeak aw thanks so much. I hope you don't suffer with it too much any more. Good to hear you found a concrete cause. Dr Google helpfully suggested a pituitary tumour to me as being behind this, which was useful.🙄

I would think up some menopausal symptoms and go back to GP. See if HRT sorts it. In my experience they are ready to prescribe antidepressants much more readily than HRT when the cause is often hormonal.

This sort of sleeplessness have been the only menopausal symptoms I've had - I now just live with it but it's a pain when it happens before a full day and I usually crash about 8pm! I also listen to audio books to try and lull me off...

@Ukholidaysaregreat Yes, I will be doing this ultimately if it doesn't improve in the next week. Thank you. x

I have been exactly where you are. It was severe and I lost my mind over it, but it's largely sorted now. See the women's specialist GP at your surgery. Ignore the male bellend GP you spoke to this week. It will very likely be your hormones and possibly the first sign of perimenopause. HRT helped massively, specifically the progesterone component. I took 2 tablets a night orally during the worst of it.

My GP also prescribed me zolpidem, which is a sleeping tablet. Google Dr Hugh Selsick, he is the NHS top sleep specialist. He says they're not addictive and I agree with him. I still take them very judiciously though as they seem to lose efficacy, so only take them I'm still awake two-three hours from bedtime. It's not really sleep but knock out, but it's still better than the 'wired' feeling of not having slept at all all night. It's not the solution, but it'll get you through the blips.

You also need to try and trigger your parasympathetic nervous system as much as possible. Pilates, relaxing yoga, swimming, walking will all help. I also see an Osteopath, who works magic and get the CFS fluid flowing again with cranial sacral.

Unfortunately, I'm now very prone to 'fight and flight' / possibly too much cortisol, so I can't watch action movies in the evening or anything else that might raise my heart rate including going out late. Boring evenings but if it means I sleep I don't mind.

Before I got all this in place I also tried melotonin (didn't work) and super strength CBD oil (which resulted in a frozen body but brain was still awake). I even tried listening to Beta Waves at a certain hertz frequency that's supposed to be in tune with your body...that's when I knew I needed serious help ha.

I hope that helps. One final thing is not to worry during the night when you're awake. Whilst the next day is deeply unpleasant, zero sleep won't kill you. Try and lay there with your eyes shut and try and meditate. Get into Stage 1 of non-REM sleep, which is almost like a meditation, will see you through.

@theredspindletree interesting it's been your only symptom. I hope you don't suffer with it too regularly.

@Carrythelight you're so sweet to post all this, thank you. It just helps to know other people have been there and the suddenness of this isn't completely abnormal. I will definitely be asking for a female GP/ women's health specialist when I go back. I couldn't believe the GP I spoke to was so dismissive of the hormone theory, honestly.

It’s very difficult if you don’t know the reason for your insomnia. I have suffered from insomnia since my twenties but it was related to natural periods of anxiety, such as being worried about an interview or public speaking. Then I experienced a traumatic event which had a major impact on my life and since then, I have suffered with regular insomnia and wake almost every night for a few hours. Sometimes I get back to sleep and sometimes I don’t, but I’ve learned to live with it as worrying about it makes it a hundred times worse.

It doesn’t sound as if your doctor has been particularly helpful so I would be seeking a face to face appointment to discuss it further. If you’re really sure there’s no underlying anxiety then it does sound as if it could be hormonal but you do need help in dealing with it.

I feel very sorry for you as the night is long and lonely when you’re awake. Zopiclone has helped me greatly but I only take it the night before I have a very busy day such as a trip to London or a major event as it’s addictive and increasingly ineffective if you take it too much. I’m allowed 2 x 3.75mg tablets a week. But I fully appreciate that with two young children you need to be able to function every day. I hope you get this sorted, good luck!

@Balletdreamer can't believe they laughed at you. Any woman aged 30+ complaining of otherwise unexplained insomnia must surely get checked out for peri. It surprises me that so many GPs seem so clueless on this topic. Glad you got it sorted. I'll be asking for HRT sooner rather than later if the various potions I've ordered (and probably wasted money) on don't work!

@Geran4 thanks so much. The night is definitely long and lonely when you're awake and I've found myself starting to go into quite an extreme panic these last few nights as I just can't quite believe this is happening every night. Am going to try not to do that at least as obviously it makes it so much worse.

Huge thanks to everyone who's responded here so far, the solidarity really helps. Wishing all of us a good night's sleep for the love of God, PLEASE. 😅

This is me, too!

I go to bed about now, put on an audio book set for 20 mins, it finishes, still awake, do the same thing, and repeat all night until 5.30am when I might get 15 or 30 mins of sleep with crazy, lucid dreams.

I'm 52, take amitripyline at night and have been prescribed melatonin as well, but still I cannot sleep! I have a lavender infuser thing, snooze band, pillow spray, relaxing balm for my temples. Still I lie awake!

It's been this way for about 7yrs now. I'll have maybe one night a week when I can get a solid 6hrs, but that's it.

I've had this recently. Awake all night, for days on the trot, or waking at 3am.

I suffer from chronic insomnia, it started when peri and hasn’t got any better 8 years post menopause. The only thing that has helped is Phenergan which you can buy over the counter I restrict myself to taking it every 5/6 days as it guarantees me a proper nights sleep when I’m desperate but don’t take it more often in case it stops working Just knowing that when I’m absolutely knackered I can get a good nights sleep means I don’t feel so desperate the other nights. Makes all the difference.

You haven't had covid recently?
Classic post Covid symptom for me.

...and here I am, still awake! The thought that I have gone from having no trouble sleeping to this in a few weeks and that it could go on for years like some of you poor things fills me with sheer terror. @stayathomegardener nope, I haven't had Covid recently, although I was ill a few weeks back with a throat infection and needed antibiotics, and all this has kicked off since. Don't know if it's related.
@bunchofthistles a friend recommended phenergen to me today actually so I bought some, brought them up to bed and decided to take one if I was still awake an hour later - which I did, an hour ago. Nothing happening yet. Maybe I should take another as it said one or two tablets?
I have a cousin who suffered with this for 4 years during peri, but getting on the right HRT finally helped her and now she sleeps like a normal person 😂. So there is hope.

I have bouts of this and it's horrible. My dc has complex needs and very poor sleep and when this is worse it seems to trigger complete insomnia in me. I don't understand it at all as it's always when I'm at my most tired my body decides "you know what - maybe we don't sleep after all?".

I've tried cbd, magnesium etc but I'm not sure it's made any difference. The insomnia wears off eventually but comes back after the next round of dc not sleeping. Really hope you get some answers OP 🙏

@Squirre I'm so sorry to hear that, that's the last thing you need in that situation. If I find anything that works I will post here with updates. It really is miserable. I'm still in some disbelief that this is happening when up until a few weeks ago I could sleep for England. It isn't fair for anyone to have to live this way indefinitely. I've just taken m second Phenergen. Here's hoping it does something. Hope you get a decent night tonight @Squirre .

Yep. Hence being awake and have work in a few hours, it’ll be 24 hours without sleep